"Pink Shoe Laces" (or "Pink Shoelaces") is a song composed by Mickie Grant that was recorded by Dodie Stevens, accompanied by Bobby Hammack and his Orchestra, and released as a single in 1959 on Crystalette Records, a record label distributed by Dot Records.[2] Although the verses are delivered with a musical quality, they are not sung in the style of the chorus. Some commentators have observed that the verses are spoken rather than sung.[3]
| "Pink Shoe Laces" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Dodie Stevens | |
| from the album Pink Shoe Laces | |
| B-side | "Coming of Age" |
| Released | February 1959 |
| Genre | Pop |
| Label | Crystalette |
| Songwriter(s) | Mickie Grant[1] |
Dodie Stevens was born on February 17, 1946. The song was recorded when the singer was, according to different sources, 11[4] or 12 years old.
The song is about a fellow named Dooley, with whom the singer is in love, who has a strange lifestyle and an off-the-beaten-pathway fashion sense; primarily preferring to dress in "tan shoes with pink shoelaces, a polka-dot vest (...) and a big Panama with a purple hatband."
He takes the young lady "deep sea fishing in a submarine", to "drive-in movies in a limousine" and owns a "whirly-birdy and a 12 foot yacht."
When he feels that war is afoot, he enlists in the armed forces, but gets put into the brig for "raising such a storm" when they "tried to put him in a uniform", preferring to wear his unconventional signature garb.
One day, he feels poorly and decides to write out his will, stating: "Just before the angels come to carry me, I want it down in writin' how to bury me", requesting to be buried in his preferred attire. The voice heard speaking the line was Randy Van Horne, the founder of the Randy Van Horne Singers who sang the themes from the Flintstones, Jetsons and many others.[citation needed]
The single reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April 1959.[2][5] "Pink Shoe Laces" also reached number 5 on the Hot R&B Sides chart.[6] It sold more than a million copies.[4]