THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
740) Reparata and the Delrons — “Weather Forecast”
I love Reparata and the Delrons (see #258, 389, 578) — and not just because they got together in ‘62 (the year I was born!) at St. Brendan’s Catholic School in Brooklyn (where I was living when I came home from the maternity ward!). “Fans of the girl group sound usually place Reparata and the Delrons near the top of their list of acts who, if the world was fair, would be household names.” (http://www.oocities.org/sunsetstrip/frontrow/2301/reparata.html) Yup!
“Weather Forecast” is, as Richie Unterberger says, “definitely [an] above average girl group good[y] . . . moody, slightly psychedelic-influenced” (https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-best-of-reparata-and-the-delrons-mw0000347791)
As to their name, Mary O’Leary, their first lead vocalist, explained that their managers wanted one that was flamboyant and flashy, sort of like Martha & the Vandellas. Her confirmation name was Reparata, which she had taken “from the choir mistress at the Good Shepherd elementary school — Sister Mary Reparata, my favourite nun” [liner notes to The Best of Reparata & the Delrons]. And so they were christened.
Bruce Eder gives us some history:
For a group that never made the Top 40, and came along almost too late to exploit the sound they produced, Reparata & the Delrons have proved amazingly durable. . . . [They] were one of hundreds of girl groups that flourished in the early ’60s, and actually had a higher profile than many of their rivals, achieved in their own time by their participation in a pair of Dick Clark national tours and, for years after, from the fact that they actually released a complete LP to accompany their one widely recognized hit, “Whenever a Teenager Cries.” . . . The group started out as a quartet in 1962 at St. Brendan’s Catholic School in Brooklyn, NY, led by lead singer Mary Aiesen . . . . By 1964, Mary working under the name Reparata Aiese (the name came from a nun at the school, Sister Mary Reparata), had a new group . . . . [T]hey were spotted by Bill and Steve Jerome, brothers and producers looking for new talent to record. The Jerome brothers got the group . . . a record deal with Laurie Records . . . . This was already rather late in the girl group era, and the trio found themselves competing with a tidal wave of British Invasion sounds for attention from DJs. The Jeromes next brought them to the World Artists label . . . in late 1964, and they cut a group of songs at their first session that included “Whenever a Teenager Cries.” That song, released in early 1965, became a local success, although it never ascended as high as the Top 50 on the national charts. . . . [I]t got the trio a spot on Dick Clark’s Caravan of Stars national tour. Meanwhile, World Artists tried a string of . . . singles, of which “Tommy” was a modest hit, although their subsequent efforts . . . were failures. A complete LP . . . was also released in 1965. . . . [They] ended up at RCA. . . . and . . . cut five singles for RCA . . . none of which charted, and in early 1967, the group jumped to Mala Records . . . . Their fortunes picked up a bit late that year with the release of “Captain of Your Ship[]” . . . . It just missed charting in America, but made number 15 in England in early 1968. After three hitless years in America, Reparata & the Delrons found themselves touring England. It was to be a momentary uptick in their success, however, for the group never had a follow-up hit in England.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/reparata-the-delrons-mn0000393299/biography
Oh, and “[t]he popularity of ‘Captain’ forced the girls . . . onto a plane for a British tour, highlighted by a hotel reception hosted by none other than . . . John Lennon and Ringo Starr”. (Jay Warner, American Singing Groups: A History from 1940 to Today)
“Weather Forecast” is actually a cover of a song by an obscure New York group called Sky:
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