1960 #1 One-Hit Wonders
Thank you for including me in your Monday, kittens & dawgs! This week’s theme is “your choice” but being me I decided to use this slot to introduce a new series featuring ONE-HIT WONDERS begining with my birth decade…the 60s.
There are a lot of popular tunes falling in this category. I’m picking only those to reach the pinnacle at #1. In this first part, I’m sharing four one-hit wonders from 1960.
“Teen Angel“, written by Jean Dinning and her husband, Red Surrey. Her brother, Mark Dinning and Alex Murray performed the song late 1959. The teenage tragedy song didn’t do well with radio stations and was even banned because it was too sad. However, the song climbed from #100 to #50 on the US Billboard Hot 100 charts the last week of the decade until it reached the top of list on February 8, 1960.
“Alley Oop” inspired by V.T. Hamlin’s comics was written and composed by Dallas Frazier first in 1957 as a country song. It was The Hollywood Argyles who popularized this crazy little ditty. What’s interesting to know is that there was no The Hollywood Argyles at the begining according to Gary Paxton who produced and sang lead vocals. He stated the band name, a short-lived studio band, came from a street (Argyle) near the studio where they recorded where Paxton exclaimed, “Let’s call ourselves The Hollywood Argyles”. The song peaked July 11, 1960. Dante & the Evergreens also covered this song which charted the same day as T.H.A. at #15.
“Mr. Custer” is a novelty song written by Al De Lory, Fred Darian, and Jospeh Van Winkle. Larry Verne, an American novelty song vocalist recorded the song which sold more than a million copies, earning a gold disc. The funny song story tells of a soldier’s pled with Custer who did not want to fight the Sioux Indians at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. This single topped the charts October 10, 1960.
“Stay” written by Maurine Williams at the tender age of 15 tells how he tried to convince his date to not go home when suppposed to. In 1960, his band made a demo. Initially, Williams and the Zodiacs didn’t draw any interests. It took a ten year’s enthusiasm for the song to impress upon the band and the producer to keep pushing the tune. Four major record producers dismissed the song in NYC before Herald Records became interested who insisted the line, “Let’s have another smoke” be removed to make it commerically acceptable. The song entered at the bottom of the US Billboard Hot 100 charts aearly October 1960 and taking the number one spot November 21, 1960. Other versions include, the Hollies in 1963 took it to #8 in the UK, the Four Season in 1964 peaked #16 in the US, and Jackson Browne in 1977 reached #20 in the US, as well as #12 in the UK.
I thought it was interesting that two other songs with different artists made the Top 40 list the same year. They didn’t top the chart but I thought it would be fun to share these with you. The first song, “Look For A Star” by Gary Mills hit #26 and again with Deane Hawley at #34 on the same day, July 25th. Bonus: The second song title “Hot Rod Lincoln” hit #26 with recording artist Johnny Bond on August 8th and then about a month later with Charlie Ryan and the Timberlane Riders reached #33.
Which of these One-Hit Wonders is your favorite?
I invite you to hit the dance floor with the 4M gang XmasDolly, Stacy, Colette, and little ole me!
Things are a little wild starting today and I’m not speaking of the solar eclipse. Most if not all of Knoxville will be at the edge of the eclipse. Where DH works he’ll be in totality for 30 seconds which is cool but we’re going outside of town to be part of the epic event together! I also have oral surgery mid-week. I might be slow to dance with ya but I will boogie with you ASAP! I’ll close things off with a special song dedicated to the total eclipse.
Have a songtastic week and I’ll see ya back on the dance floor next week with song titles and lyrics featuring “Dance Moves” on Monday’s Music Moves Me!
