156 Goodbye Bobby Darin - If I Were A Carpenter

Chart  entered : 13  October  1966

Chart  peak : 9

At  the  back  end  of  1966  we  have  some  more  departures. This  was  an  impressive  comeback  hit for  Bobby,  his  first  for  over   three  years  and  the  first  to  make  the  Top  20  since  "Things"  in  the summer  of  1962.

Bobby  was  a  smart  operator  who  knew  he  had  to  adapt  to the  times  and  this  single  heralded  a move  towards  folk  rock. "If  I  Were  A  Carpenter"  was  a  yet-to-be-released   song  by  up  and coming  songwriter  Tim  Hardin. It's  a  wonderfully  ambiguous  song, a  man  testing  the  love  of  his  woman  by  posing  the  question  what  if  he  were  a  mere  artisan  rather  than  her  social  equal ? There's  no  resolution  in  the  song  and  Bobby's  version  teases  out  all  the  doubt  and  unease  with  his  dry  enervated  vocal. Don  Peake's  arrangement  with  its  sombre  drones   and  restless  percussion  underlines  the  darkness  of  this  reading.

It  became  the  title  track  of  a  new  album   of  folk  rock  covers, an  abrupt  change  from  his  previous  LP, a  dismal  collection  of  Broadway  tunes. Although  it  only  got  to  142  in  the  US  album  charts  it  did  spawn  two  more  hits  in  the  US. "The  Girl Who  Stood  Beside  Me "  is  a  Jeffrey  Stevens  song  with  a  very  strange  arrangement, the  droning  bagpipe  throughout  the  song  suggesting  someone  had  been  listening  to  Tomorrow  Never  Knows. "Lovin  You"  is  a  Loving  Spoonful   song  with  Bobby's  slurred  vocal  matching  the  good  time  vibe  of  the  song. It  was  Bobby's  last  Top  40  hit  in  the  States.

Bobby  then  released  another  Hardin  cover "The  Lady  Came  From  Baltimore" his  charming  tale  of  a  thief  who  falls  in  love  with  his  mark. Bobby's  vocal  is  strangely  muffled  which  doesn't  seem  like  an  artistic  choice. It  reached  number  62. His  next  one  "Darlin'  Be  Home  Soon"  was  another  John  Sebastian  song  ,Homeward  Bound  from  the  woman's  point  of  view. Bobby's  version  with  its  breezy  strings  sounds  like  Roger  Whittaker  an  octave  higher. It  scraped  to  number  93.  It  doesn't  appear  to have  been  released  as  a  single  in  the  UK.  Both  songs  came  from  his  "Inside  Out"  album  which  failed  to  chart.

Bobby  then  baffled  everyone  by  recording  the  LP  "Bobby  Darin  Sings  Dr  Dolittle", as  the  title suggests  a  selection  of  songs  from  the  musical  written  by  Anthony  Newley's  old  mucker  Lesley Bricusse.  Recorded  in  just  three  weeks  with  arranger  Roger  Kellaway  it's difficult  to  avoid  the suspicion  that  it  was  a  "contractual  obligation"  album  to  cut  his  ties  with  Atlantic. Certainly  they
were  not  too  happy  to be  confronted  with  an  album  of  songs  from  a  film  that  had  just  died  a horrible  death  at  the  box  office. In  the US,  "Talk  To  The  Animals"  was  the  single,  done  dead straight  although  he  messed  up  the  lyrics  when  performing  it  on  The  Jerry  Lewis  Show . In  the   UK  it  was  the  ballad  "At  The  Crossroads"  which  is  classic  late  sixties  orchestrated  MOR. Bobby   was  too  much  of  a  professional  to  make  a  deliberately  sloppy  record.

Bobby  then  threw  himself  into  politics  supporting  Robert  Kennedy's  presidential  campaign  and  was present  at  his  assassination  in  June  1968. Stunned  by  this  and  a  family  revelation  about  his parentage  he  withdrew  from  the  public  eye  until  the  end  of  the  ear  when  he  released  "Long  Line Rider"  on  his  own  new  label  Direction  records. He  was  now  a  protest  singer  doing  a  rock  song  about  the  discovery  of  skeletons  at  a  prison  farm  in  Arkansas  earlier  in  the  year.It  sounds  a  bit  like  Eric  Burdon  and  the  Animals  and  is  pretty  good. Despite  the  bewildering  change in  the  direction  it  got  to  number  79, the  last  hit  in  his  lifetime. Unfortunately  the album  "Born  Walden  Robert  Cassotto "  didn't  sell.

In  1969  he  came  out  with  "Me  And  Mr  Hohner"  ( not  released  in  the UK ) a  proto-slacker  shuffle ( not  a  million  miles  away  from  Beck ! )  about  getting  harrassed  by  the  cops  with  sardonic  harmonica  blasts  which  sadly  failed  to  make  it. "Distractions ( Part 1 ) "  is  a  semi-comic  song  about  failing  to  write,   in  a  Country  Joe And  The  Fish  vein  with  some  nifty  acoustic  guitar  work.  It's  B  side  "Jive"  which  is  much  in  the  same  mode  was  his  next  UK  single  on  Bell  in  December  1969. These  songs  were  on  "Commitment"  the  last  LP  released  in  his  lifetime.   He  did  however  have  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  his  "Simple  Song  Of  Freedom"  make  the  US  Top  50  for  Tim  Hardin.

