Update: Rick Derringer verified that Lisa is the famous dancer. The Deconstructing a Myth: Sloopy Girl documentary had been released and available for only one month when Rick Derringer confirmed publicly, at his YouTube channel on October 23, 2021, that Lisa Leonard Dalton was the dancer in his popular online video. Apparently the 1975 reggae version of the song, with the steel drums and marimba, was not his favorite rendition of the famous tune — but he sure recognized and remembered Lisa and her incredible dancing. The Deconstructing a Myth: Sloopy Girl documentary had been prepared before Rick confirmed that Lisa was the mysterious dancer — so the video documentary had by necessity relied heavily on the accounts of a dozen witnesses, vintage photos, physical evidence, and police grade facial recognition software that had unequivocally identified Lisa Leonard Dalton as the “Sloopy Girl” dancer. Again in November 2022, Rick Derringer confirmed on his Facebook page that Lisa was the dancer in his viral online “Hang On Sloopy” video. At QZVX we knew that all along, but now it is 100% — Lisa Leonard Dalton danced in Rick’s 1975 music video. Just the same, it is much appreciated that Rick stepped forward to verify the truth. RIP Rick, you will be missed!
Since that matter has now been settled, let’s move on to the original story from May 2020.
Here’s the original information, including recent updates, that accompanied this article when it was published in May 2020:
As a kid, living in the NW corner of Washington State, I had great reception of Canadian radio stations. Those of us looking for an AM Top-40 radio station in 1965 and ’66 often heard the sound of C-FUN out of Vancouver, BC. The intro to this video harks back to those days.
“Hang On Sloopy” was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1965. Other records by The McCoys that received significant radio airplay included “Fever,” “Sorrow,” and “Come On Let’s Go.” Rick Derringer also produced records and played lead guitar with Edgar and Johnny Winter in the 1970s. He had a solo hit with “Rock and Roll Hootchie Koo” in 1974 (Billboard Hot 100 peak position #23).
Usually I post a very early rendition of a “Found Performance.” This is an exception. I have located two 1965 appearances by the original “McCoys.” But the video I chose is from 1975 and it will get your attention. It has an 80 million strong fan base.
Former McCoys’ vocalist, Rick Derringer, was filming a new music film to promote a remake of his former band’s hit single “Hang On Sloopy.” It wasn’t the new 1975 incarnation of the decade old song that got the attention of the fans. It was the blond dancing girl. The premise was that during the film shoot, a gorgeous girl would stroll by and spontaneously break into a sexy and captivating dance routine.
It didn’t take much of a detective work to debunk that theory. Girls like this don’t just wander down the street into a film set. This girl was obviously no ordinary passerby. After a decade of rumors, and one British woman, with zero connection to Derringer or the dance, trying to hint around that she had some connection to Derringer. In 2021 t was revealed that Lisa Leonard Dalton, an American, is the authentic Sloopy Girl.
The urban legend that the “Hang On Sloopy” dancer was the British party planner, or that she had been married to singer Rick Derringer, were discredited. If you’ve heard that false rumor, then you need to see “Sloopy Wives-Fact and Fiction” (Read it HERE ). The meticulously documented article answers the questions: How old are these ladies and who was actually married to Rick Derringer? At the time of her 1975 performance Lisa Leonard Dalton was 19 years old. A California girl, she came to the attention of the filmmakers when she won the 1974 dance competition at Gazzarri’s, a popular Hollywood nightclub. For anyone with any remaining interest in Brewer, the answers to some of the questions that inevitably come up about her can be found in the British Newspaper Archives. (Click HERE to view an assortment of clippings).
Several music tracks have accompanied this 1975 video in its online life. In my original video below, I had edited into the video the 1965 hit version of “Hang On Sloopy.” I later regretted doing that: It was nearly impossible to get a good lip sync with the singer, because the two versions of the song were so different. But, the bigger issue was it created confusion. A number of online videos include the old 1965 song dubbed over the 1975 dance video. Part of the mistaken identity can be traced to viewers thinking the video was filmed ten years earlier than it actually was. In fact, the 1975 version of “Hang On Sloopy” that should go with the video was a reggae cover with steel drums and a marimba. The reggae cover of “Hang On Sloopy” came out on Rick Derringer’s 1975 album “Spring Fever” and at that time the “Sloopy” track was also, once again, released as a 45 RPM single.
