Susan (song)

"Susan"
Single by The Buckinghams
from the album Portraits
B-side"Foreign Policy"
Released1967
GenreSunshine pop, Psychedelic pop
Length2:48
2:17 (radio edit)
LabelColumbia Records
Songwriter(s)Gary Beisbier
James William Guercio
Jim Holvay[1]
Producer(s)James William Guercio
The Buckinghams singles chronology
"Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)"
(1967) 		"Susan"
(1967) 		"Back in Love Again"
(1968)

"Susan" is a song by The Buckinghams, released as a single in 1967, and on their album Portraits in 1968.[2] It spent 12 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 11,[3] while reaching No. 7 on Canada's RPM 100,[4] No. 2 on Canada's CHUM Hit Parade,[5] No. 2 in the Philippines,[6] and No. 18 on New Zealand's NZ Listener chart.[7]

The song contains a short excerpt of Charles Ives' composition, Central Park in the Dark, which contrasts sharply with the sunshine pop flavor of the majority of the track.[8] The section containing this excerpt was added by producer James William Guercio,[8] and the group disliked it when they heard it.[9] This section was edited out by many radio stations when they aired the song.[9][10]

  1. ^ Susan - By: The Buckinghams, MusicVF.com. Accessed September 22, 2015
  2. ^ "Portraits – The Buckinghams". AllMusic. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  3. ^ Hot 100 - The Buckinghams Susan Chart History, Billboard.com. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  4. ^ "RPM 100", RPM Weekly, Volume 8, Ed. 19 January 27, 1968. Accessed September 23, 2015
  5. ^ "CHUM Hit Parade – Week of February 5, 1968, Chart No. 574". CHUM. Archived from the original on November 7, 2006. Retrieved 2015-12-17.
  6. ^ "Hits of the World", Billboard, May 25, 1968. p. 51. Accessed September 23, 2015
  7. ^ NZ Listener charts: 23-Feb-1968, Flavour of New Zealand. Accessed October 28, 2015
  8. ^ a b Courrier, Kevin (2002). Dangerous Kitchen: The Subversive World of Zappa, ECW Press, p. 75.
  9. ^ a b Hey Baby, They’re Playing Our Song: A Conversation with Carl Giammarese, Confessions of a Pop Culture Addict. Accessed September 22, 2015
  10. ^ "WGLI Makes Biggies Sit Down and Listen", Billboard, February 3, 1968. p. 26. Accessed October 28, 2015