THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
2,150) Lulu and the Luvvers — “Chocolate Ice”
Lulu’s (see #960, 1,984) zany and over the top paean to sweets (in)famously accompanied the main title credits to the “[b]rilliantly awful, and awfully brilliant” (imdb-13900, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059237/review/rw5654075/?ref_=tturv) ’64 UK flick Gonks Go Beat, a “[b]izarre sixties fable resembling Romeo and Juliet, but instead of Montagues and Capulets, there are two musical communities, one who like rock and roll and one who like ballads, who become reunited through the love between a couple who love across their grouping”. (David Gibson, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059237/) The song was written by arranger and producer Mike Leander, who would later write the arrangement to the Beatles’ “She’s Leaving Home” because Paul McCartney couldn’t wait for George Martin to get around to it. (https://musicaficionado.blog/2019/11/12/the-artistry-of-mike-leander/) That connection is especially interesting because some find an uncanny similarity between “Chocolate Ice” and “Savoy Truffle”.
Alexandra Marie Apolloni writes:
Lulu recorded “Chocolate Ice,” a nonsense song about dessert, that was released both on her album Something to Shout About and on the soundtrack to the film Gonks Go Beat. Like her recording of “Shout,” “Chocolate Ice” is a rhythmic, fast-paced number, and Lulu uses a surprisingly harsh, grinding vocal sound. The song opens with just a hint of growl, Lulu’s voice sounding tight, as if her larynx is positioned high, and as though she is almost forcing the sound out. It sounds unsustainable – surely, she couldn’t maintain a vocal sound that harsh for so long without causing some kind of strain – but not only does she sustain it, she increases its intensity as the key modulates upwards, through verses about chocolate ices, peaches and cream, strawberry pies, and peppermint twists. “Chocolate Ice” is Lulu at her grittiest, and she tears through the song with abandon. On the final verse – “peppermint twist, really goes like this” – Lulu digs into the word “really,” and launches off of it into the song’s final lines . . . with a growling belt that sounds like it would be quite at home in death metal . . . . While another singer might easily inflect the list of confections described in “Chocolate Ice” so that the entire song sounds laden with innuendo (the song is completely set up for it, what with its “you know what I means” and “oh me oh mys,”) Lulu’s performance doesn’t read that way. . . . giving the performance a very straightforward, unironic quality. . . . Lulu’s earnest persona is all over the performance, and precludes interpretations that might figure it as anything other than a very intense love song to confectionary.
https://escholarship.org/content/qt33m350nx/qt33m350nx_noSplash_c9dd6888e65513e2e2dd74de22c80903.pdf
By the way, that come from her doctoral dissertation!
As to Lulu, Mark Deming tells us:
In the United States, Lulu is often thought of as a one-hit wonder, having scored a memorable number one hit in 1967 with the bittersweet and evocative “To Sir, With Love” . . . . In the United Kingdom, however, [she] . . . . would become an enduring star in pop music, on television, on-stage, and in the movies . . . . Lulu was born Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie . . . in Glasgow, Scotland. . . . After years of competing in talent contests, she was invited to join a local pop group, the Gleneagles, when she was 14. . . . [I]n 1962, the group was spotted by Marion Massey, who saw potential in the combo, in particular their charismatic lead singer. Massey became their manager, changed Marie’s stage name to Lulu, and dubbed the band the Luvvers. In 1964, Massey landed a recording deal for the group with Decca Records, and Lulu & the Luvvers’ first single, an enthusiastic cover of the Isley Brothers’ “Shout,” was a hit, rising to number seven on the U.K. singles charts. More chart successes followed . . . along with a steady stream of television, radio, and concert appearances that led to Melody Maker magazine naming Lulu Britain’s most promising new act of 1965. In 1966, Lulu . . . made her debut as a solo act. She signed a record deal with Columbia Records (the British label affiliated with EMI), struck a production deal with Mickie Most (best known for his work with the Animals, Donovan, and Jeff Beck), and set out on several concert tours . . . . In 1967, Lulu made her big-screen debut in the coming-of-age drama To Sir, With Love, in which she played . . . a student who learns important lessons about maturity and self-respect from teacher Sidney Poitier. The film became a hit in the U.K. and the U.S., and Lulu’s emotional reading of the theme song rose to the top of the American pop charts . . . . In the U.K., “The Boat I Row,” “Let’s Pretend,” and “Love Loves to Love, Love” were all major hits that year. . . . In 1968, Lulu became the star of her own television series . . . which aired . . . until 1975 — and scored more hit singles in the U.K. with “Me the Peaceful Heart,” “Boy,” and “I’m a Tiger.” In 1969, she made news when she wed Maurice Gibb . . . , though the marriage would only last four years. Lulu also represented England in the Eurovision Song Contest that year, and her song, “Boom Bang-a-Bang,” not only won the competition for England but became a major U.K. hit, peaking at number two on the sales charts.
Here is “Chocolate Ice” in the movie:
Here is the Long and the Short:
Here is Dinah Lee:
Oh, and here is “Savoy Truffle”;
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