32 Comments
XmasDolly
Cathy, Cathy, Cathy… what am I going to do with you go! I hope you know there is no leader in our little group. We are all equal, but you know what if we were to have one girl YOU would be it! You are the best with our themes and music selections… I mean dang even with the pictures!!! These selections & everything else is amazing. You need to teach me how to make that tweet too! I’d love to learn how to do that. You could teach me and everyone sooooooooo much… now do you see why I luvs ya so much!!!!!!!! GIRL YOU HAVE ROCKED THE HOUSE & YOU’RE THE BEST DANCER ON THE FLOOR!!!! WHERE’S THAT EMMY GIRL CUZ IT’S SURELY IS YOURS! GOTTA LUV YA & please let me know how the doctors went. Hey, plus I get my shot on Wednesday and girl I cannot wait! NO PAIN for me for at least four months, but it’s possible up to six and if I’m very lucky maybe seven… little prayer from you would do wonders… from your lips to God’s ears baby girl. BIG HUGS…… YOU SO ROCK… and great minds think alike I see in a couple here. Lady bump though I never heard before… dang girl… you are soooooooooo GOOD!!!!
Cathy Kennedy
Marie,
What are you goin’ do with me? I tell you what you’re goin’ do with me, KEEP ME! 😀 I’m not sure when or where I called you the leader but I know you treat your co-hosts as equal. I like to assign ownership to a meme’s author and since you started this baby in my mind I think of you as the “leader of the pack”. Now, you’re much too sweet with all of your kind words. A lot of time my shares are new-to-me or barely remember and others I just totally forgot about, so when I find mewsic that moves me then you know what I’ve gotta do, right? Yep, SHARE IT! I’m always happy to help in any way. The tweet message is a WordPress plugin by “Tweet This” that I embed into my posts. It’s easy peasy for anyone to do.
My doctor’s appointment went well. It was time for my HRT pellets insertion. This keeps my moodiness at bay so I won’t snap your head off and relieves the “change of life” symptoms. Plus, it replenishes my body with the proper hormones that my body doesn’t produce enough of anymore. On Thursday, I go for my second follow-up for my Pinhole surgery (oral surgery – recessed gum restoration). I had no clue that your teeth below the gum line is not protected with enamel, so to my protect my teeth from the potential of decay or even loss, then it’s important to plump the gum area up around the tooth affilicted. I had three on my lower done. I have four on top but that will have to wait until another year. It’s an expensive process, so budget and planning is imperative for us to get these sorts of things accomplished. Once I get the dental care out of the way then I’m in the clear for the rest of the year with no more doctor appointments other than another visit for my HRT pellets. Yay, me!
Oh, I certainly will keep you in prayer, Doll! Pain stinks and I don’t want you suffering. Other than these shots you’re getting, isn’t there anything more that you can do to minimize the chronic pain? Have a tunetastic week, dearie! XOXO
Alana Mautone (@RamblinGarden)
Many times, I have as much fun reading your commenters as I do in reading you – once again, that speaks so highly to the quality of your posts! (So now I’m an expert in Teenaged Tragedy Songs. Ah, Leader of the Pack….) So having said that, I’ll also say Stay is my favorite, but the version I like is the Jackson Browne cover. Happy you were able to enjoy the eclipse, even if your totality only lasted 30 seconds – it’s the experience of a lifetime. Good luck with your oral surgery, Cathy!
Cathy Kennedy
Alana,
I’m glad you enjoy reading the comments as much as you do my post. 🙂 Jackson Browne’s cover is awesome. I do remember this one very well. Browne released his version in 1977, the year DH graduated high school. Thanks for reminding me. We were thrilled to see the eclipse. We drove south a bit outside of town to Loudon and was in totality for 2 minutes and 30 seconds which was incredible! My surgery went well. I had very little pain but a lot of swelling afterward and the following day. I still have some swelling but my face is looking normal again. It feels like I have cotton balls stuffed along my lower jaw line. I guess it’ll feel like that for a few weeks yet. I have restrictions for the next six weeks. Maybe, I’ll manage to drop a few pounds since I can’t eat anything but soft foods and liquids. lol We’ll see…
greyzoned/angelsbark
Wow that’s quite an eclectic mix of songs! I like them. I was especially intrigued by Teen Angel. That’s a very sad story. I also like the novelty song Alley Oop.
Stay is a classic and I wasn’t familiar with Maurice and the Zodiacs version.
I love One Hit Wonders. My A-Z next year is One Hit Wonders from the 70s. They’re so fun!
How was the eclipse for you??
Have a good week.
