Category: 1955-1959

“The ABC’s of Love” (1956) – Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers

“The ABC’s of Love” (1956) – Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers * Written by George Goldner and Richard Barrett * 45: “The ABS’s of Love” / “Share” * LP: The Teenagers Featuring Frankie Lymon * Label: Gee

The Motown label must have had a hunch in ’69 that their new group, the Jackson 5, would be the Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers of their day. No surprise, then, that those role models’ catalog would get drawn from as inspiration right off the bat. At 1:10, tenor saxophone session ace Jimmy Bryant quotes “Bali Hai” from South Pacific.

“Blue Denims” (1959) – Deviny James

“Blue Denims” (1959) – Deviny James * Written by Thora Johnson * 45: “Blue Denims” / “Little Girl” * Label: Beta

Deviny James was an alias for Jim Pewter, who became better known by his given name as a DJ on KMET-LA and later Armed Forces Radio. “Blue Denims”—a title that may have aided in endearing him to Gene Vincent, for whom he later wrote a song called “The Story of the Rockers” (1969)—came out on the Beta label as the flipside to “Little Girl” in 1959. Check out the scorching guitar solo by session ace Larry Hulley and the disembodied backup voices on loan from the house on haunted hill. (Thanks to Jerry Richards for sending me a copy of this one.)

“The River’s Edge” (1957) – Bob Winn

“The River’s Edge” (1957) – Bob Winn * Written by Louis Forbes and Bobby Troup * 45: “The River’s Edge” / “Only Trust Your Heart” * Label: Imperial
 
Info is scarce about the mannered singer Bob Winn, who recorded a handful of singles for Imperial to tepid reviews from Billboard. (He’s presumably not the same Bob Winn who produced the TV show Real People.) A 1957 single of his featured two movie themes, “Only Trust Your Heart” for the Dean Martin vehicle Ten Thousand Bedrooms, and the title theme for The River’s Edge. The latter film starred Anthony Quinn and Ray Milland, who both seem twice Debra Paget’s age, but wrangle over her in the Mexican wild all the same. The song was written by Bobby Troup (“Route 66,” “The Three Bears”) and Lou Forbes, with eerie orchestra and chorus arrangements (featuring high female voices that foretell death) by Jimmie Haskell, who would later do strings for the hit versions of “Ode to Billie Joe” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” The version as heard in the film plays below.