"Baby  May"  ( not  in  the  UK ) , his  last  sixties  single,  was  another  protest  song  about a  girl's  suicide  which  her  father  attributed  to  LSD  despite  clean  toxicology  reports. It's  a  cracking  song  with  punchy  drums,  great  sax  work  and  an  urgent  vocal  from  Bobby. "Maybe  We  Can Get It  Together" his  first  single  of  the  seventies  and  last  on  Direction, is  a  slow  Blue  Mink-ish  call  for  unity  with  a drowsy  organ  and  gospel  backing  vocals. It   was  his  last  UK  release.

Mounting  health  bills  led  to  Bobby  taking  out  his  toupee  and  tuxedo  once  more  and  performing  as  a  crooner  in  Vegas  and   similar  venues   although  he needed  an  oxygen  tank  backstage  to  sustain  him. Unable  to  cope  with   running  his  own  label  as  his  health  declined,   Bobby  became  an  incongruous  signing  for  Motown  in  1970.

His  first  single  for  them  was  "Melodie"  in  April  1971. Bobby  wanted  a  crack  at  R & B  so  current  supremo  Deke  Richards  put  him  together  with  Jerry  Marcelino  and  Mel  Larson  and  the  result  is  the  best  record  The  Four  Tops  never  made. Bobby  doesn't  really  sound  like  Levi  Stubbs  but  for  a  white  guy  it's  a  damned  good  attempt. Unfortunately  Bobby  was  laid  up  after  heart  surgery  to  fit  two  artificial  valves  and  unable  to  promote  it.  While  waiting  for  him  to  recover  they  put  out  a  live  version  of  "Simple  Song  Of  Freedom"  from  a  gig  at  the  Desert  Inn  they  had  recorded.

Bobby  went  on  to  make  two  LPs  for  Motown, one  of  them  released  posthumously. At  the  same time  he  was  doing  concerts  and  TV  appearances. "Bobby  Darin"  was  released  in  August  1972  and was  an  eclectic  bunch  of  songs  from  Randy  Newman's  anti-slavery  diatribe  "Sail  Away"  to  George Clinton's  ennui-laden   "Average  People". Neither  made  the  grade  as  singles  despite  Bobby's  heavy exposure  and  the  album  slipped away.

Bobby  was  then  put  to  work  with  Bob  Crewe  and  from  those  sessions  came  what  proved  to  be his  final   single , "Happy"  in  November  1972. It  was  a  co-write  between  Smokey  Robinson  and Michael  Legrand  for  the  film  Lady  Sings  The  Blues. An  MOR  chest beater  in  the  Andy  Williams vein,  Bobby  does  it  full  justice. Repeat  exposure  on  Bobby's  new  TV  show  The  Bobby  Darin  Amusement  Co   finally   gave  him  another  hit  as  it  reached  number  67  in  the  early  part  of  1973.

In  June  he  remarried. On  August  26  1973  he  gave  what  turned  out  to  be  his  last  performance  at the  Las  Vegas  Hilton. Shortly  afterwards  he  neglected  to  take  the  precautionary  antibiotics  before  a dental  visit  and  an  infection  set  in  that  his  weakened  heart  couldn't  fight  off  without  sustaining further  heavy  damage. Bobby  was  reluctant  to  undergo  further  surgery  but  by  December  he  could hardly walk  and  had  to  go  into  hospital .  After  six  hours  of  fairly  hopeless  surgery  he  died. The whole  story  of  Bobby's  last  days  is  told  in  harrowing  and frankly  unnecessary  detail  in  Al  DiOrio's biography. His  will  left  his  body  to  science  so   in  some  California  laboratory  there  may  still  be  a bit  of  Bobby  lurking   in  a  jar .

Motown  put  together  a  final  LP  from  what  it  had   and  released  it  in  1974 . It  gained  little  attention.  In  1979  oldies  label  Lightning  scored   an  opportunistic  minor  hit  in  the UK  by  pairing  "Dream  Lover"  and  "Mac  The  Knife".  In  2004  a  biopic,  Beyond  The  Sea,  starring  Kevin  Spacey  who  had  bought  the  film  rights  some  years  earlier  possibly  because  of  his  strong  physical  resemblance  to  Bobby, came  out  to  generally  unfavourable  reviews  and  poor  box office  returns. It  is  widely  regarded  as  a  self-indulgent  mis-step  in  the  actor's  illustrious  career.       

155 Hello Tina Turner* - River Deep Mountain High

*( Ike  and.... )

Chart  entered  :  9  June  1966

Chart  peak : 3

Number  of  hits : 41 ( 4 with  Ike )

And  here's  someone  else  who  took  a  while  to  cross  over  to  the  UK. Ike  doesn't  qualify  on  his own  account  so  we  don't  have  to  go  over  the whole  "Rocket  88"  thing  again. There's  more  than  enough  to  say  about  one  of  the  great  "event"  singles  in  any  case.

Anna  Mae  Bullock  was  born in  1939  in  Nutbush  Tennessee  and  had  an  unsettled  childhood  moving between  different  households  and  finding  consolation  by  singing  in  church. By  1958  she  was  working  as  a  nurse. Her  older  sister  Aillene  was  working  as  a  barmaid  at  Club  Manhattan  in  St  Louis  and  invited  her  along. One  of  the  regular  acts  was  Ike  Turner's  Kings  of  Rhythm. Turner  was  a  respected  guitarist  and  songwriter  and  an  early  pioneer  of  rock  and  roll  but  mainstream  success  had  so  far  eluded  him. Anna  wanted  to  sing  with  the  band  and  eventually  got  her  chance.  Accounts  of  her  knocking  the  place  dead  are  fanciful  but  Ike  liked  her  enough  for  it  to  become  a  regular  event  and  she  was  allowed  to  sing  backing  vocals on  the  B-side  of  a  single  later  that  year. Anna  was  initially  involved  with  the  saxophonist  Raymond  Hill  and  bore  his  child.

