Jan Berry’s Chart Records As a Songwriter, 1958-1966
By Mark A. Moore
Author of Dead Man’s Curve: The Rock ‘n’ Roll Life of Jan Berry
1958
(1) Jennie Lee
(Jan Berry – Arnie Ginsburg)
#3 Cash Box — #4 R&B — #8 Billboard
#11 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
Arwin MM-108; Also issued on 78 rpm
Jan & Arnie EP, Dot DEP 1097 (1960)
Produced by Joe Lubin
Distributed by Dot Records
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & ARNIE
(2) Jennie Lee
(Jan Berry – Arnie Ginsburg)
#46 Cash Box — #55 Billboard
Liberty F-55136
Produced by Billy Ward
BILLY WARD & HIS DOMINOES
(3) Gas Money
(Jan Berry – Arnie Ginsburg – Don Altfeld)
#81 Billboard
Arwin MM-111; Also issued on 78 rpm
Dot 45-16116 (1960)
Jan & Arnie EP, Dot DEP 1097 (1960)
Produced by Joe Lubin
JAN & ARNIE
1960
(4) Clementine
(Jan Berry – Dean Torrence)
#65 Billboard — #88 Cash Box
#24 KRLA Top Fifty Survey (Los Angeles)
Doré 539
Jan & Dean LP, Doré 101
Produced by Herb Alpert and Lou Adler
Traditional melody with altered lyrics
JAN & DEAN
1963
(5) Surf City
(Jan Berry – Brian Wilson)
#1 Billboard — #1 Cash Box — #3 R&B — #26 UK
#1 Music Maker (Sydney, Australia)
#1 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#1 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
#1 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#1 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#3 WABC Silver Dollar Sound (New York City)
#26 Cash Box Year-End 1963
#28 Billboard Year-End 1963
Liberty 55580
Surf City and Other Swingin’ Cities LP, Liberty LRP-3314 (M); LST-7314
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & DEAN
(6) Honolulu Lulu
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Lou Adler)
#10 Cash Box — #11 Billboard
#3 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#6 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#8 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#18 WABC All American Survey (New York City)
#22 WMCA Top Twenty-Five (New York City)
Liberty 55613
Surf City and Other Swingin’ Cities LP, Liberty LRP-3314 (M); LST-7314
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & DEAN
(7) I Adore Him
(Jan Berry – Artie Kornfeld)
#13 R&B — #23 Cash Box — #25 Billboard
#8 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#16 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#46 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
Smash S-1854
A Halo To You LP, Smash MGS 27048 (M); SRS 67048 (S)
Arranged and Conducted by Alan Lorber
Produced by Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, and Richard Gottehrer
THE ANGELS
1964
(8) Drag City
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Brian Wilson)
#10 Billboard — #10 Cash Box
#1 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#5 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#9 WABC All American Survey (New York City)
#11 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#14 WMCA Top Twenty-Five (New York City)
#31 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
Liberty 55641
Drag City LP, Liberty LRP-3339 (M); LST-7339 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & DEAN
(9) Dead Man’s Curve
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Artie Kornfeld – Brian Wilson)
#8 Billboard — #9 Cash Box
#1 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#2 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#7 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
#9 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#28 Billboard Year-End 1964
#70 Cash Box Year-End 1964
Liberty 55672
Drag City LP, Liberty LRP-3339 (M); LST-7339 (S) (first version)
Dead Man’s Curve / The New Girl In School LP, Liberty LRP-3361 (M); LST-7361 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
Grammy Hall of Fame (inducted 2008)
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & DEAN
(10) The New Girl in School
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Bob Norman – Brian Wilson)
#26 Cash Box — #37 Billboard
#1 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago) (with “Dead Man’s Curve”)
