Born in Belhaven, North Carolina, she moved to the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn, New York, at a young age. Although some sources claim that her stage name was inspired by a character from the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, she stated in an interview that she was named after her aunt, which prompted her family to call her "Little Eva." As a teenager, she worked as a maid and earned extra money as a babysitter for songwriters Carole King and Gerry Goffin. It is often claimed that Goffin and King were amused by Boyd's particular dancing style, so they wrote "The Loco-Motion" for her and had her record it as a demo (the record was intended for Dee Dee Sharp).
However, as King said in an interview with NPR and in her "One to One" concert video, they knew she could sing when they met her, and it would be just a matter of time before they would have her record songs they wrote, the most successful being "The Loco-Motion."
Music producer Don Kirshner of Dimension Records was impressed by the song and Boyd's voice and had it released. The song reached #1 in the United States in 1962. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. After the success of "The Loco-Motion," Boyd was stereotyped as a dance-craze singer and was given limited material.
The same year, Goffin and King wrote "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss)" (performed by the Crystals) after discovering that Boyd was being regularly beaten by her boyfriend. When they inquired why she tolerated such treatment, Eva replied without batting an eyelid that her boyfriend's actions were motivated by his love for her.
Phil Spector's arrangement of the song was ominous and ambiguous.
It was a brutal song, as any attempt to justify such violence must be, and Spector's arrangement only amplified its savagery, framing Barbara Alston's lone vocal amid a sea of caustic strings and funereal drums, while the backing vocals almost trilled their own belief that the boy had done nothing wrong. In more ironic hands (and a more understanding age), 'He Hit Me' might have passed at least as satire. But Spector showed no sign of appreciating that, nor did he feel any need to. No less than the song's writers, he was not preaching, he was merely documenting.
Boyd's other single recordings were "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby," "Let's Turkey Trot," and a remake of the Bing Crosby standard "Swinging on a Star," recorded with Big Dee Irwin (though Boyd was not credited on the label). Boyd also recorded the song "Makin' With the Magilla" for an episode of the 1964 Hanna-Barbera cartoon series The Magilla Gorilla Show.
She continued to tour and record throughout the sixties, but her commercial potential plummeted after 1964. She retired from the music industry in 1971. She never owned the rights to her recordings. Although the prevailing rumor in the 1970s was that she had received only $50 for "The Loco-Motion," it seems $50 was actually her weekly salary at the time she made her records (an increase of $15 from what Goffin and King had been paying her as nanny). Penniless, she returned with her three young children to North Carolina, where they lived in obscurity.
Interviewed in 1988 after the success of the Kylie Minogue cover version of "The Loco-Motion", Boyd stated that she did not like the new version; however its then-current popularity allowed her to make a comeback in show business.
She returned to live performing with other artists of her era on the cabaret and oldies circuits. She also occasionally recorded new songs.
The only existing footage of Little Eva performing "Loco-Motion" is a small clip from the ABC sixties live show Shindig! where she sang a short version of the clip along with the famous dance steps. She also sang "Let's Turkey Trot" and the Exciters' song "I Want You to Be My Boy" in the same episode. This TV show was one of her final performances until 1988, when she began performing in concerts with Bobby Vee and other singers. In a 1991 Richard Nader concert, she performed "Loco-Motion" and "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby". The concert was partially documented on videotape, albeit of marginal quality.
She continued performing until she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in October 2001. She died on April 10, 2003 in Kinston, North Carolina, at the age of 59, and is buried in a small cemetery in Belhaven, North Carolina. Her gravesite was sparsely marked until July 2008, when a report by WRAL-TV of Raleigh, North Carolina highlighted deteriorating conditions at the cemetery and efforts by the city of Belhaven to have it restored. A simple white cross had marked the site until a new gravestone was unveiled in November of that year. Her new grey gravestone has the image of a steam locomotive prominently engraved on the front and the epitaph reads: "Singing with the Angels".