Michele at Angels Bark
Cathy Kennedy
Michele,
I’m delighted you enjoyed the groovy one-hit wonders in my first edition. It sounds like you have a great, fun theme already lined up for next year’s A to Z blog challenge. One-hit wonders from the 70s are sure to be a show stopper for many bloggers since a lot of us lived through and there’s a lot of good mewsic other than disco to come out that era, too.
The eclipse was awesome! I’m so happy we decided to drive the extra bit to see it. DD#2 and DS viewed the eclipse at DS’s employer located west just outside of Knoxville and in the path of totality. The dark phase was shorter than where we were but DD#2 did capture the eclipse with a special lens she got for her iPhone 7 which turned out nice. I just wished I had had the time to get a lens for my iPhone 5s. I did hold a pair of the eclipse glasses in front of my phone camera lens, most of which didn’t pick up anything but there was one shot where I did get a little something. It’s horribly blurry but you can see the moon shadow against the sun. 😀
Well, I’m heading back to bed this morning. I had oral surgery yesterday and the pain medicine I took last night must be in my system still because I’m pretty darn tired. I just got up to get DH off for work. I’ll be over to see you later in the day. Have a good week, my friend!
Myke Todd
One Hit Wonders have always fascinated me. This collection from when I was three to four years old, is really fun. I know them all, even though I do not remember when they were new. The first golden age of pop music, for me, was 1965 to 1969… So man single successes in that time frame…
Cathy Kennedy
Myke,
I remember some these earlier songs like you but later in the decade since I wasn’t born until 1961. There’s something magical about this old mewsic and I fear there will never see this sort of talent again. It’s great to see you. Thanks for stopping by!
Arlee Bird
My favorite of these one hit wonders is “Look for a Star” which was featured in the film Circus of Horrors. I used this song on a Battle of the Bands some time back and was surprised to find a number of Spanish language versions.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
Cathy Kennedy
Lee,
“Look For A Star” is a beautiful song but I didn’t remember it and I’m sure I even voted in your BoTB featuring it. I’ll have to check out your post again to see if I did and to check out the Spanish covers. I bet it’s pretty. Thanks for stopping by. I’ll see you soon!
Debbie D.
Hi Cathy; I remember all of those tunes. “Stay” was used in the “Dirty Dancing” soundtrack, one of my favourite movies. That total eclipse must have been a spectacular sight! We only had a partial one , here. Hope all goes well with your oral surgery. Best wishes!
Cathy Kennedy
Debbie,
I watched “Dirty Dancing” 3 or 4 years ago. The soundtrack is awesome and now that you pointed out that “Stay” is on it I remember. I totally forgot. Did watch the new made for TV “Dirty Dancing” movie (filmed in the western North Carolina mountains & Asheville) with Nicole Scherzinger? It was done pretty well. The only problem is I can’t figure out why they cast a chunky girl for “Babe” (Abigail Breslin). The only thing I can think of is she must have had a baby and carrying post-prego weight. It was obvious Colt Prattes (played Johnny Castle) had trouble with the lifts. She’s a great actress. The first thing I saw Abigail in is Zombieland. That was a fun movie.
Yes, the total eclipse was spectacular! It was great to watch the moon pass in front of the sun in increments until wah-lah a total eclipse. The light shooting around the moon’s edge was beautiful and I wished I had had the time to buy the appropriate camera lens to capture the moment but at least I have the experience. I’m not sure when the next total eclipse will pass us but I think I’m going to look into that, so I can be better prepared for it. 🙂
I will have the oral surgery sooner than later as previously planned for today. I’m having Pinhole Surgery done three of my lower teeth to correct recessed gums which expose these teeth to potential decay. Having good oral health means the whole body is usually healthier. As a kid, I had so much trouble with my teeth. I’m told as I surely can’t remember that I got a poor start in life when my baby teeth coming in black and I lost them prematurely. Supposedly, the reason for this is my mother’s prenatal care. She didn’t get enough iron. Of course, brushing teeth wasn’t emphasized when I was a little. I think I was in grade school before I anyone placed importance on brushing teeth. It seems someone came to my school giving a talk on the subject, then sent us home with this little red pill to dissolve in my mouth and served as an indicator of cavities. I’m not sure what the findings were but I know I had my share of them before I got married at 17. It wasn’t until after I got married that I really recall taking oral hygiene seriously – brushing, flossing, and regular dental checkups. My experience did teach me that I didn’t want my children to ever have to deal with the same problems and we were all the time instilling this in our children. They never had any cavities, too. So, I’m happy about that. Oh well, I’m sure my surgery will go well. It’s just gonna cost an arm and leg to get it done. I’ll have to wait until next year or the following year to have the four upper teeth fixed. That’s ok, though. My dentist says it’s not imperative to have it done immediately. Oh well…thanks for popping in for a visit, my friend!
