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Sweets for My Sweet

{{Short description|1961 single by the Drifters}}

{{about||the album by the Sweet Inspirations|Sweets for My Sweet (album)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2021}}

{{Infobox song

| name = Sweets for My Sweet

| cover =

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = the Drifters

| album = Save the Last Dance for Me

| B-side = Loneliness or Happiness

| released = 1961

| recorded =

| studio =

| venue =

| genre =

| length = 2:32

| label = Atlantic

| writer =

| producer =

| prev_title = Please Stay

| prev_year = 1961

| next_title = Room Full of Tears

| next_year = 1961

}}

"Sweets for My Sweet" is a song written by the songwriting team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman,{{cite web

|url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p115115/biography|pure_url=yes}}

|title=Doc Pomus - Biography

|publisher=AllMusic

|access-date=June 27, 2007

}}

originally recorded by American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal group the Drifters. In 1994, British reggae singer C. J. Lewis had a very successful European hit with his version of the song.

The Drifters version

The group's first single featuring Charlie Thomas on lead vocal, "Sweets for My Sweet" reached {{abbr|No.|Number}} 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 10 on the R&B chart, in October 1961.{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=173}} This was one of the few post-1958 Drifters singles that did not feature a string section. The song has a strong piano and bongo-led Cuban-style cha-cha rhythm. It also featured Jimmy Radcliffe and four female backup vocalists, all of whom would later have hit records: Cissy Houston, Doris Troy, Dionne Warwick, and Dee Dee Warwick. The recording also features an up-in-front piano provided by co-writer Mort Shuman. Other musicians on the recording included George Barnes and Allan Hanlon on guitar, Abie Baker on bass, Ed Shaughnessy and Gary Chester on drums and Bobby Rosengarden and Ray Kessler on percussion.{{cite web|url=http://members.home.nl/henk.gorter/Itc6102.html|title=IN THE CAN : FEBRUARY 1961 |website=Members.home.nl |access-date=September 26, 2016}}

The Searchers version

{{Infobox song

| name = Sweets for My Sweet

| cover =

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = the Searchers

| album = Meet The Searchers

| B-side = It's All Been a Dream

| released = {{start date|1963}}

| recorded =

| studio =

| venue =

| genre = Merseybeat

| length = 2:31

| label = Pye (7N15533){{cite book

| first= Jo

| last= Rice

| year= 1982

| title= The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits

| edition= 1st

| publisher= Guinness Superlatives Ltd

| location= Enfield, Middlesex

| pages= 72–3

| isbn= 0-85112-250-7}}

| writer =

| producer = Tony Hatch

| prev_title =

| prev_year =

| next_title = Sugar and Spice

| next_year = 1963

}}

In 1963, "Sweets for My Sweet" was released by English Merseybeat band the Searchers as their debut single, reaching No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks that August.{{cite book| first= David| last= Roberts| year= 2006| title= British Hit Singles & Albums| edition= 19th| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London| isbn= 1-904994-10-5| page= 153}} According to Bill Harry, Dusty Springfield considered the Searchers' recording of the song to be "the best record to come out of Liverpool" as of July 1963.{{cite journal |last1=Harry |first1=Bill |title=Northern beat scene |journal=Record Mirror |date=6 July 1963 |page=6 |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Record-Mirror/60s/63/Record-Mirror-1963-07-06.pdf |access-date=25 December 2023}} This version was also issued in the US in 1964 but failed to chart.

C. J. Lewis version

{{Infobox song

| name = Sweets for My Sweet

| cover = C.J._Lewis-Sweets_for_My_Sweet.jpg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = C. J. Lewis

| album = Dollars

| B-side = "Sweets for My Sweet" (ska 7-inch)

| released = {{start date|1994|4|11}}{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-09.pdf|title=Single Releases|magazine=Music Week|page=24|date=April 9, 1994|access-date=June 25, 2021}}

| recorded =

| studio = Eden, London{{cite magazine|first=Robbert|last=Tilli|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-06-11.pdf|title=CJ Lewis Reads Between The Lines|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=24|date=June 11, 1994|page=10|access-date=May 14, 2025}}

| venue =

| genre =

  • Reggae{{cite magazine|first=Pete|last=Stanton|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/57779449@N02/52592190013/in/album-72177720304791051/|title=New Singles|magazine=Smash Hits|date=March 16, 1994|page=53|access-date=December 29, 2022}}
  • new jack swing{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-02.pdf|title=Market Preview: Mainstream – Singles|last=Jones|first=Alan|magazine=Music Week|page=12|date=April 2, 1994|access-date=April 16, 2021}}

| length =

  • 4:33 (12-inch)
  • 3:24 (7-inch)

| label =

| writer =

| producer =

| next_title = Uptight (Everything's Alright)

| next_year = 1994

| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|7rGU4eUsDDY|"Sweets for My Sweet"}}}}

}}

British reggae singer C. J. Lewis released his version of "Sweets for My Sweet" as his debut single in April 1994 via Black Market International and MCA Records. It reached No. 3 in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. The song was produced by Phillip Leo, who also produced Lewis' debut album, Dollars (1994). The female vocals are performed by singer Samantha Depasois. Jerome Redfarne directed the song's music video.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swGAttN7X6Y|url-status=dead|title=c.j. lewis - sweets for my sweet|publisher=YouTube|access-date=December 16, 2018|archive-date=May 17, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230517233844/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swGAttN7X6Y}}

=Background and release=

An engineer in a London studio had recommended C. J. Lewis to Black Market label director Rene Gelston. On a Sunday night Lewis played the tape of his recording of "Sweets

for My Sweet" for Gelston over the phone. Monday morning, he signed Lewis first thing in morning. Gelston told, "I knew this was a hit straightaway." The single was released on April 11, 1994.

