Fantastic Oldies Game!

[AlexBrowne]

Drummer Sandy Nelson, a Californian, charted with nine instrumentals from 1959 through 1964 -- the best-known being the first two, "Teen Beat" from 1959 and "Let There Be Drums" from 1961 -- and, as a prominent studio musician, can be heard on "Alley Oop," "To Know Him Is To Love Him," "A Thousand Stars," and many other records.

 

[GridLeakBias]

Drummer Sandy Nelson, a Californian, charted with nine instrumentals from 1959 through 1964 -- the best-known being the first two, "Teen Beat" from 1959 and "Let There Be Drums" from 1961 -- and, as a prominent studio musician, can be heard on "Alley Oop," "To Know Him Is To Love Him," "A Thousand Stars," and many other records.

William Randolph "Cozy" Cole was the definitive example of a drummer who directly applied the rudimental approach to jazz, and among the very few whose style evolved and spanned a number of eras. Cole’s career began in the late 1920s as a sideman with numerous jazz orchestras and bands. Cole had a #1 hit in 1958 with "Topsy Part 2", which contained a lengthy drum solo. This was one of the few drum solo recordings that ever made the popular Billboard top 100 (1958) charts. Cozy appeared in a few music related films through the years, right up to the 1950s, including a very brief cameo in 'Don't Knock The Rock'.

 

[AlexBrowne]

If you grew up in New York as a fan of rock 'n' roll, you probably watched The Clay Cole Show from 1959-1968 on Channel 13, and then Channel 11, to hear the latest hits of the great artists who were in the City to perform; with handsome Clay Cole and a format similar to American Bandstand, the Saturday night program is credited with hosting the first major American TV appearances of The Rolling Stones (on a program with one other guest, The Beatles!), Neil Diamond, Dionne Warwick, Simon & Garfunkel, Richie Havens, Tony Orlando, Blood, Sweat & Tears, The Lovin' Spoonful, Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons, and The Rascals, as well as hip comics Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Fannie Flagg, and many more.

 

[GridLeakBias]

If you grew up in New York as a fan of rock 'n' roll, you probably watched The Clay Cole Show from 1959-1968 on Channel 13, and then Channel 11, to hear the latest hits of the great artists who were in the City to perform; with handsome Clay Cole and a format similar to American Bandstand, the Saturday night program is credited with hosting the first major American TV appearances of The Rolling Stones (on a program with one other guest, The Beatles!), Neil Diamond, Dionne Warwick, Simon & Garfunkel, Richie Havens, Tony Orlando, Blood, Sweat & Tears, The Lovin' Spoonful, Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons, and The Rascals, as well as hip comics Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Fannie Flagg, and many more.

Larry Williams, singer, songwriter and pianist from New Orleans is best known for writing and recording some Rock 'n' Roll standards from 1957 to 1959 for Specialty Records. Little Richard, the label's biggest star, left Rock 'n' Roll in July 1957 to pursue the ministry, and Specialty groomed Williams as Richard’s successor with releases such as "Short Fat Fannie", "Bony Maronie", and "Slow Down". Williams' records had the same raw, piano-driven intensity; and indeed, the “Bony Maronie” lyrics contained many references to Little Richard’s tunes (in addition to other popular R&R tunes):

Short Fat Fannie
I was slippin and slidin with a long tall Sally
Peekin' and a hidin',duck back in the alley
Don't wanna rip it up,don't wanna dance with Annie
I've got a brand new lover name is Short Fat Fannie

One day while I was visit'n at HeartBreak Hotel
Thats where I met Fannie and she sure looked swell
I told her that I loved her and I'd never leave
She put her arms around me, gave me fever

She's my tutti fruiti I love the child so
She watch me like a hound dog everywhere I go
Whenever I'm around her I'm on my p's and q's
She might step on my blue suede shoes

Well at a honky tonk party just the other night*
Fannie got jealous and she started a fight
At the club I was dancin with MaryLou
I had to call Jim Dandy to the rescue

Short Fat Fannie she's my hearts desire
Short Fat Fannie sets my soul on fire
On Monday we were married on Blueberry Hill
Now we're so happy and I love her still

*Sorry gang - the smut filter on this board auto edits the first name of the R&R instrumental - "H-o-n-k-y-t-o-n-k".

