The Toppermost of the Poppermost - UK Number Ones : part 1 - The 50s

[machotrouts]

Passable bit of escalating anguish. Oh sorry I thought I was in the election thread

[Pranet]

Yeah I like the Conway Twitty number a bit more than I thought I would when it started.

[Pranet]

The bad thing about Hoots Mon it that it keeps getting lodged in a repeating loop in my head now.

[daf]

A Girl Named Johnny Cash, it's . . .

79.  Jane Morgan - The Days The Rains Came



From : 18 – 24 January 1959
Weeks : 1
Flip side : Le Jour Ou La Pluie Viendra

Jane Morgan was born Florence Catherine Currier in Newton, Massachusetts on 3 May, 1924.

After graduating from Seabreeze High School, she was accepted into New York's prestigious Juilliard School of Music. Intending to become an opera singer, she studied opera by day and performed whenever possible.

In 1944, while she was at Juilliard, orchestra leader Art Mooney heard her perform and hired her. Mooney changed her name to Jane Morgan by taking the first name of one of his vocalists, Janie Ford, and the last name of another, Marian Morgan.

In 1948, French impresario Bernard Hilda selected her to accompany him to Paris. Morgan began to appear regularly at the Club des Champs-Elysées, performing (two shows per night) American songs to mostly French audiences. Morgan and Hilda soon opened a new weekly hour-long television show and she began recording in 1949 on the French Polydor label.

In 1952 she returned to New York with regular performances in upscale nightclubs and her own radio show on NBC, backed by the 50-piece NBC Symphony Orchestra.

She began singing at Lou Walters' Latin Quarter in New York where she was noticed by Dave Kapp, who had recently founded a new recording label, Kapp Records. To counter her reputation as a French singer, Kapp had Morgan record "Baseball, Baseball", and her first album release was entitled "The American Girl from Paris".

In 1957 Kapp brought The Troubadors, a virtually unknown group of five musicians, to his studio. Kapp asked Morgan to join The Troubadors and sing "Fascination". Although written in 1904 by F. D. Marchetti as "Valse Tzigane", the song was modified in Paris at the Folies Bergère as a "strip" number.

In 1958, Morgan was one of six contestants in A Song for Europe to determine the UK's entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 1959. She sang "If Only I Could Live My Life Again", the song was not selected, but it gave her her second UK hit, reaching #27 in the charts. The chosen UK entry for that year was Pearl Carr And Teddy Johnson - Sing Little Birdie

In 1958 Kapp released "The Day the Rains Came" (a French song by Gilbert Becaud called "Le jour où la pluie viendra") with Morgan singing in English on one side and in French on the other. It reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in early 1959.

In 1960, she recorded Romantica - the English-language version of the 6th placed Italian entry for the 1960 Eurovision Song Contest, performed by Renato Rascel). The recording was her third and final UK hit - reaching #39 at the end of July. She continued recording for Kapp until 1962, her last album being What Now My Love, released later that year.

Morgan ended her association with Kapp Records after eight years, and signed to Colpix for three albums. Morgan's second Colpix LP from 1964, 'The Last Time I Saw Paris', garnered excellent reviews and featured her version of 'C'est si bon'.

In 1966, Morgan recorded the song that she had performed at the Academy Awards, I Will Wait for You, written for her by Michel Legrand.

In 1970, her final LP,' Jane Morgan in Nashville', included her answer to Johnny Cash's song, "A Boy Named Sue", titled "A Girl Named Johnny Cash", which she performed on Cash's television series. Her final single, "Jamie Boy, released in 1971 failed to trouble the charts.

She retired from performing in 1973, but has appeared occasionally over the years at special events and benefits. She has in recent years worked as a production assistant to her husband, Jerry Weintraub, on films including the remake of Ocean's Eleven.

At 94, she divides her time between Malibu, California, Palm Springs, and Kennebunkport, Maine.

