I absolutely love this song...Gayle Mc Cormick,God rest her soul was not only the lead singer for the band "Smith"but in my estimation she was a very underrated singer...I loved her soothing voice...R.I.P.Miss Mc Cormick...🙏🙏🙏
This song was in heavy rotation on 95 WKAZ in Charleston, WV. It was my favorite song for a LONG time, too, and one of the first records I ever bought. Gayle should have been huge. Just another example of the music industry overlooking a fantastic talent. I've gotten many hours of enjoyment listening to this song. Thanks, Gayle!
Gayle & I have been friends since 1965 and our early "Johnny Rabbitt" Radio Days in St. Louis. Gayle was with the Klassmen, and was always one of the MOST powerful female singers EVER you could imagine ! When I started my own Broadcasting career in 1967, Gayle & the group played many gigs for me. She & I were reunited in '69 when she joined Smith. As Music Director/Air Personality I was always proud to play her records...and this solo effort Cryin' Shame was one of the BEST ! Jonnie King
Where did all this fantastic music go?? I remember this like it was yesterday and it got a lot of airplay in Toronto - loved it then and it still sounds terrific!!! Thanks, Mike!!!!!
I remember this song very well.I had graduated from Ill. State and been invited to join my Uncle Sam to become a Combat Corpsman and Operating Rm. Tech. as we had many casualties and dependants that needed our services in those days..I read your tribute to Gayle and commend you for a wonderful,humble and sincere commentary, on a long and beautiful friendship.She seemed to be a very warm and vivacious gal very much fun to be with and in need of a hug here and there.What a great career U also.had.
I was on the radio back in the 70's...sometimes a song's peak position was not so much on it's merit, but all of the other competing songs on the playlist. Great song, should have been top twenty, at least.
Great song! It definitely sounds like something the Honey Cone or Freda Payne could've done, but it was sung beautifully by Gayle McCormick. It's a shame that she never got her due, for she definitely had a great voice and the looks to match! None of this Corporate Swill today can compare to the brilliant recordings and heartfelt performances of yesteryear. Keep up the great work Mike!
Fantastic performance by one of the best vocalist of the 60s and 70s, her voice is strong and clear and pitch is perfect - I heard it first in 1972 at age 13 - I still enjoy listening to that song in mp3 format on my computer in 2024. I also liked the "Baby It's You" release with the group named "Smith" with Gayle as lead singer. Rest in Peace Gayle! Sing for them up there in heaven 😍
Wow, what a flashback. This song has a Freda Payne feel to it (especially the hook). I heard this a few times back in the day, but never knew who it was. Thanks for this flashback!
I think Gayle's voice, attitude, and looks were as good as it gets. When it's all said and done she made everything she sang on sound good. Look at the views and thumbs up's! Gayle if you are out there, you've got staying power! Have a great Holiday:)
I remember this song very well...and loved it...Gayle had a very clear and beautiful voice and herself, was beautiful and very underrated !....This song should hv been a top 10.hit.....Gayle should hv been much better promoted.Writers & Record companies missed the boat here.Love.. is not the only thing that walked out the door..
What a beautiful lady and great singer. Why she wasn't a mega star is mind bending. Maybe she didn't have a great agent and management. Gotta have all those things to make it big in a cruel and unfair industry like entertainment. Rip gayle
Jeff, I remember WWWE (3WE) since I grew up in the Cleveland area. It was a great radio station before it became a talk station like so many others in any given town. Cleveland had some other very memorable stations like WIXY, WGAR, WZZP (Zip106), WGCL (G-98)....even WMMS isn't what it used to be. CKLW was a powerhouse in Cleveland....even though it was from Canada. It's just a bunch of talking blab today, too.
Gayle McCormick was a mystery for so many years but I always remembered "Baby It's You" from television performances. Seeing "her natural self" photos, initiated a perspective that makes her naturally lovable.
My best friend and I went to Panorama Bowling Alley Lounge many times, with Gayle the lead singer of a decent house band. He kept trying to get her to go out with him. Ironically, when he finally wore her down and she said she would, it was the night the talent scout was there who signed her to a contract, and off she went to record with Smith
I went to the same high school with Gayle. She was a couple years ahead of me as I graduated Pattonville High School (Maryland Heights, MO) in 1969. She was a fabulous singer, even in high school. From what I hear she is still living today in Maryland Heights, MO. What a shame she didn't continue......voices like that just don't happen very often!