 

[AlexBrowne]

The Beatles were big fans of Larry Williams, the troubled singer/songwriter who had a #1 R&B hit with "Short Fat Fannie" in 1957, but then found his career interrupted when he was convicted of dealing narcotics in 1960, and ultimately committed suicide in 1980; the Fab Four recorded three of Williams' compositions, "Slow Down," "Dizzy Miss Lizzy," and "Bad Boy."

 

[GridLeakBias]

The Beatles were big fans of Larry Williams, the troubled singer/songwriter who had a #1 R&B hit with "Short Fat Fannie" in 1957, but then found his career interrupted when he was convicted of dealing narcotics in 1960, and ultimately committed suicide in 1980; the Fab Four recorded three of Williams' compositions, "Slow Down," "Dizzy Miss Lizzy," and "Bad Boy."

“Bad Boy” as recorded by The Jive Bombers and released as Savoy 1508 was a lyrical rework of the original tune written and recorded by Lillian (Lil) Armstrong (second wife of Louis Armstrong) in 1936. The original title was “Brown Gal”. The Jive Bombers first recorded this tune as “Brown Boy” as Al Sears and the Sparrows in 1949 on the Citation label. In 1956 the song title was changed to “Bad Boy” for the Savoy release, a hit version.

Some little known trivia: Savoy released a promo copy (white label with blue lettering) of this platter, I don’t know the release date. The interesting thing about this promo copy which was sent out to the radio stations is that it was mastered at the wrong speed – it played at 16rpm. The label didn’t have ‘Sample’ on the label which Savoy normally used for promo copies. Also, the A-side title was “Little Bad Boy”. The release number is: 45-1508-78, very rare.

 

[AlexBrowne]

The Jive Five from Brooklyn, one of the last of the great doo-wop groups, were led by Eugene Pitt, formerly of The Genies; two of Pitt's fellow Genies, Roland "Don" Trone and Claude "Juan" Johnson, left that group to record "What's Your Name" as Don & Juan in 1962, while Pitt formed the Jive Five whose very first record, "My True Story," was a #1 R&B hit in 1961, and was followed by three other charted singles between 1961 and 1965, "Never, Never," "What Time Is It?" and "I'm A Happy Man."

 

[GridLeakBias]

The Jive Five from Brooklyn, one of the last of the great doo-wop groups, were led by Eugene Pitt, formerly of The Genies; two of Pitt's fellow Genies, Roland "Don" Trone and Claude "Juan" Johnson, left that group to record "What's Your Name" as Don & Juan in 1962, while Pitt formed the Jive Five whose very first record, "My True Story," was a #1 R&B hit in 1961, and was followed by three other charted singles between 1961 and 1965, "Never, Never," "What Time Is It?" and "I'm A Happy Man."

The origins of the Five Keys go back to 1945, in Newport News, Virginia, when two sets of brothers began singing gospel music as the Sentimental Four. By 1948, the Sentimental Four had branched out into Pop and R&B. In early 1949, they decided to change their sound by adding a fifth member, an octave tenor. The fifth person, the octave tenor, separates the Five Keys from all other groups. In April 1951, the first Five Keys record was issued: "With A Broken Heart"/"Too Late", (Aladdin 3085). Due to a pressing plant error, some copies had a Floyd Dixon song in place of "With A Broken Heart", although you couldn't tell by the label; the probable cause was that both master numbers end in the same digit, and someone at the plant grabbed the wrong one. In July 1951, Aladdin issued "The Glory of Love" (Aladdin 3099), a #1 hit for Benny Goodman in 1936,and a #1 on the charts for the Five Keys featuring Rudy West, their only chart hit on Aladdin. Released by Aladdin, the Keys signed with Capitol in 1954 and recorded memorable doo-wop tunes such as “Close Your Eyes” (which had a two-voice lead with Maryland Pierce doing the lead and Rudy West doing the echo vocals, and a breathless and audible exhale after the phrase – “take a deep breath…”); “Ling, Ting Tong” (#5 R&B, #28 Pop); and "Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind" (#12 R&B, #23 Pop). The Five Keys, with various group member changes continued to record and do personal appearances into the 1990s. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2002.

