1965 Songs: This Diamond Ring

Tweet

Hey, it’s a pretty good two-fer today! Along with the songs that came out the year I was born, I’m celebrating my birthday this month with songs that turn 60 this year. Here’s one of the classics from 1965, so sing along! This Diamond Ring - Gary Lewis & the Playboys If you look at the screen grab you might think he looks a little like Jerry Lewis. I hope so: Gary Lewis is Jerry Lewis’ son. Fun fact: Gary’s mom funded the band’s early recording sessions because she didn’t think Jerry would like their son being “rock and roll.” And, initially, Gary didn’t seek to ride his famous dad’s coattails. The band was “Gary & the Playboys,” the playboys part coming from a joke that the band members were playboys because they were late for rehearsals. They played in Disneyland as a band, a gig they got with no mention of Dean Martin’s comedy partner. Here’s something really interesting about this song. It was co-written by singer, songwriter, producer, and “frequently mistaken for Alice Cooper” musician Al Kooper. (I remember a photo of him in a t-shirt that said, “Al…not Alice.” ) He was credited on the 45 as Kooder, not Kooper. He’s said a number of times that he absolutely loathed the Gary Lewis & the Playboys version of this song. I’m sure Kooper cried all the way to the bank after this song became #1 and a million-seller. (Kooper did record the version he envisioned in the 70s on one of his albums.) The band’s career was short and sweet. It wasn’t the music wars that terminated the band, it was the Vietnam war. Bassist Allan Ramsay and Lewis were drafted (Lewis, to his credit, refused a cushy job with the USO because he was Jerry Lewis’ son and/or a celebrity rock singer). When the returned, their music was replaced by the eccentric sounds of the late 60s. Lewis has enjoyed a second career on the “oldies” circuit, because we all love and remember these songs. This Diamond Ring Written by Al Kooper, Bob Brass, and Irwin Levine Recorded by Gary Lewis & the Playboys From This Diamond Ring, 1965 It doesn’t mean a thing: