Children Singing part 2

Yesterday's post was successful. Good friend of the blog Record Man has made a list a some songs that also belonged to it. I thought up of some more too, so I thought that a sequel would be good idea. It's summertime - and these escapades from our regular schedule are just like small holidays - and we all need those, don't we? Here we go then...

I could not not start with the most famous child actor ever, Shirley Temple (photo above). From 1933, at age 5, till 1940, this girl could do no wrong. She also had some very good roles in her late teens, the most notable being the hilarious The Bachelor And The Bobby-Soxer, were she co-starred with two very cool actors, Cary Grant and Myrna Loy.

Bright Eyes was released in 1934. From it, On The Good Ship Lollipop was a great hit, selling 500,000 sheet-music copies and becoming her signature song.

When Judy Garland sang Over The Rainbow she was already 16 going on 17, so the song is ineligible for our list. She was just 12, however, when she sang Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart on a radio show in 1935. It was the day before her father died.

One of Judy Garland's most famous films was Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). She was 22 at the time, but her co-star Margaret O'Brien was 7. Here they are both, singing Under the Bamboo Tree:

In 1952, 13-year-old Jimmy Boyd went to #1 in the US with I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus:

In 1956, the musical The King & I was made into a very popular movie. Rex Thompson who was Deborah Kerr's son in the film, was 13 at the time. Here they are, singing I Whistle a Happy Tune together:

In Mary Poppins (1964), the Banks children describe the requirements of a Perfect Nanny:

In another musical juggernaut, The Sound Of Music (1965), here are the Von Trapp children singing So Long, Farewell:

In Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang (1968), Caractacus Potts (Dick Van Dyke) sings You Two with his movie children:

A year earlier, Keith West, along with a chorus of children, took Excerpt From A Teenage Opera to #2 in the UK chart:

One of my favorite Pop songs ever is I Think I Love You (1970) by the Partridge Family. My first teenage crush, David Cassidy, was already 20, but the three younger children in the band ranged in age from 7 to 11.

The DeFranco Family, unlike the Partridge Family, were a real family. Lead singer Tony DeFranco was barely 14 when they had their biggest hit, Heartbeat, Its A Lovebeat (1973):

All the above are my contributions. Now, let's present the choices of our friend, Record Man.

First, Hayley Mills (of Pollyanna fame) was 14 going on 15 when she recorded Lets Get Together for The Parent Trap (1961):

The Cowsills were a family group from Rhode Island. When my favorite song of theirs, The Rain, The Park, and Other Things was released in 1967, the six siblings ranged in age from 8 to 19.

In 1972, Sammy Davis, Jr. and a chorus of children took The Candy Man all the way to #1 in the US. The song originated in the soundtrack of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971).

Also in 1972 The Three Dog Night took Black & White to #1 in the US. This song also included a chorus of children.

In 1973, brothers Karen & Richard otherwise known as The Carpenters, the best and most popular duo of its era, released Sing, a #3 US hit. I dug out a rare live version from a concert in Japan, with Karen singing (mostly) in Japanese.

A year later, a very successful singer in the 70s, Australian Helen Reddy, accompanied by her daughter Traci, took You and Me Against the World to the US Top 10.

Boogie Fever was recorded in 1975 by The Sylvers, a family group, and released in February 1976, going all the way to #1 US. At the time of recording, the three younger members of the band were 15, 14 and 13 years-old.

There are two songs in RM's list that I had also thought of before reading the list, so I guess that they belong to both of us. One of those is Stevie Wonder's Isn't She Lovely. An album track on Stevie's finest album, Songs in the Key of Life, it was never released as a single. Yet a few months later David Parton released a cover version, which went to #4 in the UK.

In the song, Stevie celebrates the birth of his daughter, Aisha. The recording opens with the sound of a baby crying, and the outro features Aisha as a baby. Wonder is the only artist whom we've already featured in part 1, when he himself was a child and now, as an adult, he's featured in a recording that includes the voice of his own child.

This is the second song that I had also thought of. Pass The Dutchie (1982) was a big international hit (#1 in the UK, Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand, Austria and Switzerland, #2 in Germany and Austria and #10 in the US). At the time, the five members of Musical Youth were aged 11 to 15 years old.

Menudo was a Puerto Rican boy band that was formed in the 1970s by producer Edgardo Díaz. They were one of the biggest Latin boy bands in history, releasing their first album in 1977. Through their existence, they went through many personnel changes. In 1984, they released their first album with Ricky Martin as a member. He was 13 at the time. He sang lead in one of the band's most popular songs, Rayo De Luna.

All of Genesis' members were great musicians and it's not surprising that all of them also had successful careers outside the band, quite like Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles. (The Beatles are in a league of their own). Mike Rutherford created a side project in the 80s that he named Mike & The Mechanics. Their biggest hit came in 1988, a #1 hit in the US and also a smash in all other major markets. A chorus of children is also present.

During the same year, Martika recorded Toy Soldiers for her eponymous debut album. It was a US #1 single in 1989. Martika was 19 at the time, but her former castmates from Kids Incorporated, as well as later cast members Renee Sands, Fergie, Rahsaan Patterson, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Devyn Puett, who appear as backup vocalists, were much younger.

Jump by Kris Kross was a huge #1 hit in the US and around the world in 1992. The two boys comprising Kris Kross were 13 and 14 at the time.

Finally, in 1998 Will Smith released Gettin' Jiggy Wit It a US #1 hit. I haven't found evidence that children are involved, but since Record Man says so, I trust him. I guess it's the chorus.

Tomorrow we'll be revealing the #1 TV theme, as well as discussing some quite interesting changes in the weekly statistics. The day after, we'll be back with our lesbian divas. Have a great weekend!