Shirley Marie O'Garra (stage name Shirley Ellis, married name Shirley Elliston; January 19, 1929 – October 5, 2005) was an American soul music singer and songwriter of West Indian heritage. She is best known for her novelty hits "The Nitty Gritty" (1963, US no. 8), "The Name Game" (1964, US no. 3), and "The Clapping Song" (1965, US no. 8 and UK no. 6). "The Clapping Song" sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc.
Biography
On , Shirley O'Garra was born to William H. and Petra (Smith) O'Garra. Her father was a native of Montserrat, and her mother was born in the Bahamas.
Ellis had recording contracts with the Kapp Records subsidiary Congress and later Columbia and Bell.
In 1968, Ellis retired from the music industry.
On October 5, 2005, Ellis died in the Bronx section of New York City at the age of 76.
Commercials
In August 2020, "The Clapping Song" was used in a TV commercial for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0, and in April 2021 her "I See It, I Like It, I Want It" was in another Samsung commercial, this time for the Galaxy Z Flip 5G and Galaxy Z Fold2.
In 2023, "I See It, I Like It, I Want It" was featured in a Walmart commercial.
In 2024, "The Puzzle Song" was used in an Amazon Prime commercial.
In 2025, a cover version of "I See It, I Like It, I Want It" was featured in a Chase Bank commercial.
Film
In 2021, "The Clapping Song" was used in the film Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021). It was also featured in the first teaser trailer for the film Die, My Love (2025).
Cover versions
Cover versions of Ellis' hits have been recorded by Madeline Bell, the Belle Stars,
Discography
Studio albums
- In Action (1964, Congress)
- The Name Game (1965, Congress)
- Sugar, Let's Shing-a-Ling (1967, Columbia)
! width="35"| US<br>R&B<br>
! width="35"| CAN<br>
! width="35"| UK<br>
|-
| rowspan="1"| 1963
| align="left"| "The Nitty Gritty"
| 8
| 4
| —
| 19
| —
| align=left rowspan="4"| In Action
| October 25, 1963
|-
| rowspan="4"| 1964
| align="left"| "(That's) What the Nitty Gritty Is"
| 72
| 14
| —
| —
| —
| February 18, 1964
|-
| align="left"| "Shy One"
| 130
| 43
| —
| —
| —
| April 9, 1964
|-
| align="left"| "Such a Night"
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| June 13, 1964
|-
| align="left"| "The Name Game"
| 3
| 4
| 40
| 2
| —
| align=left rowspan="1"| The Name Game
| November 12, 1964
|-
| rowspan="4"| 1965
| align="left"| "The Clapping Song (Clap Pat Clap Slap)"
| 8
| 16
| 86
| 10
| 6
| align=left rowspan="2"
| March 10, 1965
|-
| align="left"| "The Puzzle Song (A Puzzle in Song)"/"I See It, I Like It, I Want It" (B-side)
| 78
| —
| —
| 32
| —
| May 15, 1965
|-
| align="left"| "I Will Never Forget"
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| align=left rowspan="1"| The Name Game
| July 3, 1965
|-
| align="left"| "You Better Be Good, World"
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| align=left rowspan="2"
| October 23, 1965
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1966
| align="left"| "Ever See a Diver Kiss His Wife While the Bubbles Bounce About Above the Water?"
| 135
| —
| —
| —
| —
| January 4, 1966
|-
| align="left"| "Birds, Bees, Cupids and Bows"
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| align=left rowspan="3"| Sugar, Let's Shing-a-Ling
| October 17, 1966
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1967
| align="left"| "Soul Time"
| 67
| 31
| 87
| 39
| —
| January 30, 1967
|-
| align="left"| "Sugar Let's Shing-a-Ling"
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| May 8, 1967
|-
| rowspan="1"| 1978
| align="left"| "The Clapping Song" <small>(re-release)</small>
| —
| —
| —
| —
| 59
| align=left rowspan="1"
| June 23, 1978
|-
| colspan="15" style="font-size:90%" | "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
|}
References
External links
- Shirley Ellis Three Six Nine! The Name Game/Soul Time Home Page
- Fansite biography
- Biography and full discography