“Woman, Woman” (Gary Puckett & the Union Gap)

Today’s classic song of the day was the debut single by Gary Puckett & the Union Gap. The song is “Woman, Woman,” and it was released in August of 1967. It did pretty good for a debut single, hitting #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 on the Cash Box Top 100.

Before “Woman, Woman” hit the charts, singer Gary Puckett led a group called Gary and the Remarkables. They weren’t all that remarkable, apparently, and changed their name to The Union Gap featuring Gary Puckett and decided to wear matching Union Army-style Civil War uniforms, which kind of became their gimmick . (Union Gap, BTW, was a small town near Yakima, Washington, where Mr. Puckett grew up.) They met up with producer Jerry Fuller, who promptly signed them to a recording contract with Columbia Records. “Woman, Woman” was their first release, and it was a big one.

“Woman, Woman” was written by Jim Glaser and Jimmy Payne. Jerry Fuller, who was Glen Campbell’s roommate at the time, discovered the song when he heard Glen playing Jim Glaser’s original single. Glen considered recording it himself, but decided on Jimmy Webb’s “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” instead. Fuller asked Glen if he could have “Woman, Woman” for this new group he’d just signed, Mr. Campbell acquiesced, and the rest you know.

Unlike many later Union Gap songs, “Woman, Woman” was not about the singer pursuing a teenaged girl. This one was about a guy who suspects his partner has “cheating on your mind.” As the lyrics put it:

A woman wears a certain look
When she is on the move
And a man can always tell what’s on her mind

I hate to have to say it
But that look’s all over you

Woman
Woman
Have you got cheating on your mind?

Gary Puckett & the Union Gap continued on to have a successful career, with a half dozen top twenty hits. Their biggest hits, all what we would now call power ballads, included “Young Girl,” “Lady Willpower,” “Over You,” “Don’t Give In to Him,” and “This Girl is a Woman Now.” Puckett left to begin a solo career (still using the Union Gap as his backing band), but the whole thing was over by the end of 1971, save for appearances on the oldies circuit.

And here’s today’s daily bonus video of the day, Gary Puckett & the Union Gap lip synching “Woman, Woman” on some television show back in 1967. Love the uniforms.