Her  real  break  came  in   March  1960. Anna  had  been  pestering  to  become  a  lead  vocalist  but  Ike  preferred  to  stick  to  what  he  had  until  falling  out  with  one  of  them  Art  Lassiter. Lassiter  failed  to  show  at  the  recording  sessions  for  a  song  called  "A  Fool  In  Love"  and  Anna  was  asked  to  do  a  guide  vocal.  The  record  company  president  Juggy  Murray  persuaded  Ike  to  leave  the  vocal  as  it  was  and  offered  him  $25,000  for  the  track. Ike  and  Anna  were  already  romantically  involved  but  this  immediately  changed  their  professional  relationship. Ike  insisted  she  changed  her  stage  name  to  Tina  and  the  record  was  put  out  as  a  joint  effort. Ike  also  hired  some  more  female  backing  singers  to  bolster  the  sound  who  became  known  as  The  Ikettes. The  song, a  dense  Ray  Charles-esque  Southern  blues  dominated  by  Tina's  uninhibited  rasp  made  number  27  on  the  charts.

While  Ike  retained  the  musicians, the  Kings  of  Rhythm  became  the  Ike  and  Tina  Turner  Revue  and  became  one  of  the  hottest  live  acts  in  the  country  though  chart  success  was  sporadic. "You're  My  Baby"  the  follow  up  was  a  flop  despite  a  cleaner  sound  probably  because  Tina  doesn't  do  any  lead  lines. " I  Idolize  You"  rectified  the  error  with  a  dark  and  dirty  performance  on  an  overtly  sexual  song   which  nevertheless  made number  82  in  November  1960. "I'm  Jealous" doesn't  quite  work , the  song's  light  brassy  arrangement  not  supporting  such  a  wild  vocal.

Next  came  their  biggest  US  hit  of  the  sixties  "It's  Gonna  Work  Out  Fine " . Its  authorship  is  murky being  credited  to  Joe  Seneca  on  the  label  but  also  claimed  by  Rose  Marie  McCoy. The  spoken male  part  and  guitar  is  also  disputed  with  Mickey  Baker , of  the  R & B  duo Mickey  &  Sylvia claiming  that  they  did  the  honours  and  that  Ike  wasn't  on  the  original  recording  at  all.  Despite  a rather  lumpy  rhythm  section  the  record  was  an  effective  blend  of  bluesy  vocal  and  rock  and  roll guitar. It  reached  number  14  in  summer  1961  and  was  Grammy  Nominated  for  Best  Rock  and   Roll  Vocal Performance. "Poor  Fool"  loses  the  male  part  and  replaces  the  guitar with  piano  but  is otherwise  pretty  similar  and  reached  38  at  the  end  of  the  year. "Tra  La  La  La  La "  was  their  last Top  50  hit  ( just )  until  the  1950s  and  is  a  somewhat  calmer  effort  distinguished  by  a  tinny harmonica .

Thereafter  live  work  sustained  them  while  their  singles  bumped  along  the  bottom  end  of  the  charts  or  didn't  score  at  all. "You  Should  A  Treated  Me  Right"  is  a  competent  R &  B  workout  with  nice  sax  work. "Tina's  Dilemma"  is  a  shouty  novelty  which  probably  worked  fine  as  part  of  the  stage  act  but   grates  out  of  context. "The  Argument"  is  a  hardly-disguised  re-write  of  "It's  Gonna  Work  Out  Fine". "Worried  And  Hurtin  Inside"  sticks  to  the  formula  while  "Wake  Up" , their  last  recording  for  Sue  is  distinguished  by  some  great  drumming.

"If  I  Can't  Be  First "  their  first  single  for  Sonja  records  in  September  1963  heralds  a  cleaner  sound   while  the  tautological  "You  Can't  Miss  Nothing  That  You  Never  Had" introduces  a  lower  register  Tina. In  1964  they  switched  to  Warner  Brothers  for  "A  Fool  For  A  Fool"  produced  by  Buck  Ram  in  a  Motown  vein. "It's  All  Over "  is  overblown  and  tuneless  and  ended  the  association.

The  next  single  was  "I  Can't  Believe  What  You  Say" on  Kent  in  September  1964  a  funkier  affair  at  a  faster  tempo  which  gave  them  a  minor  hit. A  perfunctory  version  of  James  Brown's  "Please  Please, Please"  came   and  went  in  November  before Warner  Brothers  released the  novelty  "Ooh Poo Pa  Doo"  for  Christmas  directly  against  "He's  The  One"  on  Kent. The  latter  continues  the funkier  direction  in  their  music.

1965  saw  another  change  of  label  with  Loma  releasing  "Tell  Her  I'm  Not  Home"  which  sees  a  Stax  influence  creeping  in although  the  next  single  "Somebody  Needs  You"  is  pure  Motown. By  the  time  of  its  release  they  had  switched  again  to  Modern  who  put  out  "Good  Bye, So  Long"   a  rock  and  roll  number  with  Ike  impressing  on  the  keys. "I  Don't  Need"  goes  back  to  the  Stax  sound.

By  October  they  were  back  at  Sue  for  the  uptempo  Northern  Soul  of  "Two  Is  A  Couple". "Can't Chance  A  Break  Up"   is  out  of  the  same  mould. "Dear  John"   is  a  spoken  word  item  about  hiding spousal  abuse  which  opens  too  many  cans  of  worms  to  go  into  here. "Dust  My  Broom"  is  not  the blues  classic  but  an  Ike  and  Tina  co-write  which  became  a  Northern  Soul  favourite.

