BEST SONG:
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"Bye, Bye Love" by The Everly Brothers
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| "Chung, che chung chung, che, che, che chung, chung" -- the opening guitar intro followed by Don and Phil's harmony was captivating when I first heard it in 1957 and it is still one of my all-time favorites today. "Bye Bye Love" entered the Top 40 on May 27th and eventually reached #2 -- it was The Everly Brothers' first hit record. Gilbert & Theroux would rank it the 8th best record of the year and Cashbox listed it as #7. |
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BEST DANCE SONG:
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"At The Hop" -- Danny & The Juniors
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| "At the Hop" can be considered one of rock and roll's "anthems." It perhaps best represents the teen culture of the late 1950's. Listening to the record you can picture Dick Clark (who suggested the title for the song) emceeing a dance at a Philiadelphia area high school (which he did frequently), spinning records as the crepe paper hung from the basketball goals and the local coach made sure the teens all had their dancing shoes off to protect his floor. Dick would perhaps kick off the dance with, here's Danny & the Juniors and we're "At the Hop!" "You can rock it you can roll it, do the stomp and even stroll it at the hop." |
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BEST SLOW SONG:
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"The Twelfth of Never" by Johnny Mathis
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| While The Platters dominated the ballads of 1956, Johnny Mathis was equally successful in 1957, debuting his first song, "Wonderful, Wonderful," on May 6th and entering 5 songs in the top 40. Of these, my favorite was "The Twelfth of Never." It only reached #9, but with Johnny's distinctive voice it was the perfect song for sharing a slow dance and proclaiming an undying love that will last "until the twelfth of never, and that's a long, long time." |
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CLASSIC ROCK:
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"Rock and Roll Music" by Chuck Berry
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| With "Rock and Roll Music," Chuck Berry continued the tradition of rock and roll established by the first rock anthem, "Rock Around the Clock." Many songs would follow that would extol the value of rock music; songs such as "Rock and Roll is Here to Stay" by Danny and the Juniors, "That Old Time Rock and Roll" by Bob Seger, "I Dig Rock and Roll Music" by Peter, Paul and Mary (somewhat tongue in cheek) and "I Love Rock and Roll" by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts to name a few. Debuting in November, "Rock and Roll Music" would reach #8 and was in the top 40 for 13 weeks. The Beatles would record their version of the song and it still stands today as one of the best -- "It's got to be rock and roll music if you wanna dance with me." |
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HIDDEN NUGGET:
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"Love Is Strange" by Mickie and Sylvia
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| "Love is Strange" by Mickie and Sylvia didn't reach the top 10, peaking at #11. Perhaps I consider it a "nugget" because of its use in the 1980's movie, "Dirty Dancing." This is great rock and roll drama when Mickie challenges Sylvia -- "How do you call your lover boy? . . . and if he still won't come?" Then there's her answer, "I just say baby, oh sweet baby .." And of course, then there's the great guitar break. |
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UNDER RATED:
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"Lucille" by Little Richard
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| "Lucille" by Little Richard did not do as well as his other hits from 1957, "Jenny Jenny" (#10) or "Keep a Knockin'" (#8), but I think it's the best of the three. "I woke up this mornin', Lucille was not in sight. I asked my friends about her, but all their lips were tight." Maybe I like it better because the lyrics were better (not usually that important on a Little Richard recording). The Everly Brothers also had a Top 40 recording of "Lucille" in 1960. |
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BEST COUNTRY CROSS-OVER:
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"Walking After Midnight" by Patsy Cline
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| My pick for the best country song to cross over to the pop charts has a lot of competition in 1957. Certainly "Gone" by Ferlin Husky rates consideration and Sonny James' version of "Young Love" reached all the way to #2 on the pop chart. But my favorite would be Patsy Cline's "Walking After Midnight." The song was reasonably popular in 1957, reaching #12, but has gained greater recognition considering Patsy Cline's success in the early 1960's followed by her untimely death in a plane crash that has made her one of country music's legends. |
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