 

[AlexBrowne]

The best known musical artist to come from Newport News, Virginia, was, without question, Ella Fitzgerald, the most honored jazz singer of all time; her first big hit -- a million-seller in 1938 -- was her recording of "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" as the vocalist with Chick Webb & His Orchestra, and she followed that up with countless terrific records until her death in 1996, including four singles that charted in the rock era: "A Beautiful Friendship," "Mack The Knife" and "How High The Moon Part 1" (both recorded at her famous 1960 concert in Berlin), and "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home."

 

[GridLeakBias]

The best known musical artist to come from Newport News, Virginia, was, without question, Ella Fitzgerald, the most honored jazz singer of all time; her first big hit -- a million-seller in 1938 -- was her recording of "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" as the vocalist with Chick Webb & His Orchestra, and she followed that up with countless terrific records until her death in 1996, including four singles that charted in the rock era: "A Beautiful Friendship," "Mack The Knife" and "How High The Moon Part 1" (both recorded at her famous 1960 concert in Berlin), and "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home."

“Blue Moon” is a classic ballad written by Rodgers and Hart in 1934. The original melody had been used (with three different sets of lyrics) in MGM motion pictures in 1933 and 1934. MGM decided to release the tune for commercial use and the final lyrics were written. “Blue Moon” has been recorded by many artists in the 50s and 60s, including Pop (Mel Torme), Jazz (Ella Fitzgerald), Rock n’ Roll (Elvis) and The Marcels, a doo-wop group. The doo-wop version sold a million copies and is featured in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

 

[AlexBrowne]

Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart are probably best remembered as writers and producers for such memorable songs as "Pretty Little Angel Eyes" recorded by Curtis Lee, "Come A Little Bit Closer" by Jay & The Americans, and "Last Train To Clarksville" and "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You" by The Monkees, but they did have one big hit of their own as a vocal duo, "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite" in 1967; the two also toured with The Monkees.

 

[GridLeakBias]

Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart are probably best remembered as writers and producers for such memorable songs as "Pretty Little Angel Eyes" recorded by Curtis Lee, "Come A Little Bit Closer" by Jay & The Americans, and "Last Train To Clarksville" and "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You" by The Monkees, but they did have one big hit of their own as a vocal duo, "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite" in 1967; the two also toured with The Monkees.

Shelley Fabares recorded “Johnny Angel” with Darlene Love and her group, the Blossoms, singing backup vocals on the track. The song premiered on an episode of Fabares' sitcom, The Donna Reed Show, and was released on Columbia's Colpix Records label. It hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 7, 1962, during a 15-week run on the chart. At the time of the recording Shelley was intimidated by Love's group and their "beautiful" voices and was terrified at the prospect of becoming a recording artist, as she did not consider herself a singer. Fabares' career as a singer came to an end (though her career as an actress stayed strong for three decades) within a few years of "Johnny Angel", but the song has become an oldies radio airplay favorite.

 

[AlexBrowne]

Darlene Love was one of the truly great ones, but she never really had a smash hit in her own right -- her biggest as a soloist, the bouncy "Wait Til' My Bobby Gets Home," peaked at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963 -- although you'll hear her excellent Christmas tracks, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" and "All Alone On Christmas" during the holidays; but when, as lead singer of The Blossoms, she and her group were tapped by Phil Spector to substitute for The Crystals at a recording session in 1962, they struck gold with the #1 "He's A Rebel" and "He's Sure The Boy I Love" -- even though the label still credited The Crystals.