Live and Learn
You are bringing back memories of more than just songs. Those red pill that you’d chew to see how well you were brushing your teeth. We did that exercise every year at school and I always had red all over my teeth.
Cathy Kennedy
I’m so glad you decided to join me and am happy to take you down memory lane a bit. It seems like we also did the red pills every year but that’s been too many years ago. lol I’ll be over for a visit later today. I need to get ready for my follow-up appointment with my dentist. 😉
Mike Spain
Neat songs! I never knew “Stay” was a cover.
Cathy Kennedy
Mike,
I didn’t know “Stay” was a cover, either. Digging around the Internet one is bound to learn something new. Thanks for dancing!
15andmeowing
Great choices for today.
Cathy Kennedy
Thanks for stopping by, Ellen! So glad you enjoyed my mewsic!
Colette S
I haven’t heard these and I’m always intrigued about the artistes that have these one hit wonders. I want to know what happened to them 10 Years after etc.
Thanks for sharing Cathy.
Hope you are having a great start with this week!
Eclipse!
Cathy Kennedy
Colette,
Perhaps, once I get my blogging game face on again I can resume my “Whatever Happened to” series highlighting some of these One-Hit Wonder groups. Thanks for dancing along with these popular classics from the 60s!
John Holton
“Alley Oop” was the first song played on WLS in Chicago when they became a pop music station on May 2, 1960, a full four weeks before it hit the Hot 100, according the The Blogger’s Best Friend.
Great idea for a theme! You’ve given me an idea for a series on Two for Tuesday!
Cathy Kennedy
John,
It’s funny how some of these one-hit wonders stayed in the charts for weeks and then through time remained popular, fun picks from the past. Well, I’m glad I provide ya with a little inspiration for your Two for Tuesday post. I will head over now to catch up and to check out your recent post, too. 🙂
John Holton
I’m trying to figure out how to approach it. Each week will have two artists, obviously…
Cathy Kennedy
John,
Is this a series you hope to enlist others to join in on your artists prompt? Are you considering going with the One-Hit Wonder approach for a particular year like I did in this post? Or, is this just something you’re trying to resolve for your own Two For Tuesday weekly spot? I’m interested in what your take is and when you plan to launch your new series. Please, keep me in the loop!
XmasDolly
Awwww you’ve made me feel a bit melancholy this morning. These are all tunes I would hear coming from my brother’s room cuz he’d be playing them a lot on his record player especially Mr. Custer. He loved that one & Stay was a stroll tune he practiced to to learn the dance and naturally I was his guinea pig. We were six years apart. My big brother always made me practice dancing with him, but he was a good guy to say the least. Thanks for the walk down memory lane. Truly it was tons of fun! YOU’VE ROCKED THE HOUSE MY FRIEND & THANKS FOR THE DANCE!!!! WOO HOO!
Cathy Kennedy
Marie, thank you for strolling with me this morning and I’m glad you enjoyed the mewsic. I’ll be over later to visit. I’m sorta AWOL in Blogosphere. I can comment ok using the WP app but I can’t easily leave a comment on other sites. So I’ll catch up with you tomorrow! Have a good day, my friend!
Birgit
The first song is sad but so good and who wouldn’t love Alley Oop:) the last song I didn’t realize it was a one hot wonder because it is so famous you would think they had many more. I will not be viewing the eclipse but will see it grow darker
Cathy Kennedy
Birgit, every mewsic decade as sad songs but Tom reminded me of several to hit the airwaves and made me wonder about the appeal. Yeah, you’d think Maurice Wm & the Zodiacs would’ve had more big hits with “Stay” being so widely known. Traffic in our area was crazy yesterday. Folks traveling through headed for Sweetwater TN where totality is at its max. We won’t go that far but will be about half an hour north. There’s only 10-12 secs difference and that’s ok by me. We don’t want to get caught up in the heaviest travel cluster. Have a nice day and thanks for visiting!
