"Sha La La" is a song written by Robert Mosely (whose name is spelled "Moseley" on the record) and Robert Taylor.

The Shirelles The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey, in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later Doris Kenner-Jackson), Addie "Micki" Harris (later Addie Harris McF ...

released the original version of the song as a single in March 1964 in the US, reaching number 15 on the U.S. R&B chart and number 69 on the U.S. pop chart. A cover by the British pop group

Manfred Mann Manfred Mann were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. They were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann (musician), Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The group had two l ...

would follow that October, being the most notable version of the song, reaching number 3 on the UK singles chart and number 12 on both the U.S. pop chart and the RPM charts in 1965. Around the same time as the release of Manfred Mann's version, the song was adapted into French by Georges Aber and performed by French pop singer

Sylvie Vartan Sylvie Vartan (; born Sylvie Georges Vartanian on 15 August 1944) is a Bulgarians in France, Bulgarian-French singer and actress. She is known as one of the most productive and tough-sounding yé-yé artists. Her performances often featured ela ...

, whose version was released as a single in October 1964 and reached number 14 on the French Belgian chart.

Manfred Mann recording

The most successful version was performed by British pop group

. It reached number 3 on the UK singles chart and number 12 on both the U.S. pop chart and the Canadian chart in 1965. It was featured on the US version of their 1965 album '' The Five Faces of Manfred Mann''. ''

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 delightful rock-a-rhythmic beat refitting of the Shirelles' few-seasons-back click."

Other notable versions

In 1964, the song was adapted into French by Georges Aber and performed by French pop singer

, whose version was released as a single in October 1964 and reached number 14 on the

Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium. Ultratop is a non-profit organization, created in 1995 on the initiative of the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), the Belgian member organiz ...

Wallonia charts (French Belgium).

References

1964 songs 1964 singles Manfred Mann songs The Shirelles songs The Ventures songs Gary Lewis & the Playboys songs Song recordings produced by Snuff Garrett United Artists Records singles Scepter Records singles {{1960s-single-stub Songs written by Robert Mosley Song recordings produced by John Burgess