=Critical reception=

Upon the release, pan-European magazine Music & Media remarked that the Searchers 1963 classic had been completely reworked in "a dead trendy ragga version, which is so cheerful that you can't believe storms and depression ever existed." They added, "Nobody will be surprised that it's heavily played on Bay Radio/St. Julian's on holiday island Malta."{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-05-28.pdf|title=New Releases: Singles|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=22|date=May 28, 1994|page=9|access-date=May 7, 2019}} Music & Media editor Robbert Tilli wrote, "It's now loved by the kids of those who were young in the '60s. The song is the same, only the fashion has changed. But there's more, the morals have altered too... The hidden meaning of the lyrics—sex—not apparent then in its harmless pop vogue, is crystal clear now. A dirty mind is a joy forever, and Lewis knows it."

Alan Jones from Music Week said, "Yes, it is the old Searchers hit, and it sounds surprisingly good too considering it has been dragged uncompromisingly into the Nineties. Now an easy to swallow confection, part reggae, part jackswing, it slips down a treat." James Hamilton from the Record Mirror Dance Update named it a "gruff raggamuffin sung old Drifters/Searchers classic's catchily jiggling pure pop 116.7bpm Original 12"" in his weekly dance column.{{cite magazine|first=James|last=Hamilton|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-09.pdf|title=DJ directory|magazine=Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert)|date=April 9, 1994|page=7|access-date=April 30, 2025|author-link=James Hamilton (DJ and journalist)}} Pete Stanton from Smash Hits gave Lewis' version four out of five, adding, "Though CJ's a bit of a star in the reggae charts he has yet to set the proper charts alight — but Sweets should do that." He also remarked that the singer "has reggaed it up and turned it into a groovy, radio-friendly bopper."

=Chart performance=

In addition to reaching No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, "Sweets for My Sweet" also had big success in New Zealand, peaking for two weeks at No. 3. After debuting at No. 6, it then spent a further 10 consecutive weeks inside the top 10. After dropping to No.11 the following week, it returned to No. 6. Six weeks later after fluctuating around the top 40, it returned for one final week in the top 10, at No. 10. At the end of 1994, the song was ranked No. 6 on New Zealand's year-end chart. "Sweets for My Sweet" was also a top-ten hit in Austria, Belgium, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The track also charted in Australia and Germany.

=Track listings=

  1. "Sweets for My Sweet" (7-inch version)
  2. "Sweets for My Sweet" (ska 7-inch)
  • CD single, Europe (1994){{cite AV media notes|title=Sweets for My Sweet|year=1994|type=European CD single liner notes|publisher=Black Market International, MCA Records|id=MCD 31588}}
  1. "Sweets for My Sweet" (original 7-inch) – 3:24
  2. "Sweets for My Sweet" (ska 7-inch) – 3:47
  3. "Sweets for My Sweet" (original 12-inch) – 4:33
  • CD single, UK (1994){{cite AV media notes|title=Sweets for My Sweet|year=1994|type=UK CD single liner notes|publisher=Black Market International, MCA Records|id=BMITD 017}}
  1. "Sweets for My Sweet" (original 7-inch) – 3:24
  2. "Sweets for My Sweet" (ska 7-inch) – 3:47
  3. "Sweets for My Sweet" (original 12-inch) – 4:33
  4. "Sweets for My Sweet" (ska straight mix) – 4:01
  5. "Sweets for My Sweet" (dub mix 1) – 4:01
  6. "Sweets for My Sweet" 8original dub) – 3:23

=Charts=

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

==Weekly charts==

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!Chart (1994)

!Peak
position

{{single chart|Australia|45|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Austria|9|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Flanders|9|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-05-21.pdf|title=Eurochart Hot 100 Singles|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=21|date=May 21, 1994|page=22|access-date=May 8, 2019}}

| 13

scope="row"|Europe (European AC Radio){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-08-06.pdf|title=Adult Contemporary Europe Top 25|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=32|date=August 6, 1994|page=14|access-date=May 28, 2023}}

| 15

scope="row"|Europe (European Dance Radio){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-05-21.pdf|title=European Dance Radio Top 25|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=21|date=May 21, 1994|page=30|access-date=May 26, 2023}}

| 18

scope="row"|Finland (IFPI)Week 23, 1994.

