"Darlin' Danielle Don't" by Henry Lee Summer

Song#:  3532

Date:  05/28/1988

Debut:  85

Peak:  57

Weeks:  8

Genre:  Rock

Pop Bits:  Summer's self-titled major label debut album got kicked off in a good way with its first single, "I Wish I Had a Girl," getting to #20 Pop and making it all the way to #1 at Rock. It was a significant break through and to keep up the momentum this next single was released. It did well at Rock cracking the Top 10 at #9, but over at Pop it couldn't quite make the top half of the chart. Still, the album sold fairly well and peaked at #56.

ReduxReview:  As with "I Wish I Had a Girl," this was a track from Summer's 1986 indie-released second album that got re-recorded for his CBS debut LP. Between the two tracks, it was easy to hear why a major label picked him up. However, I find it odd that it took so long for one to finally commit. Perhaps they didn't see the market for his heartland pop/rock or thought that folks like John Mellencamp already had a lock on that area. Regardless, he finally got a deal and it paid off pretty well. This was another good track from him and it should have done better at Pop. There was a bit of an Eddie Money edge going on with the tune along with a smidge of soul and blues. Yeah it wasn't quite as catchy as his previous hit, but it was certainly Top 40 material.

ReduxRating:  7/10

Trivia:  Summer would be kept busy in '88 by his label, CBS Associated. In addition to his self-titled album and tour/promo dates, the label got him to provide vocals for two songs that would appear on movie soundtracks. Summer typically wrote most all of his own songs, but for the film tunes it seems CBS just wanted him to perform. Both films were big productions that would open near the end of '88 during the holidays. The first track Summer did was "If You Were My Girl," which was used in the sequel film Iron Eagle II. The film didn't do nearly as well as the first installment and the soundtrack failed to chart. Summer's second film song, "No Way of Knowing," was for the oddball comedy Twins starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito. While Summer didn't write the tune, he was more hands-on producing the track and playing some instruments. The film was a box office hit, but the soundtrack less so. With no hits to promote it, the LP topped out at #162.

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