Which  brings  us,  finally,  to  this  one. Phil  Spector  caught  a  show  they  did  in  Los  Angeles  and  wanted  to  work  with  Tina. Aware  that  Ike's  control  freak  tendencies  nearly  matched  his  own  Spector  paid  him  $20,000  dollars  to  stay  away  from  the  sessions. Tina  was  then  worked  into  the  ground  to  produce  the  perfect  vocal,  ending  up  singing  in  her  bra. The  cost  of  all  the  session  musicians  and  backing  vocalists  involved  meant  Spector  paid  out  another  $22,000  making  it  the  most  expensive  single  to  date.

The  song  was  written  by  Spector  with  Jeff  Barry  and  Ellie  Greenwich ; it  compares  a  woman's  love  to  a  girl's  love  for  her  rag  doll  or  a  puppy's  love  for  its  master. Spector  throws  so  much  into  the  arrangement  it  could  only  work  with  a  larger  than  life  vocal  and  Tina's  scorching  rasp  proves  equal  to  the  task. Spector  thought  it  was  his  best  work  and  was  mortified  when  it  only  limped  to  number  88  despite  its  success  overseas.

Conspiracy  theorists  subsequently  fed  Spector's  paranoia  suggesting  that  he  had  made  too  many  enemies  in  the  business  who  wanted  it  to  fail. The  standard  version,  from  the  likes  of  Paul  Gambaccini,  is  that  it   fell  foul  of  airplay  politics; it  was  too  pop  for  R &  B  radio  and  too  R  &  B  for  the  white  stations. It  may  have  been  just   that  Spector's  sound  had  had  its  day.

"River....."  marks  the  end  of  the  Wall  of  Sound  ( at  least  as  far  as  its  creator  is  concerned ). Spector  retreated  into  his  mansion  and  sulked  for  two  years, the  start  of  the  long  slide  into  mental  illness  which  ended  at  the  California  State  Prison  in  2009.  For  Ike  and  Tina  on  the  other  hand  the  picture  was  much  brighter. They  had  $20,000  in  the  bank   and  an  invitation  to  tour  with  the  Stones  on  the  back  of  the  single's  European  success. It  inaugurated  a  period  of  more  consistent  commercial  success  for  the  remaining  time  they  were  together.
 

 

154 Hello Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel - Homeward Bound

Chart  entered : 24  March  1966

Chart  peak : 9

Number  of  hits : Paul  Simon 19, Art  Garfunkel  10  ( 7  together )

Well  here's  two  more  guys  with  a  long  gap  between  their  first  US  and  UK  hits   ( although  in  this case  they waited  almost  as  long  for  their  second  US  hit  together ). Even  without  any  back  story  I would  argue  their  music  is  classic  but  the  endlessly  fascinating  saga  of  their  relationship  is  a  gift  to music  writers  and  documentary  makers. Here  also is  where  another  story  begins, the  separation between  album  and  singles buyers  in  the  late  sixties, the  duo's  very  modest  haul  of  hits  belying  their superstar  status  in  the  LP charts. When  I  was  at  school  every  teacher  under  35 ( and  some  of   those  over )  seemed  to  own their  albums.

Both  guys  were  born  in  1941  in  a  Jewish  neighbourhood   within  Queen's  New  York. They  went through  school  together  and  their  friendship  started  when  they  appeared  together  in  a  performance of  Alice  In  Wonderland.  By  their  mid-teens  they  had  formed  a  duo  Tom  and  Jerry, heavily influenced  by  The  Everly  Brothers  and  got  a  deal  with  Big  Top  records. Their  first  record , in  1957  "Hey, Schoolgirl" ( ironically  in  the  light  of  their  subsequent  history,  a  co-write )  managed  to  cross  over  into  the  charts ( number  49)  and  they  got  to  appear  on  American  Bandstand. The  song  sounds  far  more  like  The  Everlys  than  their  subsequent  work  and  it's  difficult  to  pick  out  who's  doing  which  part but  it's  certainly  a  creditable  effort  for  a  couple  of  teenagers.

As  referred  to  above, they  had  to  wait  a  long  time  for  their  next  chart  appearance. " Our  Song " the  follow-up  released  nearly  six  months  later  was  a  bit  too  clever  for  its  own  good  with  its references  to  "Our  favourite  DJ "  and  "jukeboxes"  and  though  tuneful  enough  didn't  break  through.
"That's  My  Story "  saw  a  switch  of  style  to  doo  wop  with  Art  taking  a  lead  role  albeit  in  a  lower  register  than  subsequently. They  don't  quite  pull  it  off- it  sounds  a  bit  amateur-ish - but  the  ambition  was  clear.

However  Art's  enthusiasm  for  further  recording  waned  after  that  while  Paul  pushed  out  a  stream  of solo  singles  beginning  with  "Teen Age  Fool"  under  the  pseudonym  True  Taylor  in  March  1958, a fairly  worthless  Elvis  pastiche. In  August  the  following  year  he  reverted  to  the  Jerry  Landis  name
for  the  dreary  plod  of  "Loneliness"  which  all  too  obviously  reveals  his  vocal  limitations. Two  months later  Art  put  out  his  own  first  solo  single  the  bizarre   "Dream  Alone"   which  draws  you  in  with  a nice  intro  and  then  doesn't  go  anywhere  just  keeps  repeating  it.

