Editing Lesley Gore (section)

===1963–1979: Commercial success===

Gore was discovered after her uncle gave [[Joe Glaser]] a tape of her singing that he forwarded to [[Irving Green]], president of [[Mercury Records]]. Green gave the tape to [[Quincy Jones]] for evaluation and Jones, recognizing her talent, became her producer. She was 16 years old.<ref name=NPR/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bever |first1=Lindsey |title=Lesley Gore: How she went from 'It's My Party' to 'You Don't Own Me' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/02/17/lesley-gore-teeny-bopper-turned-lesbian-icon-dies-at-68/#:~:text=Born%20Lesley%20Goldstein%2C%20Gore%20was,on%20the%20Billboard%20Hot%20100. |access-date=10 February 2024 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=February 17, 2015}}</ref>  When she recorded her version of "[[It's My Party]]" in 1963, she was a junior in high school. It became a number-one, nationwide [[Hit single|hit]]. Gore's version was certified as a [[music recording sales certification|Gold record]].<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs">{{cite book
| first= Joseph
| last= Murrells
| year= 1978
| title= The Book of Golden Discs
| edition= 2nd
| publisher= Barrie and Jenkins Ltd
| location= London
| page= [https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/159 159]
| isbn= 0-214-20512-6
| url-access= registration
| url= https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/159
}}</ref> It also marked the beginning of a time when fans would show up on her front lawn.<ref name="NYDN"/>

"It's My Party" was followed by many other hits for Gore, including the sequel, "[[Judy's Turn to Cry]]" (US number five); "[[She's a Fool]]" (US number five); the [[Second-wave feminism|feminist]]-themed million-selling "[[You Don't Own Me]]",<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs"/> which held at number two for three weeks behind [[the Beatles]]' "[[I Want To Hold Your Hand]]"; "[[That's the Way Boys Are]]" (US No. 12); "[[Maybe I Know]]" (US No. 14/UK No. 20); [[Look of Love (Lesley Gore song)|"Look of Love"]] (US No. 27); and "[[Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows]]" (US number 13), which she sang during a bus scene from the 1965 movie, ''[[Ski Party]].''<ref name="MSN">{{cite web|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/its-my-party-singer-songwriter-lesley-gore-dies-at-68/ar-BBhE6hg?ocid=ansentap11|title='It's My Party' singer-songwriter Lesley Gore dies at 68|publisher=[[MSN]].com|access-date=February 16, 2015}}</ref> In 1965, she also appeared in the [[beach party film]] ''[[The Girls on the Beach]]'' in which she performed three songs: "Leave Me Alone", "It's Gotta Be You", and "I Don't Want to Be a Loser".

Gore was given first shot at recording "[[A Groovy Kind of Love]]" by songwriters [[Carole Bayer]] and [[Toni Wine]] with a melody borrowed from a sonatina by [[Muzio Clementi]],<ref>Clementi, Muzio. Sonatina, Opus 36, Number 5 [see movement III, Rondo, measures 1–12]</ref> but [[Shelby Singleton]], a producer for Mercury subsidiary [[Smash Records]], refused to let Gore record a song with the word "groovy" in its lyrics.<ref name="MSN"/> [[The Mindbenders]] went on to record it, and it reached number two on the ''Billboard'' charts.<ref name=Sun-Times/>
[[File:Lesley Gore - Cash Box 1963.jpg|thumb|left|Gore on the cover of ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]]'', 15 June 1963]]

Gore recorded composer [[Marvin Hamlisch]]'s first hit composition, "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows", on May 21, 1963, while "It's My Party" was climbing the charts.<ref name="MSN"/> Her record producer from 1963 to 1965 was Quincy Jones. Jones's dentist was Marvin Hamlisch's uncle, and Hamlisch asked his uncle to convey several songs to Jones.<ref name="MSN"/> "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows" was released on the LP ''[[Lesley Gore Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts]]'', but did not surface as a single until June 1965.<ref name="MSN"/> Hamlisch composed three other Gore associated songs: "[[California Nights]]",<ref>PBS "American Masters: Marvin Hamlisch" edition</ref> "That's the Way the Ball Bounces" and "One by One". "That's the Way the Ball Bounces" was recorded September 21, 1963, at [[A&R Recording|A&R Studios]] in New York; it was released as the B-side of "That's the Way Boys Are" and appeared on the LP ''Boys Boys Boys''. "One by One" was an unreleased track recorded on July 31, 1969, in New York and produced by Paul Leka; it first appeared on the Bear Family five-CD anthology of Gore's Mercury work entitled ''It's My Party'' (1994).<ref name="NYDN">{{cite web|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/lesley-gore-party-singer-dead-68-article-1.2117563|title=Lesley Gore, who sang 'It's My Party,' dead at 68|date=February 16, 2015 |publisher=[[New York Daily News]].com|access-date=February 16, 2015}}</ref><ref name="MSN"/>

