This reminds me a lot of early Jamaican ska records; I suspect that it might have been an influence on them. I liked it.
Doris Troy (1937-2004) was from the Bronx. She had an extensive career as a backup singer both before and after "Just One Look", performing with Dionne and Dee Dee Warwick and recording backing vocals for Solomon Burke, the Drifters, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, and Carly Simon, among others.
"Just One Look" was co-written by Ms. Troy. The version of it that was released was originally intended as a demo and was recorded in ten minutes; Atlantic Records, quite sensibly, decided not to fix something that wasn't broken and released it as is. It reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Ms. Troy never reached the Billboard Hot 100 again, despite being signed to the Beatles' Apple Records label in 1969. A stage musical about her life, Mama, I Want to Sing!, ran for 1,500 performances at a theatre in the Spanish Harlem district of New York City starting in 1983.
Created February 2, 2026.