"Just One Look" is a song co-written by American R&B singers Doris Troy and Gregory Carroll. The recording by Doris Troy was a hit in 1963. The Hollies, Anne Murray,

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...

and Iain Matthews each achieved success with the song. There have also been many other versions.

Doris Troy version

Background

Details vary as to how the Doris Troy version came to be released on

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

. According to the book ''Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders'',

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

saw Troy performing in a nightclub (under her then-

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Doris Payne), and introduced her to Atlantic. According to a more recent and detailed story in ''Soulful Divas'', Payne recorded a studio demo of the song and took it to Sue Records first, but their lack of response led her to offer it to

Jerry Wexler Gerald Wexler (January 10, 1917 – August 15, 2008) was a music journalist turned music producer, and was a major influence on American popular music from the 1950s through the 1980s. He coined the term "rhythm and blues", and was integra ...

at Atlantic, where the label released the demo unchanged. The personnel included Ernie Hayes on piano, Wally Richardson on guitar,

Bob Bushnell Robert C. Bushnell (1926 – January 31, 2016) was an American bass player and guitarist who has appeared on dozens of albums and singles as a studio musician, including Bobby Lewis's hit " Tossin' and Turnin'" (1961), " My Boyfriend's Back" ...

on bass and

Bernard Purdie Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie (born June 11, 1939) is an American drummer, and an influential R&B, soul, funk and jazz musician. He is known for his precise time-keeping and his signature use of Tuplet, triplets against a half-time backbeat: the P ...

on drums.Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Let The Drums Speak!, 2014 pages 69-70. The single's release was the first time she started using "Doris Troy" as her stage name, though her

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

remained Doris Payne. She is listed as Payne in the songwriting credits.

Reception

In 1963, Doris Troy scored her only hit on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart with "Just One Look". The song spent 14 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at No. 10,Doris Troy – Chart History – The Hot 100
''Billboard.com''. Accessed December 22, 2015 while reaching No. 3 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s Hot R&B Singles chart,Hot R&B Singles
, ''

'', August 24, 1963. p. 22. Accessed December 22, 2015. No. 8 on New Zealand's "Lever Hit Parade","Lever Hit Parade" 28-May-1964
, ''Flavour of New Zealand''. Accessed December 24, 2015. and No. 1 on Canada's CHUM Hit Parade for 3 weeks. It also charted at No. 9 on the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' Top 100, in a tandem ranking with the version by Andy and the Marglows, with Troy's version marked as a bestseller.Cash Box Top 100
, ''

'', August 3, 1963. p. 4. Retrieved April 19, 2017. "Just One Look" was ranked No. 70 on ''Billboard''s end of year ranking " Top Records of 1963", while being ranked No. 80 on ''

''s "Top 100 Chart Hits of 1963",Top 100 Chart Hits of 1963
, ''

'', December 28, 1963. p. 20. Retrieved April 18, 2017. and No. 11 on ''Billboard''s "Top R&B Singles for 1963".

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

In television advertisements

Doris Troy's version was featured in a 1991

Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...

commercial starring Cindy Crawford, which was re-aired during Super Bowl XXXV in 2001. An updated version of the ad, still featuring Cindy Crawford and Troy's rendition aired in 2002. In 2015, Troy's take was featured in an ad for

Aspartame Aspartame is an artificial non-saccharide sweetener commonly used as a sugar substitute in foods and beverages. 200 times sweeter than sucrose, it is a methyl ester of the aspartic acid/phenylalanine dipeptide with brand names NutraSwe ...

Free

Diet Pepsi Diet Pepsi, also called Pepsi Light in some countries, is a diet carbonated cola soft drink produced by PepsiCo, introduced in 1964 as a variant of Pepsi with no sugar. First test marketed in 1963 under the name Patio Diet Cola, it was re-bra ...

. A different version was utilized in a series of commercials for

Mazda is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima (town), Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima, Japan. The company was founded on January 30, 1920, as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. ...

, beginning in 1979 and continuing into the early 1980s.

The Hollies version

Background

"Just One Look" became a hit in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

via a cover by the Hollies which reached No. 2 on the ''

Record Retailer ''Record Retailer'' was the only music trade newspaper for the UK record industry. It was founded in August 1959 as a monthly newspaper covering both labels and dealers. Its founding editor was Roy Parker (who died on 27 December 1964). The ti ...

'' chart in April 1964. It became the 37th biggest hit of the year. Although not a major U.S. hit in its original release, the Hollies' "Just One Look" marked the first appearance of the band on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at No. 98. A U.S. re-issue in 1967 reached No. 44 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.Hot 100 – The Hollies Just One Look Chart History
''Billboard.com''. Retrieved March 5, 2018.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Linda Ronstadt version

Background

included "Just One Look" on her 1978 album '' Living in the USA''. Her cover was issued on Asylum Records as the album's third single on January 23, 1979, and was produced by Peter Asher. Ronstadt's single spent eight weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching No. 44,Hot 100 – Linda Ronstadt Just One Look Chart History
''Billboard.com''. Retrieved March 6, 2018. while reaching No. 5 on ''Billboard''s Easy Listening chart.Adult Contemporary – Linda Ronstadt Just One Look Chart History
''Billboard.com''. Retrieved March 6, 2018. It also peaked at No. 46 on the ''

'' Top 100Cash Box Top 100 Singles
''

'', March 31, 1979. p. 4. Accessed July 14, 2016. and No. 54 on the '' Record World'' Singles chart.Record World Singles
, '' Record World'', March 24, 1979. p. 37. Retrieved March 5, 2018.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other versions

Martha Reeves & the Vandellas covered the song later that year on their 1963 album ''

Heat Wave A heat wave or heatwave, sometimes described as extreme heat, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally considered to be at least ''five consecutive days''. A heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the area and ...

''. Anne Murray remade "Just One Look" for her 1974 '' Love Song'' album. The track was produced by Brian Ahern and issued as a single that October. Her cover reached No. 11 on Canada's '' RPM'' Top Singles chart, No. 12 on Canada's CHUM 30, and spent two weeks on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching No. 86. It also reached No. 50 on ''Billboard''s

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

chart. The single's

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

, " Son of a Rotten Gambler", reached No. 1 on ''RPM''s Adult Contemporary chart and No. 3 on ''RPM''s Country chart in 1974. The

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

-based disco band Faith Hope and Charity released a cover, which spent four weeks on the UK Singles Chart, reaching No. 38 on February 7, 1976.Faith, Hope and Charity – Full Official Chart History

Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...

. Retrieved March 14, 2018.

References

External links

* * * * * * {{authority control 1963 singles 1964 singles 1974 singles Doris Troy songs The Hollies songs Linda Ronstadt songs Faith Hope and Charity (US band) songs Anne Murray songs American rhythm and blues songs 1963 songs Atlantic Records singles Parlophone singles Asylum Records singles 1979 singles Songs written by Gregory Carroll (R&B singer) Songs written by Doris Troy

Doris Troy version

Background

Reception

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

In television advertisements

The Hollies version

Background

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Linda Ronstadt version

Background

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other versions

See also

References

External links