1. The Regents were a doo-wop voc… Read Full Bio ↴At least 5 groups share this name:
1. The Regents were a doo-wop vocal group from New York in the late 1950s and early 1960s. They are best known for writing and recording the hit "Barbara Ann" in 1961, which reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #2 when later covered by the Beach Boys in 1965 on their album, Beach Boys' Party!.
2. The Regents were a UK-based punk/new wave group from the late 70's. They had a #11 hit in 1980 with the single '7 Teen'.
3. The Regents was a Barbershop Quartet.
4. Regents is a hardcore band from Baltimore, MD
5. A Finnish surf rock band. http://www.theregents.info
#1 The Regents a doo-wop vocal group from New York in the late 1950s and early 1960s, with original members:
Ernie Maresca (replaced by Don Jacobucci)
Chuck Fassert (brother of "Barbara-Ann" author Fred Fassert)
Guy Villari (born 11 August 1942, Bronx, NY; died 21 September 2017, Middletown, NY)
Sal Cuomo
Tony Gravagna
They formed in the Bronx, New York, in 1959. Group members included Guy Villari on lead; Sal Cuomo, first tenor; Chuck Fassert, second tenor; Don Jacobucci, sax player/baritone; Tony Gravagna on bass.
An earlier version of the group from 1957 was called The Monterays, and included Villari, Cuomo, Fassert and Ernie Maresca (who later had a hit with "Shout! Shout! (Knock Yourself Out)", and also wrote songs such as the Regent's "Runaround" and "The Wanderer" recorded by Dion).
The group recorded demos in Bell Sound, Associated, and Regent Sound studios. They were signed to Seville Records as The Desires, however, none of the songs they recorded were released, until the group had success three years later as The Regents. The Regents' name came from a combination of recording a demo at Regent Sound studio, and the fact that Villari smoked Regents cigarettes.
In 1958 the group recorded Villari's "A Teenager's Love". At the same recording session they waxed "Barbara-Ann" in three takes. Shortly afterwards, Tony Gravagna, was installed into the group. Unable to secure a recording contract, they disbanded about a year later.
Eddie Jacobucci revived the Regents by accident. His group, the Consorts, lacked original songs for an audition, so they recorded a version of "Barbara-Ann". The owner of Cousins Records heard the track and decided to release the original version by the Regents. The original group reunited, and Cousins released "Barbara-Ann" in March 1961. It became a No. 1 record in New York; the demand was such that Cousins leased it to Roulette/Gee for worldwide distribution, and it reached #13 in the Billboard Hot 100. Their follow-up release, "Runaround", written by Maresca, went to #28 on the pop chart and #30 R&B. They released two more records for Gee, but after a royalties dispute with the record label, the group broke up.
They reformed in 1973 with Villari the only remaining original member. The group enjoyed success in concerts group and toured across the United States. In 1988 they were selected as one of only four "oldies" groups to appear on the Grammy Awards Show. The Cadillacs, The Flamingos and The Angels were the other three.
In 1995 a new group of Regents was formed. Along with Villari, Tony Valitutto, Frank Civatillo and Tony Cacace made up the vocals, while Richard Rogers, Joel DeRuggiero and Sal DiCicco provided the instrumentation.
Barbara Ann
The Regents Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann (take my hand)
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a-reelin'
Barbara Ann
Went to a dance
Looking for romance
Saw Barbara Ann
So I thought I'd take a chance
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
Oh, Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin'
Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann (take my hand)
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin'
Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Played our favourite tune
Danced with Betty Lou
Tried Peggy Sue
But I knew it wouldn't, do
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
Oh, Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin'
Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Played our favorite tune
Danced with Betty Lou
Tried Peggy Sue
But I knew they wouldn't do
Oh Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann
Take my hand
Oh Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann
Take my hand
You got me rockin' and a rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin' Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Barbara Ann
Take my hand
Barbara Ann
You got me rockin' and a rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin' Barbara Ann
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann
The Regents' song "Barbara Ann" is a classic rock and roll tune that tells the story of a man who attends a dance looking for romance and finally meets Barbara Ann. The repeated "ba ba ba" lyrics are infectious and catchy and perfectly set the tone for the song. The singer is telling Barbara Ann that all the other girls at the dance, including Betty Lou and Peggy Sue, were not right for him. He wants Barbara Ann to take his hand and dance with him, as she has got him "rockin' and a-rollin'".
Line by Line Meaning
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer is infatuated with Barbara Ann and wants to express his attraction with music.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer continues to express his infatuation with Barbara Ann by repeating her name.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann (take my hand)
The singer is asking Barbara Ann to dance with him by offering his hand.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer repeats Barbara Ann's name again, emphasizing how much he likes her.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer continues to show his fondness for Barbara Ann as he repeats her name yet again.
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a-reelin'
Barbara Ann
Barbara Ann's presence makes the singer feel excited and joyful and he wants to express it through music.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer is singing Barbara Ann's name again to express how much he likes her.
Went to a dance
Looking for romance
Saw Barbara Ann
So I thought I'd take a chance
The singer went to a dance looking for love and upon seeing Barbara Ann, he decided to take a chance and dance with her.
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
Oh, Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
The singer continues to ask Barbara Ann to dance with him by repeatedly offering his hand.
Played our favourite tune
Danced with Betty Lou
Tried Peggy Sue
But I knew it wouldn't, do
The singer attempts to dance with other women but realizes none of them compare to Barbara Ann.
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
Oh, Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann, take my hand
The singer reiterates his desire for Barbara Ann to dance with him, extend his hand and asking her to dance.
You've got me rockin' and a-rollin'
Rockin' and a-reelin'
Barbara Ann
Barbara Ann's presence continues to make the singer feel excited and joyful, and he wants to express it through music.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer uses Barbara Ann's name again to express his adoration for her.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer repeats Barbara Ann's name again to emphasize how much he likes her.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann (take my hand)
The singer again offers his hand to encourage Barbara Ann to dance with him.
Barbara Ann
The singer affectionately calls out Barbara Ann's name one more time.
You got me rockin' and a rollin'
Rockin' and a reelin' Barbara Ann
Barbara Ann continues to make the singer feel exhilarated and he wants to show his joy through music.
Ba ba ba ba Barbara Ann
The singer uses Barbara Ann's name again as a way of expressing his admiration for her.
Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann
The singer calls out Barbara Ann's name one final time, expressing his love for her.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Fred Fassert
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@RocknRollkat
This is rock'n'roll.
Period.
Bill P.
@thomastarwater2989
With all due respect to The Beach Boys, the original version by the Regents kicks musical ass! And the tenor saxophone solo is killer!!!
@markusalcudia
It's by far better than the Beach Boys' version
@scottwyatt2614
Lots of bands have tried it. They're the only ones who got it right. Beach Boys tried it, released it twice that I know of, and messed it up both times. The Who even tried it, choking at the exact same point where the Beach Boys did. And that sax... Hell's, Yeah!
@sopaman1234
Definitley
@mattmcnulty8363
I respectfully disagree. And The Beach Boys version was a live “party” cover and they still killed it.
@sopaman1234
@@mattmcnulty8363 That must have been some psycho drugs you were taking. If you believe that stupid crap..
@momtogia
omg i just found out today my grandpa was one of the regents ( far right). omg cant believe it. why cant i sing good.
@errolhooker4686
Something to tell your own grandchildren.
@Lokh66
littlemouse Raia cool dude 😎