Lesley Sue Gore (born Lesley Sue Goldstein; May 2, 1946 – February 16, 2015… Read Full Bio ↴Lesley Sue Gore (born Lesley Sue Goldstein; May 2, 1946 – February 16, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, actress and activist. At the age of 16, in 1963, she recorded the pop hit "It's My Party", and followed it up with other hits including "Judy's Turn to Cry" and "You Don't Own Me".

Gore also worked as an actress and composed songs with her brother Michael Gore for the 1980 film Fame, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. She was active until 2014, and hosted an LGBT-oriented public television show, In the Life, on American TV in the 2000s.

Raised in Tenafly, New Jersey to Jewish parents, Gore was discovered as a teenager. Her first single in 1963 at age 16 was the #1 hit It's My Party still perhaps her best known recording, which also made #9 in Britain. It was followed by others, including Judy's Turn to Cry (the sequel to "It's My Party"), She's a Fool, the proto-feminist You Don't Own Me, and Maybe I Know. Her record producer was Quincy Jones, who would later become one of the most famous producers in American music.

Instead of accepting the television and movie contracts that came her way, Gore chose to attend Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. This limited her public career to weekends and summer vacations and undoubtedly hurt her career. Nevertheless, throughout the mid-1960's, Gore continued to be the one of the most popular female singers in the United States and Canada.

By the late 1960s, though, her fame lessened as popular tastes evolved towards a harder-edged, psychedelic sound. Her last major hit was "California Nights," (1967) which she performed on an episode of the Batman TV series in which she guest-starred as one of Catwoman's minions. Afterwards, she continued to stay busy in the music industry, performed at concerts and in cabarets and achieved noted success as a professional songwriter, including composing songs for the soundtrack of the 1980 film, Fame. She received an Academy Award nomination for "Out Here on My Own," written with her brother Michael.

Gore continued to be busy, playing concerts, appearing on television, and recently (2005) recording a self-produced and critically-acclaimed CD, "Ever Since." She is also known for tackling a variety of musical genres, including a credible take on AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap."

Although Gore did not officially come out until 2005, her lesbianism was not exactly a secret. The 1996 film Grace of My Heart featured a character (played by Bridget Fonda) whose industry struggles over her sexual orientation were similar to Gore's. Beginning in 2004 Gore could be seen hosting the PBS series In the Life, which focused on LGBT issues.
On February 16, 2015, Gore died of lung cancer at the age of 68.

Brink Of Disaster
Lesley Gore Lyrics

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I'm your conscience, listen to me
Don't give in, 'cause it's a conspiracy

I cannot help myself
I just can't stay away from him

If you went back it wouldn't last
How come you won't learn from your past mistakes?

My heart keeps saying yes
But you say to say no to him
I'm sorry I must go to him again

'Cause my heart has played the game before
My head says nevermore
I should know what is right for me
And I know I've lost before I start
But tell that to my heart
It's so hard for me to think
When my heart is on the brink
Of disaster

Pardon me, I must interrupt
You admit that he's not your cup of tea

It doesn't matter 'cause
When my heart is involved,
All my problems can't be solved
By what's right

'Cause my heart has played the game before
My head says nevermore
I should know what is right for me
And I know I've lost before I start
But tell that to my heart
It's so hard for me to think
When my heart is on the brink
Of disaster

'Cause my heart has played the game before
My head says nevermore

Overall Meaning

The opening lines of Lesley Gore’s “Brink of Disaster” paint a portrait of someone at war with their own self. The first voice we hear is a conscience, imploring the singer of the song to “listen to me” and not “give in” to a dangerous temptation. The second voice we hear belongs to the singer themselves, admitting that they “just can’t stay away from him.” The entire song is a battle between these two internal forces: the rational voice of the conscience, and the reckless but compelling voice of desire.

The lyrics are imbued with ambivalence and conflict, as the singer struggles to make sense of their own emotions. In one verse, they admit that they’ve “lost before [they] start,” but in the next, they apologize for “going to him again.” It’s clear that the singer knows that their actions are ultimately self-destructive, but they feel powerless to resist the magnetic pull of their attraction. “It’s so hard for me to think,” they confess in the chorus, “when my heart is on the brink of disaster.” The song ends with a plea to be understood: “But tell that to my heart.”

Line by Line Meaning

I'm your conscience, listen to me
I'm the little voice inside your head telling you what to do.

Don't give in, 'cause it's a conspiracy
Don't cave in to the plot being orchestrated against you.

I cannot help myself
My emotions are too strong for me to resist.

I just can't stay away from him
I'm irresistibly drawn to him.

If you went back it wouldn't last
If you reunite, it will be short-lived.

How come you won't learn from your past mistakes?
Why won't you remember what happened last time?

My heart keeps saying yes
My emotions are telling me to agree.

But you say to say no to him
My rational side is telling me to decline.

I'm sorry I must go to him again
I regret having to be drawn back to him.

'Cause my heart has played the game before
I am familiar with the patterns of heartbreak.

My head says nevermore
My brain is urging me not to go back.