Articles by John Twang

“Promises, Promises” was a 1968 Broadway musical comedy based on the book by Neil Simon and on the film "The Apartment" by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond. Music by Burt Bacharach, lyrics by Hal David. Jill O’Hara was nominated for Broadway's 1968 Tony Award as Best Actress (Musical) for "Promises, Promises” She sang “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again” with Jerry Orbach. Dionne Warwick began singing professionally in 1961.She was discovered by Burt Bacharach and Hal David composers of most of he…

At the time of "The Locomotion" Little Eva's (Eva Narcissus Boyd) weekly salary was $50 plus expenses. Her previous job was a $35-a-week live-in nanny for composers Carole King and Gerry Goffin. Little Eva included the King-Goffin tune "Up on the Roof" as a track on the LP LLLLLoco-Motion, in late 1962. "Up on the Roof" hit the top ten for the Drifters in 1963 and featured Carole King on piano.

James Baskett played Uncle Remus in "Song of the South" for which he won an honorary Academy Award. Disney won't release the entire film on the home video market because of the controversial nature of the film, which was denounced as racist by the NAACP when it premiered in 1946. He did not attend the premiere of "Song of the South" in Atlanta because it's a racially segregated city. Zip a Dee Doo Dah (Wrubel-Gilbert) won the Academy Award that year as Best Original Song. Bob B. Soxx & the Bl…

We had the chance to watch Tim Hardin on stage with Kris Kristofferson at the National Art Centre in Ottawa. Kris enjoyed the booze, Tim was addicted to heroin. Tim composed "If I Were a Carpenter" which hit large for Bobby Darin in 1966 then, in 1969, Tim recorded Bobby's "Simple Song of Freedom" which was Tim's lone effort to chart in the top fifty. Tim Hardin's most enduring song has to be "Reason to Believe" which he recorded in 1965. Rod Stewart's version hit number one in 1971. The liv…

The song “La Goualante de Pauvre Jean” means “The Ballad of Poor John” (Marguerite Monnot, René Rouzaud) yet in English it is usually called “The Poor People of Paris”. The tune was made famous by French songstress Edith Piaf. It was introduced in 1961 in the US, adapted by Jack Lawrence in 1954. A recording by Les Baxter's orchestra was a number-one hit in 1956.

One of the greatest and most successful singer/composers of the rock era Neil Sedaka (Juilliard School of Music 1947) was one of the original creators of the “Brill Building” sound and was the first to sign with Don Kirshner and Al Nevins at Aldon Music. When he graduated high school he formed The Tokens, the same group that hit with "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". Neil recorded "Solitaire" (co-composed with Phil Cody) in 1972 while on a successful British tour. The Carpenters recorded "Solitaire…

In the documentary In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story, Bono tells how he woke up for a concert's sound check, following a late night listening to the soundtrack to David Lynch's Blue Velvet, and had the tune in his head, figuring it was another Orbison song ("In Dreams" was the only Orbison song on that album). During the sound check he performed it for the other members of U2, who agreed that the track sounded like an Orbison song. A short while later, Orbison met the band backstage at one of the…

“In the Mood” seems to have evolved just like so many other melodies. We start with "Clarinet Get Away” (Jimmie O'Bryant) by O’Bryant's Washboard Wonders in 1925 for Paramount records, the first minute of this post. Next is the 1930 recording by BBQ Joe and the Hot Dogs “Tar Paper Stomp” (Wingy Malone). In 1938 Edgar Hayes recorded what we now know as "In The Mood". This is perhaps the greatest Big Band tune ever! Glenn Miller's version of "In The Mood" (Joe Garland) rode atop the cha…

"Detour" was written by Paul Westmoreland in 1945. The original version by Jimmy Walker with Paul Westmoreland and His Pecos River Boys was released in November of that year. Tex Williams (1946) and even Duane Eddy (1958) hit with the song later. The Singing Rage Miss Patti Page took the song to the top ten in 1951.

As Jerry Lee Lewis’ mother once said: “You and Elvis are pretty good, but you’re no Chuck Berry.” The father of rock and roll, Mr. Berry gave us one of the best story songs ever when he recorded "Memphis, Tennessee" in 1959. In 1963 it was covered as an instrumental by Lonnie "Wham" Mack (McIntosh) who took it to the top ten, dropping the "Tennessee". In 1964 it was most successfully done by the great Johnny Rivers whose version hit number two. It was apparently recorded live at the Whiske…

Written by the Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis (Never on Sunday) as part of the soundtrack to the 1959 film The Island of the Brave. Greek singer Nana Mouskouri recorded the French Version in 1962. This was the same year Brenda Lee had the world-wide English hit.

In 1927 Columbia recorded Reverend J. C. Burnett's sermon "Gambler's Doom". T. Texas Tyler's styling hit the country charts in 1948. The most popular version hit the top ten and was recorded in 1959 by American radio personality and future game show host Wink Martindale (Winston Conrad Martindale),

Mieko Hirota is a Japanese popular singer. Her nickname is Mico (also spelled Miko). In 1965, Mieko became the first Japanese singer to appear at the Newport Jazz Festival. The same year she recorded “Sunny”. In 1966 Nashville singer/songwriter Bobby Hebb released the top ten hit! Bobby wrote the song for his late brother in 1963 and was the first black man to appear at the Grand Ole Opry at the age of 12 as a member of Roy Acuff's Smoky Mountain Boys.

"Lily the Pink" was inspired by the American product: Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Compound circa 1875. The song was sung during the First World War in POW camps in Germany by Canadian prisoners. Oscar Brand was perhaps the first to record "The Ballad of Lydia Pinkham". In late 1968. The Scaffold's version featured Mike McGear (Peter Michael McCartney), Paul McCartney's brother and backing vocalists Graham Nash of The Hollies, Elton John (then Reg Dwight), and Jack Bruce of Cream played…

"The Morning After" was composed by the gifted team of Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn. It was the Academy Award Winner for Best Original Song in 1972 for "The Poseidon Adventure". Renée Armand was dubbing the singing voice of Nonnie (Carol Lynley). Later that year it was recorded by Maureen McGovern and hit the top of the charts. Two years later Maureen sang the theme song of "Towering Inferno": We May Never Love Like This Again, landing a second Oscar.

"Uno Tranquillo" (One Quiet Man) was composed by Daniele Pace, Lorenzo Pilat and Mario Panzeri and it was a 1967 Italian hit for Riccardo Del Turco. The British group The Tremeloes (originally back up band for Brian Poole) hit in 1968. Their version is known as "Suddenly You Love Me".

"That's When Your Heartaches Begin"(Fisher, Raskin, Brown) by Shep Fields & His Rippling Rhythm Orchestra with vocalist Bob Goday was recorded in 1937. It was recorded by Elvis Presley three times, the first in July 1953, when it was one of the two first songs recorded by Elvis at Sun Records for a vanity record he gave to his mother as a birthday present. Later he recorded the tune in 1956 during the Million Dollar Quartet sessions. In 1957 it was B side of All Shook Up.

P. F. Sloan (Philip Gary Schlein) co-wrote Round Robin’s "Kick That Little Foot, Sally Ann", “A Must to Avoid” for Herman’s Hermits, Johnny Rivers' "Secret Agent Man" the Turtles' "You Baby” and in 1965 Barry McGuire’s “Eve of Destruction”. Barry McGuire was a member of The New Christy Minstrels. Barry’s first song written for the group also became their biggest hit. “Green, Green”. Although he didn’t get credit for it, he and Hoyt Axton along with Ken Ramsey composed the Kingston Trio hit “…