Rock Flashback: Doris Troy

Doris Troy - "Ain't That Cute" - BMI

Soul singer Doris Troy was born in the Bronx. She co-wrote many of her own songs, even her only American hit, “Just One Look.” By the end of the 1960s, she had moved to London and scored other hits in the UK, and her fame there led to an important connection.

In 1969, Troy met George Harrison and Billy Preston when a fellow singer brought her to a session. George was already a fan and invited her to sign with Apple. Because she’d been in showbiz for a while, Troy asked for three contracts — performer, producer, and songwriter — and she got them all, along with her own office at Apple headquarters.

Everybody wanted to play with Doris Troy. Harrison, Preston and Ringo Starr were on the sessions. In 1992, Troy described how people showed up to play: “”Then we had Eric Clapton. And Klaus Voormann — one of my favorite bass players in the world. In fact Klaus and I wrote some songs together. And then Peter Frampton, he did his part. Delaney and Bonnie were in town and they came over. Stephen Stills came. He was here to buy a Ferrari and he heard about the sessions. . . .”

Despite its high-powered lineup, Doris Troy was not an especially big hit. Nevertheless, Troy stayed busy as a session singer — she’s on the Rolling Stones‘ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and Pink Floyd‘s The Dark Side of the Moon. In the ’80s, she starred in the musical Mama I Want to Sing, which was based on her life story. She continued to perform right up to her death at age 67, this week in 2004.

The lead single from the Doris Troy album was “Ain’t That Cute,” which features Frampton on guitar. We like the bluesy “Give Me Back My Dynamite,” with Harrison playing licks sharp enough to shave with.

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