Articles by John Twang

The Rambler Trio featuring Arthur Smith recorded Arthur Smith's "Guitar Boogie" in 1945. Composer Smith and his "Cracker-Jacks" issued another version in 1948. Frank Virtue and Arthur Smith served in the Navy together and Frank's group, The Virtues (Frank Virtue, Joe Vespe, Kevin Kaplin, John Renner and Jimmy Bruno), hit the top five in 1959 with "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" supposedly recorded in the basement of Frank's home.

David and Jonathan (Roger Cook, Roger Greenaway) details can be found on the post featuring "Softly Whispering I Love You". They were the composers and the first to record "You've Got Your Troubles". The Fortunes (Rod Allen, Glen Dale, Brian Pritchard, Andy Brown and David Carr) hit the top five with "You've Got Your Troubles" in 1965.

Independent producer Joe Meek worked with Mike Berry on the excellent "Tribute to Buddy Holly" and the Honeycomb's big hit "Have I The Right". Here he gives us the demo for his composition of "Telstar". Very interesting take! The Tornados (Alan Caddy, George Bellamy, Heinz Burt, Roger LaVern and Clem Cattini) were Billy Fury's backup band and in 1961 were Joe Meek's studio band. In 1962 they became the first British act to top the American charts.

In 1963 actor (Moondoggie in Gidget, The Guns of Navarone, The Gene Krupa Story, Vic Fontaine in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)/singer (Goodbye Cruel World, Because They're Young, Didn't We, All, Her Royal Majesty) James Darren (James Ercolani) released "Backstage, (I'm Lonely)" (Willie Denson, Fred Anisfield). Singer/composer Gene Pitney got into the top thirty with "Backstage (I'm Lonely) in 1966.

In 1967 "The Killer", Jerry Lee Lewis, cousin of television evangelist Jimmy Swaggart was the first to record "Just Dropped In (to see what condition my condition was in) . The rock legend made a more than credible effort on this anti-drug tune but it wasn't released. Mickey Newbury composed "Just Dropped In" and it's on his 1968 album "Harlequin Melodies". This is the same writer who gave us the medley, "An American Trilogy". Kenny Rogers and the First Edition recorded "Just Dropped In" i…

The team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman composed the top twenty "Sweets For My Sweet" was recorded originally in 1961 by the Drifters and was the first lead role for Charlie Thomas. In 1963 a group named after the John Wayne movie, The Searchers (Mike Pender, John McNally, Norm McGarry and Tony Jackson) version became their first release and first chart topper in Great Britain although it surprisingly not charted in the United States.

Texan Keith McCormack played guitar with the String-a-Longs (Keith, Aubrey deCordova, Jimmy Torres, Don Allen and Richard Stephens) of "Wheels" fame. Keith and his Aunt Voss composed and recorded "Sugar Shack". Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs (George Tomsco, Chuck Tharp, Stan Lark, Dan Trammell and Eric Budd) brought the tune to the top spot in 1963. As an instrumental group they charted with "Quite a Party", "Torquay" and "Bulldog" but none reached as high as "Sugar Shack".

The 1948 composition "Down by the Station" (Lee Ricks, Slim Gaillard) by jazz vocalist and one time vaudeville act Slim (Bulee) Gaillard and his Trio is originally a children's song .... of that there is no doubt. His daughter Janis was once married to Marvin Gaye. Bruce Belland and Glenn Larson of The Four Preps (Bruce Belland, Glenn Larson, Ed Cobb and Marvin Inabnett) altered the tune in 1960 and hit the top twenty under the direction of the sensational Lincoln Mayorga. Years ago I had the…

Shirley (Goodman) and (Leonard) Lee, the Sweethearts of the Blues, were born ten days apart in 1936. They recorded "Feels So Good" (Lee) in 1955. Johnny Preston (Courville) was discovered by J.P. Richardson aka The Big Bopper. It was Johnny and his falsetto on "Feels So Fine" in 1960. Yes, it's the same song as Shirley and Lee's tune.

