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Darlene Love Never Fails to Bring Christmas Home

Iconic Singer Discusses her Long Career

By Rich MonettiPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
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Photo from Unsplash.com by marina-khrapova-197934.jpg

Darlene Love first appeared on the scene in the 1960’s girl group, The Blossoms. The female flowering provided doo-wop backup for artists that ranged from Sam Cooke and Elvis to Frank Sinatra and Dionne Warwick. On her own - through the sometimes contentious relationship with Phil Specter - emerged hits like He’s a Rebel, He’s Sure the Boy I Love and Wait til my Bobby gets Home. Her resume also includes screen credits as Danny Glover’s wife in the Lethal Weapon movies and a decades long run singing Christmas Baby Please Come Home on the David Letterman Show. But while her voice may have destined her for stardom, it was her father’s weekly inspirational oratory that would actually force the path she landed on.

“When your father is a pastor, you’re singing in the choir – whether you can sing or not,” she joked.

Her parents never let on either. “They were strict Pentecostal people,” she said, and any praise was reserved.

She certainly had no idea when it came to her chosen field. “We didn’t listen to Rock ‘n Roll, and we sure didn’t sing it,” she said.

Love Conquers her Big Break

Love didn’t realize her aptitude until she signed on with the Blossoms. As fate would have it, her big break came serendipitously under a steeple “I was singing at a wedding, and the Blossoms were in the party. They heard me sing and asked me to audition,” she said.

Three or four years of success and Phil Spector was next. “We had been working with his partner Lester Sill, and I met Phil. After that, we went into the studio to record, He’s a Rebel,” said Love.

The single returned a hit, but controversy followed when Spector credited the song to the Crystals. Out of self preservation, Love resigned herself not to get all in a twist. “I had to let it go – anger only gives you wrinkles. It was a similar situation with He’s the Boy I Love and the Da Do Ron Ron, said Love.

The problem never went away either. “When we did record the songs under my name, they weren’t as big as they were under the Crystals,” she assured.

It was also hard to pigeonhole the Blossoms, and that had an impact. “We were on a lot of labels back in the 60’s, but at the same time, our sound wasn’t black or white," Love said. "It was kind of poppish. So they didn’t know what to do with us. Therefore, we never had real success under the name of the Blossoms."

Simpler Times Weren’t So Innocent

She rolled with the outer innocence of the times nonetheless. "We were singing what they call bubble gum music. It was something you could sing to. But it wasn’t what they called, ‘get down music,’” she said.

Of course, the counter culture was simmering below, but the Blossoms still stayed above it all. “We were very naïve. We might have heard somebody was doing drugs, and it was like, 'Oh my God,'" she said. “We thought we’d get hooked by just being around it.”

The civil rights movement was also in its infancy. “Entertainers couldn’t go to certain theaters and restaurants – even in California,” said Love.

Unfortunately, she had long known the drill. “I had lived in San Antonio for five years because they moved my father from L.A. to take over another church. That’s when we saw what segregation really was. That was really tough,” she lamented.

But she’s proud that her music played a part in change. “I think we had a big impact because it did say we can do this, and you have a persuasive platform as an entertainer,” said Love.

Doo-wop is Done 

However, when four white boys from England arrived, everything changed. “They forgot that there were American singers,” she sighed.

Still, the Beatles were pretty fab when it came to giving everyone else their due. “The Beatles were doing all of our music and giving us credit. They weren’t trying to say, this is our thing – we started this. It’s something they never did, and the same goes for all the acts that came over from Europe. It was very refreshing,” said Love.

She’s remained out front in the Lethal Weapon movies and has had us up late every Christmas with David Letterman. 27 straight years, she performed Christmas Baby Please Come Home and can never dismiss the warmup the venue provides for other NYC appearances. “New York and the surrounding areas are the greatest audiences in the world. They are right there with you, and propel you higher than you may want to go. I even sometimes tell them – hold on you all, calm down, you’re making me work too hard,” she joked.

Her parents also came around and didn’t ever pass up the opportunity to join in. “They were very, very proud – that’s my daughter they would beam,” she concluded.

60s music
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About the Creator

Rich Monetti

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