for those who never gave up their turntables
IN THE FINAL WEEKS OF 1965, Top 40 stations around the country started playing a new record by a not-so-new duo with the oddly intriguing name of Simon & Garfunkel. (At least it was odd if you weren’t Jewish or didn’t live on the East Coast.) The record was The Sounds Of Silence. [Read more] “is it “the sounds of silence” or “the sound of silence”?”
DOES JACKIE DeSHANNON belong in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame? Making an argument for her or any artist is not easy for two reasons. First, the Hall does not have any set of criteria by which fans can assess potential candidates. Each year each vote appears to be a reflection of the mood of the nominators and voters of that year. [Read more] “does jackie deshannon belong in the rock & roll hall of fame?”
JACKIE DeSHANNON entered 1963 as a 21-year-old singer with fifteen singles under her belt, not one of them a hit! Hundreds of artists who had been more successful—they’d heard thunder boom with at least one hit record!—had come and gone during that time, yet Liberty Records showed great faith in her and kept with her through the rest of the decade. [Read more] “I hear thunder boom every time jackie deshannon walks in the room”
I LEFT WIKIPEDIA ALONE for the past few months, even though critiquing their entries is like shooting fish in a barrel. When it comes to “definitions” of persons and terms regarding popular music, Wikipedia’s theme song seems to be a well-known song by Elvis: “If you’re looking for trouble, you’ve come to the right place. [Read more] “wikipedia really messed up “music recording certification””
THIS IS THE TENTH in a series of ten articles listing and addressing the #1 records of the year as they appeared on Cash Box magazine’s Top 100 chart from 1960 through 1969. It was originally published as “Someday We’ll Be Honky Tonk Women Together” on my publication Tell It Like It Was on Medium on October 1, 2019. [Read more] “the #1 hit records on the pop charts 1969”