That  was  the  last  record  either  of  them  made in  the  fifties  as  both  went  on  to  university. Art continued  a  parallel  academic  career  throughout  the  next  decade.  Paul /Jerry's  next  release  was  "Shy"  in  June  1960  a  pretty  but   vacuous  teen  pop  number. The  same  goes  for  "I'd  like  To  Be ( The  Lipstick  On  Your  Lips )". He  also  sang  on  one  or  two  singles  by  a  doo wop  outfit  The  Mystics  in  this  period. His  next  single  "Play  Me  A  Sad  Song"  from  February  1961  is  in  that  vein  and  is  something  of  an  improvement  on  its  predecessors  making  good  use  of   his  female  backing  vocalists.

In  August  1961  Art  had  another  crack  with  "Private  World" , by  far  the  best  pre- S & G   recording with  his  untouchable   pure  tones  now  fully  matured  on  a  sparse, haunting  song  that  begs  the question  why  he  couldn't  have  picked  up  his  pen  a  bit  more  often  during  his  career.

From  October  1961, Paul's  " I Wish  I  Weren't  In  Love"  mimics  Dion  and  the  Belmonts  but otherwise  it's  not  bad. In  1962  he  changed  tack  and  formed  a  band  Tico  and  the  Triumphs  to  play  surf  rock. Their  first  release  "Motorcycle"  featuring  his  friend  Marty  Cooper  got  a  toehold  in  the  charts  at  number  97.  It's  completely  generic. "Wildflower "  matches  the  Bo  Diddley  beat  to  mariachi  stylings  for  an  interesting  crossover  of  styles  and  "Get  Up  And  Do  The  Wobble"  is  probably  the  first  Beach  Boys  pastiche  ( and  not  a  bad  one ).

As  Jerry,  Paul  scraped  another  hit  ( number  99 )  with  the  surf  novelty  "The  Lone  Teen  Ranger"    at the  end  of  the  year. That  probably  necessitated  another  name  change  to  Paul  Kane  for  the  single "Carlos  Dominguez"  in  summer  1963. The  serious-minded  acoustic  folk-pop  of  this  song  with  its echoes  of  Dylan's  Masters  Of  War  marks  a  decisive  break  from  the  pastiches  of  the previous years.

Art  was  happy  to  pursue  this  new  direction  and  the  duo  auditioned  for  Columbia  Records  in  early 1964. Clive  Davis  signed  them  up  but  felt  the  Tom  and  Jerry  tag  had  outlived  its  usefulness  and  so  Simon  and  Garfunkel  was the  new  moniker. In  October  1964  their  LP "Wednesday  Morning  3AM"  was  released. By  far  the  least  known  of  their  five  studio  albums  it  only  charted  on  re-release  and  contains  just  five  songs  by  Paul. Art's  only  credit  is  a  joint  one  for  the  re-arrangement  of  the  Renaissance  motet  "Benedictus"  ( there's  a  strong  Christian  theme  for  an  album  by  two  Jewish  boys ).  Homage  to  Dylan  is  paid  with  a  version  of  "The  Times  They  Are  A  Changing"   that's  inessential  but  a  good  deal  more  respectful  than  his  wretched  assault  on  "The  Boxer"  on  Self Portrait  and  there's  also  a  song  , "The  Sun  Is  Burning",  by  Ian  ( father  of  Ali  and  Robin ) Campbell.  The  album  caused  few  ripples  on  release  and  the  duo  broke  up  with  Art  retreating  to his  studies  and  Paul  moving  to  Europe  to  tour  the  folk  clubs.

Paul  wasn't  universally  loved  there  , his  self-possession  and  prickly  personality  raising  some  hackles   although  he  formed  a  productive  friendship  with  The  Seekers'  Bruce  Woodley.  In  the  summer  he recorded  a  solo  album  "The  Paul  Simon  Songbook"  in  London  with  all  twelve  tracks  self-composed  and  road-tested  in  England, France  And  Denmark. He  released  his  valedictory  "I  Am  A Rock"  as  a  single.  Neither  sold  but  unbeknownst  to  him,  his  American  producer  Tom  Wilson  had received  reports  of  one  of  the  "Wednesday  Morning..."  tracks  "The  Sound  Of  Silence"  picking  up radio  play  and  decided  to  overdub  it  with  electric  guitar  and  drums. Fearing  the  duo  would  not consent  to  reunite  he  released  it  as  a  single  without  consulting  them  and  it  became  a  sleeper  hit slowly  creeping  up  to  the  number  one  spot. Nevertheless  it  wasn't  a  hit  in  the  UK ( for  them )   until  its  appearance  on  an  EP  in  1969

Paul  returned  from  Europe, yanked  Art  from  his  books  and  the  two  recorded  the  album  "Sounds Of  Silence"  ( largely  made  up  of  re-worked  songs  from  the  solo  LP )  for  release  at  the  beginning of  1966. For  some  reason  the  US  version  of  the  album  doesn't  include  this  song.

"Homeward  Bound"  was  definitely  written  in  England  during  Paul's  spell  there  but  the  exact  location  of  the  railway  station  mentioned  in  the  first  line  has  been  the  subject  of  conjecture  since   a  plaque  went  up  on  Widnes  station  asserting  its  own  claim  to  be  the  inspiration. Paul  has  only  been  able  to  pinpoint  it  as  "in  Liverpool"  so  I  guess  we  can  never  be  certain. It's  one  of  his  simplest  lyrics, a  performer  starts  longing  for  the  comforts  of  home  and  their  lover,  and a  well-used  theme  since (e.g. Super  Trouper  , Run  For  Home  ).  Paul  sings  lead  in  a  suitably  jaded  tone  with  Art  softly  sweetening  the  pill  in  the  background  before  the  joyous  chorus. The  emphasis  on  their  vocal  harmonies  has  sometimes  obscured  how  inventive  their  arrangements  were  and  this  one's  no  exception  with  its  frequent  shifts  in  tempo  ( session  drummer  Bobby  Gregg  deserves  a  mention  for  his  contribution ).

