Today’s extremely obscure classic song of the day is one most of you probably have never heard. The song is “If You Love Me (Really Love Me)” and it was recorded by both Brenda Lee and Donna Loren—although neither version made much of a splash at the time.
“If You Love Me (Really Love Me)” was written way back in 1950 by Marguerite Monnot and Edith Piaf, and recorded by Ms. Piaf as “Hymne a L’amour” or “Hymn to Love.” The English version, released by Ms. Piaf in 1956, substituted Ms. Piaf’s original French lyrics with translated words by Geoffrey Parsons. This version was recorded by Brenda Lee in 1961 for her album Emotions; you may have heard it on the soundtrack to Disney+’s Loki series. She never released it as a single.
Donna Loren released her version of “If You Love Me (Really Love Me)” in 1963 and it went absolutely nowhere. That’s a shame, because, unlike the normal pop confections to which she was typically shackled, it really shows off her range. Forgive me for the comparison, but she’s really giving off some soulful Linda Ronstadt vibes on this one. It’s just a good performance of a good song.
In case you didn’t know, Brenda Lee was one of the biggest pop stars of the early 1960s. She had a dozen top ten hits between 1958 and 1963, including “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (#1 in 1958), “Sweet Nothin’s” (1959), “That’s All You Gotta Do” (1960), “I Want to Be Wanted” (#1 in 1960), “Emotions” (1960), “You Can Depend on Me” (1961), “Dum Dum” (1961), “Fool No. 1” (1961), “Break It to Me Gently” (1962), “Everybody Loves Me But You” (1962), “All Alone Am I” (1962), and “Losing You” (1963). She moved into country music in the 1970s and is still around today, 81 years of age.
Donna Loren was less well known. If you remember Ms. Loren at all you may remember her as the “Dr. Pepper Girl” in those soft drink commercials in the mid-60s. She was also a featured vocalist on the Shindig TV show and a recurring cast member in the Frankie-and-Annette Beach Party movies of that era. Her most famous song, from the Beach Blanket Bingo movie, was “It Only Hurts When I Cry.” She also appeared in various TV shows of the day, including Batman (as Susie the cheerleader in the “The Joker Goes to School”/”He Meets His Match, the Grisly Ghoul” episodes), The Monkees, and Dr. Kildare. She retired from show business in 1968 to raise a family but returned to recording and performing in 2009. She’s currently 79 years old.
For today’s daily bonus video of the day, then, here’s Ms. Donna Loren singing “If You Love Me (Really Love Me)” live on the February 26, 1966, episode of American Bandstand. That girl could sing.
