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Reading List
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- All Shook Up: How Rock 'N' Roll Changed America - Glenn C. Altshuler
- The Life and Music of Miss Peggy Lee, Peter Richmond
- The B-Side: The Death of Tin Pan Alley and the Rebirth of the Great American Song - Ben Yadoga
- Singing From the Floor: A History of British Folk Clubs - JP Bean
- Playing Changes: Jazz for the New Century - Nate Chinen
- Lets Do It: The Birth of Pop - Bob Stanley
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Resources
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Roots Music Podcasts
Author Archives: Richard Barry
“Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” – Perez Prado (1955)
If you were wondering what the Billboard top single of 1955 was, wouldn’t you think that maybe it would be the Bill Haley and His Comets version of “Rock Around the Clock,” or one of the three versions of “The … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Perez Prado
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“Something Different” – The Mangione Brothers Sextet (1960)
Though Chuck Mangione would become an international superstar in the 1970s with smooth jazz mega-hits like “Feels So Good,” and “Chase the Clouds Away,” he started out as bebop trumpeter in the Dizzy Gillespie tradition. While Chuck was studying at … Continue reading
Posted in Jazz
Tagged Chuck Mangione, The Jazz Brothers
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“When I Fall in Love” – Jeri Southern (1952)
“When I Fall in Love” was composed by Victor Young with lyrics by Edward Heyman for the 1952 film One Minute to Zero. The lyrics did not, however, appear in the film, the plot of which is summarized thusly in … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Edward Heyman, Jeri Southern, Victor Young
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“Summertime Blues” – Eddie Cochrane (1958)
It is very cold in Toronto today and I was thinking about a song, any song, that might warm me up. “Summertime Blues” came to mind. If it was summertime right now, I would not have the blues. The song … Continue reading
Posted in 1950s, Rockabilly
Tagged Eddie Cochrane
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“The Orange Rooftop of Your Mind” – The Blue Things (1966)
How often have you listened to a singer or a group currently out there or perhaps even from the relatively distant past and asked yourself why they weren’t better known, why they weren’t making it or hadn’t made it? You … Continue reading
Posted in Folk-Rock
Tagged The Blue Things
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“Little Star” – The Elegants (1958)
Yes, a one-hit-wonder. The Elegants were a doo-wop vocal group started in 1958 in Staten Island, New York by Vito Picone, Arthur Venosa, Frank Tardogno, Carmen Romano and James Mochella.This was their hit, written by Venosa and Picone. It spent 19 weeks … Continue reading
“Jim Dandy (to the Rescue)” – LaVern Baker (1956)
Any song with a growling tenor sax will grab my attention. “Jim Dandy” by LaVern Baker (1929-1997) fits the category. It was written by Lincoln Chase (1926-1980) and first recorded by Ms. Baker in 1956. It topped the R&B charts … Continue reading
Posted in R & B
Tagged LaVern Baker, Lincoln Chase, Sam Taylor
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“Headin’ On Home Again” – The Halifax Three (1963)
Another little oddity that I happen to have on vinyl (I doubt it exists anywhere else) is a record by The Halifax Three. The interesting thing about the group is that they featured a young Denny Doherty, who would go … Continue reading
Posted in Folk Revival
Tagged John Sebastian, The Halifax Three, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Mama's and the Papas
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“Pay Me My Money Down” – Bruce Springsteen (2006)
In 2006, Bruce Springsteen released an album called We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, which consists of 13 songs made popular by folk icon and social activist Pete Seeger (made popular, but not written by Pete, because what is the … Continue reading
Posted in Folk music
Tagged Bruce Springsteen, Pete Seeger
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“Ghost Riders in the Sky” – Vaughan Monroe (1949)
“(Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend” is a cowboy song written in 1948 by American songwriter Stan Jones. A number of versions were cross-over hits on the pop charts in 1949 with Bing Crosby, Burl Ives, Peggy Lee, … Continue reading
Posted in 1940s, Pop music
Tagged Vaughan Monroe
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