Songfacts®:

• "The Shoop Shoop Song" dates back to 1963. Written by Rudy Clark, it was first recorded by Merry Clayton and became a hit for Betty Everett in 1964. In 1977 it was a minor hit for Kate Taylor (James' sister), and in 1990 Cher revived it for the 1990 movie Mermaids, where it plays under the closing credits. Cher stars in the film along with Winona Ryder and Christina Ricci.
• Mermaids is set in 1963 and features songs from that era (just like Dirty Dancing, set in the same year). Betty Everett's version of "The Shoop Shoop Song" plays in the middle of the film - it's an anachronism, as her rendition wasn't released until 1964. The soundtrack also features "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Johnny Angel," and other classics along with Cher's take on "Shoop," which was released as a single.
• Peter Asher, who produced many of Linda Ronstadt's biggest hits, was at the helm for this one. In an interview with Songfacts, Asher explained that he and Cher had just one conversation about the song (regarding the key), and he took care of the arrangement. Cher showed up, recorded her vocal, and it was done.
  
  At this time, Cher was a very busy woman, so having a hands-on producer like Asher was essential.
• In Mermaids, Cher plays a hot single mom known as "Mrs. Flax" who clashes with her oldest daughter Charlotte, played by Winona Ryder. Her character doesn't sing in the film, so it made sense to play the song in the closing credits.
  
  She really connected with the character, which was inspired by Cher's own mother. "Mermaids was my life," she told Vox. "I was very dramatic as a teenager, very much like Charlotte. I went to a Catholic school and wanted to be a nun. When I was 11 I could drive. At 13 I used to steal my mother's car and take my little sister driving. I was a great driver!"
• Cher was 44 when the song was released in 1990. The previous decade she established herself as a top actress with acclaimed roles in Silkwood, Moonstruck, and The Witches of Eastwick. Her music was on the back burner until 1987, when she signed with Geffen Records and started making hits again, "I Found Someone," "If I Could Turn Back Time," and "After All" among them.
• Cher's "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)" was just a minor hit in America, but it went to #1 in the UK, her first chart-topper there as a solo artist ("I Got You Babe" with Sonny & Cher was a #1 UK hit in 1965).