Lesley Gore and the frontier of feminism“When it comes to girl power, singer Lesley Gore was a
Lesley Gore and the frontier of feminism“When it comes to girl power, singer Lesley Gore was ahead of her time. Long before Beyonce branded herself a feminist at the 2014 VMAs, the Tenafly-born Gore had it.Gore, who’s hits included "It’s My Party,” “Judy’s Turn to Cry” and “Wonder Boy,” died Monday, Feb. 16 in New York City of cancer, according to the Associated Press. She was 68.In an era when being a silent girlfriend to the football captain was a teenager’s dream, and the feminist movement was still underground, Gore’s “You Don’t Own Me” in 1963 became a girl-power statement of confidence, independence, and sexual rebellion.“It was probably the first song that talked to guys like that,” said Gore to Newsday in 1994, “and the first time girls had this opportunity to go, `If she’s saying it, maybe it’s OK for me to think this way.’”Although it’s often referred to as the first feminist anthem, “You Don’t Own Me” actually was written by two male songwriters: Philadelphia’s John Madara and David White initially played the song for the 18-year-old Gore, who already had a succession of hits to her name. Soon afterward, Gore had the songwriters play their tune for producer Quincy Jones – yes, the same Quincy Jones who would produce Michael Jackson’s best-selling “Thriller” in 1984. Gore brought a steely determination to the song with her husky-voiced trill, and it became a Top-five hit just before the arrival of the Beatles.“Read the full piece here -- source link
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