From yesterday’s girl group The Chordettes, topping the charts in 1954, we jump a decade to a pair of girl groups owning the #1 and #2 positions on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964.
The week of Nov. 17 that year found The Supremes atop the chart with their classic ‘Baby Love,’ already featured on the blog. In the second slot that week, on its way to a #1 berth a couple of weeks later, was The Shangri-Las’ ‘Leader of the Pack.’
This song is another example of a genre I covered a few weeks back — the teen tragedy song. Here, a girl describes her doomed relationship with the leader of a motorcycle gang. After her parents force her to leave him, the poor kid drives off into the rain and dies in a crash.
Martin Scorsese used this song to soundtrack the hilarious “hostess party” scene in Goodfellas, drawing a nice parallel to the wives of mobsters.
One great piece of trivia I came across is that the piano in this recording may well be played by a 15-year-old Billy Joel. He told this story to Uncut magazine in 1998:
I know I played piano on a session. The girls themselves weren’t at the session, but that kinda happens all the time, the singers come in later. I played note for note what is on the record, but I wasn’t in the musician’s union – I was about 14 or 15 – so for all I know they may have got a union guy in to do it later. I never got paid, never got a form to show it was me on the record, so I can’t say for sure it’s me, but I like to think it was.
Is she really going out with him?
Well, there she is. Let’s ask her
Betty, is that Jimmy’s ring you’re wearing?
Mhm
Gee, it must be great riding with him
Is he picking you up after school today?
Mnm
By the way, where’d you meet him?
I met him at the candy store
He turned around and smiled at me
You get the picture?
Yes, we see
That’s when I fell for the leader of the pack
[Verse 1]
My folks were always putting him down (Down, down)
They said he came from the wrong side of town
(What you mean when you say
That he came from the wrong side of town?)
They told me he was bad
But I knew he was sad
That’s why I fell for the leader of the pack
[Verse 2]
One day my Dad said, “Find someone new”
I had to tell my Jimmy, “We’re through”
(What you mean when you say
That you better go find somebody new?)
He stood there and asked me why
But all I could do was cry
I’m sorry I hurt you, the leader of the pack
[Bridge]
He sort of smiled and kissed me goodbye
The tears were beginning to show
As he drove away on that rainy night
I begged him to go slow
Whether he heard, I’ll never know
No, no, no, no, no, no, no
Look out, look out, look out, look out!
[Verse 3]
I felt so helpless, what could I do?
Remembering all the things we’ve been through
In school they all stop and stare
I can’t hide my tears, but I don’t care
I’ll never forget him, the leader of the pack
[Outro]
Ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh
Gone, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone
(Leader of the pack, and now he’s gone)
(Leader of the pack, and now he’s gone)
Gone, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone
(Leader of the pack, and now he’s gone)
(Leader of the pack, and now he’s gone)
Gone, gone, gone, gone…
Meet Me In Montauk 
I’ve heard Billy Joel tell that story. Very cool!