Stupid Cupid

This song was written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. Sedaka was only 19 when he penned this, and it became the first of many Billboard Hot 100 hits for the New York singer-songwriter. Sedaka was originally hesitant to offer the song to Connie Francis as he thought it was much too juvenile for her. He and Greenfield originally intended it for a girl group.

"Stupid Cupid" was practically the first song produced by the brand-new Aldon music formed by producers Don Kirshner and Al Nevins. Connie Francis, too, had just begun her career that year; her first hit was "Who's Sorry Now," released just earlier that year.

According to Rich Podolsky's book Don Kirshner: The Man with the Golden Ear, Sedaka and Greenfield, two teenagers with hardly any experience, had been pounding on doors trying to get their songs produced. They had a flirt with success at Atlantic Records selling songs to Jerry Wexler, but had been turned down cold by Hill and Range. Asking his high school friend Mort Shuman for a referral, Sedaka was directed to the offices of Aldon music. They arrived at Aldon's office to find that they had literally just moved in; cardboard boxes were everywhere in a tiny office with two desks and an upright piano. Kirshner listened to the two songwriter's sales pitch, then thumbed them over to the piano to show him what they had. Yes, it worked just like that!

While Greenfield was hesitant to sign the lads, Kirshner insisted that songwriters like Sedaka and Greenfield were exactly the kind of talent he'd hoped to find. Kirshner invited them back to meet Connie Francis. (Is this story turning into the who's-who of Brill Building heraldry or what?)

It turned out that Connie had become discouraged from her lack of another hit since "Who's Sorry Now" and was tired of other people picking out songs for her. So when Kirshner called her up, she actually blew them off to go to the hairdresser's instead! Undaunted, Kirshner, Sedaka, and Greenfield piled into a car and drove to the hairdresser's, circling the block waiting for her to come out because this is New York we're talking about, where there's no place to park.

The little group then met at Francis' home, where Sedaka and Greenfield played one slow ballad for her after another, which she hated. Thinking that slow ballads were a good match for her style, they were hesitant to try "Stupid Cupid," but when she finally heard it, she was thrilled and agreed to sign a deal.

In the UK this was a double A-side with a cover of the 1920s Gene Austin number "Carolina Moon."