| "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" | |
|---|---|
| Single by The Bluebelles | |
| Released | 1962 |
| Recorded | 1962 |
| Genre | Rock 'n' roll |
| Label | Newtown Records |
"I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" is a 1962 hit single by The Blue Belles, written by Jimmie Thomas. The song is notable for having been originally recorded by another group (The Starlets) and conflicting schedules leading the future Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles group to claim the song as their own. Before either group recorded it as a high-energy rocker, however, it appeared as a slow ballad late in the 1940s sung by the Basin Street Boys, and in 1957, recorded by The Silhouettes (of "Get a Job" fame) with The Dave McRae Orchestra on Ace Records.
In 1962, Chicago-based girl group The Starlets were riding high with their top forty single, "Better Tell Him No". That year, while on tour, they were convinced by Newtown Records president Harold Robinson to appear in a recording schedule where they recorded two songs. One of which was "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman". After recording the songs, Robinson released the song on his label but instead of crediting the Starlets, instead credited a Philadelphia-based girl group named The Ordettes, who had changed their name to The Blue Belles - after a threat from another record boss, the name was altered to Patti LaBelle and Her Blue Belles.
The song eventually reached number fifteen on the Billboard Hot 100 thanks to promotion of the song by the Blue Belles, who made their first television appearance on American Bandstand in mid-1962. It's unknown as to whether Robinson erased the original lead vocal from the song and added in Patti LaBelle's lead vocal, or whether the Starlets themselves were replaced by session singers. Nevertheless the Starlets' manager sued Robinson for ownership of the song, with the girls each winning $5,000 from the suit.[1] Despite this, however, it's still isn't clear as to how the song was released.
Ironically when the Blue Belles recorded their own version shortly before promoting it, both the Starlets and Blue Belles' versions were strikingly similar to each other. The Starlets didn't fully recover from the "Junkman" scandal and after a half-year of new recordings, split in 1963.[2] Meanwhile, the newly christened Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles went on to national fame that year with their hit, "Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)".
To this day, "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" is credited to Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles.
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