| 11

{{single chart|Germany|28|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|songid=2813|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
scope="row"|Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40){{cite news|url=https://timarit.is/page/2627097#page/n1/mode/2up|title=Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (02.6.–08.6. '94)|newspaper=Dagblaðið Vísir|language=is|page=20|date=June 2, 1994|access-date=October 1, 2019}}

| 7

{{single chart|Ireland2|6|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
scope="row"|Italy Airplay (Music & Media){{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-07-16.pdf|title=Regional Airplay: South|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=29|page=31|date=16 July 1994}}

| 6

{{single chart|Dutch40|3|year=1994|week=26|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Dutch100|4|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|New Zealand|3|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Scotland|15|date=19940528|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Sweden|16|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|Switzerland|6|artist=CJ Lewis|song=Sweets for My Sweet|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
{{single chart|UK|3|date=19940507|rowheader=true|access-date=September 20, 2019}}
scope="row"|UK Airplay (Music Week){{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-05-21.pdf|title=The Airplay Chart|magazine=Music Week|date=May 21, 1994|page=24|access-date=May 23, 2025}}

| 1

scope="row"|UK Dance (Music Week){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-23.pdf|title=Dance Singles|magazine=Music Week|page=30|date=April 23, 1994|access-date= April 25, 2021}}

| 6

scope="row"|UK Club Chart (Music Week){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-09.pdf|title=The RM Club Chart|magazine=Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert)|date=April 9, 1994|page=4|accessdate=May 15, 2023}}

| 44

{{col-2}}

==Year-end charts==

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!Chart (1994)

!Position

scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop){{cite web|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/annual.asp?year=1994|title=Jaaroverzichten 1994|publisher=Ultratop|language=nl|access-date=September 20, 2019}}

| 58

scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100){{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1994/MM-1994-12-24.pdf|title=1994 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles|magazine=Music & Media|volume=11|issue=52|date=December 24, 1994|page=12|access-date=November 28, 2019}}

| 60

scope="row"|Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40){{cite news|url=https://timarit.is/page/2723094#page/n15/mode/2up|title=Árslistinn 1994|newspaper=Dagblaðið Vísir|language=is|page=25|date=January 2, 1995|access-date=May 30, 2020}}

| 88

scope="row"|Netherlands (Dutch Top 40){{cite web|url=http://www.top40web.nl/jaarlijsten/jr1994.html|title=Jaarlijsten 1994|publisher=Stichting Nederlandse Top 40|language=nl|access-date=November 29, 2019}}

| 48

scope="row"|Netherlands (Single Top 100){{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1994&cat=s|title=Jaaroverzichten – Single 1994|publisher=MegaCharts|language=nl|access-date=September 20, 2019}}

| 59

scope="row"|New Zealand (RIANZ){{cite web|url=https://aotearoamusiccharts.co.nz/archive/annual-singles/1994-12-31|title=End of Year Charts 1994|publisher=Recorded Music NZ|access-date=September 20, 2019}}

| 6

scope="row"|Sweden (Topplistan){{cite web|url=https://www.sverigetopplistan.se/chart/43?dspy=1994&dspp=1|title=Årslista Singlar, 1994|publisher=Sverigetopplistan|language=sv|access-date=May 30, 2020}}

| 92

scope="row"|Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade){{cite web|url=http://www.swisscharts.com/charts/jahreshitparade/1994|title=Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1994|language=de|access-date=September 20, 2019}}

| 28

scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC){{cite magazine|title=Top 100 Singles 1994|magazine=Music Week|page=9|date=January 14, 1995}}

| 41

{{col-end}}

=Certifications=

{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=C.J. Lewis|title=Sweets for My Sweet|award=Platinum|relyear=1994|id=1994-09-02|source=newchart|access-date=2024-11-20|certyear=1994}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|noshipments=true}}

Other cover versions

  • A cover of "Sweets for My Sweet" by UK hard rock band Magnum was released in February 1975 as their debut single, featuring lead vocals by Dave Morgan.
  • In the UK, Tina Charles remade "Sweets for My Sweet" in 1977 in tandem with "Love Bug". The track was included on her album Rendezvous and issued as a single reaching No. 26;{{cn|date=March 2024}} however the single edit only featured one chorus from "Sweets for My Sweet" at its close.
  • The only US remake of "Sweets for My Sweet" to reach the Hot 100 or any Billboard chart to date is that by Tony Orlando which reached No. 54 and No. 20 on the Hot Adult Contemporary chart in 1979.{{cite book |title= Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2002 |publisher=Record Research |page=186}}

References

{{Reflist}}

{{The Searchers}}

{{The Drifters (American band)}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1961 songs

Category:1961 singles

Category:The Drifters songs

Category:1963 debut singles

Category:The Searchers (band) songs

Category:1994 debut singles

Category:C. J. Lewis songs

Category:Songs with music by Mort Shuman

Category:Songs with lyrics by Doc Pomus

Category:Tina Charles (singer) songs

Category:Irish Singles Chart number-one singles

Category:UK singles chart number-one singles

Category:Atlantic Records singles

Category:Pye Records singles