"The Day the Rains Came" was an adaptation of the French language song "Le jour où la pluie viendra", written by Pierre Delanoë (lyrics), and Gilbert Bécaud (music). The English lyrics were written by Carl Sigman.

Jane Morgan's version of the song reached No. 1 in the UK, spending 16 weeks on the chart overall,and reached No. 21 in the US, No. 4 in Canada, and No. 7 on in Norway.

Other Versions include :
Gilbert Bécaud (1957)  /  Dalida (1957)  /  Raymond Lefèvre et son Orchestra (1958) / Helen Shapiro (1962)

In 1959, a German language version was released by Dalida, titled "Am Tag als der Regen kam", which reached No. 1 in Germany.

On This Day :

21 January : Cecil B. DeMille, American filmmaker, dies of heart failure at 77
22 January : Linda Blair (The Exorcist), born in St. Louis, Missouri
22 January : Mike Hawthorn dies in a car accident on the A3 Guildford bypass less than three months after winning the Formula One World Championship.
23 January : Earl Falconer, (UB40), born in Meriden, Warwickshire
24 January : Vic Reeves, comedian, born James Roderick Moir in Leeds, Yorkshire

[purlieu]

Bit less dramatic than the title suggests to me. Or maybe I'm just imagining it as a Tangerine Dream track or something.

[Satchmo Distel]

The Conway Twitty track sounds like doo wop to my ears. Jane Morgan's track could have been from 10 years earlier; no contemporary relevance at all.

[machotrouts]

The title does sound enticingly apocalyptic. Then it turns out the song is basically about gardening. (Speaking of which, it sounds a lot like 'The Garden of Eden' from a bit earlier in the thread. The instrumentation, the grandeur, the "When you walk in the GARRRdennn"/"The day that the RAINNNS came dowwwwn" bit...)

Jane Morgan must be one of the most forgotten #1 havers of this era, right? I have her on my Derby Dead Pool #1 Hits team, and unusually for a 95-year-old, she's one of my few picks not to have been chosen by a single other player. Not entirely sure she'd even get the requisite obit from a national news source to earn me points. Probably just don't bother dying Jane. Not worth it.

[daf]

Pinching all the pollen from the Corned-beef flowers, its . . .

80.  Elvis Presley - I Got Stung



From : 25 January – 14 February 1959
Weeks : 3
Double A-side : Elvis Presley - One Night

The Story So Far :

On January 10, 1956, Presley made his first recordings for RCA in Nashville.  The session produced the moody, unusual "Heartbreak Hotel", released as a single on 27 January.

Parker booked Presley on CBS's Stage Show for six appearances over two months. The program, produced in New York, was hosted on alternate weeks by big band leaders and brothers Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey. After his first appearance, on January 28, Presley stayed in town to record at RCA's New York studio. The sessions yielded eight songs, including a cover of Carl Perkins' rockabilly anthem "Blue Suede Shoes".

RCA released Presley's self-titled debut album on 23 March. Joined by five previously unreleased Sun recordings, its seven recently recorded tracks were of a broad variety. It became the first rock and roll album to top the Billboard chart, a position it held for 10 weeks.

On April 3, Presley made the first of two appearances on NBC's Milton Berle Show. His performance, on the deck of the USS Hancock in San Diego, California, prompted cheers and screams from an audience of sailors and their dates.

Twelve weeks after its original release, "Heartbreak Hotel" became Presley's first number-one pop hit, and Presley began a two-week residency at the New Frontier Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Amid his Vegas tenure, Presley, who had serious acting ambitions, signed a seven-year contract with Paramount Pictures.

The second Milton Berle Show appearance came on June 5 at NBC's Hollywood studio. During the performance, Presley abruptly halted an uptempo rendition of "Hound Dog" with a wave of his arm and launched into a slow, grinding version accentuated with energetic, exaggerated body movements. Presley's gyrations created a storm of controversy. Television critics were outraged: Jack Gould of The New York Times wrote, "Mr. Presley has no discernible singing ability. The New York Daily News opined that popular music "has reached its lowest depths in the 'grunt and groin' antics of one Elvis Presley. ... Elvis, who rotates his pelvis ... gave an exhibition that was suggestive and vulgar, tinged with the kind of animalism that should be confined to dives and bordellos".