In researching this project, I came across a family photo of Lisa Leonard Dalton dating back to 2010. I knew that her facial expression was familiar to me. Sure enough, her expression and appearance perfectly matched the “Sloopy Girl” dancer. Nobody needs facial recognition software to realize that even 35 years later, this is the same woman. To read the story of the search for “Sloopy Girl,” check out “Deconstructing a Myth: Sloopy Girl.” You can watch it by clicking HERE.
Editorial Update (Feb. 2022)
Lisa Leonard Dalton appeared in an on-camera interview in January 2022. It is the first in a series of several short video interviews. To watch “Up-Close & Personal in Tennessee” click HERE.
When the Deconstructing a Myth video was released in summer 2021 it went viral. Shortly afterwards, YouTube Channels and entertainment websites updated their information to reflect that Lisa Leonard Dalton is the authentic “Sloopy Girl.” The narrative has certainly changed. When entering Lisa Leonard Dalton’s name in a search engine, it’s readily apparent that she now has a strong online presence as the mysterious “Hang on Sloopy” dancer. To learn more about our discovery that Lisa Leonard Dalton is the Sloopy Girl, please click HERE.
Overwhelmingly, thousands of “Sloopy Girl” fans embraced the truth. They asked Lisa to share current photos and to record a cell phone video. On November 5, 2021, Lisa accommodated those requests. While attending a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert in Knoxville, two of Lisa’s friends took some pictures and she recorded a video greeting. Two of the new photos are included below. To watch Lisa Leonard Dalton’s new video, called November Night in Tennessee, please click HERE. And check out Lisa’s “Sloopy Girl” website at https://lisasloopygirl.com/
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Steven Smith • August 28, 2020
Note: My view on this has sibcc changed. Read farther down for more recent developments.
That is my view unless someone can convince me otherwise. I kind of expect to hear from the other lady one of these days.
Jason Remington • August 28, 2020
Same chick. (I am a sexist beast) There is no doubt when you look at the two. I am not a forensics specialist, but I play one on tv.
Steven Smith • August 28, 2020
I present this comment in the realm of not very important but sort of intriguing. I knew this “Found Performance” video I posted back in May was historically popular. In my take on it, I substituted the original 1966 version of Sloopy as the sound track vs. a mid-70s variation when Rick Derringer of the original McCoys formed a new band called “Derringer.” So the video is that band, the audio is the hit. In looking at the stats, here at PSM, this Found Performance has been viewed probably 3x more than my other “music video” Found Performances. And over at youtube, where I host this one, it has approaching 8000 hits…again that’s way beyond my other music related videos. Bottom line: it is popular. Probably because of the sexy girl, but also there are argumentative aspects. The main theory espoused was that the dancing girl, identified as Liz Brewer (wife of Rick Derringer at the time) later became the Liz Brewer who is now a party planner and socialite in the UK. I think that is false and is fed in part because when viewing the Sloopy video….youtube recognizes the name Liz Brewer and feeds teasers for videos featuring the UK woman of that same name. I initially thought they might be one and the same but that I no longer believe. If you care enough to wonder why, then look at the many comments here. One of the credible comments was from a man who said he lived by Rick and Liz and he for sure said that was her dancing and that she WAS NOT the Brit. Today youtube sent me a message that someone had commented that the dancer was not Liz Brewer, it was a woman named Lisa Dalton. I googled her name and there is a dancer of that name. However, unless I hear otherwise in a convincing manner….and I just might with all the comments at youtube and here…I believe that Rick’s wife Liz was the dancer. Now I am not a police ID specialist. But, with the help of Jason a few months back, we found a photo from a fan magazine of Rick’s wife Liz Brewer taken around the same time the video was produced. There are enough points of similarity between the two photos (real Liz and dancing girl) to persuade me that the dancer is the Liz Brewer Derringer who was married to Rick Derringer. See what you think in the mash-up at the link below. Liz from the fan mag left, dancing girl in a similar pose at the right.
http://qzvx.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Dancer.png
Steven Smith • July 22, 2020
Jason…thanks for mentioning that article. It was more contemporary than most others I have seen. Here is a link for anyone interested. https://whitehotmagazine.com/articles/in-conversation-with-elizabeth-derringer/2609
Jason Remington • July 22, 2020
Liz’ maiden name was Brewer. There is very little info on Liz since a 2012 interview on WhiteHotMagazine.com. If Liz Derringer remarried, it is a very well kept secret.
