(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please refer to the "Poor Little Fool" post)
The Four Seasons - "Rag Doll"
Hit Number 1: July 18, 1964
Stay at Number 1: 2 Weeks
Sometimes what makes the song, is the backstory that led to it. "Rag Doll" purely exists because of an encounter group member Bob Gaudio had with a little girl on his way to the recording studio one day. It was very common for children in the neighborhood that Gaudio lived by to run into the street and clean car windshields that were stopped at traffic lights for spare change. That day, Gaudio was stopped at a light and a girl, around 5 years old and in very ragged clothing, started cleaning his driver's side mirror, because she wasn't tall enough to reach the windshield. Gaudio reached into his wallet to give her some money, but he apparently couldn't find anything lower than a $20. Regardless, he gave her the $20, and as he drove off, he remembered seeing the look of disbelief and astonishment on the girl's face as she looked at the bill.
After that story, Gaudio, along with some assistance from the group's manager Bob Crewe, wrote "Rag Doll". The song is about a girl who obviously comes from a less-fortunate and financially troubled family, and as a result, wears very ragged clothing and gets made fun of by the kids at school. The kids would call her "rag doll". Despite that, this boy at the same school sees past her obvious money issues, and thinks to himself that this girl is very pretty, and ought to be dressed in lace instead. He claims that he would fix all of her and her family's troubles if he could, but even his own family denies him having anything to do with her, calling her "no good". He still doesn't care, and at the end of the song you can her Frankie Valli sing the words "I love you just the way you are", confirming that this narrator of the song is a real one, and sees past everything that the girl gets made fun of for.
Along with the lyrics, the arrangement of the song is very well done, and is so far the best thing that the Four Seasons have done. Instead of the spotlight being on Valli's falsetto, it's on the whole group, with there being superb backing vocals, and a clean and crisp delivery by Valli in a regular singing voice. They don't want you to think about themselves and how they sound, they want you to pay more attention to the story the song is telling instead. Though at least for me, I can't help but do that anyway. That opening line "When she was just a kid her clothes were hand-me-downs" is an immediate draw-in, cause you know this isn't going to be your ordinary love song. Of course, it's also obvious that Valli didn't completely abandon his falsetto yet, but he proved that he does have a good one. Let's be honest, his falsetto on "Sherry" and "Big Girls Don't Cry" wasn't the greatest, and I couldn't shake the feeling that there was still something missing on "Walk Like a Man". "Rag Doll" is when they finally figured it out, with a song that tells a cool little story, backed by a strong musical arrangement.
As you can probably tell, the Four Seasons were one of the few musical acts that weren't completely wiped out of society by the Beatles and the still-rising British Invasion. However, it's going to be a fat minute before we hear from them again, as we will actually hear from Frankie Valli in his solo career first in 1975. Valli's career would even extend into the heart of the disco era, as he played a very prominent role in the soundtrack of the movie "Grease". So even disco couldn't eliminate the dude. Other than Valli getting to #2 with the ultimate jam "Can't Keep My Eyes Off of You" (honestly, that one is a 10, not gonna lie) there wouldn't be anything Four Seasons related having much chart success until Valli's #1 in 1975. But "Rag Doll" is certainly a good one to have as your last chart-topper for the coming years.
GRADE: 9/10
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