Only 44? KHJ played the heck out of this! A few years later, it was played a lot on KWOW (automated SoCal oldies station in the 1970s). Maybe it was just more popular in the LA area . . .
It got heavy rotation on the monster Toronto station CHUM 1050…a fantastic song that still sounds fresh and vibrant over 53 years later. It definitely should have peaked in the Too 10! RIP Gayle 🙏✝️
This was my favorite song when it was out. Thank God it got lots of airplay in WV where I lived. It wasn't till 25 years later I learned it never made the Top 40. I think it was top ten on our local stations. It still kicks!
@motorbiker63 ---- #44 nationally....which is an average. Your local radio stations may have played it more than others. The stations in my hometown played it often, too.
Nice. Thanks for the time you spent putting this together. I much appreciated it. I like both the song and the singer and wish she had been more of a presence. Great voice.
Thanks for posting this great video for this early 1970's classic and seldom heard song these days.You sure can't go wrong with the magical team of ABC/Dunhill Records and the songwriting by the legendary Dennis Lambert & Brian Potter!!! Superb job and thanks for the info before the song.
Interestingly this was a big hit in Las Vegas. I saw a playlist from KLUC Radio (which is still a top 40 station all these years later) from October 1971. This song was #13 and climbing.
Wow. -------This is one I don't remember ever hearing. -------------It should have been a much----much bigger hit! ---------------------Thank-you, Music Mike ! -------------------------------WolfSky9, 72 y/o
I remember this song from first grade, never knew who it was, and hadn't heard it since then, until today; it's been going through my head lately and a Google search using the chorus led me here. This is a great song, has that proto-disco sound that was easing its way into pop back then, as has been mentioned in here, could have been done by Freda Payne; maybe even First Choice. I gotta favorite this, don't want to lose it. It would be a cryin shame if I did, lol.
It only got to # 44 ??? I remember way back in the day, it was always on radio, very popular where I live. Shame that this song gets zero air time nowadays. I haven't heard it on radio in over 30 years. Great song though -- still sounds fresh.
This song got radio play in Springfield, MA in the Fall 1971. My boyfriend of 3 years sent me a “Dear Jane” letter in October 1971. I heard that song on the way home from school and knew the letter from him was a breakup letter. It was a Friday and I cried all weekend long. It took me years to find this song because I couldn’t remember who sang the song or the exact title. Google found it for me. Searched female artist Fall 1971 hit songs and though 64 on the charts when I saw the title I knew it was the “premonition song.” He broke my heart. It took me years to really get over him. Finally met the man I married and 48 years later so glad I got that letter.
I remember hearing this on the Radio, WIP Radio 610 in Philadelphia, back in the day. Surprised to see it only made it to #44. Think Ken Garland played it at least once a day on his show.....:) (Also, have the original 45 I bought at The Record Museum. Mine is a Black ABC/Dunhill Label)
It's a crying shame that this wasn't a bigger hit! ... 20 years after it charted, it was requested quite a bit on the now defunct "Oldies 98.9" (Montgomery, AL) which is what I listened to when i wasn't on the air at WEGL-FM 91.1, the Auburn student station
I was blown away to hear that this got no higher than #44, and never made American Top 40 in the fall of '71 (it definitely made the Connecticut top 40 charts). Gayle McCormick - what a voice! (And she's a white gal - remembering this song, I'd have assumed it was by somebody like Freda Payne or the Honey Cone!)
Awesome Mike. Summer Symphony is up but I think it would be awesome if you could put it up and give the introduction and a little history about Jack Gold.
It sure was an awesome song and still is. Our oldies station KXMO: does not have it right now. I would say my best guess on #44 would be that the song was not promoted as it should have been. 1971 was home to allot of very good music. So many so fast. I think this should have been a number 1 hit!
This song sounds very familiar. Perhaps a different, similar song by another singer. If I can think of it I will post an update. It is a great song by Gayle. What a voice!
I remember this song being played a great deal in Illinois and Southern Callif..Really surprised that it did no better than 44.Gayle was a "Fox" with a great voice ! The group just did not have a good source of new songs and they were not promoted as well as they needed to be for success.
@motorbiker63 If all radio stations had waited until a record got in the Top 40 before playing it there wouldn't be any records getting there, except perhaps for already-well-established artists (a "Them That Got" situation).
@bellbrookbob - That's because the song didn't chart that well. It only got to #44 on Billboard's Hot 100 pop chart. I don't know how well it performed on the Soul or R&B charts, if at all. I think the song would've 'fit' on such stations.
