"If You Wanna Be Happy" is a 1963 song recorded by Jimmy Soul, written by Rafael de Leon and adapted by Joseph Royster, Carmella Guida and Frank Guida.

Background

"If You Wanna Be Happy" is based on the song "Ugly Woman" by the Trinidadian calypsonian Roaring Lion (writing credited to his real name, Rafael de Leon), recorded in 1934. It hit #1 on the Hot 100 on May 18, 1963, as well as on the R&B singles chart. It was issued on Frank Guida's S.P.Q.R. label and distributed by London Records, and in the United Kingdom on EMI's Stateside label, the same month "Please Please Me" by The Beatles put EMI on the map. The original single lists a running time of 2:14; some later releases are slightly longer due to an extended fade-out. The song was banned on several radio stations due to both its short length and the lyrics “Ugly girl/Woman”. Towards the end of the track, a brief dialogue takes place between Soul and a backup singer, based on Bo Diddley's song "Say Man": "Say Man!!"/ "Hey baby."/ "I saw your wife the other day."/ "Yeah??"/ "Yeah, and she's ugly-y-y-y-y!!!"/ "Yeah, she's ugly, but she sure can cook, baby."/ "Yeah, alright."/ Soul's counterpoint melody in a falsetto is heard as the song fades out. The song is played in its entirety in the final scene of the 1990 film "Mermaids" starring Cher and Winona Ryder. The movie exemplifies the message of the song quite well and is likely the reason it was chosen by the film's Musical Director Jack Nitzsche to close the film.

Releases

The single was released in New Zealand on the Allied International label.

Covers