The inspiration for this project came from two songs that I had just happened to listen to that dealt with a similar subject. That it, the tale of a fading musician. The first, ‘Mr. Richland’s Favourite Song’ by Harry Nilsson. It tells the tale of a once popular singer who would once play to hoards of adoring fans but then they grew up, found others things to occupy their time and so the singer ended up singing his songs in a bar when he has so few fans that he now knows them all by name. The second is ‘The King of Rock ’N’ Roll’ by Prefab Sprout which involves the singer of a one hit wonder who ends up singing the same song over and over again because no one wants to hear anything else that they did.
That got me thinking. What happened to some of those early musical pioneers after The Beatles turned up and blew most of the old guard away. Did they disappear into a Las Vegas hinterland or did they continue to produce music, even if the sales were not a match to what they had been? Here are number of artists who fit that category on a double album that I felt would have been released by the kings of the compilation album, K-Tel.
Side 1
- Moon Talk – Tommy Roe
- Mary Jane – The Everly Brothers
- Be My Friend – Del Shannon
- Fire & Brimstone – Link Wray
- Purple Haze – Dion
- Edge Of Reality – Elvis Presley
Side 2
- Born To Be A Rolling Stone – Gene Vincent
- Somebody Saw You – Little Richard
- Lady Madonna – Fats Domino
- Come Back When You Grow Up – Bobby Vee
- Bathroom Wall – The Tokens
- Something’s On Her Mind – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Side 3
- Marshmallow Skies – Rick Nelson
- For A While – Frank Sinatra
- I’ve Got A Feeling – Bo Diddley
- Hushabye Mountain – Julie London
- Questions – Bobby Darin
- July, You’re A Woman – Pat Boone
Side 4
- I Love Her, I Love Her – Chuck Berry
- Southbound Jerico Parkway – Roy Orbison
- Goodbye Victoria – Chubby Checker
As all of these artists come from across the pond, all of the chart information is based on how successful these artists were on the US charts.
Moon Talk – Tommy Roe (From the LP ‘It’s Now A Winter’s Day’ 1967)
Tommy Roe hit big with the single ‘Sheila’ in 1962. Over the next couple of years he had some more hits, but by the time 1964 came around, his singles were just about breaking the top 40, if they charted at all. He made a come back in 1966 with two singles ‘Sweet Pea’ and ‘Hooray for Hazel’, both of which made the top ten and were produced by Curt Boettcher. By the time 1967 came along, Roe was continuing to release good music but the record buying public were not buying enough of them to make the charts. ‘Moon Talk’ is the second song on the rather fine LP, ‘It’s Now A Winter’s Day’. Roe would make another come back with the mega hit ‘Dizzy’, which was released in 1969.
Mary Jane – The Everly Brothers (From the LP ‘The Everly Brothers Sing’ 1967)
The late 50s and early 60s was a golden age for chart hits by the Everly Brothers. These included ‘Bye Bye Love’, ‘Wake Up Little Susie’ and ‘Cathy’s Clown’. It was just before the rise of The Beatles that their chart fortunes waned. This did not mean they stopped making good music and they even tried to bolster sales by recording the album ‘Two Yanks in England’ where the majority of songs were written by members of The Hollies. They continued to follow contemporary trends, such as the song ‘Mary Jane’ with its obvious drug connotations. Even though they would need to wait until they reunited in the mid 80s, after a bitter split 10 years earlier, for a return to the charts, their ‘Roots’ LP could be said to be one of the earliest examples of country rock.
Be My Friend – Del Shannon (From the LP ‘The Further Adventures Of Charles Westover’ 1968)
Del Shannon burst onto the scene in a big way with the massive hit single, ‘Runaway’. Even though he continued to release successful singles , by 1966 his 7”s were struggling to break the top 100. This did not mean he had been forgotten by the industry. In 1967, he recorded ‘Home & Away’ for ex Rolling Stones produce, Andrew Loog Oldham. It was meant to be the British answer to ‘Pet Sounds’, but only a number of singles were released at the time. He followed this up with ‘The Further Adventures of Charles Westover’ which meant with good reviews but minimal sales. After this, Shannon would turn his hand to production and founding a publishing company to administer the songs he had written. At the time of his self inflicted death, Shannon had seen a rise in his popularity due to ‘Runaway’ being used as the theme for the TV Show, Crime Story. He was also recording an album with Jeff Lynne and was rumoured to be the replacement for Roy Orbison in the Travelling Wilbury’s.
