The Raindrops

The Raindrops were an American pop group from New York City, associated with the Brill Building style of 1960s pop.

The group was formed around the nucleus of childhood friends Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich. Greenwich scored a hit in 1958 with the tune "Cha-Cha Charming" while a college student, and Barry began working for a Brill Building music publisher in 1959, penning the hit "Tell Laura I Love Her" among others. The two met again that year and began dating; simultaneously, they began writing and recording together. They would marry in October 1962. Greenwich also got a job in music publishing, but because the two were contractually obligated to different companies, they could not release songs together.

Instead, they recorded a tune, "What a Guy", a tune Barry had written for The Sensations, but the group's label, Jubilee Records, chose to release Barry and Greenwich's demo as the single under the name "The Raindrops" (the group name was reportedly inspired by "Raindrops," a 1961 hit song by Dee Clark). The single hit #41 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and the follow-up, "The Kind of Boy You Can't Forget", hit #17. Despite technically not existing, the group began to attract attention; media stills of the group oftean featured Greenwich's younger sister Laura, who did not sing on the records and who occasionally appeared in live performances with a dead microphone. Ellie Greenwich sometimes had Beverly Warren sing live for her, and Bobby Bosco filled in at times for Barry.

The Raindrops released a full-length on Jubilee toward the end of 1963; a third single, "That Boy John", was a minor hit but sank at radio after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. After a few further minor hits, Barry and Greenwich stopped releasing material under that name, and both enjoyed successful careers as songwriters. They divorced late in 1965, though they continued to write songs together. Both were inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame in 1991.

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