Old Smokey Locomotion
Little Eva Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It was quiet before
But since they learned the Loco-motion
It ain't quiet no more
Well everybody you see there
Has a smile on his face
Cause since they learned the Loco-motion
Well every Friday night now
They have a record hop
And it ain't til Monday morning
That the dancin' stop(s)
(On top of Old Smokey) On top of Old Smokey
(It was quiet before) He was quiet before
(But since they learned the Loco-motion)
But since they learned the Loco-motion
(It ain't quiet no more) He ain't quiet no more
(They threw away their fiddles) They threw away them fiddles
(And their honkey guitars) And their honky guitars
(Now they even have fan clubs) Now they even have fan clubs
(At all the record stores) At all the record stores
(On top of Old Smokey) On top of Old Smokey baby
(Was smokey before) Well do you hear what I say
(And let me tell you Old Smokey) And let me tell you Old Smokey
(Ain't honky no more) It ain't a honky no more
(On top of Old Smokey) On top of Old Smokey
(Was smokey before) Oh hear what I say
(And let me tell you Old Smokey) And let me tell you Old Smokey
(Ain't honky no more) And that's a natural fact
(On top of Old Smokey) On top of Old Smokey
(Was honky before) He was a honky before
(And let me tell you Old Smokey) Oh yeah baby
(Ain't honky no more) He ain't a honky no more
The lyrics to Little Eva's song "Old Smokey Loco-Motion" describe a transformation that has taken place on top of Old Smokey. Before they learned the Loco-motion, everything was quiet up there. But now, since they've learned this popular dance, the vibe has changed completely. Everyone up there is smiling and having a good time, because the Loco-motion has made it a real swingin' place.
The transformation is so complete that they've even thrown away their fiddles and honkey guitars. Now they have fan clubs and record hops every Friday night. The dancing doesn't stop until Monday morning, and Old Smokey is no longer a honky but a happening place. In short, the lyrics suggest that the Loco-motion has brought joy and excitement to Old Smokey and transformed it from a quiet and uneventful place into a lively and vibrant one.
Line by Line Meaning
On top of Old Smokey
Referring to a place called Old Smokey
It was quiet before
It was a quiet place before
But since they learned the Loco-motion
Since they learned the dance called Loco-motion
It ain't quiet no more
It's not a quiet place anymore
Well everybody you see there
All the people you see there
Has a smile on his face
Are smiling
Cause since they learned the Loco-motion
Because they learned the dance called Loco-motion
It's a real swingin' place
It's now a lively and exciting place
Well every Friday night now
Now, every Friday night
They have a record hop
They hold a dance party with recorded music
And it ain't til Monday morning
And it doesn't end until Monday morning
That the dancin' stop(s)
That people stop dancing
(They threw away their fiddles)
They stopped playing fiddles
They threw away them fiddles
They threw away those fiddles
(And their honkey guitars)
They stopped playing honky-tonk guitars
And their honky guitars
And those honky-tonk guitars
(Now they even have fan clubs)
They even have fan clubs now
Now they even have fan clubs
Now, there are even fan clubs for them
(At all the record stores)
At all the record stores
At all the record stores
They are popular and their records are sold at all record stores
(On top of Old Smokey)
Referring to a place called Old Smokey
On top of Old Smokey baby
On top of Old Smokey, my dear
(Was smokey before)
It was a smokey place before
Well do you hear what I say
Do you understand what I'm saying?
(And let me tell you Old Smokey)
Let me tell you about Old Smokey
And let me tell you Old Smokey
And let me tell you about Old Smokey
(Ain't honky no more)
It's not honky-tonk anymore
It ain't a honky no more
It's not a honky-tonk place anymore
(Was honky before)
It was a honky-tonk place before
He was a honky before
It was a honky-tonk place before
Oh yeah baby
Oh yes, my dear
And that's a natural fact
And it's a fact
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Carole King, Gerry Goffin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Tony Russi
Loved Eva, great person & great Rock & Roll artist.
Anthony Mills
In the UK this was released as a double A side with 'Let's turkey trot' and made No 13 in 1963. Her other UK hits were 'The locomotion' (2) and 'Keep your hands off my baby' (30) . In 1972 'The locomotion' again made No 11. She was of course the female voice on Big Dee Irwin's 'Swingin' on a star' a UK No 7 in 1963.
Michael Easterwood
Awesome!
scott nester
Wow nice follow up version