153 Hello Smokey Robinson - Going To A Go-Go

( This  single  was  just  credited  to  The  Miracles  but  Smokey  was  in  the  line-up )

Chart  entered : 24  February  1966

Chart  peak : 44

Number  of  hits : 12

I'm sure the man behind this blog will correct me, but I can't think there will be many (if any) other American artists who had to wait so long to crack the charts here after their initial breakthrough at home: the Miracles had released their first single in 1959, getting into the top end of the charts a year later with "Shop Around" - the first big hit for the fledging Motown label.

William "Smokey" Robinson, the group's leader, had formed what became the Miracles ( initially the Matadors) in Detroit with friends Pete Moore and Ronald White. Various other members came and went siblings Bobby and Claudette Rogers completed the line up. The inclusion of Claudette - who Robinson would later marry - necessitated a name change, and the Miracles was chosen.

After a failed audition with a small local label, the band were approached by one of the panel - one Berry Gordy, a Korean War veteran and successful songwriter, with Jackie Wilson's "Reet Petite" amongst his successes. Gordy was impressed by Robinson's voice, and further taken when he discovered the youngster was a promising songwriter. With his encouragement, Gordy borrowed money to form Tamla Motown.

Amongst the Miracles' early work are plenty of mighty singles, and it's a mystery that none were a hit in the UK - especially since the likes of the Beatles were covering them: "You Really Got a Hold On Me" featured on their second LP "With the Beatles", while the original had been a top 10 smash in America.

Robinson frequently wrote with the rest of the band, as well as guitarist Marv Taplin, essentially the sixth member of the band. They were at their best when Smokey was in heartache mode, such as "What's So Good About Goodbye?" (1961) and the beyond-wonderful "Ooo Baby Baby", which sounds like the prelude to the end of the world, such is the pain in Robinson's voice. One of their earliest b-sides "You Can Depend On Me" may well by this writer's ultimate 3am slow-burner, for those romantic moments.

Amongst the quality, there were some duff moments: "Mickey's Monkey" and "Come On Do the Jerk" are more than unfortunately named. But Robinson may have been stretched - as well as his work with the Miracles, he was writing and producing for many other acts on the label, most notably the Temptations (as already noted on their entry here), Mary Wells and Marvin Gaye.

By 1965, he'd also taken a place as Executive President of Motown, and it is in this period he and the Miracles make their entry, albeit with a small hit. Perhaps it meant more to Americans who knew exactly what a "Go-Go" was - it reached #11 on the Billboard Pop chart. All the same, it's a cheery number with Smokey sounding in a good mood, helped by some driving drumming and the usual quality work from the Funk Brothers. It's the kind of song that you imagine would open a Miracles gig around the time, but I have to confess it wouldn't make my top 10 of their material.

It was clearly liked by some, that said, as the Rolling Stones covered it on stage and got a top 30 hit on both sides of the Atlantic when it was taken from their 1981 live album.

D.C Harrison

152 Hello Stevie Wonder - Uptight ( Everything's Alright )

Chart  entered  : 5  February  1966

Chart  peak : 14

Number  of  hits  : 56

Stevie  is  our  first  artist  to  be  born  in  the  1950s; he's  one  of  those  celebrities  who's  always  going to  be  a  bit  younger  than  you  think  he  is.

Stevie  was  born  Stevland  Morris  in  1950  in  Michigan. He  was  six  weeks  premature  and  his  sight  never  developed. Technically  he  isn't  fully  blind  but  has  no  functional  sight. He  moved  to  Detroit  at  an  early  age  when  his  parents  split  up  and  soon  became  a  young  prodigy  on  harmonica ,  keyboards, drums  and  bass. In  1961  his  mother  brought  him  to  the  attention  of   Ronnie  White  of The  Miracles  who  heard  him  sing  his  own  song  "Lonely  Boy". Duly  impressed  White  took  him  to  Berry  Gordy  who  signed  him  to  Tamla  on  a  five  year  deal  where  his  royalties  would  be   put  in  trust  until  he  turned  21.

He  was  put  to  work  with  producer Clarence  Paul  who  came  up  with  the  name  "Little  Stevie Wonder"  for  his  recordings. He  was  barely  12  when  he  released  his  first  single  in  1962, the  Berry Gordy / Clarence  Paul  song "I  Call  It  Pretty Music  But  The  Old  People  Call  It  The  Blues"  on  both sides. The  A-side  is  straight  early  Motown  pop   ( with  Marvin  Gaye  supplying  the  backbeat )  while the  B-side  is  a  bluesier  take. Both  feature  Stevie's  unbroken  voice  and  a  generous  helping  of harmonica. Stevie's  youth  meant  the  record  got  a  fair  bit  of  attention  and  it  just  missed  out  on  the US  charts.

