Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Roger Cook and Roger Greenaway. Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Carole King and Gerry Goffin. Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Barry Mason and Les Reed. Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington. Randy Newman. Al Kooper. An eclectic group of famed and acclaimed songwriters who all have one thing in common: in the 1960s they all wrote hit songs for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Gene Pitney.
“Something’s Gotten Hold of My Heart,” “That Girl Belongs To Yesterday,” “Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa,” “Town Without Pity,” “Just One Smile,” and “Backstage” are just a few of Pitney’s worldwide hits.
How did the shy, clean-cut 24-year-old American singer rework, recast, and record an early Rolling Stones song in 1964 and give the Glimmer Twins, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, their first chart hit in both England and the USA? Why did Pitney NOT want to record “Only Love Can Break A Heart,” the Burt Bacharach-Hal David song that became his biggest hit in the USA, and how did recording it come about? How did a very wet-behind-the-ears Gene Pitney get his hands on a song that would be nominated for an Academy Award before his career was in full swing?