Top Ten 1963 Songs: If You Wanna Be Happy (#4)

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Tomorrow I’ll be in the Cincinnati area. I don’t know if they’ll be happy (the Reds have won three in a row) or sad (their former mayor, Jerry Springer, died). I’m happy with all these great songs from 1963 to share with you. Here’s one with some controversy! #4: If You Wanna Be Happy - Jimmy Soul Jimmy Soul (born James McCleese) had one hit. This is it. And it was a doozy! If you think that people don’t have a sense of humor these days, wanting to “ban” everything that offends them, it may give you some comfort to know that this isn’t new. (Then again, it might make you wonder if people have been that incapable of laughing for that long. ) If you can’t guess from the joke in the song (“never make a pretty woman your wife…get an ugly girl to marry you”), some people didn’t take too kindly to this. (I’m guessing the “pretty women” were the most agitated. ) Actually, this could be seen as the “warning anthem” for all those rich guys looking for a “trophy wife.” Soul was only 45 when he died. After his short music career he joined the army and later got in trouble for dealing drugs. What a great one hit! If You Wanna Be Happy Based on “Ugly Woman” written by Rafael deLeon Adapted by Joseph Royster, Carmella Guida, and Frank Guida Recorded by Jimmy Soul From If You Wanna Be Happy, 1963 Don’t let your friends say you have no taste: