The Stripper

July 1962

Stripper is just about the last word I would have expected in a #1 song title from the conservative early 60s, but here it is (and yes, it means what you think it means). It's one of those sleazy sounding, big band striptease numbers—perhaps the definitive one, written and performed by bandleader David Rose.



Call me crazy, but I can't hear this without thinking of the finale music to the 1990 video game Super Mario World:



The similarity is most striking near the end, starting at about 3:27. I would not be surprised at all if the game's composer, Koji Kondo, used "The Stripper" as a reference for this passage. Behind the cheap-sounding MIDI instruments and repetitive structures that define the medium of video game music, Kondo is one of the very best, for what it's worth: classic themes like this one have inspired a generation.

Anyway, I'm not sure what to make of the David Rose track in question. It's well done for what it is, but it's certainly a curve ball. Maybe I'm feeling generous today.

B

Stranger on the Shore

May 1962

Including this one, we've now seen six instrumental tracks on this list so far—can't really call them songs, since nothing's being sung. While it's cool that instrumental music had chart-topping power in those days (it doesn't anymore), only the two from the 50s were any good at all. Acker Bilk's "Stranger on the Shore" marks the fourth instrumental in a row that falls into that sickeningly safe genre that we call "easy listening."



Considering all that, this one really isn't so bad. Behind the sappy string arrangement there does lie a rather nice little tune. Bilk, a British clarinetist, has a pretty unusual approach to the instrument, playing deep tones with a huge vibrato. The song is a little light on substance, though.

To me, this kind of thing sounds like the inevitable conclusion of the "cool" jazz movement, pioneered by, among others, Miles Davis (who quickly abandoned it). Jazz, an incredibly popular genre back in the swing days, had become cerebral and difficult in the 40s, as musicians like Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk eschewed danceability in favor of virtuosic streams of consciousness. In that decade, the music gained an intense following and respect among musicians and serious music listeners, but the masses weren't interested in such complex expression. Cool jazz tried to change that by slowing down the tempos and emphasizing catchy melodies, and while it wasn't necessarily a bad thing at first, it ultimately led to the sort of thing Bilk is doing here. The new, trendy components of cool jazz are here, but the jazz part isn't. It has been lost in the pursuit of accessibility.

If you were to try find the one thing that "killed" jazz, you'd be wrong to point the finger at something like this. The music continued to be vital, and some of its best and most adventurous material was produced in the decade still to come. Think of "Stranger on the Shore" and its ilk as a misguided offshoot. I can't call it good music, but it's not outright offensive like Bert Kaempfert's or Lawrence Welk's contributions. Meh.

C

Calcutta

February 1961

Lawrence Welk was some guy with a TV show that I'll never care about. His instrumental "Calcutta" was #1 for two weeks in 1961. I cannot imagine a public that would put this song at the top of the pop chart. If you own this record, YOU are responsible.

One of the problems with the format of this blog is that I am forcing myself to write an entry on each and every song that fits the category. Which means I have to come up with something meaningful to say about "Calcutta." But really, there is nothing to say. It's an existential problem for me. I'm gonna go watch TV.

F

Wonderland by Night

January 1961

Ah, time to kick off a brand new year! Let's see what we have here... aaaaaaaand it's off to a bad start. This clinker apparently sold more records than anything else for three weeks.

It's by Bert Kaempfert, a German musician who both wrote and performed it. I've already expressed my hatred of easy-listening music on this blog, so I won't go into a tirade here, but this kind of song definitely fits into the category. It's both mindless and soulless; it neither requires any effort on the part of the listener, nor does it have anything to offer. There's a word I particularly like that describes this music perfectly: "pap."

But hey, hey, wait a minute. How about this cover version? The always (well, usually) dependable guitarist Leo Kottke gives us a pretty nice rendering of the tune. I dare say, it's a pretty nice melody – not that you'd know it, judging by the hit version. This certainly isn't one of my favorite things by Kottke, but it goes to show how much performance can matter. Of course, you need both things – a good song, and a good performance – and only one or the other doesn't cut it, as demonstrated by our friend Herr Kaempfert.

In fact, Kaempfert himself will come up a couple more times in this blog, but only as a songwriter, not a performer. And that's for the better.

