Pete Shrayder's 'Where's the Girl for Me' Reemerges on TikTok

On July 12, 2021, an oldie titled "Where's the Girl for Me" from 1960s recording artist Pete Shrayder reemerged in what some might consider an unlikely place: TikTok. Shrayder's real name is Peter Henry Schroeder.

TikTok

The caption for the video, which was posted by @cam_kurtz03, read: "This is my great uncle and his song from the 1950s the record label never passed."

In the video, @cam_kurtz03 said that Shrayder is the man sitting in front of the fire as he listens to his song from more than 60 years ago. It garnered a huge response on TikTok.

Spotify's official account even responded, saying that they host the song, to which @cam_kurtz03 responded: "BRO NO WAY."

Spotify's comment was liked nearly 200,000 times in the first 24 hours.

People familiar with TikTok perhaps won't be surprised that the platform brought back Shrayder's old song and might make it go viral. TikTok has become somewhat known as one of the more kind and inviting social media platforms available today. Despite the stereotype that it's just for young people, new TikTok users soon find out that it's packed with people of all ages.

'Where's the Girl for Me'

While the video said it was a 1950s song, 45cat.com showed it as having been released in December 1960 on Capitol Records in the U.K. The picture of the record on the 45cat.com website included the words "demonstration record" and "not for sale."

Lyrics for "Where's the Girl for Me" are as follows:

(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl
(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl
(Where's the girl) Where's the girl for me

(Where's the girl) I dream of nightly
(Where's the girl) I hold so tightly
(Where's the girl) Who stole my heart
Where's the girl who made me start
(Looking and looking) I'm looking everywhere
(Hoping and hoping) I'm hoping she'll be there
(Wishing and wishing) I'm wishing she could be, not a dream, but reality

(backup singers)

(Where's the girl) I love so madly
(Where's the girl) I need so badly
(Where's the girl) Oh, where is she
Where's the girl that's meant for me

(Looking and looking) I'm looking high and low
(Hoping and hoping) Everywhere I go
(Wishing and wishing) On every star above

I'll find the girl that I'm dreamin' of

(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl
(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl
(Where's the girl) Where's the girl for me

(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl
(Where's the girl) Where, oh where, oh where's the girl

The full song is available on YouTube. On the "B" side of the record was another song from Shrayder: "Take Me Back Baby."

Pete Shrayder

Shrayder was born on Jan. 2, 1938, in Syracuse, New York. As mentioned before, his real name is Peter Henry Schroeder.

According to an old clipped newspaper article, which did not contain a newspaper name, he "was able to do occasional radio work with his father (who was well known on radio in New York), and during the summer worked with local repertory theatres."

Shrayder's photo appeared in the unnamed newspaper clipping, likely from the early 1960s.

According to the unnamed newspaper, while Shrayder sang "Where's the Girl for Me?," it was two friends wrote the song. Those two friends appeared to be Del Serino and Bill Courtney. The newspaper also said that the result of recording the song "was good enough for signings with Capitol Records." It's unclear if Shrayder was signed as an artist and then had his song denied by the same label, as claimed in the TikTok video.

On Nov. 25, 1960, the Brooklyn Daily newspaper (which appears to be different than the Brooklyn Daily Eagle) also published the following about Shrayder:

Pete Shrayder, handsome dark-haired singer for Capitol Records' label, has held some of the oddest singing jobs we've ever heard of.

Pete, a native of Syracuse, N.Y., has been variously a singing pin-setter in a bowling alley, a singing doorman, a singing room clerk, a singing comedian, and a singing social director.

What, no singing babysitter?"

It appeared in a small blurb in the newspaper:

From the Brooklyn Daily newspaper on Nov. 25, 1960.

Additionally, a reader reached out to us saying she's Shrayder's niece. She shared the following on Twitter about Shrayder's career, including parts in "Star Trek," a film about Ruth Ellis, and even a part in "Argo":

Readers can learn more about his career on his IMDb page.