BILL MESNIK OF THE SPLENDID BOHEMIANS PRESENTS: THE SUNNY SIDE OF MY STREET - SONGS TO MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD - EPISODE #63: WHEN YOU WALK IN THE ROOM by Jackie De Shannon (Liberty, 1963)

DIG THIS WITH BILL MESNIK AND RICH BUCKLAND- THE SPLENDID BOHEMIANS

One of the greatest rock and roll songwriters, Jackie De Shannon has a way of marrying a catchy pop melody with a fresh lyrical insight that is unparalleled. During that shift from Rockabilly into the British Invasion, Jackie (often with partner Sharon Sheeley), kept the pop charts humming - amassing an impressive discography for anyone - let alone little Sharon Lee Myers from Hazel, Kentucky, a pert blonde girl singer with a husky alto, who was being marketed as cheese cake. But Jackie had far too much grit and ambition to have her career begin and end as a Brenda Lee knock-off. She drove through the 60s racking up 2 top ten hits along the way.

When You Walk in the Room is an excellent example of that magical melding of a great hook with an original turn of phrase. Starting as a B-Side in 1963, it was re-released a year later as an A side, and included in her album BREAKIN’ IT UP ON THE BEATLES TOUR! That’s right … She opened for the fucking Beatles.

What with all this, It might seem odd to say, but I believe that Jackie was underrated. Of her two biggest hits as a vocalist, one (What the World Needs Now) was written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, and the other one (Put a Little Love in Your Heart) was a bit of treacle co-written with her brother and two other folks. Neither of these tunes exhibit the wit, the grit, the sexiness, or the spark of her own tunes.