Whirly Girl
{{short description|1983 song by American dance-rock band OXO}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2018}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Whirly Girl
| cover = border
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = OXO
| album = OXO
| B-side = In the Stars
| released = February 1983
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Pop rock
| label = Geffen Records
| writer = Ish "Angel" Ledesma
| producer = Ish "Angel" Ledesma, Ken Mansfield
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
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| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|n-atC5XLHlg|"Whirly Girl"}}}}
}}
"Whirly Girl" is a US top 40 pop song performed by American dance-rock band OXO. The new wave style song was written and co-produced by singer/guitarist Ish "Angel" Ledesma (former singer and guitarist of Foxy) and included on OXO's 1983 self-titled debut album. The song was about Ish's wife Lori and was originally titled "Worldly Girl", "but adding that 'd' to the mix made the chorus too chunky and difficult to sing. So they abbreviated it to 'Whirly Girl' and pop music history was made with the only song to ever use the phrase 'Whirly Girl'." It was the band's sole hit, peaking at No.28 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1983. The song has since been re-released on a number of 1980s music compilations. It also reached No.24 in Canada.{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.6281&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.6281.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.6281|title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1983-05-07 |access-date=2019-07-11}}
According to Ken Mansfield and Marshall Terrill, OXO "debut record on Geffen Records was a Top 30 hit called 'Whirly Girl' that died a painful death. The moment the record charted, the group began breaking up. Politics and power struggles erupted between management and Geffen". Following the breakup of OXO, in 1986 Ledesma formed the dance-pop group Company B, at first a trio with his wife among the members, which also had a sole Billboard Hot 100 hit (1987's "Fascinated") penned by Ledesma.
In 2015, G.J. Echternkamp, stepson of Frank Garcia (bassist of OXO), directed the semi-documentary Frank and Cindy, which includes a rearranged version of the song and some excerpts from its video clip.{{cite news |last=Harvey |first=Dennis |title=Film Review: 'Frank and Cindy' |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/frank-and-cindy-review-1201712064/ |magazine=Variety |date=February 24, 2016 |access-date=May 15, 2016}}
Chart history
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Chart (1983)
!Peak |
|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles
| style="text-align:center;"|24 |
| US Radio and Records Contemporary Hit Radio{{cite web|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Archive-RandR/1980s/1983/RR-1983-04-15.pdf|format=PDF|title=Radio & Records|website=Worldradiohistory.com|date=April 15, 1983|access-date=May 30, 2023}}
| style="text-align:center;"|14 |
| US Billboard Hot 100Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - {{ISBN|0-89820-089-X}}
| style="text-align:center;"|28 |
| US Cash Box Top 100{{Cite web|url=https://tropicalglen.com/Archives/80s_files/19830430.html|title=Cash Box Top 100 4/30/83|website=Tropicalglen.com|access-date=May 30, 2023}}
|align="center"|29 |
References
{{Reflist|refs=
|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/oxo/chart-history/hot-100/song/334222
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180512095437/https://www.billboard.com/music/oxo/chart-history/hot-100/song/334222
|url-status=dead
|archive-date=May 12, 2018
|title=Oxo {{!}} Chart History. Billboard Hot 100
|magazine=Billboard
|publisher=Eldridge Industries
|date=April 23, 1983
|access-date=February 14, 2018}}
{{cite web
|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/oxo-mn0000461722/awards
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910190618/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/oxo-mn0000461722/awards
|url-status=dead
|archive-date=September 10, 2015
|title=Oxo {{!}} Awards. Billboard Singles
|publisher=AllMusic
|access-date=April 8, 2018
|df=mdy-all}}
|url=http://www.allmusic.com/song/whirly-girl-mt0011794336
|title=Whirly Girl {{!}} Styles
|publisher=AllMusic
|access-date=May 16, 2016}}
|last=Waterman
|first=Michael
|title=Whirly Girl - OXO
|url=http://toponehitwonders.com/pop/whirly-girl-oxo/
|website=toponehitwonders.com
|date=October 9, 2010
|access-date=April 9, 2018}}
Oxo album credits, Geffen Records, 1983.
|url=http://www.allmusic.com/song/whirly-girl-mt0011794336
|title=Oxo {{!}} Whirly Girl
|publisher=AllMusic. All Media Network
|access-date=September 18, 2012}}
|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/oxo-mn0000461722
|title=Oxo {{!}} Biography
|publisher=AllMusic
|first=Tom
|last=Demalon
|access-date=September 18, 2012}}
|first=Joel
|last=Whitburn
|author-link=Joel Whitburn
|title=The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=drgq4g0rmVsC
|year=2000
|publisher=Billboard Books
|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=drgq4g0rmVsC&q=OXO+%22WhirlyGirl+Geffen%22 477]
|isbn=0-8230-7690-3|edition=7th
}}
|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/company-b/chart-history/hsi/
|title=Company B {{!}} Chart History. Billboard Hot 100
|magazine=Billboard
|publisher=Eldridge Industries
|date=June 13, 1987
|access-date=April 8, 2018}}
|last1=Mansfield
|first1=Ken
|author-link1=Ken Mansfield
|last2=Terrill
|first2=Marshall
|author-link2=Marshall Terrill
|title=Rock and a Heart Place. A Rock 'n' Roller-coaster Ride from Rebellion to Sweet Salvation
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FcymBgAAQBAJ
|year=2015
|publisher=BroadStreet Publishing Group LLC
|isbn=978-1-4245-5020-3
|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=FcymBgAAQBAJ&dq=%22Geffen+Records%22+OXO+%22our+debut+record+on+Geffen+Records+was+a+Top+30+hit+called+%E2%80%9CWhirly+Girl%E2%80%9D+that+died+a+painful+death.+The+moment+the+record+charted,+the+group+began+breaking+up.+Politics+and+power+struggles+erupted+between+management+and+Geffen%22&pg=PT147 147]}}
|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/company-b-mn0000099032/biography
|title=Company B {{!}} Biography
|publisher=AllMusic
|first=Tom
|last=Demalon
|access-date=September 18, 2012}}
}}
External links
- {{Discogs master|294335}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGBYTqSioJM "Whirly Girl" music video] on MTV2
{{Authority control}}