 

[GridLeakBias]

Darlene Love was one of the truly great ones, but she never really had a smash hit in her own right -- her biggest as a soloist, the bouncy "Wait Til' My Bobby Gets Home," peaked at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963 -- although you'll hear her excellent Christmas tracks, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" and "All Alone On Christmas" during the holidays; but when, as lead singer of The Blossoms, she and her group were tapped by Phil Spector to substitute for The Crystals at a recording session in 1962, they struck gold with the #1 "He's A Rebel" and "He's Sure The Boy I Love" -- even though the label still credited The Crystals.

The Platters, were a successful vocal group of the early rock and roll era with the most successful members comprising lead tenor Tony Williams, David Lynch, Paul Robi, Herb Reed, and Zola Taylor. Their distinctive sound was a bridge between the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition, and the burgeoning new R&R genre. "Only You" was the group's first Top Ten hit on the pop charts, and topped the R&B charts for seven weeks. The follow-up, “The Great Pretender", with lyrics written in the washroom of the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, exceeded the success of their debut - it became the Platters' first national #1 hit. The follow-up, “The Great Pretender”, with lyrics written in the washroom of the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, became the Platters' first national #1 hit. Future hits included: “You’ll Never, Never Know”(#11 Pop), “My Prayer”(#1), “On My Word Of Honor”(#20), “One In A Million”(#31), and “If I Didn’t Care”(#30).

 

[AlexBrowne]

Peter, Paul & Mary are among the most enduring of folk groups, from their first hits "Lemon Tree" and "If I Had A Hammer (The Hammer Song)" in 1962, through their signature recordings of "Puff The Magic Dragon" and "Blowin' In The Wind" in 1963, their 1967 tip of the cap to The Mamas & The Papas, Donovan, and The Beatles in "I Dig Rock And Roll Music," to their only #1 hit, the John Denver composition, "Leaving On A Jet Plane" in 1969; after splitting up in 1971, recording solo albums, and reuniting in 1978, Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers still perform as a trio today.

 

[GridLeakBias]

Peter, Paul & Mary are among the most enduring of folk groups, from their first hits "Lemon Tree" and "If I Had A Hammer (The Hammer Song)" in 1962, through their signature recordings of "Puff The Magic Dragon" and "Blowin' In The Wind" in 1963, their 1967 tip of the cap to The Mamas & The Papas, Donovan, and The Beatles in "I Dig Rock And Roll Music," to their only #1 hit, the John Denver composition, "Leaving On A Jet Plane" in 1969; after splitting up in 1971, recording solo albums, and reuniting in 1978, Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers still perform as a trio today.

Danny & The Juniors were a Philadelphia based quartet comprising of Danny Rapp, Dave White, Frank Maffei and Joe Terranova. They are sometimes erroneously stated as being an Italian-American band, however, lead singer Danny Rapp was of Irish extraction. "At the Hop"(1957) stayed at the top of the U.S. charts for seven weeks and went on to sell over two million copies worldwide. The song was followed by the similar sounding "Rock 'n' Roll Is Here To Stay"(1958), which also made it into the Top 20. Dave White left the group in the early 1960s to concentrate on writing and production. White was very successful in this venture, composing a number of hits, including "You Don't Own Me" for Leslie Gore, and "1-2-3" and "Like A Baby" for Len Barry.

 

[AlexBrowne]

The Dovells, another fine Philadelphia group that recorded on the Parkway label, had two very big hits, "Bristol Stomp" (Bristol is a town near Philly) in 1961, and "You Can't Sit Down" in 1963; their lead singer, Len Barry (real name: Leonard Borisoff), left in late 1963 for a solo career, and had one very big hit of his own, "1-2-3" in 1965.

 

[GridLeakBias]

The Dovells, another fine Philadelphia group that recorded on the Parkway label, had two very big hits, "Bristol Stomp" (Bristol is a town near Philly) in 1961, and "You Can't Sit Down" in 1963; their lead singer, Len Barry (real name: Leonard Borisoff), left in late 1963 for a solo career, and had one very big hit of his own, "1-2-3" in 1965.

