Nowadays, Ryan Seacrest wouldn't play ANY country crossover hits on "American Top 40," let alone one at #1. But from the 1950's through the 1980's, we had tons of country crossover hits. Certainly this was the case this week in 1959 when this song went to #1...
The Battle Of New Orleans" by Johnny Horton was the biggest country chart single of 1959, spending 10 weeks at #1 on that chart. On the Cash Box pop chart, the song spent nine weeks at #1...but...strangely, wasn't named the #1 song of 1959 by Cash Box. That honor went to "Mack The Knife" by Bobby Darin.
Horton's hit was so huge that we also had this parody Top 40 hit at the same time...
Johnny Horton had two more monster hits in 1960, including this one...
And this one...
Sadly, while "North To Alaska" was on the charts, Johnny Horton died in a car crash on November 5, 1960. He was 35. He's a member of the Rockabilly Hall of Fame as well as the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.
Here's more on Johnny Horton...
RECORD WORLD USA. All RIGHTS RESERVED
REMEMBERING JACKIE WILSON (A/K/A MR. EXCITEMENT)
They didn't call him Mr. Excitement for nothing.
Jackie Wilson was all that and more. He had exactly 50 Cash Box pop chart hits, made the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame's second class in 1987 and thrilled us with his onstage moves. Those onstage moves inspired Michael Jackson. Yes, that's him with Elvis Presley in the second photo from the left.
Jackie was born 89 years ago Friday (June 9, 1934).
You might best remember Jackie Wilson for this 1967 hit...
What made Jackie Wilson all the more amazing was his ability to have his exciting on-stage moves, but also his gentle ballads. In fact, his biggest hit was a ballad, a song that was moving down the pop chart at this time in 1960. Check out the ultra-super-duper high note at the end...
"Night" came from the opera "Sampson and Delilah."
And this late 1958 smash...
Or this 1959 hit...sung on a Saturday night "American Bandstand" show...and check out the moves!!!
Sadly, Jackie Wilson suffered a devastating heart attack in the fall of 1975 and never recovered. He died on January 21, 1984, the day after Johnny Weissmuller passed away. Jackie's life was marred by his being swindled by people he trusted. How bad was it? One of his singles, "Dogging Around," the B side of "Night," was once re-pressed with the songwriter credited as the unborn son of Jackie's manager.
In 1963, the IRS invaded his house over alleged unpaid taxes he knew little if anything about.
On top of the money woes, Jackie had to deal with an obsessed fan that shot him in the stomach in 1961. Because the bullet was lodged so close to his spine, it stayed in him for the rest of his life.
For much much more on Jackie Wilson...
TOMORROW: REMEMBERING THE GENIUS
He had hits in seven decades...from the late 40's to the last decade.
It's hard to believe, but it was 19 years ago Saturday...when the Genius--the man and his soul--went to Rock And Roll Heaven.
NINETEEN YEARS!
Yes, Ray Charles passed away on June 10, 2004.
He was born Ray Charles Robinson September 23, 1930. When he became famous, there was already a popular boxer named Sugar Ray Robinson. So Ray Charles Robinson simply eliminated his last name to become Ray Charles.
He made the first Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class. He charted in seven decades (1940's to early 2000's). He had the second most hits among African-American solo men. Only James Brown had more.
Ray Charles was SO good that he had TWO Top 40 remakes of Beatle songs, "Yesterday" and "Eleanor Rigby."
Sixty one years ago this week, Ray Charles had the #1 song in the USA with--believe it or not--a remake of 1958 country chart hits by Kitty Wells and Don Gibson. It's the biggest of his nearly 75 pop hits.
He had this chart topper the year before in 1961...
Moving back another year to 1960, he had this #1 pop hit that became a state song...
Then there was this incredibly soulful moving Top 10 AC hit for Ray in 1993...(and a remake of a Carpenters' song)...
And if "A Song For You" didn't grab you, maybe this Ray Charles hit will..."That Lucky Old Sun"...from 1964...
Ray Charles is responsible for the #1 Patriotic Song of all time...but you'll have to wait until the Fourth Of July to find out more. For much more on Ray Charles...
Fifty eight years ago Monday (June 12, 1965), the most successful girl group ever scored its FIFTH straight #1...