F

Theme From "A Summer Place"

February–April 1960

It's not uncommon for a song from a movie to become a big hit. But here's an instrumental movie theme that was not only a hit, it was a monster smash that spent 9 weeks at the top. The movie was A Summer Place, and no matter how old you are, you'll instantly recognize Percy Faith's rendition of the tune:

It's one of those pieces of music that is so ingrained in our culture – in movies, TV, commercials, etc. – that it's easy to forget it actually had to come from somewhere, originally. Frankly, I have no desire to see the film – although its director, Delmer Daves, also gave us the classic western 3:10 to Yuma, this romantic drama is not remembered as fondly. The musical theme has far surpassed the film itself in our cultural environment.

The tune was written by Max Steiner, whom you may know as the composer for the film Gone with the Wind, but the famous version definitely bears the Percy Faith stamp. A lifelong opponent of good taste, Faith made a career out of producing campy, "lite" orchestral versions of popular tunes – he's known as one of the premier champions of the "easy listening" genre. This sort of music used to be a lot more successful on a widescale, commercial level. These days it's relegated to a niche market, and even banks and grocery stores don't play it anymore. (Strangely, neither do elevators – did they ever?)

Except, apparently, in China, where muzak is ubiquitous and always, always too damn loud. Tourist spots of cultural importance or natural beauty (as well as the bus rides to and from them) are all too often accompanied by a sort of easy listening music which is so sickening it makes me pine for Percy Faith. It is actually difficult for me to understand the appeal of this music. It is supposed to be soothing and calming (I guess) but for me it has the exact opposite effect of irritating me to no end. A misty mountainside or a river at night is serene enough for me without a sappy piano ballad telling me how serene it is. I guess it's pretty much my ultimate pet peeve – being subjected to bad music against my will. It's one of the main reasons I disliked working at corporate retail stores in high school and college.

So listening again to "A Summer Place," well... it's not so bad, I guess. But 9 weeks at number one... wow, people. The times they have a-changed.

F

Sleep Walk

September 1959

The next two weeks were ruled by two Italian-American brothers from Brooklyn, going by the name of Santo & Johnny. "Sleep Walk" was their only hit in America, although they had more success internationally.

Another instrumental which, like "The Happy Organ," relies on an unusual instrument for its success – in this case, the steel guitar. To make an instrumental song that has any chance of commercial success, you've got to have something to replace the usual role of singer, and by that I mean you've got to have a lead instrument. Ever since the concerti grossi of the baroque period, more or less all successful instrumental music has one instrument in the lead, more prominently placed above all the others (if you can think of a counterexample, let me know). A common choice is the guitar: see the surf rock songs of the Ventures, and Dick Dale; the heavy metal-tinged jazz (or jazz-tinged heavy metal) of the Mahavishnu Orchestra; or the Allman Brothers with songs like "Jessica." Another popular instrument in the olden tymes was the saxophone (as in the ever-popular "Yakety Sax").

But here, in "Sleep Walk," we hear something we're not accustomed to, and it strikes us in an unusual way. The first impression is that of surprise ("What is that?"), but of course in a few seconds it turns to enjoyment, because the melody really is quite nice and original. But would we even be paying attention if it hadn't shocked us a little in the beginning with a fresh sound?

As we got further into the 60s, and onward, instrumental songs became less commercially viable. But of course, that doesn't mean they ain't good; some of my favorite songs are instrumentals. All guitar-based, though – I'll admit, I have a bias toward the instrument.

B+

The Happy Organ

May 1959

In what might be the most unintentionally hilarious artist/song-title combination ever to become a hit, a guy calling himself Dave "Baby" Cortez recorded an instrumental song called "The Happy Organ."

It's surprising to see an instrumental song at the top of the chart, if only for one week – even fifty years ago when instrumentals were somewhat viable as a genre. And of course I'm always happy to hear a rock and roll song instead of a schmaltzy pop track.

And what sets this one apart from the rest is, of course, the organ as a lead instrument. Jazz artists like Jimmy Smith were using it earlier in the decade, but as far as I know, "Happy Organ" was the first rock and roll hit to feature the instrument. The implications of this are pretty far-reaching – the organ came to be an essential feature of the R&B, garage rock, and psychedelic music of the next decade.

Cortez himself had another top ten hit a few years later called "Rinky Dink" (okay – song titles were not this guy's strong point). Aptly, the very same year (1962), Booker T. and the M.G.'s had a hit with "Green Onions." The difference in style between the two songs is striking. Cortez may have been the innovator, but his songs were essentially novelty hits. The M.G.'s had soul in a big way. If you haven't watched the video because you figured you already know the song from its (over)use in commercials and sports venues, watch it – it's a particularly good live performance. In just a few short years, the organ had been transformed from a curiosity to a major driving force in music, particularly in the R&B genre.

B+