brandy (you're a fine girl)

Looking Glass laid down a fine groove with this sailor story that was originally a B-side.  'Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)' was written by lead singer Elliot Lurie using the name of his high school sweetheart Randy as a jumping off point for a fictional tale of a barmaid in love with a sailor who chose a life at sea over her.  Looking Glass started out in 1969 at Rutgers University in New Jersey with Lurie on guitar, Peter Sweval on bass, and Larry Gonsky on piano.  They played at clubs and parties until graduation, when they broke up.  They got back together with drummer Jeffrey Grob and began writing their own songs.  The band caught the interest of Clive Davis, who signed them on Epic Records.  They had a few different attempts at recording 'Brandy' (including one in Memphis with session guitarist Steve Cropper) before producer Bob Lifitin got the right sound at Regent Sound Studios in New York.  The use of strings, horns, and harmonies was very different from the hard rock of their live shows.  It was released as the B-side on a single with 'Don't It Make You Feel Good' as the A-side. The single didn't really go anywhere until Washington DC disk jockey Harv Moore started playing the flip side. 'Brandy' broke in the nation's capitol and caught on across the country, making it to number one in August of 1972, six months after it was released.  It sold over a million copies.  Lurie says, "I wish I could have had ten of them, but I'll take one."





Brandy (You're A Fine Girl) - Looking Glass by retube




There's a port, on a western bay
And it serves a hundred ships a day
Lonely sailors, pass the time away
And talk about their homes

And there's a girl in this harbor town
And she works layin' whiskey down
They say "Brandy, fetch another round"
She serves them whiskey and wine

The sailors say "Brandy, you're a fine girl" 
(you're a fine girl)
"What a good wife you would be" 
(such a fine girl)
"Yeah your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea"

Brandy wears a braided chain
Made of finest silver from the north of Spain
A locket that bears the name
Of the man that Brandy loves

He came on a summer's day
Bringin' gifts from far away
But he made it clear he couldn't stay
No harbor was his home

The sailor said "Brandy, you're a fine girl" 
(you're a fine girl)
"What a good wife you would be" 
(such a fine girl)
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"

Yeah, Brandy used to watch his eyes
When he told his sailor stories
She could feel the ocean foam rise
She saw its ragin' glory
But he had always told the truth, 
Lord, he was an honest man
And Brandy does her best to understand

At night when the bars close down
Brandy walks through a silent town
And loves a man who's not around
She still can hear him say

She hears him say "Brandy, you're a fine girl" 
(you're a fine girl)
"What a good wife you would be" 
(such a fine girl)
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"

She hears him say "Brandy, you're a fine girl" 
(you're a fine girl)
"What a good wife you would be" 
(such a fine girl)
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"