Brothers In Arms

Artist: The Kalin Twins
Song: The Meaning Of The Blues (a-side) (b-side is Why Don't You Believe Me)
Label: Decca 9-30977 (Pink Label, Sample Copy - Not For Sale)
Number: 108 044
Songwriters: Don Wolf - Ben Raleigh
Time: 2:10
Released: September 1959

And now, part two of a special sibling's post. This one features two brothers - two twin brothers, to be exact! The Kalin Twins, Harold (known as Hal), and Herbert (known as Herb, both born on February 16th, 1934), remain the archetypal one-hit wonders. Their only top ten chart hit - When - may have cruelly prophesied the question as to their further success. Originally discovered by Clint Ballard Jr, the sibling duo had a couple of early recording flops. However, in 1958, after searching through piles of writers' demo tapes, their management discovered the song called When, written by Paul Evans and Jack Reardon. It got to Number 5 in the U.S., and sold over two million copies in the process. They did manage to have a modest follow-up hit with Forget Me Not, which peaked at Number 12 later that year.

Eventually, disillusioned with no chart success, the brothers returned to their day jobs, with each pursuing college degrees. They did not perform again until 1977, when a mutual friend booked them to appear at his new night club. Sometimes they performed with their younger sibling, Jack, and thus appeared as the Kalin Brothers. They disappeared again as a performing act, until 1989. Then, their one-time support act, Cliff Richard, invited them to play at his Wembley Stadium The Event concerts, as part of a sequence paying homage to the 1950's TV pop show Oh Boy! Harold Kalin was killed in an automobile accident, on August 24th, 2005, at the age of 71, whilst his slightly younger brother, Herbert, died as a result of a heart attack less than eleven months later, on July 21st, 2006. They were still performing up to the time of Hal's death.

Some of their other records were Jumpin' Jack, Walkin' To School, Three O'Clock Thrill, Oh! My Goodness, It's Only The Beginning and Sweet Sugar Lips.

In today's record, perhaps in several of their others, too, they sound a lot like The Everly Brothers - both in voice and musical arrangements. Which was not necessarily a bad thing! The Meaning Of The Blues, an upbeat little number which contrasts with the style the title would have you thinking of, is an instant classic duet. The brothers' harmonies are perfect and their musical accompaniement is first rate. So, download and listen to a great song that could have climbed to the top of the charts, but didn't, The Meaning Of The Blues, by The Kalin Twins. So when are you going to do it? You know you have to have this one, too!

Two.... Two.... Two Sisters In One Song

Artist: Patience and Prudence
Song: Heavenly Angel (a-side) (b-side is Little Wheel)
Label: Liberty F-55125
Number: 45-LB-820
Songwriters: G. Motola - J. Marascalco
Time: 2:00
Released: 1958

This post is part one of a special sibling-related double header. The first one features sisters named Patience and Prudence - the next one will feature brothers. Most of you will remember their big hit entitled Tonight You Belong To Me. Their story begins in 1956.

14-year-old Patience and 11-year-old Prudence McIntyre were singing a song they had learned at camp the previous summer one day in April 1956, while the family was driving home from a visit to friends in Malibu. The song, written and recorded as a waltz in 1927, was Tonight You Belong To Me. Recalling her first exposure to the song, Patience explains, "Tonight was an around-the-campfire tune that was already in 4/4 when we picked it up. It was Mom's idea to record it for the grandparents." The demo they cut with their dad Mark came to the attention Si Waronker at Liberty Records. It was recut and then Mr. Waronker took possession of the tapes. The McIntyre family was going away for a two-week vacation, but in the meantime, Liberty Records pressed their single and it became a huge local hit. They were completely unprepared for the surprise that greeted them when they returned home. Thanks to a Boston disc jockey who had played the record fourteen times in one day, Tonight You Belong To Me had broken wide open. By September it was on Billboard magazine's national pop record chart, peaking at Number 4 on October 6th and selling 200,000 copies. This led to the follow-up hit of Gonna Get Along Without You Now b/w The Money Tree, which rose to a respectable Number 12 on the charts.

But, after recording several more singles in their vintage/pop style, Patience and Prudence would not have any more hits. In 1958, Liberty tried backing the sisters with a rock and roll combo, but these recordings didn't dent the charts. Later in 1959, they were paired with a young singer named Mark Clifford, also a Liberty Records artist. These recordings didn't fare any better. Then, in 1964, they had one more stab at recording and produced four sides for the Los Angeles-based Chattahoochee label. These songs failed to garner the attention they deserved and the sisters' career effectively ended. With the exception of a Dick Clark TV special in 1978, they never performed again.

Which brings us to today's song, one of their failed attempts to re-enter the charts in 1958. Several of their follow-up recordings to their two hits were great records, but just missed catching on with the general public at large for some unknown reason. Such is the music business, I suppose. Heavenly Angel is quite a good little tune. The combo backing them manages to convey the sound of a much larger band and the girls' themselves provided counter harmonies. So, if you remember these sisters from their hits in 1956, you're sure to like this recording of Heavenly Angel by Patience and Prudence. Download this great tune and tonight, they're impeccable harmonies will belong to you!

What Happens In Vegas....

Artist: Louis Prima and Keely Smith
Song: The Apple Core Song (b-side) (a-side is The Apple Core Song)
Label: Dot 45-16221
Number: MB-15893
Songwriters: Mustapha (?) - English words by Jackie Barnett
Time: 2:45
Released: June 23rd, 1961

Louis Prima and Keely Smith were stalwarts of the Las Vegas lounge-act scene in the 1950's; right there along with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and the rest of the Rat Pack. Louis' career started back in 1920's, with his seven-piece New Orleans style jazz band. Then, adapting to the changing musical climates, he successively led a swing combo in the 1930's, a big band in the 1940's, a Vegas lounge act in the 1950's, and a pop-rock band in the 1960's. In each of his musical endeavors, he incorporated his exuberant personality into his act. In 1949, he added Keely Smith as the girl singer in his big band, but times were again changing. The popularity of the big band sound had started to wane, so he asked a good friend to get him a gig at the Sahara Lounge in Vegas. Louis Prima met his backup band for the show for the first time once he arrived. Sam Butera was a saxophonist he knew and instructed him to gather a few musicians for the debut show. Once there, the backing band became known as Sam Butera and The Witnesses, who also provide the musical accompaniment on today's song.

Keely Smith showed a natural aptitude for singing at a very young age. At 14, she started singing with a naval air station band led by Saxie Dowell. At 15, she got her first paying job with the Earl Bennett Band. Keely made her professional debut with Louis Prima in 1949; they were married in 1953 and had two daughters. Smith played the straight guy in the duo to Prima's wild antics and they recorded many popular duets. Most famous of them being That Old Black Magic in 1958, which was awarded the first-ever Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Vocal Group or Chorus.

By 1961, according to Keely, the couple had begun to drift farther and farther apart. One night, he refused to conduct for one of her performances, delegating the task to Sam Butera instead. A few days later they were in court, petitioning for divorce. Today's song must surely have been one of the last recordings they made together! She then signed with Reprise Records, where her musical director was Nelson Riddle.

Louis Prima (born December 7th, 1910) died on August 24th, 1978 in New Orleans of brain tumor surgery complications. Keely Smith (born March 9th, 1932), continues to perform and release albums that are critically acclaimed.

Today's record is an anomaly, in that both sides are the identical same track. I have chosen one side, not absolutely sure it was the b-side or not. But, it doesn't matter - both sides sound identical to me. Despite the fact that this was probably their last record together, Louis and Keely sound tight and are working together as a team. It's a peppy little number from France, translated to English for our market. If the male voice in this record sounds familiar, it's probably because Louis also did the voice of the orangutan King Louie in the 1967 Walt Disney movie Jungle Book. So be sure and get this happy little number called The Apple Core Song, by Louis Prima and Keely Smith. I can almost guarantee you'll go "ape" over it!

