Farrell's catalogue includes close to 500 songs that he wrote, produced, or published. One of his earliest successes, "Boys", appeared on the B-side of the Shirelles' number-one 1960 hit "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", and in 1963 was covered by the Beatles for their debut albumPlease Please Me. Farrell's biggest chart hit as a composer – the McCoys' 1965 US #1 single "Hang On Sloopy" – remains one of the most performed songs in the history of popular music, according to the RIAA. Other Farrell pop hits include the Animals' UK debut single "Baby Let Me Take You Home" and two 1964 releases for Jay and the Americans: "Come a Little Bit Closer" and "Let's Lock the Door ". Farrell also co-wrote "Come and Take a Ride in My Boat", slightly reworked in 1967 to provide Every Mother's Son with their signature hit "Come on Down to My Boat". He also co-wrote the song Happy Summer Days, a hit for Ronnie Dove in 1966. Farrell's Top 40 hit "Look What You've Done" — first recorded in 1966 by the Pozo Seco Singers — appears on Carla Olson's 2013 album Have Harmony, Will Travel as a duet with Rob Waller. In 1966, Farrell wrote the theme song for Gammera the Invincible, the American cut of the first Gamera film. Success as a producer came in 1968 when Farrell produced "Indian Lake" for the Cowsills. The recording of that song written by Tony Romeo was a top ten hit. He produced three other tracks for that family band, including "Poor Baby" and "The Path of Love", also written by Romeo. His association with them continued, to some extent, when he was hired to produce the music for the recordings associated with the television show that was loosely based on their life and career. That show, which aired from 1970-1974, "The Partridge Family", featured the theme song, "C'mon Get Happy" which was written by Farrell. Seven studio albums connected with the show were produced by Farrell. They included 30 songs which Farrell also co-wrote. Among those songs were "Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted", and "I'll Meet You Halfway", which were both top ten U.S. hits. Unlike the Cowsills, who were actually featured on their own records, the albums produced under the name of the Partridge Family mostly featured session musicians now known as the Wrecking Crew with backing vocals by the Ron Hicklin Singers. The only cast members that contributed to the recordings were David Cassidy and to a much lesser extent, Shirley Jones. Other recording artists Farrell produced were Elephant's Memory and singer Lulu. Farrell founded Chelsea Records in 1972.
Personal life
Farrell was born in 1939 in New York City, New York. In 1965 he married Joan Arthurs, and they had a daughter, named Dawn. Farrell and Arthurs divorced in 1972. He was married to actress/singer Tina Sinatra in 1974, and to actress Pamela Hensley in 1979; both marriages ended in divorce. Farrell was later married to real estate mogul Jean Inman and had two children, named Wesley and Sky. Farrell died of cancer aged 56 in 1996 in Coconut Grove, Florida.
