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"I don't mess around, boy."
-- from the punk teen played by Ricky Nelson on "The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet."
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Ricky Nelson was an early rock and roll success as much due to his regular television exposure as his music. His father, Ozzie Nelson had developed a successful radio show based on his family in the 1940’s and Ricky (along with older brother, Dave) joined the show in 1949 -- Ricky was 8 years old. When the show moved to television in 1952, Ricky was a regular on the show. Ricky was like any other teenager in 1956 -- the new sound of rock and roll caught his attention. Ricky’s girlfriend was so excited about Elvis Presley that Ricky proudly announced that he was going to make a record also. He convinced his father to allow him to use the television studio orchestra and he got Verve records to release his cover version of “I’m Walkin’,” the Fats Domino hit. The flip side, “A Teenager’s Romance” went to #2 in 1957. The songs were featured at the end of the weekly television show. It became obvious that this was a recipe for success and when Imperial records discovered Verve had no signed contract, they quickly signed Ricky. Many of Ricky’s records were two-sided hits with one side being more of a ballad, fulfilling Ozzie’s wishes for music that was consistent with Ricky’s image on the television series. The other side would lean more towards Ricky’s own music interest, the rockabilly side. The rock and roll sound of Ricky Nelson was overlooked for some time. But with his use of an accomplished backup band, including Country Music Hall of Fame guitarist James Burton, Ricky Nelson produced some of the best rock and roll of the late 1950’s. His first recording for Imperial was “Be Bop Baby” with the softer “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You.” His 1958 ballad success, “Lonesome Town” was backed by the rocking “I Got a Feeling.”
In 1958 Ricky had his first number one record, “Poor Little Fool” and seven songs in the top 40 and five in the top ten. Nelson would have one other number record, “Travelin’ Man” in 1961. Its flip side, “Hello Mary Lou” which was written by Gene Pitney, is viewed by some as one of his best rock and roll cuts. In 1962 there was a bidding war when his contract with Imperial expired. Decca won the war with a $1 million offer. But Rick (he dropped the “Ricky” when he turned 21 in 1961) would only have two minor hits for Decca, “Fools Rush In” and “For You.” By the late 1960’s he had disappeared from the record charts like many of the “teen idols.” In 1972 he appeared at a revival show in Madison Square Garden and was booed off the stage. As a result, he wrote “Garden Party” which got him back into the top ten (#6). In 1985 Rick Nelson died in a plane crash in Texas while on tour. In 1987 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. |
| title |
week debuted |
highest ranking |
weeks on chart |
| I'm Walking |
5/6/1957 |
4 |
15 |
| A Teenager's Romance |
5/13/1957 |
2 |
15 |
| Be Bop Baby |
10/7/1957 |
3 |
18 |
| Stood Up |
12/30/1957 |
2 |
14 |
| WaitinĠ in School |
12/30/1957 |
18 |
9 |
| Believe What You Say |
4/7/1958 |
4 |
10 |
| Poor Little Fool |
7/7/1958 |
1 |
15 |
| Lonesome Town |
10/20/1958 |
7 |
16 |
| I Got a Feeling |
10/20/1958 |
10 |
13 |
| Never Be Anyone Else But You |
3/9/1959 |
6 |
12 |
| It's Late |
3/16/1959 |
9 |
10 |
| Colorado |
6/6/1959 |
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| My Rifle, My Pony and Me |
6/6/1959 |
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| Sweeter Than You |
7/13/1959 |
9 |
8 |
| Just A Little Too Much |
7/13/1959 |
9 |
9 |
| Young Emotions |
5/9/1960 |
12 |
9 |
| Travelin' Man |
5/1/1961 |
1 |
15 |
| Hello Mary Lou |
5/8/1961 |
9 |
13 |
| Teenage Idol |
2/28/1962 |
5 |
9 |
| Young World |
3/17/1962 |
5 |
10 |
| It's Up to you |
12/29/1962 |
6 |
9 |
| Fools Rush In |
10/5/1963 |
12 |
9 |
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