The Berle shows drew such high ratings that Presley was booked for an appearance on NBC's Steve Allen Show in New York. Allen, no fan of rock and roll, introduced a "new Elvis" in a white bow tie and black tails. Presley sang "Hound Dog" to a basset hound wearing a top hat and bow tie.  Presley would refer back to the Allen show as the most ridiculous performance of his career. The next day, Presley recorded "Hound Dog", along with "Any Way You Want Me" and "Don't Be Cruel".

Allen's show with Presley had, for the first time, beaten CBS's Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings. Sullivan booked Presley for three appearances for an unprecedented $50,000. The first, on September 9, 1956, was seen by approximately 60 million viewers. Presley's performance of his forthcoming single, the ballad "Love Me Tender", prompted a million advance orders.

"I Got Stung" was written by Aaron Schroeder and David Hill and published by Elvis Presley's company Gladys Music, Inc.. A double A-side with "One Night", it was number one in the UK in 1959.

Presley recorded this, his final song of the 1950s, on June 11, 1958, when he went to Nashville during his army stint, as he was preparing to set sail for Germany.

It was one of a number of Elvis Presley songs to be re-released in the United Kingdom in 2005 and it went to No. 1 again, in a double A-side release with "One Night".

"One Night" was written by Dave Bartholomew, Pearl King, and Anita Steinman.

The original recording of the song by Smiley Lewis, for Imperial Records, is sometimes titled "One Night of Sin", in line with the original lyrics. The single reached No.11 on the Billboard R&B chart in early 1956.

Presley recorded a version of the song with its original lyrics on January 18, 1957, but this version would not be released until 1983. Both Elvis' manager and record company had reservations about the suggestive lyrics. Elvis did not give up on the song. He continued to play with it during his spare time on the set of Loving You, finally rewriting the lyrics that he felt were holding the song captive, changing "One night of sin is what I'm now paying for" into "One night with you is what I'm now praying for." Presley's recording credited Anita Steinman as an additional co-writer, with Bartholomew and King.

On February 23, 1957, at Radio Recorders in Los Angeles, he showed up with his new lyrics, feeling sure they would meet his label's approval. It was issued as a single in October 1958 and peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's singles chart. The song was published by Elvis Presley Music.

It was his last single to be issued on 78 RPM records in the United States. On 12 February 1959, it became the first song to reach No. 1 on the Irish Music Charts Top 10, when they were being printed in the Evening Herald.

Other Versions include :
Fats Domino (1961)  / Jeannie C. Riley (1972)  /  Mud (1975)  /  Guana Batz (1988)  /  Joe Cocker (1989)  /  Billy Ray Cyrus (2006)

On This Day :

28 January : Dave Sharp, (The Alarm), born in Kersal, Salford, Lancashire
29 January : Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" released.
3 February : Lol Tolhurst, (The Cure), born Laurence Andrew Tolhurst in Horley, Surrey
3 February : "The Day the Music Died" : plane crash kills musicians Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, J. P. Richardson ('The Big Bopper') and pilot near Clear Lake Iowa.
5 February : "Redhead" opens at 46th St Theater NYC
7 February : Fidel Castro proclaims new Cuban constitution
7 February : "Whoop-Up" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 56 performances
12 February : Omar Hakim, drummer, born in NYC, New York

[kalowski]

I love One Night. the version on the '68 Comeback Special is indeed special.

[machotrouts]

Somehow, "Uh huh. YEAH. Uh huh. YEAH." might be my single favourite hook in any #1 so far. You know I like it when I crack out the BBCode.

Going by their listener counts on Last.fm and Spotify, 'One Night' seems to be much more fondly remembered (or at least just remembered) than 'I Got Stung', but that's just because people like being wrong en masse. Oh sorry I thought I was in the election thread again

[daf]

Here's the "Bee" side of the single bag :

[kalowski]

Oof, buzz off, daf!

