Anyway, 60 years later this movie is considered a masterpiece and I’m pretty sure everyone born before the year 2000 at least knows about this film. I even went to Universal Studios in Orlando (I think it was Orlando) back in 1996 or something, where we could take part in some «Psycho» attraction. I don’t remember what the attraction was, but I do recall seeing the Bates Mansion.

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THE ALBUMS

The albums released in June didn’t really do anything for me. A French girl named Dalida released the album «Les Infants Du Pirée» and it’s pretty boring. It had a hit, but it’s not worth mentioning really. The other album was «Boss Tenor» by Gene Ammons and all I know is that it was recorded this month, not necessarily released. So I’m not gonna bother with that either. And of course, it’s jazz, so I don’t really know what to say about it anyway.

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THE SINGLES

First of all, I remember listening a lot to Cliff Richard when I was younger. Can’t say how old I was, but for a brief period of time in my youth I did listen to this guy. I think it was a compilation of some sorts, probably a «Best Of» album, that my father reluctantly gave me. At least I think it was reluctantly. At this age all my musical influences came from my dad, so I’m pretty sure he was the one who played it for me to begin with. Anyways, Cliff released a single in June 1960…

CLIFF RICHARD & THE SHADOWS – PLEASE DON´T TEASE

The song isn’t really all that bad. It’s catchy enough and I guess it’s understandable why it hit No. 1 in the UK. But it’s just so goddamn feeble. Halfway through the song I just wanna punch Cliff square in the face and tell him to man the fuck up. It’s like listening to this fragile old, or young, man looking down at his feet while trying to stand up for himself. But yeah, the song in itself isn’t shit. It’s just the weak delivery from Cliff that fucks it all up.

So when that’s all said and done, Please Don’t Tease sounds like a lot of the bands that will make everyone lose their shit in a couple of years. I’ve never heard anywhere that Cliff Richard was an inspiration to any of these bands, but this song could definitively have been an inspiration for some later hits. And I’m 100% sure that anyone else could have made this song work a lot better.

I’m being pretty rough with Cliff here, but that’s just because I need to voice my opinion. I should, however, mention that he was a pretty big star in his native England during the ’60s, and his songs kept hitting the charts there over and over. In the US though, not so much.

BRIAN HYLAND – ITSY BITSY TEENIE WEENIE YELLOW POLKADOT BIKINI

I find it really interesting that novelty songs were such a big thing back in the day. This one went to the top of the charts and sold over one million copies, all while actually being one of the most annoying songs in history. On the positive side, this song is credited with being one of the earliest contributors to the acceptance of the bikini in society. And for that, we can all be grateful. That’s probably the only positive thing I can say about Brian Hyland’s Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini, but I can give it credit for hitting the top spot on the charts in seven countries around the world, not including Norway where it ended at #3.

CHUBBY CHECKER – THE TWIST

The Twist is not unfamiliar to anyone. Right? I’m pretty sure people have been dancing to this one since it was first released. And that’s where the funny part starts with this song. It was originally released in 1958 by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters and became a moderate hit, but in Baltimore, it was a big thing. So someone from Baltimore recommended it to Dick Clark, host of the American Bandstand, and when he unsuccessfully tried to book Ballard to the show he ended up getting Chubby Checker to record it and perform instead. The funny part is that the two versions sound almost exactly alike, all the way down to their voices. So I can only imagine how Ballard felt when he was watching Chubby become a star, with the song he recorded two years earlier.

Chubby’s version spent one week at #1 after its release, but it also became the only song to ever hit #1 in two different runs when it resurfaced in 1962 and took over the top spot once again for two weeks. Later it was declared, by Billboard Magazine, as the biggest hit of the 1960’s. So Mr. Ballard, what lesson did you learn here? Yeah, when Dick Clark asks for something, you make that shit happen!

THE VENTURES – WALK, DON’T RUN

It’s the first instrumental song of the year! The Ventures delivers a damn cool tune with Walk, Don’t Run. A driven surf rock song that makes me think of sunny days at the beach, and you know that’ll make anyone happy. The band recorded this after hearing Chet Atkins’ recording of the same song (I haven’t checked it out) and it is their first national release.

The Ventures are one of the first, and most influential instrumental guitar-based rock groups, maybe only rivaled by The Shadows. With their driving mechanical drums and metallic, twanging guitars they deliver a simple but catchy tune. A great song that had to be released by guitarist Don Wilson’s mother, on her label; Blue Horizon, because no one else wanted to release it. Later, after people understood how cool it was, it was picked up for distribution by Dolton Records.

Fun fact (not fact-checked): When they recorded this The Ventures didn’t have a drummer, so they hired a guy called Skip Moore. He was given a choice of getting paid $25 once, or getting 25% of the money the record made. He chose $25. I’m not sure how much money this record made, but considering I’m listening to it now, 60 years later, I would think that was a bad deal for him. But yeah, this is a cool song, and at least the coolest released in June. According to Rolling Stone Magazine, it is the 82nd coolest guitar song of all time.

FATS DOMINO – WALKING TO NEW ORLEANS

Never really listened to Fats Domino before, but his name is not unknown at all. I just never bothered checking him out. I wouldn’t call that a mistake, but then again, he is one of the big ones. At least when it comes to record sales and the fact that he was one of the first R&B artists to gain popularity with a white audience. Walking To New Orleans is a slow and comfortable pop/R&B tune, where Domino’s voice really stands out as the perfect instrument. It’s just a pleasure listening to him sing!

If I’ve listened to this a couple of times during the day, you can bet that when I’m half awake in the bathroom the next morning, I’ll be singing this one to myself. It just sticks to you. This might not have been a #1 hit, but I’m pretty sure it will end high up on my own list at the end of the year.

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THE CHARTS

That Connie Francis, with her white suburban song Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool, takes over the No. 1 spot this month is another example of the fact we have not completely left the ’50s yet. This song is not even close to being cool, and it reminds me more of a Christmas song, or a Disney song, than anything else.

Jack Scott managed to hit #3 with his song, Burning Bridges. A country ballad later ranked by Billboard Magazine as the 35th best single of 1960. It’s nothing much if you ask me though. Just a random country song. It’s hard to understand from this song only, and so far I haven’t heard any other songs from this guy, but in 2011 he was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and called «undeniably the greatest Canadian rock and roll singer of all time». That’s some mighty big words, but for all I know it might be completely deserved. And Burning Bridges is actually the only hit song he had that he did not write himself ,and it’s mos def not a rock and roll song, so my basis for saying anything about that is equal to zero I guess.

And lastly, the song Alley-Oop by Hollywood Argyles (which I mentioned in my May 1960 post) jumps in at #3 at the end of the month.

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Not an amazing month for music, but some songs that will stay with me. Still, I love doing this and it’s such a great way to nourish my geeky side. Bring on July and let’s keep the nerd in me alive.

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Petter Milde

This Band Could Be Your Life