Tommy Roe – Dizzy

About The Song

“Dizzy” is a bubblegum pop song written by Tommy Roe and Freddy Weller, recorded by Roe for ABC Records. Released as a single in November 1968, it became a global hit, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks starting March 15, 1969, and reaching No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for one week in June 1969. It also hit No. 1 in Canada and Norway, No. 2 in Switzerland, and No. 4 in Australia and Germany, spending 15 weeks on the Billboard chart. The song was included on Roe’s 1969 album Dizzy, which peaked at No. 25 on the Billboard 200. The B-side, “The You I Need,” did not chart.

Recorded in late 1968 at Hollywood’s United Recording Studio, the track was produced by Steve Barri, with Jimmy Haskell arranging its distinctive string section, a rarity in 1960s pop, per Songfacts. The Wrecking Crew, including drummer Hal Blaine and bassist Joe Osborn, provided backing, delivering a tumbling beat and 11 key changes across four keys, enhancing the song’s disorienting feel, as noted on Genius. Roe, inspired by Larry Williams’ 1958 “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” wrote the chorus first, collaborating with Weller, a former Paul Revere & The Raiders guitarist, to complete it, per Jon Kutner. The lyrics depict a teen’s dizzying infatuation, progressing from longing to a kiss-induced euphoria.

Roe, born in Atlanta in 1942, had scored a US No. 1 with “Sheila” in 1962, a Buddy Holly-inspired hit. By 1968, he leaned into the bubblegum trend, with “Dizzy” following Top 10 hits “Sweet Pea” (No. 8, 1966) and “Hooray for Hazel” (No. 6, 1966). The song’s creation began when Roe, living in Los Angeles, reconnected with Weller, who had moved from Atlanta. Roe shared the unfinished chorus, and they finalized it in a single session, as Roe told 1000 UK #1 Hits. Its success, selling six million copies per Roe’s claim in a Pittsburgh interview, earned him a third gold disc, per Stereogum.

Covers include Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff’s 1991 UK No. 1 version, Boney M (1978), Billy J. Kramer (1969), and Bob the Builder (2001), adapting lyrics for a children’s character. The song was sampled in De La Soul’s 1989 “The Magic Number,” though uncredited, with no legal action reported, per Jon Kutner. It appeared in a 1997 Beverly Hills, 90210 episode and Roe performed it on a 1969 American Bandstand episode. “Dizzy” won Billboard’s Record of the Year in 1969, per a KAAY Radio employee’s account, and remains a bubblegum staple, with Roe still performing it on oldies tours, including a 2023 Nashville show.

Video

Lyric

Dizzy, I’m so dizzy, my head is spinning
Like a whirlpool, it never ends
And it’s you, girl, making it spin
You’re making me dizzy

First time that I saw you, girl, I knew that I just had to make you mine
But it’s so hard to talk to you with fellas hanging ‘round you all the time
I want you for my sweet pet, but you keep playing hard to get
I’m going around in circles all the time

Dizzy, I’m so dizzy, my head is spinning
Like a whirlpool, it never ends
And it’s you, girl, making it spin
You’re making me dizzy

I finally got to talk to you and I told you just exactly how I felt
Then I held you close to me and kissed you, and my heart began to melt
Girl, you’ve got control of me, ‘cause I’m so dizzy I can’t see
I need to call a doctor for some help

Dizzy, I’m so dizzy, my head is spinning
Like a whirlpool, it never ends
And it’s you, girl, making it spin
You’re making me dizzy
My head is spinning, like a whirlpool, it never ends
And it’s you, girl, making it spin
You’re making me dizzy
You’re making me dizzy