[machotrouts]

Speaking of cracking out the BBCode...

I ranked the 40 #1s so far after the first 40 #1s, so another 40 #1s later, I'm ranking the last 40 #1s. Yes there are 44 entries on this list because there were 4 double A-sides please do try to keep up.

• The Everly Brothers - All I Have to Do Is Dream
• Lonnie Donegan - Cumberland Gap
• Tennessee Ernie Ford - Sixteen Tons
• Elvis Presley - I Got Stung
• Lord Rockingham's XI - Hoots Mon!
• Winifred Atwell - The Poor People of Paris
• Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire
• Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers - Why Do Fools Fall in Love
• Lonnie Donegan - Gamblin' Man
• Elvis Presley - All Shook Up
• The Dream Weavers - It's Almost Tomorrow
• Pat Boone - I'll Be Home
• Connie Francis - Who's Sorry Now
• Dean Martin - Memories Are Made of This
• Perry Como - Magic Moments
• Anne Shelton - Lay Down Your Arms
• Doris Day - Que Sera, Sera
• The Everly Brothers - Claudette
• Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock
• Frankie Vaughan - The Garden of Eden
• Jane Morgan - The Day the Rains Came
• Ronnie Hilton - No Other Love
• Conway Twitty - It's Only Make Believe
• The Kalin Twins - When
• The Crickets - That'll Be the Day
• Johnnie Ray - Just Walkin' in the Rain
• Tommy Steele - Singing the Blues
• Guy Mitchell - Singing the Blues
• Guy Mitchell - Rock-a-Billy
• Connie Francis - Stupid Cupid
• Johnnie Ray - Yes Tonight Josephine
• Marvin Rainwater - Whole Lotta Woman
• Kay Starr - Rock and Roll Waltz
• Paul Anka - Diana
• Connie Francis - Carolina Moon
• Lonnie Donegan - Puttin' on the Style
• Tommy Edwards - It's All in the Game
• Elvis Presley - One Night
• Vic Damone - On the Street Where You Live
• Tab Hunter - Young Love
• Michael Holliday - The Story of My Life
• Frankie Laine - A Woman in Love
• Andy Williams - Butterfly
• Harry Belafonte - Mary's Boy Child

And now to squidge the two lists together for my 40 favourite #1s so far:

• The Everly Brothers - All I Have to Do Is Dream
• Lonnie Donegan - Cumberland Gap
• Perez Prado - Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White
• Rosemary Clooney - This Ole House
• Tennessee Ernie Ford - Sixteen Tons
• Elvis Presley - I Got Stung
• Lord Rockingham's XI - Hoots Mon!
• The Johnston Brothers - Hernando's Hideaway
• Winifred Atwell - The Poor People of Paris
• Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire
• Frankie Laine - Hey Joe
• Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers - Why Do Fools Fall in Love
• Rosemary Clooney - Mambo Italiano
• Lonnie Donegan - Gamblin' Man
• Elvis Presley - All Shook Up
• The Dream Weavers - It's Almost Tomorrow
• Pat Boone - I'll Be Home
• Connie Francis - Who's Sorry Now
• Dean Martin - Memories Are Made of This
• Perry Como - Magic Moments
• Anne Shelton - Lay Down Your Arms
• Doris Day - Que Sera, Sera
• The Everly Brothers - Claudette
• Johnnie Ray - Such a Night
• Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock
• Bill Haley & His Comets - Rock Around the Clock
• Mantovani - The Song from Moulin Rouge
• Slim Whitman - Rose Marie
• Ruby Murray - Softly, Softly
• Frankie Vaughan - The Garden of Eden
• Jane Morgan - The Day the Rains Came
• Perry Como - Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes
• Ronnie Hilton - No Other Love
• Doris Day - Secret Love
• Conway Twitty - It's Only Make Believe
• The Kalin Twins - When
• The Crickets - That'll Be the Day
• Johnnie Ray - Just Walkin' in the Rain
• Winifred Atwell - Let's Have Another Party
• Tommy Steele - Singing the Blues

Actually doing this in BBCode is a ballache.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

One Night is awesome (possum). An actual raw, dirty blues song at # 1! There's one in the eye for so-called polite society.

