Quite recently I was listening to the radio and by quite recently I mean practically every day when I heard a cover of Lesley Gore's classic hit, “You Don't Own Me”. It was reworked by this girl named Grace. I don't know her from Australia, but it's a very nice little update. The song also features a few rapped verses from G-Easy. I've listened to it a few times and I feel like he's missed the point of the song.
“You Don't Own Me” is such a vibrant song and it deserved to be reworked for a younger 21st century audience. It's all about telling your significant other that they can't control you. It's the song used to close the movie The First Wives Club, an entire film dedicated to the revitalization of women brought down by their husbands.
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No song can make you feel as empowered as “You Don't Own Me”. I live for it and I think G-Easy missed the point, but that's just my own humble homosexual opinion.
If you don't know who Lesley Gore is, that's okay. She's probably one of my favorite lesbians. Tragically she passed away last year of lung cancer. She was active in the public spotlight for a short time during the sixties. She never had blockbuster albums, but she had multiple hits to her name. Iconic songs, you might be able to easily recognize some of them still. |
The biggest of these was “It's My Party”. Well known for it's refrain, “it's my party and I'll cry if I want to.” This inspired a “concept” album of songs that had to do with tears, which quite honestly is better in theory then in practice. “It's My Party” was her number one and breakout hit. It's what made her star.
The song also inspired a follow up hit “Judy's Turn To Cry” that followed the story arc of the previous song. Because, “now it's Judy's turn to cry, because Johnny's coming back to me”. Now why she wants him back is still up in the air, but needless to say she does. Who said love wasn't real.
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Quite recently we've seen a wave of nostalgia come back on the radio whether that's in the form of eighties synths or Meghan Trainor's bright reincarnations, her latest musical inspiration being nineties Britney Spears updates. Voice contestant Melanie Martinez include a sample of “It's My Party” on her debut album Cry Baby in a song called “Pity Party”. Swedish duo Icona Pop even used it in a much maligned “My Party”. Lesley Gore's musical influence is impossible to deny.
Buy "Pity Party"
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Lesley Gore was also an active member in the gay community. She did a lot of work to help the LGBT community. She was in a relationship with Lois Sasson for 33 years. Tragically, Lesley Gore passed away before the historic Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage.
To me Lesley Gore is more then just a blip on the map of American music. She's an influential and important marker of what a star is. She never did quite stop working. After a musical hiatus she came back in 2005 with a final album. |
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And, if that's not enough, she also guest starred on Batman back in her hey day. What more could you ask for?
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