Stevie's  next  release  was  an  instrumental  album  "The  Jazz  Soul  Of  Little  Stevie  Wonder"  which was largely  written  by  others  and  didn't  sell  but  does  feature  the  original  version  of  "Fingertips".  His   next  single  in  October  1962   was  a  duet  with  Clarence  Paul  on  the  latter's  song  "Little  Water  Boy" . Ostensibly  a  financial  haggle  between  a  grown  man  and  a  young  boy  over  fetching  water, there's  a  decidedly  queasy  feel  to  the  song  which  the  intermittent  grunts  do  nothing  to  assuage. It's not  surprising  it  wasn't  a  hit.  Tamla  then  rushed  out  another  album ( recorded  the  previous  year ) , the  rather  tawdry  "Tribute  To  Uncle  Ray". It  was  mainly  comprised  of  Ray  Charles  covers and  did nothing  to  enhance  his  reputation.

His  third  single  in  December  1962 "Contract  On  Love",  written  by  Holland, Dozier  and  erm Bradford ( ?) ,  is  a  neat  Four  Seasons  pastiche  featuring  future  Temptation  Eddie  Kendricks  but  its chances  were  scuppered  by  a  very  rough  production  from  Holland  and  Dozier  that  sounds  like  it was  recorded  in  a  garden  shed.

However  Stevie  had  already  recorded  the  song  that  was  to  change  his  fortunes. In  June  1962,  he joined  the  Motortown  Revue  and  his  set  at  Chicago's  Regal  Theatre  had  been  recorded.  The harmonica-led , ( mainly )  instrumental  "Fingertips "  from  his  first  LP  was  performed  twice  and   released  as  a single  in  May  1963  with  the   performances  labelled  Parts  1  and  2   and  placed  each   side  of  the disc. The  song  is  heavily  influenced  by  Charles  but  the  raw  excitement  is  well  captured   and  it  stormed  to  number  one  in  the  US  charts  making  him  the  youngest  performer  to  get  there. It was  his  first  UK  release  but  didn't  catch  here. The  whole  set  was  then  released  as  the  album "Recorded  Live : The 12 Year Old  Genius"   which  likewise  shot  to  the  number  one  spot  despite  its  brief  running  time ( less  than  25  minutes ).
 
Stevie's  career  longevity  was  by  no  means  assured  at  this  point. Over  the  next  couple  of  years  it seemed  quite  possible  that  he  would  go  down  as  a  novelty  act  who  couldn't  cross  over  to  adult success.  His  next  single  "Workout Stevie, Workout"  in  September  1963  is  a  studio  recording  and  a rather  flimsy  song  ( like  "Fingertips"  written  by  Paul  and  Henry  Cosby" )  played  too  fast.  It  peaked at  number  33.  He  was  then  put  in  the  studio  to  work  on  an  album  of  standards  "With  A  Song  In  My  Heart". Released  at  the  end  of  the  year  with  the  "Little"  tag  dropped  it  made  a  minor  showing  on  the  R & B  chart  and  missed  out  on  the  main  chart  altogether.

His  first  single  of  1964  with  the  "Little"  reinstated,  probably  by  mistake, heralded  Tamla's  next  mis-step, a  bizarre  attempt  to  link  Stevie  to   the  surf  craze. "Castles  In  The  Sand"  is  a  nicely-arranged string-driven  ballad  in  the  Drifters  vein  rendered  virtually   unlistenable  by  Stevie's  vocal. His  voice was  breaking  and  he  sounds  horribly  off-key  throughout. It  was  lucky  to  get  as  high  as  52. The next  single  in  May  "Hey  Harmonica  Man"  avoided  the  problem  by  giving  him  little to  do  vocally  . Eddie  Kendricks  and  Melvin  Franklin  handle  most  of  the  vocals  on  a  song  that  betrays  an awareness  of  the  English  Invasion  bands  particularly  the  Stones. It  halted  Stevie's  downwards  trajectory  by  peaking  at  number  29. The  album  that  followed,  "Stevie  At  The  Beach"  confused  everyone  and  shoe-horning  him  into  two  cheap beach  movies  didn't  do  him  any  favours  either. The  third  single  from  it    "Happy  Street" , a  vacuous  bit  of  R &  B  didn't  register.

Neither did  "Kiss  Me  Baby"  in  March  1965 , the  first  single  to  bear  his  name  on  the  writing  credits  ( along  with  Paul )  but  otherwise  an  unexceptional  harmonica  workout.  Stevie  was  touring  Europe  ( including  some  dates  with  The  Stones ) at  the  time  and  with  Tamla  reluctant  to  invest  in  another  album  he  badly  needed  another  hit. He  managed  it  with  a  version  of  "Hi-Heel Sneakers"  recorded  live  in  Paris  in  April  1965  and  released  in  August. It's  an  energetic  though   undistinguished  version  but  it  did  the  job  and  got  to  number  59.

This  one  came  next  in  November  1965  and  turned  his  fortunes  around. Henry  Cosby  and  Sylvia  Moy  wrote  the  song  based  around  Stevie's  driving  riff  apparently  influenced  by  the  Stones' Satisfaction.  The  lyrics  express  the  joy  of  a  poor  man  whose  rich  girlfriend  can  see  past  his  trappings  to  the  man  inside. Melodically  it's  a  bit  one-dimensional, that  relentless  pounding  beat  and  simple  punctuating  brass  fanfare  are  the  hooks  along  with  Stevie's  now  adult,  elastic  vocal. Though  less  of  a  hit  here  than  in  the  States  where  it  reached  number  three; it  has  made  the  top  here  when  re-written, lyrically  as  Billy  Joel's   Uptown  Girl  and  musically  as  Wham's  I'm  Your  Man.     

    

151 Hello Nancy Sinatra - These Boots Are Made For Walking

Chart  entered  :  27  January  1966

Chart  peak : 1

Number  of  hits : 10

Nancy  was  the  first  second  generation  pop  star  to  top  the  charts  and  the  first  person  to  get  over the  line  here  due  to  hits  this  side  of  the  Millennium.