I mean, he's clearly talking about having it away with a young lady there. Blatant, so it is. As daf quoted in his post, the original lyrics were "one night of sin", which obviously wouldn't fly on mainstream radio at that time, but even the bowdelerised version is very close to the bone (stop it) for 1958. One Night is impure carnal lust, it positively reeks of sweat, cheap hotel linen and sex juice.

And as kalowski says, the '68 Comeback Special version is even raunchier. Imagine!

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

From daf's post about I Got Stung/One Night: "The New York Daily News opined that popular music 'has reached its lowest depths in the "grunt and groin" antics of one Elvis Presley... Elvis, who rotates his pelvis ... gave an exhibition that was suggestive and vulgar, tinged with the kind of animalism that should be confined to dives and bordellos.'"

Now, what exactly to you think this critic is trying to say here? Bloody hellfire.

[gib]

This is the most modern looking / least old fashioned sleeve so far.

[Satchmo Distel]

The Smiley Lewis original of One Night is something else:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3KbVC8SYZw

[daf]

Bold & Sassy, Cool & Classy - Look out Pop, its . . .

81.  Shirley Bassey - As I Love You



From : 15 February – 14 March 1959
Weeks : 4
Flip side : Hands Across the Sea

Shirley Veronica Bassey was born born 8 January 1937 in Tiger Bay, Butetown, Cardiff. Her father was Nigerian, and her mother was from Teesside in the northeast of England.

After leaving Splott Secondary Modern School at the age of 14, Bassey found employment at the Curran Steels factory while singing in public houses and clubs in the evenings and on weekends.

In 1953, Bassey signed a contract to sing in the touring variety show Memories of Jolson, a musical based on the life of Al Jolson. She next took up a professional engagement in Hot from Harlem, which ran until 1954. Pregnant at 16 with her first child, she returned to waiting tables in Cardiff.

In 1955, Bassey toured various theatres until she was noticed by the impresario Jack Hylton. He invited her to feature in Al Read's Such Is Life at the Adelphi Theatre in London's West End. During the show's run, Philips record producer Johnny Franz spotted her on television, was impressed, and offered her a recording deal. Bassey recorded her first single, "Burn My Candle", released in February 1956, backed with her powerful rendition of "Stormy Weather".

Her next two singles - "The Wayward Wind" (b/w "Born to Sing the Blues"), and "After the Lights Go Down Low"  (b/w "If You Don't Love Me") failed to trouble the charts, but in February 1957, Bassey had her first hit with "The Banana Boat Song" ( b/w "Tra La La"), which reached No. 8 in the UK Singles Chart.

In 1957 she recorded under the direction of American producer Mitch Miller in New York for the Columbia label, producing the single "If I Had a Needle and Thread" (b/w "Tonight My Heart She Is Crying"). She then made her American stage début in Las Vegas at El Rancho Vegas.

Initially released in July 1958 as the B-side to 'Hands Across the sea', "As I Love You" did not sell well at first, but after an appearance at the London Palladium, sales began to pick up. In November, it was re-released as part of a 4-track ep, along with "There's Never Been A Night", "Hands Across The Sea", and "Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me".

Released as a single in it's own right in December, "Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me" climbed to No. 3, while 'As I Love You' was at the top of the charts in January 1959 - becoming the first No. 1 single by a Welsh artist.

A few months later, Bassey signed to EMI's Columbia label, and the second phase in her recording career had begun.

"As I Love You (More and More and More)" is a 1959 hit song by Shirley Bassey with Wally Stott & His Orchestra, written by the 'Que Sera, Sera' songwriting team of Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the Universal International Picture 'The Big Beat' (1958).