![The Flirtations - Nothing But A Heartache - (original STEREO]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/rMPzgCLNCHs/mqdefault.jpg)
I absolutely love this song...Gayle Mc Cormick,God rest her soul was not only the lead singer for the band "Smith"but in my estimation she was a very underrated singer...I loved her soothing voice...R.I.P.Miss Mc Cormick...🙏🙏🙏
Love walked out the door! It's a crying shame it only made it to 44! 🎵🎵🎵🎤
This song was in heavy rotation on 95 WKAZ in Charleston, WV. It was my favorite song for a LONG time, too, and one of the first records I ever bought. Gayle should have been huge. Just another example of the music industry overlooking a fantastic talent. I've gotten many hours of enjoyment listening to this song. Thanks, Gayle!
Gayle & I have been friends since 1965 and our early "Johnny Rabbitt" Radio Days in St. Louis. Gayle was with the Klassmen, and was always one of the MOST powerful female singers EVER you could imagine ! When I started my own Broadcasting career in 1967, Gayle & the group played many gigs for me. She & I were reunited in '69 when she joined Smith. As Music Director/Air Personality I was always proud to play her records...and this solo effort Cryin' Shame was one of the BEST ! Jonnie King
Late summer of '71. It's too bad it only reached #44. Great song from a great lady. R.I.P., Gayle.
We lost Gayle McCormick a few years back, and that is a cryin' shame. Be at peace, darlin'.
Where did all this fantastic music go?? I remember this like it was yesterday and it got a lot of airplay in Toronto - loved it then and it still sounds terrific!!!
Thanks, Mike!!!!!
This song deserved better than #44.
amen!
Loved her voice--how did this not make the Top 40??? RIP Gayle..
another great song and performance by Gayle
I remember this song very well.I had graduated from Ill. State and been invited to join my Uncle Sam to become a Combat Corpsman and Operating Rm. Tech. as we had many casualties and dependants that needed our services in those days..I read your tribute to Gayle and commend you for a wonderful,humble and sincere commentary, on a long and beautiful friendship.She seemed to be a very warm and vivacious gal very much fun to be with and in need of a hug here and there.What a great career U also.had.
This song I loved in 71, still a favorite 70s.
I was on the radio back in the 70's...sometimes a song's peak position was not so much on it's merit, but all of the other competing songs on the playlist. Great song, should have been top twenty, at least.
Great song! It definitely sounds like something the Honey Cone or Freda Payne could've done, but it was sung beautifully by Gayle McCormick. It's a shame that she never got her due, for she definitely had a great voice and the looks to match! None of this Corporate Swill today can compare to the brilliant recordings and heartfelt performances of yesteryear. Keep up the great work Mike!
Fantastic performance by one of the best vocalist of the 60s and 70s, her voice is strong and clear and pitch is perfect - I heard it first in 1972 at age 13 - I still enjoy listening to that song in mp3 format on my computer in 2024. I also liked the "Baby It's You" release with the group named "Smith" with Gayle as lead singer. Rest in Peace Gayle! Sing for them up there in heaven 😍
R.I.P. Gayle McCormick
Wow, what a flashback. This song has a Freda Payne feel to it (especially the hook).
I heard this a few times back in the day, but never knew who it was. Thanks for this flashback!
I think Gayle's voice, attitude, and looks were as good as it gets. When it's all said and done she made everything she sang on sound good. Look at the views and thumbs up's! Gayle if you are out there, you've got staying power! Have a great Holiday:)
I hope you didn't suffer long. RIP Gayle McCormick.
If there's a Heaven, that's " What 'you're' gonna do" Gayle!
I remember this song very well...and loved it...Gayle had a very clear and beautiful voice and herself, was beautiful and very underrated !....This song should hv been a top 10.hit.....Gayle should hv been much better promoted.Writers & Record companies missed the boat here.Love.. is not the only thing that walked out the door..
My Grandma brought me a Gayle McCormick CD when I was a little girl! I still love this song :)
What a beautiful lady and great singer. Why she wasn't a mega star is mind bending. Maybe she didn't have a great agent and management. Gotta have all those things to make it big in a cruel and unfair industry like entertainment. Rip gayle
Jeff, I remember WWWE (3WE) since I grew up in the Cleveland area. It was a great radio station before it became a talk station like so many others in any given town. Cleveland had some other very memorable stations like WIXY, WGAR, WZZP (Zip106), WGCL (G-98)....even WMMS isn't what it used to be. CKLW was a powerhouse in Cleveland....even though it was from Canada. It's just a bunch of talking blab today, too.
