What were you doing in 1968? If you were around at that time, you probably heard one of the biggest pop music hits of the year. Written by Mike d’Abo and Tony Macaulay, the song was released by The Foundations.
Do you know what song I am talking about? Well, Clay Aiken sang it on American Idol and then blamed Ben Cohn for the “high” range of the song on his PBS Special….yes! It is Build Me Up Buttercup.
“Buttercup” reached the number 2 spot on the UK charts and the number 3 spot on the Billboard 100. It was on the Billboard chart for 11 weeks.
Younger music fans were probably introduced to Build Me Up Buttercup when it was included in the 1998 film, There’s Something About Mary. The actors of the film actually made a video of the song. All the main actors mimed the words in the character of their role in the movie.
For some reason The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim play “Buttercup” during the seventh-inning stretch. Of course, it is played after Take Me Out To The Ballgame. The crowd sings along and seems to enjoy the song.
On April 29, 2003, Clay Aiken sang Build Me Up Buttercup on American Idol. It was the Top 5 show and the first time each contestant sang two songs on the same night. Neil Sedaka was the celebrity judge for the evening.
Clay’s rendition of the song was a fan favorite so it was included on Clay’s PBS Special, titled Tried & True, Live! The talented Ben Cohn wrote the arrangement of the song that made Clay work the upper range of his voice. Clay received a standing ovation for the performance at the live concert.
The talented SueReu put together another fabulous video, combining many different Clay performances of “Buttercup”. Any time we get a SueReu video we know we are in for a treat. ENJOY!!
And lets hope we hear something (anything) about Clay and his new adventures!!
Oh boy oh boy, now THAT'S the way to wake up in the morning! In 1968 I was 18 and graduating from high school! I certainly DO remember that song…but the artist singing it? Nope…news to me, haha!
Come on Clay, whatcha' doin'???
Love this song sung by Clay, see you Clay on Law and order Nov. 6. Thanks Musicfan xox
I love all of Sue's Videos – she does an amazing thing with all of them! Thank you , too Musicfan for
all that you do everyday. I am much older, so "Buttercup" is very familiar to me! I remember when
Unchained Melody was first popular – that was a long time ago and has always been a favorite, too!
I love both of Clay's versions!
Now you've got me going through Clay's buttercup versions…
I know we will hear something from Clay before the end of the year. 😀 Can't wait for the mystery to be unraveled. I am enjoying the suspense, he sure knows how to keep me in that mode. 😀
I really love this song….I loved it when Clay sang it in AI and loved it even more when he sang it at the PBS special. Ben Cohn…what a talented musician!
I was in Cleveland for Clay's performance of 'Buttercup'. What a great show. Drove down to Raleigh to watch Clay tape the PBS special. He gets better every year!
This past Monday, one of the couples on DWTS danced to BMUB. I wonder if anyone can bring up the DWTS video of that performance and dub in Clay's version and put it on YouTube?
I was probably babbling when the song was released, because I was a baby :D! Love the song, but the Idol version is my favorite.