Jo Stafford recorded an earlier version in 1956, accompanied by Paul Weston And His Orchestra

On This Day :

15 February : Ali Campbell, (UB40) born in Birmingham, UK
16 February : Fidel Castro becomes the 16th Prime Minister of Cuba after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista
16 February : John McEnroe, (Tennis Champion), born in Wiesbaden, Germany
25 February : Mike Peters, (The Alarm), born in Prestatyn, North Wales
3 March : Lou Costello, comedian, (Abbott and Costello), dies from a heart attack at 52, shortly after completion of The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock - his only starring film appearance without Abbott
7 March : "Bells Are Ringing" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 925 performances
9 March : "Juno" opens at Winter Garden Theater NYC
9 March : Barbie makes her debut at the American Toy Fair in New York.
10 March : Tibetan uprising against Chinese occupation force in Lhasa, Tibet
11 March : 4th Eurovision Song Contest: Teddy Scholten for Netherlands wins singing "Een beetje" in Cannes

[kalowski]

Can I be the first to say Burly Chassis?

[Johnboy]

I like that Jane Morgan song

[Gavin M]

Great work on the thread daf, well done.  I have a quick question (apologies if you've already addressed this) - what are your plans when you get to the 1960s and the 'official' No.1 moves from the NME chart to the Record Retailer chart?  While I was always vaguely aware of the different published charts of that decade, it's only very recently that I've looked into it in more detail (a great history of it can be found here: https://www.ukmix.org/showthread.php?98104) and realised how arguably questionable a decision it was by Gambaccini & the Rice brothers to retrospectively give the Record Retailer charts of 1960-69 official status (indeed it could be argued that there wasn't really a 'definitive' chart during this time) - in their defence they may not have had any idea of how popular the Guinness Hit Singles books would be and how much of their work would then be set in stone for future generations.  Are you going to stick with just looking at the official No.1s or will you extend it to 'phantom' No.1s from other published charts (including a certain single from January 1963)?

[machotrouts]

"Splott Secondary" sounds like something from the Beano.

Shirley Bassey has had three songs at #1 (counting a double A-side as two) and I'm pretty sure all three of them would be Pointless answers if you gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many Shirley Bassey hits as they could. As I recall, for a long time "As I Love You" seemed to be the only red link in the Wikipedia list of UK #1s. Nobody could be arsed even giving it a redirect.

Had to click the YouTube link for this because Spotify has two competing As I Love Yous (the most common one is a re-recording that's relatively up-tempo and breezy, as, indeed, is every other song ever to have been recorded) and I'm glad I did:



"Shirely" is one thing but I'm particularly fond of the inexplicable use of that punk mixtape-ass Tumblr poetry font.

[Satchmo Distel]

Another one that could have been released in 1949.

[daf]

Had to click the YouTube link for this because Spotify has two competing As I Love Yous (the most common one is a re-recording)

A couple of upcoming songs will also have this problem - with the re-recordings being far more common than the original versions - So make sure to click on my lovingly hand-picked links to hear the right ones!

[daf]

Who's the hell is in this band again?, its . . .

82.  The Platters - Smoke Gets In Your Eyes



From : 15 – 21 March 1959
Weeks : 1
Flip side : No Matter What You Are

The Platters formed in Los Angeles in 1952, consisting of Alex Hodge, Cornell Gunter, David Lynch, Joe Jefferson, and Gaynel Hodge, and initially managed by Federal Records A&R man, Ralph Bass.

In June 1953, Gaynel Hodge left for the Hollywood Flames, while Gunter left to join the Flaires and was replaced by lead vocalist Tony Williams. The band then released two singles with Federal Records, but found little success.

Bass then asked his friend music entrepreneur and songwriter Buck Ram to coach the group in hope of getting a hit record. Ram made some changes to the lineup, most notably the addition of female vocalist Zola Taylor and, in autumn 1954, the replacement of Alex Hodge by Paul Robi.

