"Rag Doll" is a popular song written by

Bob Crewe Robert Stanley Crewe (November 12, 1930 – September 11, 2014) was an American songwriter, dancer, singer, manager, and record producer. Crewe co-wrote and produced a string of Top 10 singles with Bob Gaudio for the Four Seasons. As a songw ...

and

Bob Gaudio Robert John Gaudio (born November 17, 1942) is an American songwriter, singer, musician, and record producer, and the keyboardist and backing vocalist of the pop/rock band the Four Seasons. Gaudio wrote or co-wrote the vast majority of the ban ...

. It was recorded by the Four Seasons and released as a single in 1964.

Background

According to songwriter Bob Gaudio, the recording was inspired by an occasion involving the homeless children who, at stop lights in the city, would run into the street and clean windshields for spare change. In the

Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, or Midtown West on real estate listings, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, ...

neighborhood, a young girl with a dirty face and wearing ragged clothes approached Gaudio's automobile. When he reached into his wallet to pay her, he found that none of the notes were smaller than $10. He gave the girl a $10 bill. (Some accounts indicate that it was a $5 bill.) "The image of her stuck in my head until I wrote 'Rag Doll'", Gaudio recalled in a 2009 interview. ''

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 ...

'' described the song as a "sentimental slow dance ballad." ''

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 ...

'' described it as "a touching, cha cha beat opus...that the group serves up in their fabulous style" and that features the "hit sounds" of

Frankie Valli Francesco Stephen Castelluccio (born May 3, 1934), better known by his stage name Frankie Valli, is an American singer and occasional actor, best known as the frontman (lead singer) of The Four Seasons (band), the Four Seasons. He is known for ...

. In 1989, critic

Dave Marsh Dave Marsh (born ) is an American music critic and radio talk show host. He was an early editor of '' Creem'' magazine, has written for various publications such as ''Newsday'', ''The Village Voice'', and ''Rolling Stone'', and has published num ...

ranked "Rag Doll" at No. 401 on his list compiled in the book ''The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made'', being one of five songs by the Four Seasons included in the book. In 1997,

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi * '' ...

also listed the song as one of the 'Bubbling Under' singles in its list of 'The 100 Greatest Singles Of All Time'.

Accolades

In 2010, radio station

WCBS-FM WCBS-FM (101.1 FM) is a radio station owned and operated by Audacy, Inc. licensed to New York, New York, and broadcasting a classic hits format. The station's studios are in the combined Audacy facility in the Hudson Square neighborhood in ...

in New York City rated the Four Seasons' "Rag Doll" as the No. 1 song of all time, as voted on by its listeners.

Cover

* In 1966 the band

Pooh Winnie-the-Pooh (also known as Edward Bear, Pooh Bear or simply Pooh) is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. Winnie-the-Pooh first appeared by ...

recorded the Italian version in the single entitled ''Quello che non sai'' (What you do not know), text by Antonietta De Simone, (Vedette, VVN 33114) for the album ''Per quelli come noi'' (For those like us) of the same year (Vedette, VRM 36033).

B-Side

The

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 ...

was the original version of " Silence Is Golden", also written by Crewe and Gaudio. In 1967, that song was covered by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

band

the Tremeloes The Tremeloes (formerly Brian Poole and The Tremeloes) are an English beat group founded in 1958 in Dagenham, England. They initially found success in the British Invasion era with lead singer Brian Poole, scoring a UK chart-topper in 1963 with ...

and peaked at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 8 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and No. 11 on the US charts.

Personnel

Source. ;The Four Seasons *

– lead vocals, harmony and backing vocals, handclaps * Tommy DeVito – harmony and backing vocals, guitar, handclaps *

Nick Massi Nicholas E. Macioci (September 19, 1927 – December 24, 2000) was an American bass singer, songwriter, and bass guitarist. He is best known for his work as the bassist and bass vocalist for The Four Seasons, for whom he performed under the stag ...

– harmony and backing vocals, bass, handclaps *

– harmony and backing vocals,

Farfisa organ Farfisa () is a manufacturer of electronics based in Osimo, Italy, founded in 1946. The company manufactured a series of compact electronic organs in the 1960s and 1970s, including the Compact, FAST, Professional and VIP ranges, and later, a s ...

, handclaps ;Additional musician and production staff *

Buddy Saltzman Buddy Saltzman (born Hilliard Saltzman; October 17, 1924 – April 30, 2012) was an American session drummer who played on many hit songs during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. He is especially remembered for his work with The Four Seasons. On " Da ...

– drums, tambourine, African hair drum *

– producer * Lenny Stei – engineer

Chart history

"Rag Doll" reached the top spot on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on July 18, 1964, and remained on top for two weeks. The song was also a No. 1 hit in Canada, and reached No. 2 in the UK and No. 4 in Ireland.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

1964 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles The Four Seasons (band) songs Songs written by Bob Crewe Songs written by Bob Gaudio RPM Top Singles number-one singles Song recordings produced by Bob Crewe 1964 songs Philips Records singles {{1960s-single-stub