Mecca | |
Cover: | Mecca_-_Gene_Pitney.jpg |
Type: | single |
Artist: | Gene Pitney |
Album: | Gene Pitney Sings Just for You |
B-Side: | Teardrop by Teardrop |
Released: | March 1963 |
Genre: | Pop |
Label: | Musicor |
Producer: | Jerry Ragovoy |
Prev Title: | Half Heaven - Half Heartache |
Prev Year: | 1962 |
Next Title: | True Love Never Runs Smooth |
Next Year: | 1963 |
"Mecca" is a 1963 song which was a hit for Gene Pitney. It was the first release and greatest hit from his LP, Gene Pitney Sings Just for You.
The song starts with "I live on the west side, she lives on the east side of the street."[1] "Mecca," a city that most of the world is forbidden to visit,[2] [3] symbolizes her side of the street, as the girl's parents forbid the pair to become romantically involved because of their young age.
In the U.S., "Mecca" peaked at #12 on the pop chart[4] and #4 Easy Listening.[5] It was a bigger hit in Australia, where it peaked at #7, and in Canada where it reached #2. The B-side, "Teardrop by Teardrop," charted at #130 on the Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart.
Chart (1963) | Peak position | |
---|---|---|
Australia - Music Maker | 7 | |
Canada - CHUM | 2 | |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[6] | 12 | |
U.S. Billboard - Middle-Road Singles[7] | 4 | |
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 | 13 |