Millie (born
Millicent Small, 6 October 1946, Clarendon
, Jamaica
) was often
known as "Little Millie Small", and in the United States
as "Millie Small", and is best known as the
singer of the 1964 hit, "My Boy
Lollipop".
Career
Millie is the daughter of a
sugar
plantation overseer. In her teens, she and Roy Panton
recorded for
Coxsone Dodd's
Studio
One record label as 'Roy and
Millie.' They had a minor local
hit
with "We'll Meet".
In late
1963 she went to Forest Hill
, London
to make her
fourth recording, an Ernest Ranglin
rearrangement of "My Boy Lollipop," which had seen original release
by Barbie Gaye in late 1956. Released in March 1964, Small's cover was a massive hit, reaching number two
both in the UK Singles Chart and in
the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100. It also
topped the
chart in
Australia.
Initially it sold over 600,000 copies in the
United
Kingdom
. Including
single sales, album usage and
compilation inclusions, the song has since
sold more than seven million copies worldwide.
"My Boy
Lollipop" was doubly significant in British pop music history. It was the first major
hit for
Island Records (although it
was actually released via
Fontana
Records because
Chris Blackwell,
Island's owner, did not want to overextend the label's then-meagre
resources; in the U.S. the record appeared on the
Smash Records subsidiary of
Mercury Records), and Small was the first
artist to have a hit that was recorded in the
bluebeat style. (She was billed as 'The Blue Beat
Girl' on the single's label in the U.S.) This was a
music genre that had recently emerged from
Jamaica, and which, as with
ska, was a direct
ancestor of
reggae.
Millie continued to tour and perform up to the early 1970s.
Personal Life
She had a brief relationship with
Peter
Asher of the 1960s duo
Peter
& Gordon..
She lived
in Singapore
from 1971 to 1973 before returning to the UK which is now
her home. She has an adult daughter, who is studying
art and the
music
industry.
Discography
Albums
Singles
- Shenley Duffas: "Give To Get" b/w Shenley & Millie: "What
You Gonna Do", 7": Island WI 036, 1963
| Year |
Single |
Label |
| 1963 |
"Don't You Know" / "Until You're Mine" |
Fontana |
| 1964 |
"My Boy Lollipop" |
| "Sweet William" |
|
"I Love The Way You Love" / "Bring It On Home To Me" |
| 1965 |
"I've Fallen In Love With A Snowman" / "What Am I Living
For" |
| "See You Later
Alligator" / "Chilly Kisses" |
| "My Street" / "It's Too Late" |
| "Bloodshot Eyes" / "Tongue Tied" |
| 1966 |
"My Street" / "A Mixed Up Fickle Moody Self-centred, Spoiled
Kind Of Boy" |
Brit |
| "Killer Joe" / "Carry Go Bring Come" |
Fontana |
| 1967 |
"You Better Forget" / "I Am In Love" |
Island |
| "Chicken Feed" / "Wings Of A Dove" |
Fontana |
| 1968 |
"When I Dance With You" / "Hey Mr. Love" |
| 1969 |
"Readin' Writin' Arithmetic" / "I Want You Never To Stop" |
Decca |
- Millie was not a one-hit wonder.
For
example, subsequent recordings such as "Sweet William" and
"Bloodshot Eyes", both charted in the UK at numbers
30 and 48, respectively.
References
- Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN
0-89820-089-X
See also
External links
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