Thurston Harris, one-hit wonder in 1957 with “Little Bitty Pretty One” (Alladin 3398) which went to #6 on Billboard, had originally recorded as featured vocalist with The Lamplighters in 1953, later with The Tenderfoots and then The Sharps, all with ties to the original Lamplighters. The Sharps backed Harris on his one hit record.Those RRRRs said:There were two pretty well known versions of "Hot Pastrami and Mashed Potatoes;"
one was by Joey Dee & The Starlighters from "Peppermint Twist" fame and the other was from The Dartells.
In the mid to late '50s Al Tafoya dejayed an enormously popular 30-minute rock program called "Night Train" on KLOS, a local AM outlet in Albuquerque. One evening in 1957 early in his show he put on “Cry Me A River”, Julie London. During the airplay he received numerous calls complaining about the slow and dreary song. So…he played it again. More complaining calls. So he played it again and again for, if my memory serves me, more than 8 times back to back. I still love that tune.amfmsw said:I heard an interview with Harris describing the hit. It was recorded in 3 cities. Piano, bass, percussion tracks in LA, reeds, brass, strings added to that track in NYC, then mix sent to London where Harris added the vocal track.
A similar big stereo orchestral sound was in the 4 Seasons "Opus 17".
Opus Dei.
Jimmy Dean recorded the country cross-over hit, “Big Bad John” on Columbia in 1961. Not only did it top the Pop charts for 5 weeks, but it was also #1 on the Country charts for 2 weeks, and #1 Adult Contemporary for 10 weeks. Nowadays Jimmy is probably more well known for his sausage.Those RRRRs said:The Mills Brothers recorded a vocal version of the big band classic "Opus One," and also a pop version of The Silhouettes tune "Get A Job," just to name a couple of their records.
Scottish singer Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie, best known by her stage name Lulu, had a major hit with the title song of the motion picture "To Sir, with Love" in 1967, which shot to number one in the United States for five weeks. In the UK, it was released only on the B-side of "Let's Pretend", a much less successful hit.AlexBrowne said:Jan & Dean -- Jan Berry and Dean Torrence -- were known for their surf-rock singles including "Surf City," "The Little Old Lady (From Pasadena)," "Dead Man's Curve," and "Drag City"; the duo were friendly with their fellow southern Californians, The Beach Boys: Brian Wilson offered backing vocals on "Surf City" while Dean sang lead on The Beach Boys' "Barbara Ann."
While music historians continue to argue about the beginnings of Doo Wop music and the origin of the term, one thing is clear – teenagers in the black community rarely had enough money to buy instruments, so they used what they had (their mouths) to create nonsense syllables, and the term "doo-wop" was taken from the ad-lib syllables sung in harmony. The Orioles helped develop the doo-wop sound with their hits "It's Too Soon to Know" (1948) and "Crying in the Chapel" (1953). Two songs in particular may lay claim to being the "first" to contain the syllables "doo wop" in the refrain, i.e., the 1955 hit, "When You Dance" by The Turbans, in which the chant "doo wop" can be plainly heard; and the 1956 classic "In the Still of the Night" by The Five Satins, with the plaintive "doo wop, doo wah" refrain in the bridge.Those RRRRs said:The Doo Wop Group "The Charts" were probably best known for their song "Deserie," but other hits of theirs included "Zoop," "Dance Girl," "Why Do You Cry," and "My Diane."
"Love Is Strange" was a 1957 Top 40 hit for Mickey & Sylvia, originally released on Groove Records, a division of RCA. The song features a sinuous guitar riff and provocative verbal byplay between Mickey and Sylvia. The role of the lead guitar (Mickey Baker, vocalist on this tune, and considered the "go to" session guitar player of the 1950s and early 1960s) and the lush melody had an influence that can be clearly heard in many more modern rock songs, notably "Day Tripper" and other guitar-driven Beatles songs. Dave "Baby" Cortez used the same break riff of "Love is Strange" on his 1962 hit "Rinky Dink", and got sued for copying that melodic riff, and had to pay thousands of dollars in damages to both Mickey and Sylvia.amfmsw said:Awesome trivia guys and girls! Just plain awesome!
Elvis' cover of Orioles Jubilee Records' "Crying In The Chapel" was a hit in 1965 at the peak of the British Invasion. It was recorded Halloween Day 10/31/1960, and sat in the RCA vaults for 5 years.
Lloyd Price was one of the premier rhythm & blues singers of the 50s and 60s, and also claims a host of other talents: musician, bandleader, songwriter, producer, record-company executive and booking agent. The bulk of his R&B sides were cut for Specialty, beginning with his biggest hit, “Lawdy Miss Clawdy,” which topped the R&B charts for seven weeks in 1952. He had great success with “Stagger Lee,” but his biggest year was 1959, during which he released four hits: “Personality,” “Where Were You (On Our Wedding Day),” “I’m Gonna Get Married” and “Come Into My Heart.” Price was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1998.Those RRRRs said:In addition to the preceding records, Lavern Baker was known for a fast Gospel record called "Saved," and answered "Jim Dandy" with a fast movin' number called "Jim Dandy Got Married," but I especially like her soulful balled called "I Cried A Tear."
Little Willie John’s biggest hit, "Fever" (1956, King Records) was even more famously covered by Peggy Lee in 1958 on the Capitol label. Lee added her own, uncopyrighted lyrics ("Romeo loved Juliet," "Captain Smith and Pocahontas") to her hit cover. John suffered from alcoholism and insecurity regarding his 5ft 4in height, and died in prison (1968) after being incarcerated for stabbing a man to death in 1964.AlexBrowne said:An unusual sounding single, "The Big Hurt," released in 1959 by a little-known singer, Miss Toni Fisher, on an obscure label, Signet, is widely recognized as the first hit recording to feature electronic phasing, a technique that would be heard frequently in the psychedelic records of the 1960s; Fisher's LP "The Big Hurt" was labeled as being recorded not in "stereo" or "monaural," but in StereOmonic!