This song got alot of airplay back in 1971 ... I remember well. It may have gotten higher in the local charts in the various cities.
Gayle McCormick was a mystery for so many years but I always remembered "Baby It's You" from television performances. Seeing "her natural self" photos, initiated a perspective that makes her naturally lovable.
My best friend and I went to Panorama Bowling Alley Lounge many times, with Gayle the lead singer of a decent house band. He kept trying to get her to go out with him. Ironically, when he finally wore her down and she said she would, it was the night the talent scout was there who signed her to a contract, and off she went to record with Smith
I went to the same high school with Gayle. She was a couple years ahead of me as I graduated Pattonville High School (Maryland Heights, MO) in 1969. She was a fabulous singer, even in high school. From what I hear she is still living today in Maryland Heights, MO. What a shame she didn't continue......voices like that just don't happen very often!
November 26, 1948 ~ March 1, 2016. RIP.
Talented, gorgeous inside and out and gone way too soon. RIP Gayle.
epic!❤!
She has such a pretty voice!
Hi again, Music Mike. Love these oldies you dig up.
Only 44? KHJ played the heck out of this! A few years later, it was played a lot on KWOW (automated SoCal oldies station in the 1970s). Maybe it was just more popular in the LA area . . .
It got heavy rotation on the monster Toronto station CHUM 1050…a fantastic song that still sounds fresh and vibrant over 53 years later. It definitely should have peaked in the Too 10!
RIP Gayle 🙏✝️
This was my favorite song when it was out. Thank God it got lots of airplay in WV where I lived. It wasn't till 25 years later I learned it never made the Top 40. I think it was top ten on our local stations. It still kicks!
@motorbiker63 ---- #44 nationally....which is an average. Your local radio stations may have played it more than others. The stations in my hometown played it often, too.
a very happy birthday to you today. your voice lives on.
Nice. Thanks for the time you spent putting this together. I much
appreciated it. I like both the song and the singer and wish she had
been more of a presence. Great voice.
💔
Gayle i miss you, heaven is a better place with you. Your voice is now with the angels.
This song definitely deserved a much better chart fate!! It should have gone, at best, the Top 20!!
Thank You !! I do remember this one, and heard it all the time on the radio !!
Super high quality voice ❤❤❤
she was an angel singing and we know for shore she was really a number 1 superstar like Olivia and dusty.
Thanks for posting this great video for this early 1970's classic and seldom heard song these days.You sure can't go wrong with the magical team of ABC/Dunhill Records and the songwriting by the legendary Dennis Lambert & Brian Potter!!! Superb job and thanks for the info before the song.
Always loved this song. Glad I was able to pick up the 45 vinyl a few years ago.
Loved this song back in the day. Thanks, Mike.
First time I've heard this one. Pretty good, and so is the Grass Roots version.
Interestingly this was a big hit in Las Vegas. I saw a playlist from KLUC Radio (which is still a top 40 station all these years later) from October 1971. This song was #13 and climbing.
Sounds like a hit to me
Wow. -------This is one I don't remember ever hearing. -------------It should have been a much----much bigger hit! ---------------------Thank-you, Music Mike ! -------------------------------WolfSky9, 72 y/o
Best thoughts and wishes go out to Gayle. She created some wonderful work.
I remember this song from first grade, never knew who it was, and hadn't heard it since then, until today; it's been going through my head lately and a Google search using the chorus led me here. This is a great song, has that proto-disco sound that was easing its way into pop back then, as has been mentioned in here, could have been done by Freda Payne; maybe even First Choice. I gotta favorite this, don't want to lose it. It would be a cryin shame if I did, lol.
A truly perfect pop song!
I saw Gayle sing this on television once around 1972.
Love Gayle''s singing on Smith's song What am I Gonna Do. Such a melodic song by Carole King.
Incredible singer!!! Should have been a super star!
@comicbookinker -- Head-shell is Acutex....cartridge is Pickering.
Be at peace! Great singer!
It just seems like after Gayle left the Smith band she wasnt getting the high quality songs as before...
It only got to # 44 ??? I remember way back in the day, it was always on radio, very popular where I live.
Shame that this song gets zero air time nowadays. I haven't heard it on radio in over 30 years.
Great song though -- still sounds fresh.
Absolutely!!
Gayle was a great singer. sorry to hear of her passing
Thanks music Mike for the great great great great song.
Love the song. Great posting. Thanks.
Very cool.. Thanks for uploading a trult pristine version of this... I will always love Gayle!!!