Under Ram's guidance, the Platters recorded eight songs for Federal in the R&B/gospel style, including "Only You (And You Alone)", originally written by Ram for the Ink Spots, which was deemed unreleasable by the label.

Despite their lack of chart success, the Platters were a profitable touring group, successful enough that the Penguins, coming off their #8 single "Earth Angel", asked Ram to manage them as well. With the Penguins in hand, Ram was able to parlay Mercury Records' interest into a 2-for-1 deal. To sign the Penguins, Ram insisted, Mercury also had to take the Platters.

Convinced by Jean Bennett and Tony Williams that it had potential, Ram had the Platters re-record "Only You" during their first session for Mercury. Released in the summer of 1955, it became the group's first Top Ten hit on the pop charts and topped the R&B charts for seven weeks. The follow-up, "The Great Pretender", became the Platters' first national #1 hit.

The Platters soon hit upon the successful formula of updating older standards, such as "My Prayer", "Twilight Time", "Harbor Lights", "To Each His Own", "If I Didn't Care", and Jerome Kern's "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" - which became a number one hit in both the US and the UK.

As a group, the Platters began to have difficulties with the public after 1959, when the four male members were arrested in Cincinnati on drug and prostitution charges. Although no one was convicted, their professional reputation was seriously damaged and US radio stations started removing their records from playlists.

In 1960, lead vocalist Williams left to pursue a solo career, and was replaced by tenor Sonny Turner. Mercury refused to issue further Platters releases without Williams on lead vocals, provoking a lawsuit between the label and manager Ram. The label spent two years releasing old Williams-era material until the group's contract lapsed. Singer Jack Hammer, who co-wrote several songs including "Great Balls of Fire", also performed with the group.

The group's line-up splintered further: in 1964 Taylor left and was consecutively replaced by Beverly Hansen Harris, Barbara Randolph and, in 1965, by Sandra Dawn. 1965 also saw the departure of Robi, who was replaced by Nate Nelson, former lead voice of the Flamingos.

This splintering of the group's line-up led to wrangling over the Platters' name, with injunctions, non-compete clauses and multiple versions of the act touring at the same time.

Gaynel Hodge is the only original member of the Platters still alive. Herb Reed died in June 2012 at 83. Reed was the only group member to appear on every original Platters recording. Sonny Turner, who replaced Tony Williams in late 1959, is still alive and performing. Sonny brought the Platters back to the charts in 1966 with the hits, "I Love You 1000 Times", and "With This Ring".

Line-ups

'Original' (1953) :  Cornell Gunter  /  Herb Reed  /  Alex Hodge  /  Joe Jefferson  /  David Lynch  / Gaynel Hodge
- - - - - - - - - -
'Classic' (54-70) : Tony Williams  /  Herb Reed  /  Paul Robi  / David Lynch  / Zola Taylor /
(+ replacements :  Sonny Turner  /  Barbara Randolph  /  Sandra Dawn  /  Nate Nelson  /  James Austin, Jr.  /  Milton Bullock - currently touring as "The Golden Platter")
- - - - - - - - - -
'Current' (2019) : Brian McIntosh  /  Leslie Mon'e  /  Lance Bernard Bryant  /  Chris Bernard

Various line-ups using the Platters' name have toured concurrently since the 1970s. The following are some of the groups that at one time or another illegally called themselves The Platters :

Paul Robi's Platters' : Paul Robi  /  Beverly Harris  /  Gerry Garrett  /  Virgil Gibson  /  Elmer Hopper  / (+ replacements : Tyrone Sweet  /  Herb Rawlings  / Tommy Smiley)
- - - - - - - - - -
'Sonny Turner's Platters' :  Sonny Turner  /  Daemine Lowe  /  Michelle Johnson  /  Keith Blake
- - - - - - - - - -
'The World Famous Platters' : Eddie Stovall  /  Lawrence Lockard  /  JT Marshall  /  Andre Sheppard
- - - - - - - - - -
'The Platters featuring Monroe Powell' :  Monroe Powell  /  Wilson Williams  /  Kenn Johnson
- - - - - - - - - -
'The Platters featuring Tony Williams' : Tony Williams  /  Helen Williams  /  Ronnie McCain aka Ronnie Forte  /  Ernie Wright
- - - - - - - - - -
'The Platters featuring Windy Miller' : Pugh  /  Pugh  /  Barney McGrew  /  Cuthbert  /  Dibble  / Grubb

