VIKKI CARR: IT MUST BE HIM

Like Ike and Tina's ROLLING ON THE RIVER, this was such a massive, inescapable hit from my childhood that I guess I never noticed how twisted and sever her chunky frosted highlights were--more like stripes, really. And this gal is still touring! Here's a pic from her fansite from 2002 and she looks terrific.



I thought she kind of came out as a mexican after her career died down, but she did record a Spanish-titled album as early as 1970 with many more to come. I could be wrong about this, but I think that the US wasn't ready for an hispanic diva like Charo or J-Lo yet so they homogenized her ethnicity at first. My memory can get clouded by the mexican valium I just popped.

This tidbit's from her WIKIPEDIA entry, which is worth digging around for trivia. Her first album was called COLOR HER GREAT, another DON'T BREAK MY PRETTY BALLOON and one featured liner notes by Ethel Merman!

Carr also achieved the rare feat of singing for five presidents during her career: Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George Bush, and Bill Clinton. Ford writes in his autobiography, A Time to Heal, that when Carr appeared at the White House, she asked the president, "What Mexican dish do you like?" His response: "I like you." He goes on to write that the First Lady was not pleased: "Betty overheard the exchange, and needless to say, she wasn't wild about it."

I wasn't old enough to hit the clubs during her height, but the story-song is so dramatic that I'm sure that the drag queens of the day must have lip-synched the hell out of it, complete with a princess phone as a prop. Personally, I love the idea of starting, as Vikki does in the clip below, while seated and standing up for the chorus! Watch for this trick in my upcoming shows!