| Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon | |
| Cover: | Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon cover.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Neil Diamond |
| Album: | Just for You |
| Released: | March 1967 |
| Recorded: | 1966 |
| Genre: | |
| Length: | 2:48 |
| Label: | Bang |
| Producer: | Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich |
| Prev Title: | You Got to Me |
| Prev Year: | 1967 |
| Next Title: | Thank the Lord for the Night Time |
| Next Year: | 1967 |
"Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" is a song written by American musician Neil Diamond, whose recording of it on Bang Records reached number 10 on the US pop singles chart in 1967. The song enjoyed a second life when it appeared on the 1994 Pulp Fiction soundtrack, performed by rock band Urge Overkill. Other versions have been recorded by Cliff Richard (1968), Jackie Edwards (1968), the Biddu Orchestra (1978), and 16 Volt (1998).
The song first appeared on Diamond's album Just for You. The mono and stereo versions of this song differ slightly. On the mono "Just For You" LP as well as on the 45, the strings do not come in until the second verse. It also has a slightly longer fade. The stereo "Just For You" LP version has a shorter fade and the strings come in on the first chorus. The lyrics describe a narrator romantically interested in a young woman whose friends and family disapprove of him ("They never get tired of putting me down") while he urges the woman to reach her own conclusions about him ("Don't let them make up your mind").
Billboard described the single as a "sure-fire chart topper," stating that an "easy rhythm backs a soulful reading of a compelling lyric."[2] Cash Box called the single a "rhythmic, mid-tempo ballad that should see lots of Top 40 play."[3]
7-inch single
| Chart (1967) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Pop Singles[4] | 10 | |
| Chart (1971) | Peak position | |
| Dutch Mega Top 100[5] | 27 |
| Girl You'll Be a Woman Soon | |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Cliff Richard |
| A-Side: | I'll Love You Forever Today |
| Released: | June 21, 1968 |
| Recorded: | February 11, 1968[6] |
| Studio: | EMI Studios, London |
| Genre: | Pop |
| Length: | 3:03 |
| Label: | Columbia |
| Producer: | Norrie Paramor |
| Prev Title: | Congratulations |
| Prev Year: | 1968 |
| Next Title: | Marianne |
| Next Year: | 1968 |
Cliff Richard covered the song as the B-side to his 1968 single "I'll Love You Forever Today, which was featured in the movie Two a Penny.[7]
7-inch single
| Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon | |
| Cover: | Girl,_you'll_be_a_woman_soon.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Urge Overkill |
| Album: | Stull Pulp Fiction |
| B-Side: | Bustin' Surfboards |
| Released: | 1994 |
| Length: | 3:10 |
| Label: | MCA |
| Producer: | Urge Overkill, Kramer |
| Prev Title: | Positive Bleeding |
| Prev Year: | 1993 |
| Next Title: | The Break |
| Next Year: | 1995 |
American alternative rock band Urge Overkill recorded a cover of the song for their second extended play (EP), Stull (1992). This version would later appear in Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film Pulp Fiction. Issued as a single in late 1994, this version achieved some chart success both domestically and internationally, peaking at number one in Iceland and reaching the top 20 in Flanders, France, and New Zealand. On the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, the song peaked at number 11.
CD single
| Chart (1994–1995) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[9] | 65 | |
| Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[10] | 1 | |
| US Billboard Hot 100[11] | 59 | |
| US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[12] | 11 |
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 1994 | Cassette | MCA | |
| United Kingdom | November 7, 1994 | [13] |