In 1970 Neil Young released the album "After The Goldrush" featuring this surreal composition. The album cover itself is rather surreal with the older woman behind Neil Young in Greenwich Village. Interpret the song as you will, it's still interesting and haunting. Prelude's (Irene Hume, Brian Hume and Ian Vardy) a cappella version of "After The Goldrush" comes from their first album "Home Long is Forever" issued in 1973. The single hit the top thirty in 1974.

David Gates composed this and also conducted the orchestra for Jody Miller's 1965 offering "Never Let Him Go". Film star Dale Robertson discovered Jody and within months she was signed by Capitol Records. David Gates second solo album after leaving Bread contained the top thirty 1975 release "Never Let Her Go" as the lead track. If there's a distinction between this tune and the music Bread, it's lost on me, although that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Alabama State Senator Bobby Denton was the first to record "Sweet and Innocent" in 1958 but the record went nowhere. Roy Orbison recorded seven tunes at RCA: "Sweet and Innocent", "Jolie", Almost Eighteen", "Seems to Me", "I'll Never Tell", "The Bug" and "Paper Boy". The latter two were re-recorded at Monument only days later. Roy and the Jordanaires were the second act to record "Sweet and Innocent" (Rick Hall, Billy Sherrill) with Chet Atkins as producer in 1958. He had a very short stay at R…

Barbara Acklin co-composed the Chi-Lites hit "Have You Seen Her". "Am I the Same Girl" (Eugene Record, Sonny Sanders) charted on Billboard in the lower portion but did better hitting the top forty on the R&B chart in 1969. You can find the track on her album "Seven Days of Night". At one time they were the rhythm section for Ramsey Lewis. Young-Holt Unlimited (drummer Isaac Holt and bassist Eldee Young along with pianist Ken Chaney) "Soulful Strut" is basically the same music track minus the…

Composer/actor/television personality and recording star Mac Davis ("In the Ghetto", "Something's Burnin'", "Don't Cry Daddy", "Watching Scotty Grow", "Memories", "A Little Less Conversation" plus his own hits) released "I Believe in Music" in 1971 and again in 1972. I too don't understand why it wasn't a smash! "I Believe in Music" was a top thirty hit for the Detroit based (Jim Gold and) The Gallery (Jim Gold, Dennis Kovarik, and Kal Freeman) in 1972.

Kenny Nolan and The Eleventh Hour were the first to record "Lady Marmalade" (Bob Crewe, Kenny Nolan) in 1974. Patti LaBelle (Patricia Holt-Edwards) and the Bluebells changed their name to LaBelle in the early seventies. New Orleans star producer/composer Allen Toussaint chose the tune for the LaBelle (Patti LaBelle, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash) December 1974 album "Nightbirds" and "Lady Marmalade" top the charts in 1975.

The following answers a request: She opened for the Beatles, she dated Elvis Presley and Jimmy Page, once married to composer Randy Edelman, she is the voice of the Bacharach,-Davis smash "What the World Needs Now Is Love", she is Jackie DeShannon (Sharon Lee Myers) who wrote hits like the Brenda Lee song, "Dum, Dum", and Marianne Faithfull's "Come and Stay With Me", for herself and the Searchers' "When You Walk In The Room", "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" was probably her biggest tune. Jac…

Barry Mann composed "Bless You" with his future wife and first time collaborator Cynthia Weil in 1961. This songwriting team gave us more hits than can be mentioned on this blog. The first vocalist to sign with Epic Records, Tony Orlando (Cassavitis) hit the top twenty without "Dawn" but with "Bless You" at age 16 and also in 1961. Later he became a vice-president at CBS Records. "Bless You" is also the title of his first album which contains "Halfway to Paradise".

Canadian maritime native Ken Tobias wrote "Stay Awhile" in 1970 as a country tune, something that becomes evident here. The Bells (details elsewhere in this blog) hit the American top ten with "Stay Awhile" in 1971 featuring the vocal talents of Jackie Ralph and Cliff Edwards.