Ya sang along with it and ya KNOW ya did!!!: Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show

Sylvia's Mother

1972

Dr. Hook And The Medicine Show

Depending on who you talk to, this one was either an anthem for Teen Angst and Young Love Lost, or brilliant parody of the same. Whichever it was, sing the line 'PLEEAASE Mrs Avery' and anyone withing earshot who was a 'tween' or teen in in 1972 can finish it. This was, of course, Dr Hook and The Medicine Show's. soulful, near tearful plea to Mrs Avery for one more chance to talk to her daughter, Sylvia,(The singers ex girlfriend) to tell her good bye before she catches the 9 o'clock train to go off and marry a guy 'Down Galveston Way'.

What a lot of people don't know is 'Sylvia's Mother' was autobiographical...Shel Silverstein, the song writer, was telling the story of a phone call he made to a recent ex girlfriend's mom under the exact same circumstances (And yep, she was named 'Sylvia', but the last name was changed in the song...not necessarily to 'Protect The Innocent' but because 'Avery' fit so much better.). Dennis Locorriere did awesome justice to Shel Silverstein's lyrics...he actually sounds like he's in tears while singing it.

Sylvia's Mother was released in the Summer of '72, and started off slowly...until CBS put their full promotional power behind it, making it a hit. While it never made it to number one on the Billboard Top 100, it hung around the top ten for several weeks, peaking at #5 in The US. The song fared even better in the UK, topping the charts there. This was another staple on Top 40 stations.. You couldn't go more than a couple of hours without hearing it on my 'Home' AM stations...WLEE in Richmond, and WGH in Hampton Roads and like any good Oldie, it still can be heard on Oldies stations occasionally.

Just another reason why 70's music (A) Rocks, and (B) will never die!

Enjoy! Dr Hook and The Medicine Show, with Sylvia's Mother.