Gore was one of the featured performers in the ''[[T.A.M.I. Show]]'' concert film, which was recorded and released in 1964 by [[American International Pictures]], and placed in the [[National Film Registry]] in 2006. Gore had one of the longest sets in the film, performing six songs, including "It's My Party", "You Don't Own Me", and "Judy's Turn to Cry".<ref>Vincent, Alice. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/music-news/11417229/Lesley-Gore-9-things-you-didnt-know.html "Lesley Gore: Nine things you didn't know"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321043443/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/music-news/11417229/Lesley-Gore-9-things-you-didnt-know.html |date=March 21, 2016 }}.  ''[[The Independent]]'', February 17, 2015.</ref>

Gore performed on two consecutive episodes of the ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'' television series (January 19 and 25, 1967), in which she guest-starred as Pussycat, one of [[Catwoman]]'s minions.<ref name="NYDN"/> In the January 19 episode "That Darn Catwoman", she lip-synched to the [[Bob Crewe]]-produced "California Nights", and in the January 25 episode "Scat! Darn Catwoman", she lip-synched to "Maybe Now".<ref name=Sun-Times>Hoekstra, Dave. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20070311/ai_n18709695 "Our favorite Lesley Gore moments"]{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]],'' March 11, 2007. Accessed May 31, 2007.{{Dead link|date=June 2012}}</ref> "California Nights", which Gore recorded for her 1967 album of the same name, returned her to the top twenty of the [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]].<ref name="MSN"/> The single peaked at number 16 in March 1967 (14 weeks on the chart). It was her first top-40 hit since "My Town, My Guy and Me" in late 1965 and her first top-20 since "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows".<ref name="NYDN"/>  Gore also performed "It's My Party" and "We Know We're in Love" 10 months earlier on the final episode of ''[[The Donna Reed Show]]'', which aired on March 19, 1966.<ref name="MSN"/>
[[File:Leslie Gore Batman 1967.JPG|thumb|Gore on the television program [[Batman television series|''Batman'']] in 1967]]
After high school, while continuing to make appearances as a singer, Gore attended [[Sarah Lawrence College]], studying English and American literature. At college, [[folk music]] was popularly lauded as "chic", whereas [[pop music]] was often derided as "uncool".<ref name="NYDN"/> "Had I been tall with blonde hair, had I been [[Mary Travers]], I would have gotten along fine."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1299&dat=19750414&id=6NNHAAAAIBAJ&pg=6327,1124595|date=April 14, 1975|newspaper=Village Voice|title=It's My Comeback and I'll Try If I Want To|author=David Tipmore|access-date=June 24, 2014|page=126}}</ref> She graduated in 1968.<ref>Patricia E. Davis, [https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6dEbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HVEEAAAAIBAJ&dq=lesley%20gore%20sarah%20lawrence%20graduated%201968&pg=7314%2C3146544 "Lesley Gore In Comeback With Her College Degree"] ''[[Pittsburgh Press]],'' June 6, 1969.</ref><ref>Jon Bream, [http://www.startribune.com/templates/Print_This_Story?sid=80951892 "It's Lesley Gore's party"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304040002/http://www.startribune.com/templates/Print_This_Story?sid=80951892 |date=March 4, 2016 }}, ''[[Star Tribune]],'' January 10, 2010.</ref>

Gore signed a contract with [[Mercury Records]] with a five-year term that carried her obligations to the company through the spring of 1968.  Her last big hit had been 12 months prior to this time, but Mercury still saw promise in her as an artist and believed that one of her singles would make it, as they had in the past. They offered a one-year extension on the initial contract, and Gore was formally contracted to Mercury for a sixth year. During this time, "[[La La La (Massiel song)|He Gives Me Love (La La La)]]", a single release based on a [[Eurovision Song Contest]] winner, rose to number 96 on the Music Business charts, while bubbling under the Hot 100 in ''Billboard''.  Mercury took out a full-page ad in the trades to support the single, but its airplay was spotty, becoming a hit in only a few major markets.<ref>{{cite book|title=Record World|date=July 6, 1968|publisher=Record World|pages=25–28|url=http://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Record-World/60s/68/RW-1968-07-06.pdf}}</ref>  She was then paired with the successful soul producers [[Kenny Gamble]], [[Leon Huff]], and [[Thom Bell]] for two singles that took her into the "[[blue-eyed soul|soul]]" genre:  "I'll Be Standing By" and "Take Good Care (Of My Heart)".  These songs did not fit the image Mercury had crafted for her, and the singles were not played.  Her contract with Mercury ended after the release of "[[98.6 (song)|98.6]]/Lazy Day" and "[[Wedding Bell Blues]]" failed to make headway on the charts.<ref>{{cite book|title=Billboard|date=September 9, 1968|publisher=Billboard|page=110, review|url=http://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/60s/1969/Billboard%201969-09-06.pdf}}</ref>

In 1970, she signed with Crewe Records and was reunited with producer Bob Crewe, who had produced her album ''California Nights.'' Her first release under the label, "Why Doesn't Love Make Me Happy", was a moderate hit on the Adult Contemporary chart, but none of her other singles would prove to be successful. She left Crewe Records in 1971 when the label went bankrupt.

In 1972, Gore signed with MoWest Records, a subsidiary of [[Motown]], and in July of that year released her first studio album in five years, ''Someplace Else Now''. All of the songs were either written or co-written by Gore, with collaborators [[Ellen Weston]] and her brother Michael. Due to the failure of the album's sole single, "She Said That", along with poor promotion, ''Someplace Else Now'' died on the shelf.