Fire & Brimstone – Link Wray (From the ‘Link Wray’ 1971)
Link Wray was almost thirty by the time he released his first record, having already served in the Korea War and been hospitalised for a year suffering from tuberculosis. His first hit was ‘Rumble’, once described by Bob Dylan was “the best instrumental ever”. Wray didn’t trouble the charts too often after this but continued to release new music until the late 90’s.
Purple Haze – Dion (From the LP ‘Dion’ 1968)
Dion started releasing records in 1957 and form 1958, he was backed by The Belmonts. Going solo in 1960, his become more successful releasing classics such as ‘Runaround Sue’ and ‘Ruby Baby’. Like so many others, Dion’s star wained in 1964 after the arrival of Beatlemania. He continued to release some excellent music, and even reunited with The Belmonts. In 1968, he got himself clean from heroin and was asked by his record company to record the song ‘Abraham, Martin and John’. The single reached number 4 in the US charts, but this would be the last time one of his records broke the top 50. The follow up, a folkie version of Hendrix’s ‘Purple Haze’ was a brave move, but did not translate into sales.
Edge Of Reality – Elvis Presley (B-Side of the single ‘If I Can Dream’ 1968)
Elvis may not have had the same collapse in sales after the arrival of The Beatles that other artists on this compilation suffered, but by the late 60s, his record sales were nowhere near as high as they had been. He was mostly releasing soundtracks to his films and even though there was some gold contained within the grooves, there was also a lot of dross. Presley did not buy into the whole psychedelic scene and ‘Edge Of Reality’ was the most psych thing he ever recorded. The ‘TV Special’ from 1968 brought about the end of the movies, but it would ultimately lead to the Vegas years.
Born To Be A Rolling Stone – Gene Vincent (From the LP ‘Gene Vincent’ 1967)
Gene Vincent, like Link Wray, had served in the armed forces in the Korean War but his naval career came to an end due to a leg injury that caused him pain for the remainder of his life. Turning to music, Vincent formed the backing band The Blue Caps and released ‘Be-Bop-a-Lula’ which became a top ten hit. By 1958, the hits dried up and after some tax problems, Vincent moved to Europe. He was still having hits in the UK in the early 60s and was in the car accident that killed Eddie Cochrane. This accident further damaged Vincents leg. He continued to record and tour but years of hard living had taken a toll on his body. He died in 1971, aged just 36.
Somebody Saw You – Little Richard (From the LP ‘The Rill Thing’ 1970)
Little Richard released his first record in 1951 but it would take another four years and the release of ‘Tutti Frutti’ for him to break into the charts. From there he released numerous classic singles with some being more successful than others. However, Richard had a religious conversation in the late 50s and stopped making secular music for a while. This lead to a drop in record sales and even though Richard returned to secular music, his record sales were never the same even though he was still producing some excellent music.
Lady Madonna – Fats Domino (From the LP ‘Fats Is Back’ 1968)
Though his first record was released in 1949, it would take another six years until Fats Domino was able to break into the US Hot 100. That was with ‘Ain’t That A Shame’ and he would rack up a number of hits including ‘Blueberry Hill’ and ‘Walking to New Orleans’ before his hit making days wained into the early 1960s. He continued to release records throughout the decade including ‘Lady Madonna’, which had been written by Paul McCartney and was itself inspired in part by the works of Fats Domino.
