Doo Wop

It’s always fun to have music from the girls of doo wop and always a great story when people set out on their own for an enterprise. A young Rosie Hamlin, who went to Mission Bay High School in San Diego, California, wrote a poem about her boyfriend. It was based on “Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine)” by the Penguins. She was from a family that loved music and joined up with friends who hung around the house. The Originals including Noah Tafolla (whom Rosie later married), David Ponci, Tony Gomez, Carl Von Goodat, and Alfred Barrett. The song went to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960 and stayed on the charts for 12 weeks, well into 1961. Part of the charm of the song is its simplicity and unsophisticated recording. (They used a two-track machine in a recording studio in an abandoned airline hangar.) And part of the legend is that they did some of their own public relations by getting permission from a Kresge’s in San Diego to allow listeners shopping for records to preview the song. This is where Highland Records discovered them. The B-side is “Give Me Love,” with vocals by Bluford Wade.The song is a juke box favorite. John Lennon said that Rosie was among his favorite vocalists, and he recorded a cover of “Angel Baby.” The song is certainly one of the favorite golden oldies.

Rosie Hamlin was born Rosalie Méndez Hamlin in Klamath Falls, Oregon, in 1945. She lived in Alaska for part of her childhood and then the family moved to California. Hamlin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.  Rosie Hamlin passed away in March this year at the age of 71.

Here are the lyrics to “Angel Baby” by Rosie and The Originals:

“It’s just like heaven being here with you
You’re like an angel, too good to be true
But after all, I love you, I do
Angel baby, my angel baby

When you are near me, my heart skips a beat
I can hardly stand on my own two feet
Because I love you, I love you, I do
Angel baby, my angel baby

Oohoo, I love you, oohoo I do
No one could love you like I do

Please never leave me blue and alone
If you ever go, I’m sure you’ll come back home
Because I love you, I love you, I do
Angel baby, my angel baby

It’s just like heaven being with you dear
I could never stay without you near
Because I love you, I love you, I do
Angel baby, my angel baby

Ooh, I love you, ooh I do
No one could love you like I do

Angel baby, my angel baby

Oohoo I love you Oohoo I do

No one could love you like I do

Ooh…”

If you are interested in the music of Rosie and The Originals, you might consider this from amazon: The Best of Rosie & the Originals

For More Golden Oldies Music

The Daily Doo Wop Rec Room has daily featured doo wop, rock and roll, R&B, or rockabilly songs that were hits during the first era of rock and roll (that is, from about 1952 until the British invasion in 1964). After a song is featured, it then goes into the juke box. You are welcome to listen to any of the 40+ selections there. Every weekend, there is a Golden Oldies Juke Box Saturday Night, and the juke box is full of song requests from the 1950s and 1960s.

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