Donnie Iris, “Ah! Leah!” (1981): Almost Hits

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Here’s one you might remember: “Ah! Leah!” by Donnie Iris, his only really big hit, which peaked at No. 29 in the Billboard charts on February 7th, 1981. That intro is a bit tongue in cheek, actually: After spending the last couple of weeks asking people of similar age to myself what they thought about the song, I realized that most people (around here anyway) just plain ol’ didn’t remember it.

Donnie Iris had his first taste of fame as the singer in a group called the Jaggerz, a group that truly could be called a one hit wonder. Their big song, “The Rapper” went to No. 2 in February 1970, and though they made a couple of more albums, they never had another big hit, finally calling it a day by 1976. Iris then spent some time in the group Wild Cherry (of “Play That Funky Music” fame) before he finally embarked on his solo career, releasing his debut album Back on the Streets in 1980.

“Ah! Leah!” was the lead-off single. On the surface, it encapsulated all that was good about the then fashionable “new wave” (or “power pop”) music which was sweeping the continent, and in particular it was very radio friendly. As well, it had some of those sonic “ear candies,” like that weird “Ah ah -ah” vocal bridge before the guitar solo to keep the listeners’ interest. He had a good band, with a decent rhythm section — what else could anyone want in a song?

Well … in the first place, as tight as the rhythm section was, they were more of a pretty straight-ahead rock band playing what is essentially an often used four-chord riff. After repeated listening, one comes to the conclusion that they sound less like a new wave band and more like old school rockers — which makes sense considering Iris’ work with the Jaggerz over a decade before.

Second, the lyrics here turn out to be of the “boy meets (hot) girl” vintage, and Donnie was already in his late 30s — which makes one wonder how long you can sing that stuff and not be embarrassed.

Finally, there’s nothing in the front half of “Ah! Leah!” that sounds as passionate as the wild virtuoso screaming/singing that Donnie Iris nails near the end. One has to put up with a couple of minutes of “OK” before getting to the “Right on!” part. It’s a case of the tail wagging the dog.

The YouTube clip of the official video has Donnie dressed in his yellow suit and Elvis Costello glasses from the album cover, looking very much the new wave geek boy. However, he’s also looking a little old to be convincing as the suitor to the young blonde female object of his affection he’s courting. There are other videos that are more recent, suggesting that he still plays a few live shows here and there. “Ah! Leah!” is often performed with an extended intro, so the buildup really gives a lot of momentum going to that final section. And yes, as far I as can tell, he’s in his mid-to-late 60s and still seems to find the voice to pull off that finale. He actually looks more comfortable performing this song live that he did lip-synching in the original video over 30 years ago.

Perhaps it was a case of too much power pop to interest rockers, and too much old school dinosaur thump for new wave fans. So, Donnie Iris’ “Ah! Leah!” will likely be entered into the historical record as “peaked at 29 – forgotten by many.” That’s a better fate than most songs by most other artists, who should all be so lucky to have even one “almost hit.”

JC Mosquito