June–July 1960
Who was the top charting female singer of the 50s and 60s? If Wikipedia is to be believed, it's Connie Francis, whom I've never heard of before in my life. So much for posterity! Neither did I recognize her first #1 single, "Everybody's Somebody's Fool."
Assessment: average pap. I guess there's a reason someone from my generation has heard of the Everly Brothers, but not Francis. Also, the song's title declaration doesn't strike me as, well, true. Really? Everybody? "There is no exception to the rule," she sings. I for one don't think I'm somebody's fool. Not currently, at least. Unless there's someone out there that I don't know of, claiming me as her fool, in which case I'd appreciate it if she'd leave me alone.
In case you were wondering what the song sounds like in German, here it is. It seems to have been pretty common in the 50s and 60s (and earlier? I don't know) for a pop singer to record a hit song in two or more languages. Even the Beatles sang a couple of their early hits in German. It makes sense from a business perspective, and it's not clear to me why this isn't done anymore. Here in China, English-language pop music is ubiquitous – the language barrier doesn't seem to dampen its appeal. In fact, many Chinese-language songs have a line of English in the chorus, as the main "hook" of the song. And this song, which is currently a smash hit here, is half Korean, half English – which hasn't stopped it from being a ringtone on about 5 billion Chinese cell phones.
It's counterintuitive that non-Chinese songs could become so popular here, especially since karaoke is one of the defining features of Chinese (and East/Southeast Asian) pop culture. Hang out at a KTV bar and you'll probably hear someone croaking out "Hey Jude" or "My Heart Will Go On," even if they have no idea what the lyrics mean (or how to properly pronounce them).
Of course, the situation in 60s Europe was vastly different from modern China. No Western music company would bother translating a song for the Chinese market, because it's almost impossible to make money with music here, due to a lack of intellectual property rights. And really, music piracy plagues record companies everywhere, even if it's to a lesser extent than in China. The future of the music business is pretty uncertain in this day and age. But in the days of "Everybody's Somebody's Fool," with no downloading or pirating, you had to actually buy a record to hear a song. So it made perfect sense to produce a version of a popular hit that was suitable for a foreign market. But what about the time between the 60s and the computer age – let's say the 80s? Why didn't Michael Jackson record multilingual versions of "Billie Jean"? Maybe there are examples of translated pop music that I'm overlooking. If so, I'd like to hear about them. And no, I'm not talking about "Mr. Roboto."
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Is it just me, or is part of the melody of this song reminiscent of "for the holidays you can't beat home sweet home"?
ReplyDeleteWell, Francis was the top selling female vocalist of all time until Madonna replaced her. Francis is still going strong and she was the top cponcert act of the 60s and still sells out venues. She appeared at all of the prestigious venues multiple times as well as stadiums. Her sogs topped the charts throughout the world. She is the third top selling female of all time right now, despite not recording for many years. She is considered a standard. She had the first rock and roll million seller by a female srtist, Stupid Cupid. Her LPs showcase her great voice mor ethan most of her hit singles. She had 56 chart hits in the US alone. The reason you likely have not heard of her is that she never had PR and she was never hyped. She also withdrew from the public for 10 years after she was violently raped and then suffered emotional problems. She is a legend and one of the greats.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Connie started the foreign language recordings of American hits. She received a Golden Globe for internationalizing American music. There are many things to this superstar's credit, too numerous to name.
ReplyDeleteto add a few more: Connie was the first female singer to have back to back number 1 hits and she put Fort Lauderdale on the map and she is responsible for the Spring Break phenomenon in that city with her movie and song Where The Boys Are, which became MGMs top movie of the year. She had a record breaking contract with MGM that no one has had since.
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ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that someone who had not heard of Connie Francis had to live under a rock. As Shrinksjp put it, she is one of the top 5 female recording artists OF ALL TIME to date. Quite an accomplishment. Simply put, she is simply the best.
ReplyDeleteWell, even someone living under a rock in 1960 would have had much more knowledge of the world than I did. I wasn't even a gleam in my father's eye, as they say.
ReplyDeleteIt just boggles th emind how anyone could not know who she is, although I can understand it to some degree as she has always shunned PR. Some of her more accomplishments: She headed Reagan's cabinet on Violent Crime and is responsible for the Victims Rights Laws. She is responsible for hotel security laws and all law students and motel/hotel management study her laws. So her accomplishments go beyond music and have benefited society in significant ways.
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