Paradise Lost

I've been glancing through my record collection lately, scouring it for suitable songs to post here at Music For Every Mood. And it occurred to me that I had forgotten all about how nice it was when you could buy them and hold them in your hands and smell the newness on them. Do you remember when you would get it home and you pulled it out of the sleeve for the first time? How it glistened in the light? How perfectly round and black it was? And then you played it on your record player and it sounded just like how you had heard it on the radio. I miss those days, don't you? A 45 r.p.m. record was so personal. Just two songs and they were all yours to play and enjoy any time you wanted to. You could play it ten times in a row if you wanted to. I can remember playing a few that many times when I first got them because they were so good - unlike 99% of the music released these days - but that's another story. There was this store I used to go to where I bought singles, and every now and then they'd put them on sale. Who doesn't like a bargain? One time they seemed to be involved in a price war with somebody else that sold them because every week, they'd be just a little lower in price. Finally, they got down to about .19 cents apiece and I just went crazy and bought practically the whole top 40 because they were on sale. I didn't even like all the groups, it's just that they were so nice and cheap! I mean, Vangelis? All right, I suppose, but I don't seem to play that one much these days.

Back in the day they were sold, I can remember looking through the singles shelves in stores and seeing what was in the charts at that moment. Sometimes there would be a current recording that I hadn't thought would have been charted so high, so it was a pleasant surprise to find ones like that. Other times, the particular song I wanted would be sold out for the longest time. But, I would go back when they had a new stock in and finally get my copy. And some of them had picture sleeves - so nice!

Young people just don't know the joys of being able to buy singles. Sure, they used to have cassette singles and cd singles for awhile, but that practice seems to have been all but abandoned. Record companies these days only seem interested in getting you to buy a whole cd when you only want one song. And that is highly overpriced. I mean, $18.00 for one album? Those little silver discs all look alike and they have no personality to them. Yes, youngsters of today miss out on a phenomenon that drove the industry for nearly a century and I think it's a shame. They even offer music for download, at usually $1 per song, and the kids download them to their digital players and never have anything real. What's so great about that? If your player or computer crashes, you've lost all your music! But, with records - albums and 45's - you own them for life. I have scads of singles that are over 50 years old - they're older than I am and they still look practically brand new!

So, that is why I'm glad each and every time I can post a new song here on Music For Every Mood. Not only may it be one that most people have never heard or didn't get to buy when it originally came out, it's just such a pleasure handling them and recording them for all my devoted readers here. Like I said before, there's just something quite pleasureable about 45 r.p.m. records. If you ever bought one in your life, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. One more quick story about a 45 I bought when I was young. I can remember buying it and finding out that it was actually a two-sided hit, so I got two great songs I had heard on the radio for the price of one. I was with my father while he ran some errands in the big city, so I couldn't play my new record until I got home. But, I sure took it out of the sleeve many times and fawned over it repeatedly. They were great songs - and now they were mine to play and enjoy whenever I wanted!

I think it's a shame that the days of the vinyl 45 r.p.m. record are past us. If you have fond memories of them of a particular one you might have owned or wanted to own like I do, please share your memories in the comment section for others. Maybe we won't be able to get record companies to bring them back, but perhaps we can at least keep their memory alive for others to know and learn about. I have one final memory to add to this post. Did anybody out there ever get a record, only to find out it was not black like all the rest? You know what I'm talking about - colored vinyl. Now these records were even more special because a lot of times, they were clear and you could see right through them! The world would take on the color of your record and what a glorious world it was, back then. In honor of those special moments, I'd like to share a picture of one that I got a long time ago. It's not a song I'll be posting here on Music For Every Mood, but I hope it brings back another memory or two of things past for all my readers here. Here is a Grand Funk Railroad 45 r.p.m. recording of We're An American Band - on colored, not black vinyl:

And here is a clear vinyl 45, something you don't see very often, by The Beatles:

The Switchblade Kid

Artist: Sal Mineo
Song: Party Time (a-side) (b-side is The Words That I Whisper)
Label: Epic 5-9246
Number: ZSP 42434
Songwriters: J. Sheldon - H. Lane
Time: 2:09
Released: 1957

And now for today's second post featuring Hollywood actors who sing. Sal Mineo also began his formal musical/recording career in 1957, but instead of attempting calypso, he chose (or his managers did) the relatively new genre of rock and roll. It seems to have suited him well, for he had what appears to have been at least three songs that charted.

