Del Shannon’s real name is Charles Weedon Westover and he was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan which is just 60 miles from where I was born, Battle Creek. In fact, when he got out of the Army, he went to … Continue reading →
“Blue Moon” is another song that is an American classic. It was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934. It became a number one hit by the Glen Gray Orchestra in 1935 and a number two hit by … Continue reading →
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CPU0H6A “Where or When” had been such a big it for Elvis, that he wanted to repeat that success. So, Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman adapted an Italian melody “Torna a Surriento” (“Come Back to Sorrento”) to an English song … Continue reading →
I’m not sure if anyone would argue that the dance craze that was popular in the early Sixties was started by or at least fueled by Chubby Checker. His first hit, “The Twist” got us out on the dance floor … Continue reading →
One does not think of Lawrence Welk as a Top 40 artist. But, in 1961, rock and roll was still struggling to gain a permanent foothold on American music and now and then a song by the “old-timers” would sneak … Continue reading →
We’ve had groups before that consisted solely of women, but The Shirelles are the first girl group to hit number one who really related to the kids who were buying records in 1961. The four Shirelles are not sisters, but … Continue reading →
Bert Kaempfert was a German orchestra leader, producer and songwriter. He was born Berthold Heinrich Kampfert in Hamburg, Germany in 1923. He died in 1980 at the young age of 56, but during his life he had a profound effect … Continue reading →
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CPU0H6A This is the fifteenth number one by Elvis, with many more to come. “Are You Lonesome Tonight” was written by Roy Turk and Lou Handman way back in 1926. Turk and Handman were vaudevillians and the song was originally … Continue reading →
“Stay” is one of those songs that have been around forever and will be around in the future. Maurice Williams wrote the song in 1953 when he was fifteen years old. It was inspired by an incident when he had … Continue reading →
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008PIMLKG In 1960, Ray Charles released “Georgia On My Mind”, a wonderful remake of a classic from the Thirties. The song was written by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell in 1930. Before Ray Charles, the most popular version of the … Continue reading →