POPULAR MUSIC VOCALS PERFORMANCE

Popular Music Vocals Performance

Popular Music Vocals Performance

1. Its Over-Roy Orbison

"It's Over". This became an unbroken string of Top 40 hits that lasted for four years. Roy became the top selling American artist and one of the world's biggest names. When this topped the UK charts on June 25, 1964, Roy Orbison became the first American to reach #1 in the UK since Elvis did it in December, 1962. There was a run of 16 consecutive British #1s.Bill Dees presented Roy Orbison with his song "It's Over At Last." Roy Orbison combined it with two others to make "It's over." Bill Dees wrote or co-wrote 64 songs with Roy Orbison that The Big O recorded, including possibly his most well-known song "(Oh) Pretty Woman." Bill Dees also sang high harmony on "(Oh) Pretty Woman" and many other Orbison tunes.

Structurally, this is similar to Roy Orbison's 1961 hit "Running Scared," in that both songs build from a whisper to a scream, and have a bolero-like beat in the verses. However the melodies of the two hits are completely different. This operatic Rock ballad has also been recorded by many other artists including Glen Campbell, Gene Pitney and Bonnie Tyler. Michael Canine sung it in the 1998 film Little Voice. Producer Fred Foster commented on this on the Roy Orbison: In Dreams radio special: "The great writer has the ability to bare his soul unabashedly. Hank Williams did it. Can you imagine saying I can't help it if I'm still in love with you? You know? And Roy, only the lonely know the way I feel tonight. You know, we all feel that way sometimes, but we can't put it into words, or we're embarrassed, or we think we're showing' weakness if we do. But Roy knew what he was talking' about. And when he played me it's over, it, it touched me deeper than anything I'd ever heard." (Courtesy: Public Radio Exchange. Thanks, Edward Pearce - Ashford, Kent, England, for all above)n 1964, when artists like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones dominated the UK charts, Orbison was the only American artist to reach the top spot. He did it with both "It's over" and "(Oh) Pretty Woman."

2. Guess it doesn't matter anymore-Buddy Holly

Holly had been kicking around his home town in Lubbock, Texas trying to write a hit song for his small Rockabilly band since he had attended an Elvis Presley gig at his High School some time in 1955. His band in those days consisted of him on lead vocals and guitar, Jerry Allison on the drums and Joe B. Maudlin on upright bass. He and Jerry decided to get together and go see The Searchers a Western movie starring John Wayne. In the movie, Wayne keeps replying "That'll be the day" every time another character in the film predicts or proclaims something will happen when he felt it was not likely to happen. The phrase stuck in Jerry's mind, and when they were hanging out at ...