Biography
Born Annette Kleinbard on 13 November 1940 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, Connors established her base in Los Angeles, California. She launched her vocal career under her given name with the Teddy Bears, the late-1950s group that included Phil Spector. Subsequent 45s appeared on Imperial Records under the name Annette Bard and on Dunes Records as Carol Collins. Her debut release under the Connors name arrived in 1961, pairing “You Are My Answer” with “My Diary”; both teen-styled numbers came from the pen of Sandra Glantz, known professionally as Ginger Blake of the Honeys.
She next teamed with Steve Barri to co-write “Listen To The Beat,” the opening entry in a lengthy string of joint efforts. Barri supplied further songs for the 1962 single “What Do You See In Him” and the 1964 release “Angel My Angel,” and the pair also performed together in the short-lived Storytellers, which issued two singles on Dimension Records. In 1964 Connors helped create “Hey Little Cobra,” a Top 5 U.S. hit for the Rip Chords, an achievement that led to further associations with surf and drag performers such as Dick Dale and Jan And Dean.
Jan Berry and Terry Melcher assisted in composing “Go Go G.T.O.,” which Connors recorded in 1965 alongside her sister Cheryl under the duo name Carol And Cheryl. The 1966 single “My Baby Looks But He Don’t Touch” was written with Roger Christian, Brian Wilson’s occasional collaborator, and produced by Marshall Leib, another alumnus of the Teddy Bears.
Connors later joined Imperial Records as a staff songwriter, placing material with the Sunshine Company, Cake and the California Suns. Although her pop activity declined sharply, she continued scoring several Hollywood films, among them two entries in the Rocky series, and co-authored the Syreeta hit “With You I’m Born Again.”
She next teamed with Steve Barri to co-write “Listen To The Beat,” the opening entry in a lengthy string of joint efforts. Barri supplied further songs for the 1962 single “What Do You See In Him” and the 1964 release “Angel My Angel,” and the pair also performed together in the short-lived Storytellers, which issued two singles on Dimension Records. In 1964 Connors helped create “Hey Little Cobra,” a Top 5 U.S. hit for the Rip Chords, an achievement that led to further associations with surf and drag performers such as Dick Dale and Jan And Dean.
Jan Berry and Terry Melcher assisted in composing “Go Go G.T.O.,” which Connors recorded in 1965 alongside her sister Cheryl under the duo name Carol And Cheryl. The 1966 single “My Baby Looks But He Don’t Touch” was written with Roger Christian, Brian Wilson’s occasional collaborator, and produced by Marshall Leib, another alumnus of the Teddy Bears.
Connors later joined Imperial Records as a staff songwriter, placing material with the Sunshine Company, Cake and the California Suns. Although her pop activity declined sharply, she continued scoring several Hollywood films, among them two entries in the Rocky series, and co-authored the Syreeta hit “With You I’m Born Again.”
Albums