Come Back When You Grow Up – Bobby Vee & The Strangers (From the LP ‘Come Back When You Grow Up’ 1967)
Bobby Vee began his musical career in 1959 filling in for the recently decreased Buddy Holly. His performances lead to him releasing his first single, ‘Susie Baby’ which was notable in that was recorded in the Holly style. By 1960, his singles were breaking into the top 10 and in 1961, ‘Take Good Care Of Mt Baby’ reached the top spot. By mid 1963, the singles were just about making it into the top 100. This continued to be the case until the release of this song which made number 3 in 1967. Now, this compilation is meant to include songs after the hits had dried up but this is a bonafide hit. I decided to include it anyway as I thought it was a perfect title for the compilation.
Bathroom Wall – The Tokens (B-Side of the single ‘Animal’ 1968)
The Tokens released their first record in 1956, with Neil Sedaka as one of the original members. Sedaka left in 1958 and the band took until 1961 to release another single. This was arguably their year as two of their singles broke the top 20. The first was ‘Tonight I Fell in Love’, but the second was ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ which reached number 1. The group spent the remainder of the 60s and the majority of the 70s releasing more records, but they failed to troubled the top 40. Like many of the other artists on this compilation, it didn’t mean they were recording poor material. It’s just a shame no one was paying too much attention at the time.
Something’s On Her Mind – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons (From the LP ‘The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette’ 1969)
Frankie Valli started his recording career as a solo artist in 1953 and with an early version of The Four Seasons three years later. Between 1962 and 1964, the group achieved four number one hit singles as well as a number of top ten hits. However, they seemed to have suffered like so many from the arrival of The Beatles. They still had some hits and did return to the top 20 on a number of occasions between 1966 and 1967, but the end of the decade, the big hits dried up. The band continued to make some good records though and in 1969, the band changed their sound producing ‘The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette’ LP. The album changed the subject of the songs from those about love to war and racial tension. It’s a great album, but at the time, it was pretty much ignored. The Four Seasons would stage a bit of a comeback in 1975 when their singles ‘Who Loves You’ and ‘December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)’ were both top 3 hits and Valli would also appear in the film ‘Grease’ in 1978.
Marshmallow Skies – Rick Nelson (From the LP ‘Another Side Of Rick’ 1967)
Ricky Nelson started off as a radio and TV actor in the series, ‘The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet’ which also starred his older brother and parents. He also started a recording career and achieved numerous top ten singles in the late 50s and 60s, but like so many others on this compilation, his star had started to fade by the time The Beatles showed up. To move away from his teen heart throb image, he shortened his name to Rick an released ‘Bright Lights & Country Music’, one of the first albums that could be considered country rock. He would also embrace psychedelic music on his ‘Another Side of Rick’ album, but this experiment did not yield any success in the charts. He did make a minor come back in the early 70s with his song ‘Garden Party’ written in response to Nelson being booed whilst playing the 1971 Rock ’n’ Roll Spectacular Volume VII concert. He was annoyed as he thought he was being booed by the audience for playing his more contemporary music and not just his early hits.
For A While – Frank Sinatra (From the LP ‘Watertown’ 1970)
Frank Sinatra first committed his vocals on disc back in 1939 alongside the Harry James Orchestra and released his final recordings in 1994. With a career that long, there was bound to be so periods where Sinatra was not as popular as others. One of these periods was the late 1960s and early 1970s. His albums sold in solid, if not spectacular numbers during this period but after the ‘Something Stupid’ duet with daughter Nancy, which reached number 1, his single sales rarely broke the top 40. It was during this time that he released ‘Watertown’, a concept album written by Bob Gaudio of The Four Seasons and his co-writer Jake Holmes. The story concerned a man raising his sons after his wife left him for the big city. The LP met with poor sales and mixed reviews, but since then, it has been re-evaluated and is now considered one of his finer works.
I’ve Got A Feeling – Bo Diddley (From the LP ‘The Black Gladiator’ 1970)
Bo Diddley distinct style of playing his guitar, utilising African rhythms and a charging beat that became his signature. He influenced genres such as rock ’n’ roll, rock and hip hop as well as artists such as Buddy Holly, The Beatles and The Clash. His record sales did not match his influence though with only one top 40 single hit and one LP in the top 200 Billboard charts. ‘The Black Gladiator’ has been compared with ‘Electric Mud’ (by Muddy Waters) as an old blues man turning the electricity up, but it mostly sounds like any other Bo Diddley album.
