Curtis Mayfield wrote "Gypsy Woman" and sang lead on it with The Impressions in 1961, the first hit for the group after Jerry Butler's departure. Although it barely made the top twenty (#20), it is one of my favorites. It did place #2 on the r & b chart. With Mayfield's falsetto and the Latin rhythm accentuated by the castenets, it paints an exotic picture of the "Gypsy Woman" -- "eyes like that of a cat in the dark." After this release, Richard and Arthur Brooks left the group and it became a trio. The song was done by Brian Hyland in 1970 (the same year Mayfield left the Impressions for a solo career) and made it to #3 -- I still prefer the Impressions' version. It's been covered by many artists on albums, perhaps most notably by Bruce Springsteen in 1994 on a Curtis Mayfield tribute album. Curtis Mayfield went on to a very successful solo career and has been credited with writing the "soundtrack to the civil rights movement" with songs like "Keep On Pushin'." The Impressions were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.