Nancy  was  born  in  1940  in  New  Jersey  to  a  quite  popular  singer  and  his  first  wife, also  called  Nancy. Her  first  brush  with  pop  music  was  pre-chart  as  the  subject  of  Frank's 1945  song, Nancy ( With The Laughing  Face ) . She  studied  music , dance  and  voice  at  the  University  of  California  but  dropped  out  after  a  year  to  get  married  to  Tommy  Sands. Her  first  public  exposure  was  on  a  TV  special  made  by  her  father  to  celebrate  Elvis's  return  from  the  army  in  1960. She  welcomed  him  at  the  airport  and  later  did  a  duet  with  her  dad,

To  no  one's  surprise  she  got  a  deal  with  his  record  company  Reprise in  1961. She  released  her  first  single  "Cuff  Links  And  A  Tie  Clip"  that  year, a  typical  piece  of  teen  fluff  save  for  Nancy's  cool  dry  vocal  placing  her  outside  the  song. It  didn't  register  anywhere. The  following  January  she  released  her  version  of  Phil  Spector's  "To  Know  Him  Is  To  Love  Him". It's  an  inexpert  reading  which  deserved  to  fail  but  Nancy  was  in  luck  when  the  Italians  picked  up  on  the  B-side, Bob  Manning's  "Like  I  Do"  ( a  number  three UK  hit  for  Maureen  Evans  later  that  year )  and  took  it  to  number  2  in  their  chart. Nancy's  vocal  is  perfectly  suited  to  the  arch  girl-pop  but  apparently  she  hates  it.

"June, July  and  August"   released  in  the  middle  month  of  that  trio  is  a  drowsy  ballad  with  eerie  undertones  that  seems  like  it  should  be  on  a  David  Lynch  soundtrack  with  Nancy  sounding  not  unlike  Julee  Cruse.  The  same  goes  for  "You  Can  Have  Any  Boy"  with  its  Jolene- style  message  though  Nancy's  languid  vocal  suggests  cool  curiosity  rather  than  desperation.

"I  See  The  Moon"  from  February  1963  is  a  straight  Brill  Building  version  of  the  Stargazers'  1954  chart-topper, competent  and  pleasant  but  rather  disappointing." Cruel  War"  is  much  more  interesting. The  song  originates  at  least  as  far  back  as  the  American  Civil  War but  the  lyrics have  been  adapted  through  the  years  and  Nancy  was  covering  the  Peter  Paul  and  Mary  version  which  took  the  point  of  view  of  a  war  bride  wanting  to  join  up  herself  to stay with  her  Johnny. Their  version is  a  textbook  example  of  worthy  but  murderously dull  folksiness; Nancy's  single  is  more  interesting because  the  arrangement  has  more  ideas  and  Nancy's  close-miked  vocal  gives  the  verse  about  cross-dressing  and  the  death  wish  sentiments  of  the  final  verse  more of  a  frisson  than  Mary  Travers's  pure  tones.

The  admonitory  "Thanks  To  You"  from  November  1963  anticipates  the  sound  of  The  Shangri-las   with  its  slow building  drama  and  spoken  phrases. By  1964  Nancy  was  moving  into  films  , albeit  superficial teen  movies, and  might  have  given  up  on  pop  had  these  singles  not  been  selling  steadily  in  Japan. "Where  Do  The  Lonely  Go"  sounds  like  a  lesser  Burt  Bacharach  number ( it  isn't ). "This  Love  Of  Mine"  which  Nancy  had  a  hand  in  writing   is  really  odd  with  a  scratchy,  almost  funk,  rhythm  guitar  running  through  the  song  but  seemingly  unconnected   to  the  wan  teen  pop   Nancy  is  singing. Towards  the  end  it  seems  to  fall  out  of  time  and  becomes  an  amateur-ish  mess.

By  1965  it  was  time  for  taking  stock. Nancy's  marriage  had  crumbled  and  Reprise  were  on  the  point  of  risking  the  big  man's  wrath  by  dropping  her. Nevertheless  they  teamed  her  up  with  a  new  producer  Jimmy  Bowen  who  produced  her   Spectoresque  version  of  Cole  Porter's  "True  Love"  which  was  released  as  a  single  in  January. It's  not  very  good  with  Nancy  sounding  barely  interested  but  Bowen  had  an  ace  up  his  sleeve. He  lived  next  door  to  Lee  Hazelwood  , writer  of  Duane  Eddy's  Rebel  Rouser   and  persuaded  him  to come  on  board  and  work  with  Nancy. He  in  turn  brought  in  an  experienced  arranger  in   Billy  Strange.

Their  first  collaboration  was  "So  Long  Babe",   a  Hazelwood   song  about  moving  on  to  pastures  new  with  some  melodic  similarity  to  When  You  Walk  In  The  Room. Nancy  was  persuaded  to  sing  in  a  lower  register  and  though  she  doesn't  sound  entirely  in  tune  , the  single  finally  gave  her  a  foothold  in  the  US  charts  peaking  at  86. It  was  also  her  last  single  as  a  winsome  brunette; an  image  makeover  turned  her  into  a  blonde  bombshell.  Nancy  later  allowed  her  earlier  singles  to  be  unsentimentally  compiled  under  the  title  Bubblegum  Girl  which  is  something of  a  slight  on  an  interesting  body  of  work.

Her  next  single  was  this  one. Here's  the  Popular  linkNancy S, the  first  time  it's  really  worth  the  effort.