Song #89 - "I Will Follow Him" - Little Peggy March

#1 for weeks of April 27, May 4 and 11th, 1963. 

     In my last review, I raved about "He's So Fine" by The Chiffons. Obviously the song wasn't a lyrical masterpiece, (Nearly no girl group songs are), it was instead the wonderful music and vocals I loved. Those are what I usually gravitate towards when listening to a girl group classic. However, there are also songs which haven't aged as well and are a bit more of a chore to listen to. "I Will Follow Him" is one of those songs. 

     This song of course wasn't written by Peggy March, it actually is an English version of a French-language tune called "Chariot". However, there's nothing uniquely French about this song at all, and I wouldn't have made that connection on my own. 

     First of all I'll mention what I did like/was impressed by. I find the music of the chorus to be interesting due to its sudden alternating between major and minor keys. Also, Peggy March was only 14 when she recorded this song and has the record for being the youngest chart topper, so that's an impressive feat.

     However, there are a number of elements in this song that just don't click for me. One being Peggy's repetitious vocals which I gradually find more annoying as the song continues on. Also, unlike "He's So Fine" which contained a wonderfully crafted backing vocal arrangement, the backing vocals here range from really gruff sounding male backing vocals to overtly angelic female backing vocals.

     Now as for the lyrics, I've mentioned how most girl group lyrics are almost never masterpieces, but here they are among the most dated I've ever heard. Plus, having them repeated over and over, especially in the choruses gives this song a bit of a bubblegum feel, and that's not a good thing. 

     Despite all my criticism, this is not among the worst songs I've heard. The problem is the song is way too saccharine for my taste. I'm sure others might think otherwise, especially if they grew up with this tune. For me, I feel there are better songs that convey the same lyrical message in a better way. 

Final Verdict - "I Will Follow Him" is lyrically poor and vocally sub-par, but has some historical significance. However, it's not a song I'd go out of my way to hear again. 

           Coming Up Next - "If You Wanna Be Happy" by Jimmy Soul. 

                   Until Next Time - Won't you follow me, Dr. Rock.