Hushabye Mountain – Julie London (From the LP ‘Yummy, Yummy, Yummy’ 1969)
Julie London combined an acting and music career in a career that spanned over 30 years. Her music career started with a bang when her recording of standard ‘Cry Me A River’ broke into the top ten single chart. This was her only single to break the top 100 and even though her albums were initially successful, by 1958, she was no longer recording music that charted. ‘Yummy, Yummy, Yummy’ was her last album. Released in 1969, the album contained a number of songs by up and coming songwriters such as Laura Nyro and Margo Guryan as well as more established artists such as The Beatles.
Questions – Bobby Darin (From the LP ‘Born Walden Robert Cassotto’ 1968)
Bobby Darin started to release singles in 1956 but it would take until he put out ‘Splish Splash’ two years later that he would break into the charts. He would release multiple singles between 1958 and 1963 with some being more successful than others, but he would then become another victim of the arrival of The Beatles onto the scene. Between 1964 and his last single in 1973, only one would break into the top 30. His albums faired little better which is a shame as the two he put out on his own Direction label have a number an excellent songs dealing with subjects such as the environment, the Vietnam War and the death of Robert Kennedy. Darin had suffered from poor health throughout his life and any chance of making a comeback were stopped by his untimely death at the age of 37.
July, You’re A Woman – Pat Boone (From the LP ‘Departure’ 1969)
Pat Boone was a very successful recording artist in the mid to late 50s, covering many songs by black artists such Fats Domino, Little Richard and Ivory Joe Hunter. He would have considerably more success with those songs than the original artists. These days, the originals are the ones people tend to listen to but this should not take away from Boone’s success, even if his covers were insipid compared to the originals. Like so many others, by the time The Beatles showed up, his days as a major chart artist had passed. He continued to record and by the 1970s, he was pretty much recording gospel music. He did release a rather bizarre album in 1997 called, ‘In A Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy’ which included covering heavy metal songs in a big band style.
I Love Her, I Love Her – Chuck Berry (From the LP ‘From St Louie To Frisco’ 1968)
Even though he was nearly 30 years old when he released his first solo records, Chuck Berry is arguably one of the architects of rock ’n’ roll music. He released numerous classic records but by 1961, his career stalled after he was arrested and sent to prison for allegedly having sexual relations with an under age girl. By the time he started releasing records again, the British Invasion had occurred and though he was an influence to many of these groups, he records sales dropped after a strong start with ‘No Particular Place To Go’ and ‘You Never Can Tell’. He would continue to draw large crowds when he was touring but his record sales dropped off until he released ‘My Ding-A-Ling’, a novelty song with very suggestive lyrics. For an artist as influential as this, it is a shame that ‘My Ding-A-Ling’ was his only number 1 hit single.
Southbound Jerico Parkway – Roy Orbison (B-Side of the single ‘My Friend’ 1969)
Roy Orbison saw conferrable chart action in the late 1950s and 1960s and even though it looked like he would ride out the British Invasion with his single ‘Pretty Woman’ which was a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic. However, he suffered along with many other artists with diminishing record sales. He would contuse to make some great music including this rather interesting B-Side to his 1969 ‘My Friend’ single. Orbison would have a dramatic career resurgence in the late 1980s with this solo work and as a member of the super group The Travelling Wilbury’s. He was not able to enjoy he resurgence for long as he died of a heart attack at the end of 1988.
Goodbye Victoria – Chubby Checker (From the LP ’Checkered!’ 1971)
Chubby Checker started to release music in 1959 but it was a year later that his signature song, ‘The Twist’ came out. This was the start of a run of massive hits but he was yet another artist to struggle after the British Invasion. ‘Chequered!’ came out in 1971 and was a stylistic change for Checker, embracing psychedelic sounds three years after that genre had passed its prime. The album was not a success but like so many other on this compilation, he produced some great music that was all but ignored by the record buying public.
The artwork for this compilation was adapted from a piece of work I found on Behance, but I did not make a note of the artist.
As this was also planned to be a double LP, I produced a gatefold sleeve.