"Back In My Arms Again" by the Supremes would become Cash Box magazine's choice as the #1 single of 1965. "Arms" followed these #1's for the Supremes: "Where Did Our Love Go," "Baby Love," "Come See About Me" and "Stop! In The Name Of Love." The streak ended when the Supremes' followup release, "Nothing But Heartaches," reached #11.
No other American group has had five straight Number Ones. Only two other acts have fared better with six straight #1's...the Beatles and the Bee Gees. If you check some chart books, you'll notice that Whitney Houston had seven straight #1's...but there's a technicality here. Just After "Saving All My Love For You," her followup release, "Thinking About You," made the Top 10 on the R&B chart but failed to make the pop chart.
The Supremes had a dozen #1's. The greatest American songwriting team--Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland--wrote or co-wrote ten of them. And I truly hope that all this mention of "chart position" doesn't cause anyone in Eau Claire radio to catch the flu.
After leaving the Supremes in the late 60's, Diana Ross would have another half dozen #1's for a total of 18 as an artist. Not many others have fared better although all of the Beatles (solo + group) qualify.
For more on the Supremes....
And for more on Diana Ross...
TOMORROW: IT WAS RECORDED IN A GARAGE...AND WAS ABOUT A WHAT????
When the Beatles led the British Invasion change in pop music, the first British act to give the Fab Four a run for their money wasn't the Rolling Stones in 1964. Instead, it was this group whose latest hit 59 years ago this week was riding the top 40..."Do You Love Me"...
The Dave Clark was remaking this song that was a top 40 hit twice for the Contours, first in 1962, then again in 1988 thanks to inclusion in the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack...
While the Dave Clark Five couldn't possibly match the Beatles' 27 hits on the Cash Box chart in 1964 alone, nobody else could, either. Still, the DC-5 did have eight hits that year.
The others were "Glad All Over" (#4), "Bits And Pieces' (#5), "I Knew It All The Time" (#73), "Can't You See That She's Mine" (#4), "Because" (#7), "Everybody Knows (I Still Love You)" (#22) and "Any Way You Want It" (#9).
Ironically, the Dave Clark Five reached #41 in 1967 with a different song with almost the same title but no parenthetical expression. It was thus called "Everybody Knows"--but that would become the answer to a question Casey Kasem would sometimes get on "American Top 40" as in..."Dear Casey, Has anyone ever had two different chart hits with different songs with the same title?"
Here's more irony: Dave Clark wasn't the Dave Clark Five's lead singer. He did handle drums. Instead, the lead vocals honor went to the late Mike Smith. Two other DC-5 principle members are also deceased: Bass guitarist Rick Huxley and guitarist Denis Payton. The only surviving DC-5 principle members are Clark and lead guitarist Lenny Davidson.
For their career, the Dave Clark had 25 Cash Box charts, 17 Top 40's, 12 Top 10's and one #1 ("Over And Over" in late 1965-early 1966).
For more on the Dave Clark Five...
TOMORROW: HIS FIRST HIT WAS ORIGINALLY ENTITLED "BRANDY"
Long before Celine Dion--about 21 years--we had Anne Murray among the top Canadian solo women singers. Anne Murray turns 78 Tuesday.
Anne was the first Canadian solo woman to have a USA million selling single...and the first Canadian solo woman to have a #1 pop hit in the
USA. That first gold single from 1970 was this song..."Snowbird"...
Oh, and somebody else did "Snowbird" not long thereafter...
Meanwhile, here's a live version of Anne Murray's historic 1978 #1 hit...with Johnny Cash doing the introduction...
Ah, yes, and then there's this hit from 1973...
Oh, another of my favorite Anne Murray songs, This one...from 1976...and she thanks a kind generous man...
Finally, this emotional #1 country hit from 1983...
Anne Murray's on the list of Top 40 performers who were former teachers. Among them but certainly not all of them were Jim Croce, Anita
Ward, Gene Simmons, Sheryl Crow, Sting, Andy Griffith, Brian May (Queen), Kris Kristofferson, Art Garfunkel, Roberta Flack, Bryan Ferry
(Roxy Music) and Ron Wood (the Rolling Stones).
TOMORROW: WE CELEBRATE THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER...WITH THE GREATEST "SUMMER" SONG OF ALL TIME
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