I remember her in the band: Smith. I had to look-up the year (1971). Almost 40 years; still a great song.
i remember waiting four weeks to buy this single because it was totally sold out after being released on the radio.
This song got radio play in Springfield, MA in the Fall 1971. My boyfriend of 3 years sent me a “Dear Jane” letter in October 1971. I heard that song on the way home from school and knew the letter from him was a breakup letter. It was a Friday and I cried all weekend long. It took me years to find this song because I couldn’t remember who sang the song or the exact title. Google found it for me. Searched female artist Fall 1971 hit songs and though 64 on the charts when I saw the title I knew it was the “premonition song.” He broke my heart. It took me years to really get over him. Finally met the man I married and 48 years later so glad I got that letter.
Love this show.
She has fantastic voice! Cheers.
A crying shame but I will always have this lady and tune in my heart and head forever.
I remember hearing this on the Radio, WIP Radio 610 in Philadelphia, back in the day. Surprised to see it only made it to #44. Think Ken Garland played it at least once a day on his show.....:) (Also, have the original 45 I bought at The Record Museum. Mine is a Black ABC/Dunhill Label)
R.I.P. Gayle
Simply one of the best ever!
Thank you Mike. I was a toddler when this was out but Ma had the 45, I remember hearing it. :-)
It's a crying shame that this wasn't a bigger hit! ... 20 years after it charted, it was requested quite a bit on the now defunct "Oldies 98.9" (Montgomery, AL) which is what I listened to when i wasn't on the air at WEGL-FM 91.1, the Auburn student station
What a beautiful girl and an enormous talent. That's easily a top 10 song.
Thank You Gayle. RIP
R.I.P. Gayle!
Great song.
Maybe we should call the Oldie stations and request this song! It was great back then and STILL is!
Every town has its talk station, all playing the same syndicated blab. A station like WWWE was one of a kind.
Gayle had a great voice, and she was hot!
I remember the local AM station played this song quite a bit. Only 44??
A great song .will always remind me of my first girlfriend.
I was blown away to hear that this got no higher than #44, and never made American Top 40 in the fall of '71 (it definitely made the Connecticut top 40 charts).
Gayle McCormick - what a voice! (And she's a white gal - remembering this song, I'd have assumed it was by somebody like Freda Payne or the Honey Cone!)
Awesome Mike. Summer Symphony is up but I think it would be awesome if you could put it up and give the introduction and a little history about Jack Gold.
If this only got up to #44, why then do I remember always hearing it?
Agreat question and oddity!!
It sure was an awesome song and still is. Our oldies station KXMO: does not have it right now. I would say my best guess on #44 would be that the song was not promoted as it should have been. 1971 was home to allot of very good music. So many so fast. I think this should have been a number 1 hit!
its a cryin shame that this is not available on i-tunes....wish it was! don't suppose theres' anything we can do.
@evannyny Nope, Maureen is from California and Gayle is from (and still lives in) St. Louis.
This song sounds very familiar. Perhaps a different, similar song by another singer. If I can think of it I will post an update. It is a great song by Gayle. What a voice!
Maybe "Sooner or Later" by the Grass Roots?
Also The Grass Roots did that song from their self - titled 1975 Haven/Capitol album.
You can hear a few seconds of this song in Neil Young's movie, "Journey Through The Past."
Exactly
I actually have this record. She was great. This song was written by the tandem of Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, I think.
in memory of Gayle Mccormick
Great voice from the lead singer of Smith. Is the cartridge Acutex or just the head-shell? I like Empire. Thanks for posting.
Lambert & Potter : " Rock & Roll Heaven " ! ----------------------------------------WolfSky9
I remember this song being played a great deal in Illinois and Southern Callif..Really surprised that it did no better than 44.Gayle was a "Fox" with a great voice ! The group just did not have a good source of new songs and they were not promoted as well as they needed to be for success.
Almost sounds like the late Dusty Springfield!!
I thought she almost sounded like the lead singer of the group The Honey Cone (song Want Ad).
@motorbiker63 If all radio stations had waited until a record got in the Top 40 before playing it there wouldn't be any records getting there, except perhaps for already-well-established artists (a "Them That Got" situation).
Gayle is like the Betty Page of music world
Written by Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, who were all over radio in 1971.
@bellbrookbob - That's because the song didn't chart that well. It only got to #44 on Billboard's Hot 100 pop chart. I don't know how well it performed on the Soul or R&B charts, if at all. I think the song would've 'fit' on such stations.