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1, 2, 3, Red Light (song)

FieldValue
name1, 2, 3, Red Light
cover1,_2,_3,_Red_Light_-_1910_Fruitgum_Company.jpg
typesingle
artist[1910 Fruitgum Company](1910-fruitgum-company)
album[1, 2, 3, Red Light](1-2-3-red-light)
B-sideSticky Sticky
releasedJuly 1968
* garage rock<ref name"Stanley 2013"
length
labelBuddah
writerSal Trimachi, Bobbi Trimachi
producerSuper K Productions
prev_titleMay I Take a Giant Step (Into Your Heart)
prev_year1968
next_titleGoody Goody Gumdrops
next_year1968

| B-side = Sticky Sticky

  • Bubblegum pop
  • garage rock

"1, 2, 3, Red Light" is a song written by Sal Trimachi and Bobbi Trimachi and was recorded by 1910 Fruitgum Company for their 1968 album, 1, 2, 3, Red Light. The song charted highest in Canada, going to number 1 on the RPM 100 national singles chart in 1968. In the same year in the US, it went to number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was on the charts for 13 weeks.

The song went to number 2 in South Africa, number 3 on the New Zealand charts, and in Australia it reached number 7. It was named the number 39 song of 1968 on the Cashbox charts. The song was certified as a gold disc in September 1968.

Background

Bubblegum pop was marketed to preteens as the evolving genre of rock music was beginning to target older adolescents and adults with darker lyrics and heavier rhythms. The simple structure of the songs and non-political content of bubblegum pop appealed to a younger audience. Many of the songs in the bubblegum pop genre like "1, 2, 3 Red Light" were intended to be singles within the budget of that younger preteen audience. "1, 2, 3 Red Light" became one of the biggest hits of the genre.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1968)Peak
position
Australia7
Canadian *RPM* Top Singles1
New Zealand3
South Africa2
Spain (Promusicae)23
US *Billboard* Hot 1005
US *Cashbox* Top 1003

Year-end charts

Chart (1968)Rank
Canada42
US *Billboard* Hot 10048
US *Cash Box* Top 10039

Certifications

Cover versions

  • Ohio Express released a cover version of the song on their 1969 album, Chewy, Chewy.
  • Talking Heads played the song at some of their early shows and a live version can be found on the bootleg Gimme Heads.
  • Welsh band The Pooh Sticks covered the song in 1988 and released it on Fierce Recordings as part of a 5-disc series of one-sided seven inch singles, artistically scratched on their B sides.

References

References

  1. Stanley, Bob. (13 September 2013). "Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop". Faber & Faber.
  2. Kathleen C. Fennessy. "1, 2, 3 Red Light - 1910 Fruitgum Company | Songs, Reviews, Credits". [[AllMusic]].
  3. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada".
  4. "Artist Search for "1910 fruitgum company"". [[AllMusic]].
  5. Brian Currin. (25 May 2003). "South African Rock Lists Website - SA Charts 1965 - 1989 Acts (0-9)".
  6. "Song artist 912 - 1910 Fruitgum Co".
  7. Simpson, Kim. ''Early '70s Radio: The American Format Revolution''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011, p.25–26
  8. Doggett, Peter. ''Electric Shock: From the Gramophone to the IPhone – 125 Years of Pop Music''. Random House, 2015. p.427
  9. Salaverri, Fernando. (2015). "Sólo éxitos 1959–2012". Fundación Autor-SGAE.
  10. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002
  11. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles, September 28, 1968".
  12. (17 July 2013). "Image : RPM Weekly".
  13. "Top 100 Hits of 1968/Top 100 Songs of 1968.".
  14. "CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1968 Top 100 Pop Singles, December 28, 1968".
  15. "Chewy, Chewy - Ohio Express | Songs, Reviews, Credits". [[AllMusic]].
  16. Mark Allender. "Gimme Heads - Talking Heads | Songs, Reviews, Credits". [[AllMusic]].
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1968-songs 1968-singles 1910-fruitgum-company-songs ohio-express-songs talking-heads-songs buddah-records-singles rpm-top-singles-number-one-singles
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