(Andy Kim, Jeff Barry)
This bubblegum pop song written by Andy Kim and Jeff Barry for The Archies who were a fictional group that appeared in the animated series The Archie Show.
It was recorded in 1969 as a track on Everything’s Archie and the resultant single release became an international smash hit. It topped the charts in the UK, United States and South Africa and became the “Number One Single of the Year”.
At the time the group were something of a mystery with no one knowing who the performers were as they were never interviewed and never performed live. In fact it was Ron Dante, Andy Kim, Ellie Greenwich and Toni Wine who supplied the vocals on the song with the music being provided by Don Kirschner’s studio musicians. Toni Wine even roped in the hand-clapper in the form of the successful singer-songwriter Ray Stevens.
Since it’s success it has been recorded by countless other acts that include Ike & Tina Turner, Bob Marley, Big Youth, Tom Jones and the actor Kurt Russell and it has re-entered the charts on recordings by Wilson Pickett and Stars on 45. Baron Longfellow, who was in fact the co-writer Andy Kim, also released it in 1980.
So popular was the song that Kelloggs even had a copy printed onto some of their cereal boxes that you could cut out and play on your turntable.
It’s influence on other artists came to the fore when Def Leppard used the line from the song “Pour some sugar on me baby” as the basis for their international hit “Pour Some Sugar On Me”.
There have even been speculations that the song was actually offered to The Monkees first by Don Kirschner and various stories have come out about them refusing to perform it ranging from it being “too cheesy” to Mike Nesmith putting his first through a wall. It has even been surmised that the song they were offered wasn’t “Sugar, Sugar” at all, but “Sugar Man”.
Montreal native Andy Kim saw his co-written song recognised by being inducted into the Canadian Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in 2006.
Stars on 45 recordings
Medley: Intro “Venus” – Sugar Sugar – No Reply – I’ll Be Back – Drive My Car – Do You Want to Know a Secret – We Can Work it Out – I Should Have Known Better – Nowhere Man – You’re Going to Lose That Girl – Stars on 45 (Jeff Barry/Martin Duiser/Jaap Eggermont/Andy Kim/Robbie van Leeuwen/John Lennon/Paul McCartney)
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