Forming the group that became The Four Seasons, he found that he had finally hit the big time in a huge way. Gaudio played keyboards and wrote the Seasons' first hit, titled "Sherry", in 1962. Together with producer Bob Crewe, Gaudio wrote a string of subsequent 60s hits for the Seasons, including "Big Girls Don't Cry", "Walk Like a Man", "Ronnie", "Save It For Me", and "Bye Bye Baby". He also helped create "Can't Take My Eyes Off You", which reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became a gold record (being the first big success under Valli's name as a 'solo artist').
The four-piece band has influenced numerous other artists while being one of the most successful American pop and rock groups of the 60s. Gaudio-Crewe compositions also became major hits for other artists, including The Tremeloes ("Silence is Golden") and The Walker Brothers ("The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore"). As the Four Seasons played on, though, Gaudio sought to branch out musically, and the group also faced tension between its members.
With lyricist Jake Holmes, Gaudio sought to join the trend toward more socially conscious pop music by writing and producing the album "The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette", released by the Four Seasons in January 1969. The album was a commercial failure and marked the end of the Four Seasons' first period of success, but the album's quirky newspaper-style cover influenced the covers of subsequent albums by Jefferson Airplane, Jethro Tull, and John Lennon. Appreciation of "The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette" has grown over the years, and it was released on CD (minus the newspaper cover) in the 1990s by Rhino Records in the U.S. and Ace Records in the U.K. Gaudio and Holmes also wrote and produced Frank Sinatra's 1969 album "Watertown".
In the 1970s Gaudio wrote "Who Loves You" and "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" with his future wife Judy Parker. The songs became big hits for a reconstituted, discofied version of the Four Seasons (Valli was the only original left). The original Four Seasons were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
Gaudio had stopped touring with the Seasons in 1971 so that he could focus on writing and producing. In addition to his work for the Seasons and Sinatra, he wrote and/or produced for Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Barry Manilow and Roberta Flack. In particular, he produced six complete albums for Neil Diamond, as well as the movie soundtrack albums for Diamond's "The Jazz Singer" and "Little Shop of Horrors".
In the 1990s Gaudio moved to Nashville and produced recordings for Canadian country artist George Fox, among others. He lured Neil Diamond to Nashville to record the album "Tennessee Moon". In recent years Gaudio has focused on musical theater, writing the music for the 2001 London production of "Peggy Sue Got Married".
Gaudio is additionally a member of the Songwriters' Hall of Fame. As stated earlier, Gaudio was instrumental in creating 'Jersey Boys', a musical production based on the lives of the Four Seasons. The musical ran at the La Jolla Playhouse through January 2, 2005 and then opened on Broadway on Nov. 6, 2005 to mostly positive reviews. In 2006, the play won four Tony Awards, including 'Best Musical'. The full album recording of the 'Original Broadway Cast' picked up a Grammy Award while also achieving large-scale commercial success.
My Boyfriend's Back
Bob Gaudio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Walk, walk, walk, walk)
Oo wee oo wee oo walk
Like a man
Oh how you tried to cut me down to size
Telling dirty lies to my friends
But my own father said give her up don′t bother
(He said just) Walk like a man
Talk like a man
Walk like a man my son
No woman′s worth
Crawling on the earth
Just walk like a man my son
Oo wee oo wee oo walk
(Walk, walk, walk, walk)
Oo wee oo wee oo walk
(I'm gonna) walk like a man
Fast as I can
Walk like a man from you
I'll tell the world to forget about it girl
And walk like a man from you
Oo wee oo wee oo walk
(Walk, walk, walk, walk)
Oo wee oo wee oo walk like a man
Like a man
The song "My Boyfriend's Back" by Bob Gaudio is a classic example of a 1960s girl group song. On the surface, it seems like a song about a girl who is trying to get over her boyfriend who has been unfaithful. However, the lyrics actually subvert the traditional gender roles of the time and present the idea that a man should behave honorably and not let a woman bring him down.
The opening lines of the song, "Oo wee oo wee oo walk, walk, walk, walk," are a doo-wop-style vocal riff, followed by the repeated phrase "walk like a man." The next verse describes a situation where the singer's boyfriend has been spreading lies about her to their mutual friends, trying to make her look bad. Her father advises her to just let him go; he tells her to "walk like a man" instead of crawling on the ground for a woman who isn't worth it. The chorus repeats the phrase "walk like a man," emphasizing the importance of behaving honorably and confidently.
The second verse focuses on the singer herself, as she determines to "walk like a man" in the face of her ex-boyfriend's lies. She is going to move on from the relationship and not let him get the best of her. The song ends with a final repeat of the chorus.
Overall, "My Boyfriend's Back" is a song that celebrates strength, independence, and confidence in the face of adversity. It is a classic example of a 1960s girl group song that combines catchy melodies and vocal harmonies with a message of female empowerment.
Line by Line Meaning
Oo wee oo wee oo walk (Walk, walk, walk, walk) Oo wee oo wee oo walk Like a man
Trying to project masculinity in my stride and overall demeanor
Oh how you tried to cut me down to size Telling dirty lies to my friends But my own father said give her up don′t bother The world isn't coming to an end
You attempted to belittle me with rumors, but my dad told me to not worry about it, the world doesn't end with one failed relationship
(He said just) Walk like a man Talk like a man Walk like a man my son No woman′s worth Crawling on the earth Just walk like a man my son
My father told me to stand tall and be a man. No woman is worth debasing myself by groveling
Oo wee oo wee oo walk (Walk, walk, walk, walk) Oo wee oo wee oo walk
Continuing the practice of walking like a man, projecting my masculine confidence
(I'm gonna) walk like a man Fast as I can Walk like a man from you I'll tell the world to forget about it girl And walk like a man from you
I will quickly distance myself from you and your negative impact on my life so that I can walk like a man again
Oo wee oo wee oo walk (Walk, walk, walk, walk) Oo wee oo wee oo walk like a man Like a man
Reiterating my commitment to walking tall and confident like a true man
Contributed by Abigail Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@ArianaBurks
I love the Jersey Girls!! They don't get enough credit sometimes which is understandable because the main characters are the four seasons.