Liberty 55672
Dead Man’s Curve / The New Girl In School LP, Liberty LRP-3361 (M); LST-7361 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(11) The Little Old Lady (from Pasadena)
(Jan Berry – Don Altfeld – Roger Christian) *
#3 Billboard — #5 Cash Box
#2 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#3 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#4 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
#5 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#9 WMCA Top Twenty-Five (New York City)
#48 Billboard Year-End 1964
Liberty 55704
The Little Old Lady from Pasadena LP, Liberty LRP-3377 (M); LST-7377 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
BMI Award Winning Song
JAN & DEAN
(12) Ride the Wild Surf
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Brian Wilson)
#16 Billboard — #23 Cash Box
#9 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
#17 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#17 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#17 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#33 WABC All American Survey (New York City)
#45 WMCA Top Twenty-Five (New York City)
Liberty 55724
Ride the Wild Surf LP, Liberty LRP-3368 (M); LST-7368 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(13) The Anaheim, Azusa & Cucamonga Sewing Circle, Book Review and Timing Association
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Don Altfeld)
#50 Cash Box — #77 Billboard
#45 WMCA Top Twenty-Five (New York City) (with “Wild Surf”)
Liberty 55724
The Little Old Lady from Pasadena LP, Liberty LRP-3377 (M); LST-7377 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(14) Three Window Coupe
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian)
#28 Billboard — #29 Cash Box
#10 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
#32 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#42 WABC All American Survey (New York City)
Columbia 4-43035
Three Window Coupe LP, Columbia CL 2216 (M); CS 9016 (S)
Produced by Terry Melcher
THE RIP CHORDS
(15) Judy Loves Me
(Jan Berry – Artie Kornfeld – Don Altfeld)
#95 Billboard
Del-Fi 4231
Arranged by Jan Berry
Produced by Jan Berry and Artie Kornfeld
JOHNNY CRAWFORD
1965
(16) You Really Know How to Hurt A Guy
(Jan Berry – Jill Gibson – Roger Christian)
#27 Billboard — #42 Cash Box
#19 KFWB Fabulous Forty Survey (Los Angeles)
#20 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#25 KRLA Tune-Dex (Los Angeles)
Liberty 55792
Golden Hits Volume 2 LP, Liberty LRP-3417 (M); LST-7417 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(17) Freeway Flyer
(Don Altfeld – Roger Christian – Jan Berry)
#24 Cash Box “Looking Ahead”
Liberty 55766
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(18) Bucket “T”
(Roger Christian – Jan Berry) **
#54 Billboard — #61 Cash Box
Mala 492
G.T.O. LP, Mala 4001
Produced by Bill Justis
RONNY AND THE DAYTONAS
1966
(19) A Beginning from an End
(Jan Berry – Roger Christian – Cleve Hermann – George Tipton)
#109 Billboard
Liberty 55849
Folk ‘n Roll LP, Liberty LRP-3431 (M); LST-7431 (S)
Arranged by Jan Berry and George Tipton
Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(20) Batman
(Jan Berry – Don Altfeld – Fred Wieder)
#60 Cash Box — #66 Billboard
#12 WQAM Fabulous 56 (Miami, Fla.)
#25 WLS Silver Dollar Survey (Chicago)
Liberty 55860
Jan & Dean Meet Batman LP, Liberty LRP-3444 (M); LST-7444 (S)
Arranged and Produced by Jan Berry for Screen Gems, Inc.
JAN & DEAN
(21) Ready Steady Who EP
Bucket “T”
(Jan Berry – Don Altfeld – Roger Christian – Dean Torrence)*
#1 on the UK’s Record Mirror EP Charts
Reaction 592001
Produced by Kit Lambert
THE WHO
* Reflects Jan Berry’s legally restored songwriting credits. “Little Old Lady” and “Bucket ‘T'” were among several songs for which Jan lost writing credit as a result of the Screen Gems lawsuit and settlement agreement in June-July 1964. Jan’s writing credits were legally restored in January 2002.
** Reflects Jan Berry’s correct original songwriting credit for “Bucket ‘T’.”
Follow in Social Media:
