Why Do Fools Fall in Love (song)

"Why Do Fools Fall in Love"
Single by Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers
from the album The Teenagers Featuring Frankie Lymon
B-side"Please Be Mine"
ReleasedJanuary 10, 1956
RecordedNovember 1955
GenreDoo-wop, rock and roll
Length2:20
LabelGee
Songwriter(s)Frankie Lymon, Herman Santiago, Jimmy Merchant[1]
Producer(s)George Goldner
Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers singles chronology
"Why Do Fools Fall in Love"
(1956) 		"I Want You to Be My Girl"
(1956)
Audio sample
13-second audio sample of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love"

"Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (initially "Why Do Birds Sing So Gay?") is a debut single by American rock and roll band Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers that was released on January 10, 1956. It reached No. 1 on the R&B chart,[2] No. 6 on Billboard's Pop Singles chart,[3] and No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in July.[4][5] Many renditions of the song by other artists have also been hit records in the U.S., including versions by the Diamonds (in 1956), the Beach Boys (in 1964), and Diana Ross (in 1981).

The song was included in Robert Christgau's "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings—published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981)[6]—and ranked No. 314 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[7] In 2001, the 1955 recording of the song on Gee Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[8]

  1. ^ Perez-Pena, Richard (November 19, 1992). "Here's Who First Asked Rock's Big Question". The New York Times. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 368.
  3. ^ Marsh, Dave (May 7, 1999). The heart of rock & soul: the 1001 greatest singles ever made - Dave Marsh - Google Books. Hachette Books. ISBN 9780306809019. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  4. ^ "UK Top 40 Chart Archive, British Singles & Album Charts". Everyhit.com. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  5. ^ Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). En-field, Middle-sex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. pp. 26–7. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
  6. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "A Basic Record Library: The Fifties and Sixties". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 0899190251. Retrieved March 16, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  7. ^ "Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. April 7, 2011. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  8. ^ "GRAMMY Hall Of Fame | Hall of Fame Artists | GRAMMY.com". grammy.com.