who originally sang hello mary lou
(December 2009).  Hello Mary Lou  is a song written by U.S. singer Gene Pitney and Cayet Mangiaracina, first recorded by Johnny Duncan in 1960, and later by Ricky Nelson in 1961.Nelson's version, issued as the B-side of his No. 1 hit Travelin' Man, (Imperial 5741), reached No. 9 on the Billboard music charts on May 28, 1961.he song features an influential guitar solo by James Burton, often cited by later guitarists such as Brian May. Piano was by Ray Johnson, who had succeeded Gene Garf as Nelson's regular session pianist in November 1959. other musicians on the record included Joe Osborne on bass and Ritchie Frost on drums.