The Shirelles - Will You Love Me Tomorrow

The Shirelles were an American girl group in the early 1960s, and the first to have a number one single on the Billboard Hot 100. The members of the quartet were Shirley Owens (the main lead singer; later known as Shirley Alston, then Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later known as Doris Kenner, then Doris Jackson; who sang lead on "Dedicated to the One I Love", "Welcome Home Baby", "Blue Holiday" and a number of B-sides and album cuts), Beverly Lee, and Addie 'Micki' Harris McPherson.

The quartet formed in New Jersey in 1958, and went on to release a string of hits including "Baby It's You" (written by Burt Bacharach/Mack David/Barney Williams), "Mama Said", "Foolish Little Girl", and the US #1 Pop hits "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (Gerry Goffin/Carole King) and "Soldier Boy" (Florence Greenberg/Luther Dixon). Their "Sha La La" became an international hit when covered by the British group Manfred Mann, giving them a Top 5 hit in 1965, and the song "Boys" was covered by The Beatles. The Beatles also covered "Baby It's You" on their album Please, Please Me in 1963.

The Shirelles were the first major female vocal group of the rock and roll era, preceding Motown as a crossover phenomenon with white audiences. Unlike The Chantels, who had had their first hit in 1957, they were successful in Britain, first and foremost with "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (1960). In addition, they provided some of the earliest hits for important Brill Building songwriters like Gerry Goffin & Carole King, Burt Bacharach & Hal David, and Van McCoy.

"Will You Love Me Tomorrow" is the title of a song written by Carole King and originally recorded by the Shirelles. It has been recorded by many different artists and was ranked among Rolling Stone 's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time at #125. The song is notable for being the first song to reach #1 in the US by an all-girl group.

When first presented with the song, lead singer Shirley Owens (later known as Shirley Alston-Reeves) did not want to record it, because she thought it was "too country." She relented after a string arrangement was added. In 1961, the song went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100. However, Owens recalled on Jim Parsons' syndicated oldies radio program, Shake Rattle Showtime, that some radio stations had banned the record because they had felt the lyrics were too sexually charged.

This version of the song is currently ranked as the 101st greatest song of all time, as well as the best song of 1960, by Acclaimed Music.