Everyone knows about his short life and tragic death, (born on January 10th, 1939 – murdered on February 12th, 1976), and his greatest achievements, that of an actor in such memorable films as Rebel Without A Cause (1955), Giant (1956), the Disney adventure Tonka (1958), A Private Affair (1959), The Gene Krupa Story (1959), Exodus (1960), The Longest Day (1962 - also a film in which our other featured artist Robert Mitchum was in), Who Killed Teddy Bear? (1965), Krakatoa, East Of Java (1969), 80 Steps To Jonah (1969), and Escape From The Planet Of The Apes (1971), but what many don't know, he had a short stint as a pop idol, in the late-1950's.

Sal already had a solid acting career when he started putting out records. Before he released his first single, he had appeared in several major productions on Broadway and in films. When he turned to rock roll, his first efforts were equally as successful. In 1957, he released the singles, Start Movin' (In My Direction) and Lasting Love. The former broke into the Top Ten and remained in the Top 40 for more than three months, while the latter hit number 27. He proceeded to release an album through Epic in the U.S. and Philips in Great Britain. His other singles included You Shouldn't Do That, Little Pigeon, Love Affair, and today's song, Party Time.

Now, I'm not saying he had a voice that rivalled Elvis, or the ability to write classic songs such as Buddy Holly, but he did possess a fair amount of likability in his style of singing, and catchy songs seem to have been picked especially for him. You can't help but get into groove of Party Time as he sings about inviting a girlfriend over one night "to play records" at his house while his mother is away. So, if you like early rock and roll and catchy beats, you're sure to enjoy Party Time by Sal Mineo. Start movin' (in the direction) of the handy download link I've provided and make this single part of your lasting collection!

The Ballad Of Robert Mitchum

Artist: Robert Mitchum
Song: What Is This Generation Coming To? (a-side) (b-side is Mama Looka Boo Boo)
Label: Capitol Promotional Debut Record F3672
Number: 45-16598
Songwriters: Don Raye - Joseph Burke
Time: 2:41
Released: March 20th, 1957

Today's post is the first of two in a Hollywood-related theme. Both feature iconoclastic actors from Tinseltown's 1950's, when both performers took up recording for the first time. The first one features tough guy Robert Mitchum doing calypso. Calypso? Yes, you heard correctly! A little on the man himself first.

Robert Mitchum was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on August 6th, 1917. His father, James, was crushed to death in a railyard accident in Charleston, South Caroline, in February 1919, when Robert was less than 2 years old. Throughout his childhood, he was known as a prankster, often involved in fistfights and mischief. After being expelled from high school, he travelled throughout the country on railroad cars, taking a number of jobs including one as a ditch-digger for the Civilian Conservation Corps and as a professional boxer. He experienced numerous adventures during his years as one of the Depression era's "wild boys of the road." He arrived in Long Beach, California, in 1936, and during this time he worked as a ghostwriter for the astrologer Carroll Righter. It was sister Julie who convinced Robert to join the local theater guild with her. In his years with the Player's Guild of Long Beach, he made a living as a stagehand and occasional bit player in plays. He also wrote several short pieces which were performed by the guild. After securing work as an extra in movies, he found steady work in the Hopalong Cassidy series of B-westerns. From this humble beginning, he graduated into bigger and more important roles until finally landing onscreen during the height of the Film Noir era. Here, his star shown brightly and he came into his own. He rode this wave of popularity into the 1960's, where his career was marked by a number of lesser films and missed opportunities. Some of his more memorable motion pictures include The Locket (1946), Out Of The Past (1947), Rachel And The Stranger (1948), The Big Steal (1949), Where Danger Lives (1950), My Forbidden Past (1951), His Kind Of Woman (1951), The Racket (1951), Macao (1952), One Minute To Zero (1952), Angel Face (1952), River Of No Return (1954), The Night Of The Hunter (1955), Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), Thunder Road (1958), The Sundowners (1960), Cape Fear (1962), The Longest Day (1962), El Dorado (1966), 5 Card Stud (1968), The Friends Of Eddie Coyle (1973), Farewell, My Lovely (1975), Midway (1976), The Big Sleep (1978), and many, many others. I'm sure readers of this blog will have seen about as many of these as I have - I've always been such a big fan of his movies!

