The Ames Brothers - killed by rock 'n' roll
These four brothers were pretty close to an overnight sensation in the early 50s, one of the decade's several big close-harmony groups. They went from local talent shows to big nightclub acts to Hollywood in a few years, and peaked in 1954 with The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane, a bossa nova novelty song about a precocious five-year-old girl.
By the time I was old enough to buy records, the Ames Brothers had disappeared in Elvis' dust.
The youngest Ames brother, Ed, played Daniel Boone's sidekick Mingo during the 60s TV series.
MERIT: ** 1/2
ORIGIN: When I was about nine, my parents bought an RCA compilation double-album when they got the family's first Hi-Fi. It was called 60 Years of Music America Loves Best, and it included RCA-recorded hits going back as far as Enrico Caruso. There was Paul Whiteman, Harry Belafonte, Sinatra, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw and many others doing hits like And the Angels Sing, Blue Danube Waltz, Prisoner of Love and a smattering of classical favorites. I must have played it end to end thousands of times, memorizing every note and nuance.
More than anything else except the old folk songs my family sang, this double album shaped my appreciation for popular music, and I couldn't ask for a better foundation.
The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane was one of the later entries on the album.
This spring I found a copy of the album online for 12 bucks, and snagged it. I no longer have a working turntable, so I brought it in one day for my friend Walt to take home and transfer to CD for me.
While describing the album and its songs to Walt, the Ames Brothers' hit came to mind, and the hook was set.
PERSISTENCE: **
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Dear Andy. My mother visited USA in 1960 and brought to me this fantastic 2-disc compilation. But time went by and unfortunatley due to some sircuimstances, the records "went away".
ReplyDeleteI would be very grateful if you could rip your CD with the recording to mp3-files and upload them somewhere and then send me the ling for download.
Thanks in advance
my e-mail is webbird@gmail.com