Lesley Gore (born May 2, 1946) is an American singer, one of the best known performers of the girl group era. Her first single was the #1 hit "It's My Party", still perhaps her best known recording, which also made #9 in Britain. It was followed by others, including "Judy's Turn to Cry" (the sequel to "It's My Party"), "She's a Fool", "You Don't Own Me", and "Maybe I Know". Her record producer was Quincy Jones, who would later become one of the most famous producers in American music. By the late 1960s, though, her fame was rapidly deterioriating as popular tastes evolved towards a harder-edged, psychedelic sound. Her last hit was "California Nights" (1967), after which she spent the remainder of her career performing in cabarets and achieving some success as a professional songwriter, including composing songs for the soundtrack of the 1980 film, Fame.

Discography

Standard albums

• 1963: I'll Cry if I Want To (US #24)
• 1963: Lesley Gore Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts (US #125)
• 1964: Boys, Boys, Boys (US #127)
• 1964: Girl Talk (US #146)
• 1965: My Town, My Guy & Me (US #120)
• 1966: Lesley Gore Sings All About Love
• 1967: California Nights (US #169)
• 1972: Someplace Else Now
• 1975: Love Me By Name

Compilations

• 1965: The Golden Hits of Lesley Gore (US #95)

Singles

• 1963: "It's My Party" (US #1, UK #9)
• 1963: "Judy's Turn to Cry" (US #5)
• 1963: "She's a Fool" (US #5)
• 1964: "You Don't Own Me" (US #2)
• 1964: "That's the Way Boys Are" (US #12)
• 1964: "I Don't Wanna Be a Loser" (US #37)
• 1964: "Maybe I Know" (US #14)
• 1964: "Hey Now" (US #76)
• 1964: "Sometimes I Wish I Were a Boy" (US #86)
• 1965: "Look of Love" US #27)
• 1965: "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows" (US #13)
• 1965: "My Town, My Guy and Me" (US #32)
• 1966: "Young Love" (US #50)
• 1966: "We Know We're in Love" (US #76)
• 1967: "California Nights" (US #16)
• 1967: "Summer and Sandy" (US #65)