While I would be the first to agree that these new sounds
did more to invigorate the sounds of the decade, the four years preceding the
onslaught of foreign talent on these shores were pretty interesting, too. (It has often been reported that music was in
the doldrums … the country was grieving the assassination of their young president … and The Beatles just
happened along at a time when this country most needed something to brighten
our spirits again … and there may be a certain amount of truth to this
statement. However, a closer look at
the music we were listening to, circa 1960 - 1963 makes a pretty good case for
the continued development of rock and roll.)
Elvis was back from the Army … and, although he had
"cleaned up" quite a bit, he still managed to place 28 songs on
Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart in that four year period … and all but three
of them made The Top 40. In fact, Elvis
notched 13 more Top Ten Hits in his King Of Rock And Roll belt … and topped the
charts with tracks like "Stuck On You", "It's Now Or
Never", "Are You Lonesome Tonight", "Surrender",
"Good Luck Charm" … and JUST missed with timeless tracks like "Can't
Help Falling In Love" (#2, 1962), the two-sided hit "(Marie's The
Name) His Latest Flame" / "Little Sister" (#4 and #5
respectively), "Return To Sender" (#2, 1962) and "(You're The)
Devil In Disguise" (#3, 1963).
Motown was in its infancy … before the decade was over it
would explode and become a driving force in the way America listened to soul
music, crossing over to win fans of both black and white young America.
Groups like The Four Seasons on
the East Coast and The Beach Boys on the West Coast kept both their lead vocals
on their hot new sounds HIGH on the charts.
In fact, the whole Surf Music Craze had its deepest roots in the 1960 -
1963 era.
So did folk music … what has since become known as The Girl
Group Sound … The Wall Of Sound from Phil Spector … and the music created in The
Brill Building.
We had great novelty
hits like "Alley Oop", "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow
Polka-Dot Bikini", "Mr. Custer", "Mother-In-Law",
"Monster Mash" and "If You Wanna Be Happy", all of which
topped the charts … along with classic instrumental hits like "Theme from
'A Summer Place'" (one of the biggest hits of the decade), "Wonderland By
Night", "Calcutta", "The Stripper", "Stranger On
The Shore" and "Telstar" … Dance Craze Songs that exemplified
The Philly Sound like "The Twist", "Let's Twist Again",
"Limbo Rock", "The Loco-Motion" and "Peppermint
Twist". Feel-Good Songs like
"Cathy's Clown", "Everybody's Somebody's Fool",
"Stay", "Tossin' And Turnin'", "Hit The Road
Jack", "Runaround Sue", "The Lion Sleeps Tonight",
"Duke Of Earl", "Hey Baby", "Breaking Up Is Hard To
Do", "I Will Follow Him", "It's My Party", "Sugar
Shack" and "My Boyfriend's Back". Teen tragedy songs and pining love songs like
"Teen Angel" and "Running Bear" … "I'm Sorry" and
"Georgia On My Mind" … and songs that just defy description and
classification like "Big Bad John", "Sukiyaki", "El
Paso", "Travelin' Man" and (what the hell?!?!?)
"Dominique"!
This week Forgotten Hits takes a closer look at the Top 100
Singles, 1960 - 1963 … the years BEFORE "The British Are Coming, The
British Are Coming" became the phrase of the day … a time when American
artists still dominated the charts and our hearts. (OK, OK … you WILL find "Telstar"
by The Tornadoes on this list … but that's about as cockney as we're going to
get!)
The countdown begins tomorrow ...
Enjoy the ride!
