I Love How You Love Me

"I Love How You Love Me" was written by Barry Mann and Larry Kolber, both staff songwriters at the fabled Brill Building offices of Aldon Music.

The Paris Sisters were, in order of oldest to youngest, Albeth, Sherrell, and Priscilla. They were one of the Brill Building "girl groups" popularized by Phil Spector. Their mother was a former opera singer who started the girls off on their own career singing at Air Force shows, and they continued on to USO tours, county fairs, and nightclubs. Eventually they would sign onto the Decca label, but had limited success until this song became their breakout hit.

According to Rich Podolsky's book Don Kirshner: The Man with the Golden Ear, Larry Kolber was a veteran with journalism experience, having written for Stars and Stripes (yes, the same newspaper mentioned in the film Full Metal Jacket!). But his post-veteran career found him as a whiskey salesman - an unpredictable twist. While talking with a fellow veteran, he learned by chance that he was a songwriter. Kolber was amazed that people actually earned money just for writing songs, and decided to try his hand at it. Through his veteran friend, he met Don Kirshner of Aldon Music. Kolber's first song for Kirshner was "Forget Me Not," a minor hit for the Kalin Twins.

Kolber was having lunch at a cafe across the street from Aldon Music when he literally jotted down the lyrics to "I Love How You Love Me" on a napkin! Seven minutes later, he was back across the street looking for somebody to set it to music. Barry Mann happened to be in the Aldon offices just at that moment. Tony Orlando was originally slated to sing it, but Phil Spector happened to have dropped by and asked for the song for one of his girl groups. Kolber was disappointed, thinking that he'd lost a shot at fame without Orlando's voice. Kirshner and Spector were acquainted by common partners, the legendary songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, so Kirshner let him have it.

The sisters Paris rehearsed the song at home, then recorded with Spector in Hollywood, at Goldstar Studios at the corner of Santa Monica and Vine. They reported that Spector was difficult to work with.

The Paris Sisters next visit to the Hot 100 was the Phil Spector production "Be My Boy" later in 1961, which went to #56. In 1962, they made #34 with "He Knows I Love Him Too Much," which was written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. Another Larry Kolber/Barry Mann song, "Let Me Be The One," hit #87 that year, and their cover of "Dream Lover" checked in at #91 in 1964.