"With a Girl Like You" is a song by English rock band the Troggs, released as a single in July 1966. On the back of the success of "Wild Thing", "With a Girl Like You" topped the charts in the UK, and was similarly a success across Europe, but did not fare as well in the US, only peaking at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100.[5][6]

Background and release

"With a Girl Like You" was written by the Troggs` lead vocalist Reg Presley whilst he was a bricklayer. He took inspiration from the vocals in "Barbara Ann", which became a hit for the Beach Boys in early 1966.[7] "With a Girl Like You" was recorded at Olympic Studios at the same time as their previous single "Wild Thing". Both songs were recorded in two takes because they only had a short amount of recording time; manager Larry Page got them into the studio at the end of a session for his orchestra.[8][9] The hook, with Presley shouting "Ba ba ba ba ba", was initially planned to be performed on trumpets, though the band opted for vocals instead.[7]

"Wild Thing" had been simultaneously released in the US in May 1966 on two record labels, Atco and Fontana. Atco had released "With a Girl Like You" as the B-side, whereas Fontana released "Wild Thing" with the Presley-penned "From Home". Therefore, in July, Fontana released "With a Girl Like You" as a A-side single with "I Want You", written by Page and Colin Frechter, as the B-side, which is the same as the release in the UK.[10][11]

Reception

Reviewing for New Musical Express, Derek Johnson wrote that "With a Girl Like You" "doesn`t have the novelty spoken passages and tempo breaks of "Wild Thing" but it does have another gimmick – at the end of each line. The soloist repeats the melody in a sort of scat vocal that everyone can join in. It`s a catchy mid-tempo tune, fairly simple in construction, and therefore quickly assimilated".[12] Record Mirror wrote that it "should be every bit as big as "Wild Thing"" and similarly that "the boys plunge into a steady mid-tempo, with rasping lead voice, and sturdy beat and several vocal gimmicks on a teen song if ever there was one".[13] Cash Box described it as "a low-down, funky, blues-soaked romancer".[14]

Charts