Lejzor Czyz and his brother Fiszel immigrated from Poland to Chcago in 1928. The family name was changed to Chess, with Lejzor becoming Leonard and Fiszel becoming Philip. The Chess brothers entered into a partnership with the owners of Aristocrat Records in 1947 and became sole owners in 1949. In June 1950 they reorganized the company and changed the name to Chess Records and began recording a mind-boggling flood of blues, R&B and rock and roll talent that included Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, Willie Dixon, Etta James and Little Walter. While Phil focused on jazz, Leonard Chess honed in on roots music, making Chess the greatest repository of black music throughout the 50s and 60s. The brothers sold Chess Records to General Recorded Tape (GRT) in 1969 for $6.5mil plus 20,000 shares of GRT stock. After the death of Leonard in 1969 quality output declined, and by 1975 GRT was dismantling what was left of Chess. When the Chess Building in Chicago was sold, the new owners brought in dumpsters and chain-saws and destroyed 250,000 records which had been abandoned there. However, the master tapes survived and are now the property of MCA, which has re-released much of the early Chess material..

 

[GridLeakBias]

The Dovells, another fine Philadelphia group that recorded on the Parkway label, had two very big hits, "Bristol Stomp" (Bristol is a town near Philly) in 1961, and "You Can't Sit Down" in 1963; their lead singer, Len Barry (real name: Leonard Borisoff), left in late 1963 for a solo career, and had one very big hit of his own, "1-2-3" in 1965.

Lejzor Czyz and his brother Fiszel immigrated from Poland to Chcago in 1928. The family name was changed to Chess, with Lejzor becoming Leonard and Fiszel becoming Philip. The Chess brothers entered into a partnership with the owners of Aristocrat Records in 1947 and became sole owners in 1949. In June 1950 they reorganized the company and changed the name to Chess Records and began recording a mind-boggling flood of blues, R&B and rock and roll talent that included Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, Willie Dixon, Etta James and Little Walter. While Phil focused on jazz, Leonard Chess honed in on roots music, making Chess the greatest repository of black music throughout the 50s and 60s. The brothers sold Chess Records to General Recorded Tape (GRT) in 1969 for $6.5mil plus 20,000 shares of GRT stock. After the death of Leonard in 1969 quality output declined, and by 1975 GRT was dismantling what was left of Chess. When the Chess Building in Chicago was sold, the new owners brought in dumpsters and chain-saws and destroyed 250,000 records which had been abandoned there. However, the master tapes survived and are now the property of MCA, which has re-released much of the early Chess material.

Hey, where did everybody go? No RRRRs, no amfmsw, no AlexBrowne lately. Has this thread run it’s course? Or maybe we just need a restart. OK, I’m up fror that. I’ll provide the jumpstart. Here we go…

Etta James (born Jamesetta Hawkins) had her biggest success in the 1950s and 60s as a blues and R&B singer. In 1950 James teamed up with two other girls to form a singing group which they named ‘The Peaches’. After being discovered by band leader Johnny Otis, they recorded their first tune, an answer to the Hank Ballard hit, “Work With Me, Annie”, which they titled "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)”. It was released on the Modern Records label in 1955 and reached #2 on the R&B charts. Shortly after this record’s success James left the group and began a long and successful career, with her ballad “At Last” released on the Chess label in 1961, being her next and most remembered hit. In fact, “At Last” has became her signature song and it has been classified as a "timeless classic", featured in many movies and television commercials since its release.
Etta James has ben inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; the Blues Hall of Fame; and has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and has received three Grammies.

 

[AlexBrowne]

(Never fear, GridLeak, AlexBrowne was just out of town -- in Philly and Dallas, for business and pleasure -- and took a vacation from the Internet.)

There have been four others, but the original Peaches of Peaches & Herb was the late Francine "Peaches" Hurd Barker (whose mother gave her the famous nickname as a newborn because of her peachlike fuzzy cheeks!), who had been in the vocal group Sweet Things, and teamed up with Herb Fame in the mid-60s to record "Close Your Eyes" and other singles; the most successful "Peaches," however, has been Linda Green whose duets with Fame in the late 70s, particularly "Shake Your Groove Thing" and "Reunited," were huge hits -- the latter was #1 on both the pop and R&B charts.