Chart entered : 3 December 1954
Chart peak : 3
Number of hits : 10
I first heard of Ruby in January 1983 when Polydor , in the wake of The Jam's shock decision to split, re-released all their singles and most of them made the chart in various positions. Alan Jones in Record Mirror pointed out that though this was impressive they couldn't beat Ruby's record for swamping the charts; at one point in 1955 she had five records in the Top 20 ( including this one ) - that's 25% of the chart.
At 19, Ruby is the first teenager to feature here and the last entry before the dawn of rock and roll ( which should give you a clue about who's coming next ). She was from Belfast and her potential had been spotted as a child but she was prevented by child labour laws from recording too soon. She had a throat operation in childhood that gave her a husky tone but it was just as much her Ulster accent that made her so distinctive. She replaced Joan Regan as the resident vocalist on a TV show Quite Contrary and made an enormous impact. The musical director of the show Ray Martin moonlighted as an A & R man for Columbia Records and snapped her up for the label
Her first single "Get Well Soon " showcased her skill with a languorous ballad but perhaps failed for want of a plague. " Heartbeat" ( which may have been her second ; I'm not sure ) is slinkier, rhythmically similar to Santa Baby, with , for the time, daring lyrics and the combination of sexual undertow and Ruby's warm , intimate vocal is a real winner. It's no surprise this was a big hit.
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