Thomas Anderson
Hi, Cathy!
I am appreciating your pin-up art more and more. Those vintage ladies really set the mood, especially when we are flashing all the way back to 1960. I am very familiar with these four #1 charting one-hit-wonders from that year. I remember hearing them played on the radio when I was age ten and I collected them a decade later when I got caught up in the oldies revival that was sweeping America. It was around that time that the Cruisin’ album series (to which I pay tribute on my blog) was first released and I bought every volume. “Alley Oop” and “Stay” are back to back leading off side two of Cruisin’ 1960:
http://web.archive.org/web/20150611140946/http://leemichaelwithers.tripod.com/cruisin60.htm
There are few songs more dated than “Teen Angel.” The weepy ballad falls into the general category of “teen tragedy” and, at the time of its release, was intended to be taken seriously. In modern times it produces laughs and groans. 1960 was a big year for teen tragedy hits because later that year another tearjerker, “Tell Laura I Love Her” by Ray Peterson, a story about a young stock car racer killed on the track, reached #7 on the chart. Early in 1961 The Everly Brothers achieved a #1 hit in the UK and a top 10 hit in the U.S. with “Ebony Eyes,” the tragic tale of a guy who loses his gal in a plane crash. In 1964 J. Frank Wilson milked the genre with “Last Kiss,” another car crash song in which the girl dies. “Last Kiss” topped the Cash Box chart and halted at #2 on Billboard. By 1964 the Beatles had arrived stateside and mewsical tastes were changing. From then on most teen tragedy records, if made at all, were rendered in a tongue-in-cheek style and not meant to be taken seriously. They included Jan and Dean’s hit “Dead Man’s Curve” and “Leader Of The Pack” by the Shangri-Las, both released that same year.
“Alley Oop” and “Mr. Custer” are great examples of the many novelty songs that were popular in the late 50s and early 60s. “Stay” by Mairice Wms. and the Zodiacs is fine up tempo doo-wop and is therefore my favorite of the bunch. “Stay” also has one of the shortest TRT’s (total running times) for a #1 record, clocking in at only 1:50. Lesley Gore’s “Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows” is a super short hit with a running time of only 1:37!
You guys are lucky to be on the edge of the solar eclipse path. I think we will experience a 72% total eclipse down here. Be careful not to look directly at the phenomenon today or you might damage your eyes. I hope your oral surgery goes well this week. I will be thinking about you, dear friend Cathy. Take care and I hope to see you soon!
Cathy Kennedy
Tom, you’ve provided a plethora of teen tragedy songs. I know many of these tunes, too. I wonder why there was such an appeal to these moody songs. I like them ok but I prefer uptempo mewsic that makes me smile & move. I’m away from home. I decided to head out with DH to work this morning. The car is my make shift home office. The WP app make responding easier than trying to go through my site like a visitor. I will use this time to sketch or nap or pop in on a friend in Blogosphere. I ordered us some of the safety glasses for viewing the eclipse and I will attempt to use another pair as a filter for my iPhone to capture the event. It won’t be magnificent but if I get a little something then that’ll be cool! Enjoy the partial eclipse viewing, my friend & thanks for stopping by!
Mary B
Fun selection today, Cathy! Man, if I had really been on the ball, I would have done a post related to the eclipse. I only get a partial at my place, but that’s enough for me. As for the 60’s One Hit Wonders – I am torn. I can’t decide between Alley Oop or Stay. Have a great week, and I hope all goes well with the oral surgery.
~Mary
Cathy Kennedy
Mary, thanks for dancing with me. I’m using my iPhone to respond this morning since I’m not at home. The novelty songs of the 60s always make me grin. I had a blast pulling together & revisiting my birth decade. By the time I heard Ally Op or any of these I was a wee tot. I barely remember my uncles or aunts playing some of this mewsic. No doubt my uncles would’ve been all goofy with me singing along with these quirky tunes which made it funnier for me. I’ll hop by your place soon. Have a good day!