Young Girl (song)

"Young Girl"
1968 45rpm record label
Single by Gary Puckett & The Union Gap
from the album Young Girl
B-side	"I'm Losing You"
Released	March 1968
Format	7", 45rpm
Genre	Pop
Length	3:16
Label	Columbia 44450
Writer(s)	Jerry Fuller[1]
Producer(s)	Jerry Fuller[1]
Certification	Gold (RIAA)
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap singles chronology
"Woman, Woman" (1967) "Young Girl" (1968) "Lady Willpower" (1968)

"Young Girl" was an RIAA million-selling Gold-certified single, written by Jerry Fuller, performed by Gary Puckett & The Union Gap with instrumental backing by members of The Wrecking Crew,^[2] and released in 1968.

The song hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, stuck behind (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding for the first week and Honey by Bobby Goldsboro for the remaining two.^[3] It also hit #1 on the UK Singles Chart^[1] and the US Cash Box listing.^[4]

The song is sung from the point of view of a man who has become distressed upon finding out that the girl he is with is under the legal age of consent. He is asking her to leave before things go any further, "Get out of here / before I have the time / to change my mind / 'cause I'm afraid we'll go too far."

In the UK, the recording enjoyed a second chart run in 1974, when it peaked at No. 6.

Gary Lewis and the Playboys released a version of the song on their 1968 album, Gary Lewis Now!^[5]

Cover versions

• Danny Chan covered this song in his first album First Love, released in 1979.
• ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad (commonly known as Frida) recorded a Swedish-language version called "Jag är mig själv nu" ("I Am Myself Now" with Swedish lyrics by Marie Bergman) on her solo album, Frida Ensam.^[6]
• Claude François, French singer and composer, co-author of "Comme d'habitude"/"My Way," adapted the song in French as "Prends garde petite fille!" ("Young girl, watch out!")
• Israeli rock band Noar Shulayim recorded a Hebrew-language version called "Layla" ("Night") in 1990.^[7] However, in their version, the man is not distressed and they do go "too far": "If you do it Layla, Don't dare to tell, ..., and it will stay between us".
• Danny Tanner sang this song in an episode of Full House.
• In the episode of Glee titled "Ballad," transmitted on November 18, 2009, the song was used in a mash-up with "Don't Stand So Close to Me" by The Police. The lines: "Young girl, get out of my mind / My love for you is way out of line" were changed to "Young girl, you're out of your mind / Your love for me is way out of line."
  • A parody of this mashup appeared in the adult film parody This Ain't Glee XXX, called "Don't Cum All Over Me".
• English rapper Plan B makes a reference to the lyrics in his song "Charmaine" on his 2006 album, Who Needs Actions When You Got Words.^[8]

References

1. Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 117. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
2. Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew. St. Martin’s Griffin. pp. 261–263. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7.
3. "Billboard Top 100 April 13, 1968".
4. "Song artist 849 - Gary Puckett & The Union Gap". Tsort.info. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
5. "Gary Lewis Now! - Gary Lewis & the Playboys | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
6. Eder, Bruce. "Frida Ensam - Frida | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
7. "Layla" by Noar Shulayim on YouTube Retrieved January 1, 2012
8. Jo-Ann Greene (2006-06-26). "Who Needs Actions When You Got Words - Plan B | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-04-07.