R&B

The Platters were pioneers in this first era of rock and roll, combining R&B, doo wop, pop, and rock. What great talent, as you can hear in “The Great Pretender.” It’s some of the best of 1950s music.

We’ve all had someone we love leave us and we have to pretender to others that we’re okay– and the song captures that feeling very well. In 1955, “The Great Pretender” went to #1 on both the R&B and the Pop Singles charts very soon after The Platters had their first big hit with “Only You (And You Alone).” “The Great Pretender” also went to #5 in the U.K. and #1 in Australia. This song features Tony Williams on lead vocals and was written by Buck Ram, who was their manager and producer at the time. Other group members for the single include Herbert Reed, David Lynch, Paul Robi, and Zola Taylor. Notable covers of the song are by Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of Queen, Gene Pitney, Dolly Parton, Roy Orbison, Sam Cooke, Pat Boone, The Righteous Brothers, Gene Summers, The Band, George Faith, and The Statler Brothers. The Platters originally formed in Los Angeles in 1954. There have been numerous personnel changes over the years and they still perform.

Here are the lyrics to “The Great Pretender” by The Platters:

“Oh-oh, yes I’m the great pretender
Pretending that I’m doing well
My need is such I pretend too much
I’m lonely but no one can tell

Oh-oh, yes I’m the great pretender
Adrift in a world of my own
I’ve played the game but to my real shame
You’ve left me to grieve all alone

Too real is this feeling of make-believe
Too real when I feel what my heart can’t conceal

Oh-oh, yes I’m the great pretender
Just laughin’ and gay like a clown
I seem to be what I’m not, you see
I’m wearing my heart like a crown
Pretending that you’re still around

Too real is this feeling of make-believe
Too real when I feel what my heart can’t conceal

Yes I’m the great pretender
Just laughin’ and gay like the clown
I seem to be what I’m not, you see
I’m wearing my heart like a crown
Pretending that you’re still around”

If you would like to read more about other songs by The Platters, click here for “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” or click here for “Twilight Time.”

If you are interested in an album by The Platters, please click on the photo below:

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.

Please click here for the Daily Doo Wop YouTube channel, to which you can subscribe. Thank you for stopping by The Daily Doo Wop. Hope you enjoyed “The Great Pretender” by The Platters.