Steven Smith • June 9, 2021
Jason…now having a better handle on this that is actually not the case Rick’s first wife from 1969 to early ’90s was maiden name Elizabeth Agriss from NYC. She was never named Brewer. That is an online myth posted by people who got it wrong and Google, along with Getty Images and YouTube magnify the error. Also, I can verify 100 percent that Liz Derringer has remarried and is currently married, Now Liz Brewer in the UK, far as I can tell, has always been “Brewer.” She was married once for a few years in the ’70s, but if she took her husband’s last name at all, she switched back after the divorce. It is impossible to track these connections in a regular online search. It is too messed up. The only successes come from deep genealogy searches of archival marriage licenses, divorce records, old high school yearbooks. Luckily I have had some good help along the way.
Steven Smith • July 22, 2020
Dick,
Thanks for the comment. I am doing considerable snooping into this and my initial theory of who is who was largely formed from the muddled mess Google has created regarding the two different ladies named Liz.
Dick Morgan • July 22, 2020
Ok guys I will set the record straight — I am married to Liz and according to her a girl was walking by in 1965 when the band was recording sloopy and she impromptu starting dancing. The video guy thought it would be great to include her. Nobody asked her name and she just walked off. It was not Liz (BTW her name is NOT Brewer) .
Steven Smith • June 8, 2021
Dick….we get many comments here, many of them made up. After considerable research, a few new doors opening up, I now believe yours is authentic. I am also convinced as you say that Liz Derringer, who you say you are married to, is not the dancer. I also know that her maiden name was never Brewer. I have seen her 1969 NYC marriage license to Rick with names listed. I also know Google has anyone interested in this totally confused. Search for Liz Derringer and half the hits are Liz Brewer and the opposite holds true as well. In mass media two different ladies named Liz have been morphed into one. And I do appreciate your comment that Liz Derringer does not know the identity of the dancer. I now take what you say seriously and appreciate the info.
Jack D. Bell • May 25, 2020
OK Steven…I am with you on your conclusion…after reading the link, it clears things up fairly well…Rick used his wife to boogie her butt for us in that remade video!…She cannot be the lady in Britain that does the Miss Manners stuff!….Being a Hendrix fanatic, I was very interested in the part where Ricks EX talked about actually hanging out at the Record Plant studio where Jimi did much of his recording…he did have a habit of actually writing some of his lyrics, while also laying down tracks…and she and Rick witnessed that stuff happening!…I never realized that Jimi and Rick were hanging out that casually, but it makes sense…It is funny about guitarists, they usually have a big ego–Rick, in an interview, stated that Jimi learned licks from him, and he learned licks from Hendrix…inferring they were equal in ability….I doubt that!…..thanks for the informative link.
Steven Smith • May 20, 2020
Jack….you got that right. From what I read, Rick wrote ‘Hootchie Koo’ for Johnny Winter, and it was popular as an album cut of his in 1970. Then Edgar put it on an album in ’72 and Derringer did his own version….that was a single in ’73. The albums by the two Winter bros charted on Billboard albums and Derringer’s single made the Billboard singles chart for 14 weeks peaking in the top 20 in 1974.
Jack D. Bell • May 21, 2020
I tried to do some research on Liz , ostensibly the hottie in that remade/updated video….I am confused a little bit….Derringer made this remake video when, 45 years ago?He would have been in his late 20s at that time….and the lady dancing–supposedly his wife at the time…would have been even older, around 35 in the mid-70s….but it does indeed look like her!….I cannot find when she and Derringer split…he did admit, that in the 70s they were both party animals…just doesnt seem likely that she could look that great at 35…and Rick looks younger than late 20s….something does not add up!
