Born James Frederick Rodgers in 1933 in Camas, Washington, Jimmie had a pretty normal childhood. His mother was a piano teacher and so he learned at an early age to play. He majored in music at Vancouver Clark College in … Continue reading →
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00772I9V6 You might not know, but Paul Anka is Canadian, being born in Ottawa, Ontario in 1941. At the age of fifteen, he traveled to Los Angeles to visit his uncle Maurice Anka. While here, he became acquainted with the … Continue reading →
This is the first number one by a female artist since August 4, 1956 when the Platters hit number one. (The Platters had a female singer as part of their group.) Another female artist would not hit number one until … Continue reading →
We are now up to the eighth number one that Elvis has had so far (there are lots more to come.) “Teddy Bear” was written by Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe for the movie Loving You. Loving You was Elvis’ … Continue reading →
We’ve seen Pat Boone at the number one spot before. He did “Ain’t That a Shame,” a cover of the Fats Domino tune and “I Almost Lost My Mind,” which was done by Ivory Joe Hunter. While not hitting number … Continue reading →
“All Shook Up” was written by Otis Blackwell. You won’t believe how he came up with the idea. He was working at Shalimar Music in New York City when Al Stanton walked in. Stanton was Blackwell’s boss at the time. … Continue reading →
Perry Como was truly one of the superstars of the Fifties and Sixties. He started recording in 1943 on the RCA label and stayed with them for 44 years. He holds the record (no pun intended) for the longest any … Continue reading →
Buddy Knox is his real name and he was born in 1933 in a place called Happy, Texas. There really is such a place as Happy, Texas. I kinda wish I lived there. The population in 2000 was 647, so … Continue reading →
Here is another case of a song being covered by two singers and both versions going to number one. “Butterfly” was originally done by a guy named Charlie Gracie. He recorded it first and Andy Williams covered it. Now, Andy … Continue reading →
Today we’re going to try something different. In the Forties and Fifties, it was not uncommon for more than one artist to record a song and many times several versions would hit the charts. “Young Love” has been recorded by … Continue reading →