MRS. MLLER: LET'S HANG ON
I can't believe this nut had such a big budget for this crazy, swinging video! Are people too dumb to appreciate eccentricity these days? Just a theory...
FROM WIKIPEDIA:
Elva Ruby Connes (October 5, 1907 – July 5, 1997), who recorded under the name Mrs. Elva Miller (and usually simply called "Mrs. Miller"), was an American singer who gained some notoriety in the 1960s for her versions of popular songs like "Moon River", "Monday, Monday", "A Lover's Concerto", and "Downtown" rendered in an untrained, Mermanesque, vibrato-laden voice, often out of tune and off the beat. Her whistling, which was equally wobbly, also featured on a number of her records. According to Irving Wallace, David Wallechinsky, and Amy Wallace in The Book of Lists 2, her voice was often compared to the sound of "roaches scurrying across a trash can lid."
Her rendition of Downtown sounds like a karaoke version as she sings over a professional instrumental section. It includes an instance where she briefly breaks into giggling and several moments where she apparently forgets the lyrics she is singing. Despite this, her "Downtown" single cracked the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1966, peaking at #82. A subsequent Mrs. Miller single, "Let's Hang On!", did not fare as well.
Here is an unusual interpretation of her hit, DOWNTOWN. I came twice.
FROM WIKIPEDIA:
Elva Ruby Connes (October 5, 1907 – July 5, 1997), who recorded under the name Mrs. Elva Miller (and usually simply called "Mrs. Miller"), was an American singer who gained some notoriety in the 1960s for her versions of popular songs like "Moon River", "Monday, Monday", "A Lover's Concerto", and "Downtown" rendered in an untrained, Mermanesque, vibrato-laden voice, often out of tune and off the beat. Her whistling, which was equally wobbly, also featured on a number of her records. According to Irving Wallace, David Wallechinsky, and Amy Wallace in The Book of Lists 2, her voice was often compared to the sound of "roaches scurrying across a trash can lid."
Her rendition of Downtown sounds like a karaoke version as she sings over a professional instrumental section. It includes an instance where she briefly breaks into giggling and several moments where she apparently forgets the lyrics she is singing. Despite this, her "Downtown" single cracked the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1966, peaking at #82. A subsequent Mrs. Miller single, "Let's Hang On!", did not fare as well.
Here is an unusual interpretation of her hit, DOWNTOWN. I came twice.
posted by Lady Bunny at Friday, April 17, 2009
2 Comments:
Only twice! I came at least 16 times, I'm dripping like a fucked up fridge.
I fell in love with Mrs. Miller in 1990s. I stumbled across her when all those martini lounge cds were so popular. My favorite Mrs. Miller ode is her version of "Tiger By the Tail"
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