Brandy (You're a Fine Girl) - Looking Glass (1972) 3/10/22

So how did a rock & roll band from Rutgers University become a two-hit wonder with songs that were more POP than anything else?

Well, partially because one of the most successful record executives of all time, Clive Davis (then at Columbia/Epic Records), chose to release the wrong song as an "A" side...and partially because the Program Director at the #1 Top 40 station in Washington DC, liked the "B" side better.

The group was Looking Glass, The "A" side was called "Don't It Make You Feel Good," and it stiffed. The PD in DC was Harv Moore, and the "B" side was today's "Great Song of '72:" "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)."

Here's where the story gets interesting:

Harv made sure the song was played on WPGC every single hour for two days...and the request lines blew a gasket. Other stations in the DC area followed suit, and before long, the song about a barmaid and a sailor was being played just about everywhere and quickly went to #1 in both the US and Canada!

And here's the kicker...AFTER it hit #1, Epic finally released "Brandy" to record stores and outlets, In other words..."Brandy" reached #1 BEFORE IT SOLD A SINGLE COPY!

Absolutely unheard of!

And, for the record, the song also reached the Top 10 in New Zealand (#5) and Australia (#10)

But wait, didn't I mention that Looking Glass was a TWO hit wonder?

In 1973, they released their second and final hit, "Jimmy Loves Mary-Anne:" another story song--this time about a streetwise couple who fall in love and dream of escaping their dead-end lives.

The song was not nearly as popular as "Brandy," but it reached a respectable #16 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart.

That was it for Looking Glass, and there was a huge contributing factor to their lack of continued success.

When fans attended a Looking Glass concert, they discovered a band that played their two POP hits, and then launched into a night of hard rock and roll.

Definitely NOT what they were expecting, and it was a turn-off.

And then came personnel changes, name changes...and finally a break up...all by 1975.

But in 1972, Looking Glass was Looking Good...with "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl"): A "Great Song of the '70s!"

And here's "Jimmy Loves Mary-Anne (1973):