Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Breakfast Show with William Price King and Sally Cronin – Chart Hits 1950s – Bill Haley, The Platters, Frankie Lane and Pattie Page

Welcome to our show and whilst there have been some great songs since 2005, we felt that hits from the 40s and 50s deserved a showcase from now to the end of the year… we hope you will enjoy our music memories and some of the news events of the decade.

Here is my next selection of top 1950s chart hits which I hope you will enjoy.

Bill Haley and His Comets – Rock Around the Clock

“Rock around the clock”, composed in the 12-bar blues format by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers for Decca Records, was the first rock and roll record to reach #1 on the US pop charts. It remained at #1 for two months and peaked at #3 on the R&B chart. It also performed well in the UK. Bill Haley’s recording became an anthem for young rebels in the 1950s, particularly after it was included in the 1955 film “Blackboard Jungle”. The song is ranked #159 on the Rolling Stone magazine’s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

October 15th 1955 Buddy Holley opens for Bill Haley & His Comets in Lubbeck, Texas, and impresses Nashville scout Eddie Crandall, leading to a recording contract with a misspelling that creates “Buddy Holly” 

The Platters – Only You

“Only you”, composed by Buck Ram, was recorded by The Platters in 1955 on Mercury Records, with lead vocals by Tony Williams. The song held strong in the number 1 position on the Billboard R&B chart for seven weeks, and peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 where it remained for 30 weeks. The Platters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

December 29th 1955 Barbra Streisand’s 1st recording “You’ll Never Know” at age thirteen

Now time for my next picks from the 1950s all tunes that I remember from my childhood from cartoons, films and my parents records.

Frankie Lane – Do Not Forsake Me

“The Ballad of High Noon” (also known simply as “High Noon”, or by its opening lyric and better known title, “Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin’”) is a popular song published in 1952, with music by Dimitri Tiomkin and lyrics by Ned Washington. It is the theme song of the 1952 multiple Academy Award-winning movie High Noon. It was awarded the 1952 Academy Award for Best Original Song. The cover of the song by Frankie Lane reached #13 in the charts in 1952

January 8th 1956 Elvis Presley’s “Don’t Be Cruel” and “Hound Dog” single goes #1 and stays #1 for a record 11 weeks (for a single)

Pattie Page – How Much is That Doggy in the Window

“(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window?” is a popular novelty song. It was written by Bob Merrill, and first published on September 25, 1952 as “The Doggie in the Window”. On January 27, 1953, it was published in New York as “How Much is That Doggie in the Window?”. The best-known version of the song was the original, recorded by Patti Page on December 18, 1952, and it reached No. 1 on both the Billboard and Cash Box charts in 1953, and sold over two million copies. Crinale819

November 5th 1956 “The Nat King Cole Show” debuts on NBC, the first variety program to be hosted by an African-American 

Additional sources: On This Day – Music – Hits of the 1940s and 1950s: Playback FM – Wikipedia

Your Hosts for The Breakfast Show

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

Blog– IMPROVISATION – William Price King on Tumblr – Buy William’s music: William Price King iTunes – Facebook – William Price King – Twitter – @wpkofficial
Regular Venue – Cave Wilson

Sally Cronin is an author, blogger and broadcaster who enjoyed four years as part of the team on Onda Cero International’s English speaking morning show in Marbella and then for two years as a presenter on Expressfm the local radio station in Portsmouth. She co-presented two ‘Drive Time’ shows a week with Adrian Knight, hosted the live Thursday Afternoon Show and The Sunday Morning Show guests including musicians and authors. Following this she became Station Director for a local internet television station for two years, producing and presenting the daily news segment, outside broadcasts and co-presenting the Adrian and Sally chat show live on Friday evenings.

She and her husband David have now returned to Ireland where they live on the Wexford Coast where she blogs and continues to write books.

Books :Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – More reviews: Goodreads – blog: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine Twitter: @sgc58 – Facebook: Sally Cronin – LinkedIn: Sally Cronin

Thanks for tuning in and as always we love to hear from you.. thanks William and Sally.