Which brings us to one of the lesser known aspects of Mitchum's career - and that was his forays into music, both as a singer and composer. After hearing traditional calypso music while filming Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison in the Caribbean island of Tobago, he recorded Calypso - Is Like So... in March 1957. On this album, which the song in today's post hails from, he emulates the calypso sound and style, even adopting the style's unique pronunciations and slang. In 1958, he wrote and recorded a song for his film Thunder Road, entitled The Ballad Of Thunder Road, and it reached a respectable #69 on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart. He waited until 1967 to record another album, but the resulting follow-up, That Man, Robert Mitchum, Sings, produced a #9 Country hit called Little Old Wine Drinker Me. It's follow-up, You Deserve Each Other, also charted on the Billboard Country Singles Chart.

Robert Mitchum, the 20th Century Renaissance Man, died on July 1st, 1997, but not before being regarded by critics as one of the finest actors of the Golden Age of Hollywood. This post seems to have turned out a bit longer than normal, so I'll wind it all up by saying get Robert Mitchum doing calypso music as he sings about modern teenagers in What Is This Generation Coming To? I assure you, you won't be disappointed in it!

15 Minutes Of Fame - Or Tragedy?

Artist: Joan Weber
Song: Let Me Go, Lover (a-side) (b-side is Marionette)
Label: Columbia 4-40366
Number: ZSP 34068
Songwriters: Al Hill - Jenny Lou Carson
Time: 2:21
Released: 1954

Today's post is one I've been meaning to upload for a long time, but it's such a sad story when you know what happened behind the scenes, that I found it hard. Joan Weber was only 18 years old when she recorded this song and it was to be her only hit. Poor Joan didn't even get any part of her 15 minutes of fame.

She was born on December 12th, 1935, in Paulsboro, New Jersey, and she was just 18 when manager Eddie Joy escorted her to New York City's legendary Brill Building to audition for RCA Records. Only a few months before this, she had been happily singing weekend dates with her husband's dance band in and around her home town of Paulsboro (pop. 7,842). After recording a demo of the song Marionette, it somehow found the ear of Columbia Records A&R man Mitch Miller, who quickly signed her to a contract. Although Joan and her bandleader husband were due to give birth to their first child in late 1954, Miller nevertheless ushered her into the studio to record Let Me Go, Lover, a rewrite of Jenny Lou Carson and Al Hill's anti-alcohol screed Let Me Go, Demon. On November 15th, 1954, a visibly pregnant Weber performed the song on the television showcase Studio One, and it emerged as an overnight hit. A prescient Miller made sure Let Me Go, Lover was stocked in record stores across the U.S. prior to Weber's TV appearance, and the disc sold over 100,000 copies in it's first week of release. It eventually found it's way to the top of the Billboard pop chart in January 1955, where it spent 4 weeks at the number one spot. Here's where the story takes a horrible twist.

The birth of their daughter Terry Lynn nevertheless forced Weber onto the sidelines just as the single peaked and her fame was at it's highest apex and here she was, unable to promote her career through public appearances. Consequently, the song was the only recording of hers to chart, and she was dropped from Columbia's roster soon after. She released only a handful of follow-up efforts before abandoning her music career altogether. From that point on in her life, I couldn't locate any facts about her life, except one. Joan Weber died on May 13th, 1981, of heart failure while confined to an Ancora, New Jersey mental institution - she was just 45 years old. What a sad ending for a woman whose career had such a brilliant beginning. One can only assume that depression set in soon after the events surrounding Let Me Go, Lover unfolded and it led to her confinement in a mental home.

In spite of all that, please download and listen to this song. She has an impassioned style of delivery that really makes me believe she wants the man in the song to release her:

"Oh, let me go, let me go, let me go, lover,

Let me be, set me free from your spell."

Let Me Go, Lover was an immensely popular song and inspired many cover versions by such artists as Patti Page, Teresa Brewer, Peggy Lee and Sunny Gale. It was such a huge hit in early 1955, that Lucille Ball even did a few bars of it on her television program I Love Lucy, on March 18th. But, this is the original version, and as far as I'm concerned, the best. With all the tragedy that surrounded the singer's life and this particular song, how could you not want to hear her plaintive cry for release as Joan Weber pleads Let Me Go, Lover? Listen to this song and then remember a sad, young lady whose fate it was to leave the world too soon.