"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" was written by American composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Otto Harbach for the 1933 musical Roberta. The song was sung in the Broadway show by Tamara Drasin. Its first recorded performance was by Gertrude Niesen, October 13, 1933, featuring Isham Jones and his Orchestra.

The song was performed by Irene Dunne in the 1935 film adaptation (co-starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers,). The song was also included in the 1952 remake of Roberta, Lovely to Look At, in which it was performed by Kathryn Grayson.

"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" was recorded in 1958 by The Platters for their album Remember When?. The group's version became a number one hit in the U.S and UK charts.  Buck Ram, the producer, said that Harbach praised them "for reviving his song with taste." The widow of composer Jerome Kern disliked the recording so much she considered legal action to prevent its distribution.

Other Versions include : 
Paul Whiteman (1934)  /  Tommy Dorsey (1938)  /  Harry Belafonte (1949)  /   Jo Stafford (1950)  /  Eartha Kitt (1952)  /  The Lonious Monk (1954)
Dinah Washington (1956)  /  Sarah Vaughan (1958)  /  Margaret Whiting (1960)  / Coleman Hawkins (1962)  /  Bryan Ferry (1974)  /  Penny McLean (1975)

On This Day :

15 March : Lester Young, American jazz saxophonist, dies at the age of 49
16 March : Flavor Flav, rapper, born William Drayton Jr in Roosevelt, New York
17 March : Mike Lindup, (Level 42), born in London
15 March : Richard Rogers' "No Strings" opens on Broadway
19 March : Terry Hall, (Specials, Fun Boy 3), born in Coventry
19 March : "1st Impressions" opens at Alvin Theater NYC
21 March : 13th Grand National: Michael Scudamore wins aboard 8/1 second favourite Oxo; only 4 of 32 starters finish the race
21 March : "Juno" flops and closes at Winter Garden Theater NYC after 16 performances
21 March : Sarah Jane Morris, (The Communards), born in Southampton, Hampshire

[gilbertharding]

For some reason this flexi-disk pops into my head:

"They asked me how I knew, it was Esso Blue. I of course replies, with lower grades one buys, smoke gets in your eyes."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJTcScAQvds

[daf]

Great work on the thread daf, well done. 

Thanks - appreciate it!

what are your plans when you get to the 1960s and the 'official' No.1 moves from the NME chart to the Record Retailer chart?
(. . .)
Are you going to stick with just looking at the official No.1s or will you extend it to 'phantom' No.1s from other published charts (including a certain single from January 1963)?

This hadn't occurred to me to be honest, but that's an excellent idea!

How about something like this - I stick with the Official chart numbering, and add a bonus post for the NME ones when they differ - eg :

150 Barry Scroggins - Official Number 1
Scroggins waffle

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

150 Terry Noggins - Different Number 1 (NME chart)
Noggins Nuggets

[purlieu]

Feels like we've been taking a step back these past couple of songs. C'mon, it's nearly the '60s, let's have something new!

[Satchmo Distel]

Thanks - appreciate it!

This hadn't occurred to me to be honest, but that's an excellent idea!

How about something like this - I stick with the Official chart numbering, and add a bonus post for the NME ones when they differ - eg :
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Yes; for example, Please Please Me being No. 1 on NME has to be acknowledged.

[Satchmo Distel]

re. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes: here's Fred and Ginger, with the original, from 'Roberta' (1935)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xYgeme2F9w

And The Platters doing it on Ed Sullivan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLFZSoeXbnI

But yeah, the charts are in regression at this point in 1959.

My favourite of theirs - My Prayer (reached #4 in late 1956) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE0UMnrQBD0