Little Peggy March

Peggy March (born Margaret Annemarie Battavio, March 8, 1948) is an American pop singer. In the United States, she is primarily known for her 1963 million-selling song "I Will Follow Him". While she had only a few further chart successes in the United States, she achieved numerous hits in European countries, especially Germany, well into the 1970s.

Born in Lansdale, Pennsylvania to an Italian-American family, March was discovered at age 13 singing at her cousin's wedding and was introduced to record producers Hugo & Luigi. They gave her the nickname Little Peggy March because she was 4 ft 10 in (1.47 m) tall (though she later grew to be 5ft 4in), she was only 13, the record she did with them was "Little Me", and her birthday was in March.

On April 24, 1963, her single "I Will Follow Him" soared to number one on the United States chart. She recorded the song in early January 1963 and it was released on January 22, when she was 14. March became the youngest female artist with a number one hit, at 15, in late April 1963, a record that still stands for the Billboard Hot 100. The recording also reached number one in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Japan, and Scandinavia. It failed to chart in the United Kingdom. It was a translation of the French song "Chariot" recorded a year earlier by Petula Clark. March also became the first white female solo artist to hit number one on the Billboard R&B chart.

March's success also came with financial trouble. She was a minor and the "Coogan Law" prevented her parents from managing her money. The responsibility was placed on her manager, Russell Smith. It was discovered in 1966 that he had squandered the fortune, leaving her with $500. March graduated from Lansdale Catholic High School in 1966.

Although she is remembered in the United States by some as a one-hit wonder, her singles, "I Wish I Were a Princess" and "Hello Heartache, Goodbye Love", made the top 30 in the US, with the latter also reaching number 29 on the UK Singles Chart. As with many American artists, March's career in her native country was derailed in part by the British Invasion, which at the time was pushing many American acts out of popularity, and she had no hits at home once the Invasion began in 1964. Recording for RCA Victor, March made 18 singles from 1964 to 1971. She also cut several albums, none of which sold well in the United States.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.