Steven Smith • May 21, 2020
Jack…I was intrigued by this topic of Liz as well. I do not have all the answers but can fill in some blanks. She was married to Rick for 22 years. Now, what I am not so sure of, is that she is the same Liz who is the UK expert on manners. On the other hand, that woman does claim to have been a rock n roll party animal. So maybe. That particular video was from 75 or 76…so Rick was 28 or 29. I cannot determine the age of Liz, cant find it online, but I suspect about the same. Part of her bio is she grew up as a close friend of Steven Tyler. In my experience at that age kids have friends of a similar age. Tyler is one year younger than Rick. And as I write this, wiki has Rick at 74. Derringer has a Facebook page, with that video…but he says nothing about the girl. I am going to put a photo and a link below. In this photo, I am about 99.99 percent sure or more the girl on the right…Liz Brewer Derringer… is the dancing girl. And in the next link, that looks like the same person 40 years later and the photos of her younger days are the dancing girl. So I am convinced the dancer was Liz Brewer Derringer, but I do not know if it is the same “Miss Manners” who is writing books and popular in the UK. And, if she was raised in the UK or AU or wherever, then how would she have grown up with Steven Tyler in New York? I love digging into this sort of stuff.
https://whitehotmagazine.com/articles/in-conversation-with-elizabeth-derringer/2609
G • July 4, 2020
It is not same woman. I grew up almost next door to him and his wife Liz on 13th St mid 1970s-early 1980s. His wife at the time, Liz, was a knockout MILF who filled my adolescent dreams. She had distinctive eyes, nose and lips and crazy perfect body which is seared into my memory from adolescence to late teens and absolutely NOT the etiquette woman.
I haven’t seen Mrs. Derringer (name she used sometimes was Liz Zehringer) in almost 40 years but that is 100% certain her dancing in the video. Fyi that is not from 1960’s, it’s mid 1970’s and the band is not mccoys but “Derringer”
Steven Smith • July 4, 2020
G…..thanks for your personal verification that Liz Brewer did not become Miss Manners in the UK, which is an online theory. That is an interesting story and it must have been exciting to live near a rock star. As for this video, it is actually a morph of the mid-seventies era video with the original mid-sixties hit as the audio track. I thought the original song was far superior to the ’70s offering so did my own variation with the superior soundtrack. That is explained to some degree in the text. And Liz looks good no matter how you mix it. Your response is a cool aspect to our media site. We can ask questions and people with additional knowledge show up.
Jack D. Bell • May 20, 2020
In the late 60s, the McCoys were, for awhile, the “house band” at the most popular late night club in NYC for the Rock crowd..The Scene….Derringer met, and jammed, with many of the hot guitarists of the time, including both Winter brothers, and Hendrix….I believe that your reference to Rock and Roll Hoochee Koo was a hit for Edgar Winter, but indeed featured Rick on lead guitar….at least, it sounds like Edgar on the vocal….BTW…The owner of The Scene was a young gay guy by the name of Steve Paul….he was responsible for bringing Johnny Winter to NYC from Texas, in late 1968, and was his manager for awhile….Steve Paul got tired of pressure from local neighborhoodmafia types, and closed this venue in later 1969…but several bootleg tapes from the many jam sessions there, exist, and are interesting to listen to!….there is a famous one, featuring Hendrix and a very drunk Jim Morrison, who had to be dragged offstage after creating a scene at the Scene!
Edgar Bennett • May 21, 2020
I have heard that Hendrix,/ Morrison jam. Morrison was way out of hand. Very drunk. Even Jimi got tired of it after awhile.
Jack D. Bell • May 21, 2020
Yes…Morrison actually snatched Jimi’s hat off his head at one point….the audience gasped at that!…also, for years many people thought that the 2nd guitarist on this tape was Johnny Winter…but that was not possible, as Winter was not in NYC until Steve Paul brought him up from Texas, in late 1968…the tape was recorded in early 1968–It was Rick Derringer–at least, that is what he says!..The bootleg tape was released several times in the early 70s…one LP was titled Sky High, the one I had was titled, “Woke up this morning, and Found Myself Dead”….Hendrix did sing that line on the tape, he spookily summarized his own death, by barbituate overdose, 18 Sept. 1970!