First recorded (as “In Your Arms”) by Diana Ross (1982).
Hit version by Teddy Pendergrass & Whitney Houston (US #46/MOR #6/R&B #5/UK #44 1984).
From the wiki: “‘Hold Me’, originally titled ‘In Your Arms’, was written by Linda Creed & Michael Masser (‘The Greatest Love of All‘), and was first recorded by Diana Ross for her 1982 album Silk Electric.
“In 1984, the song was recorded as a duet by Teddy Pendergrass and Whitney Houston. That recording was released simultaneously as a single in 1984 by both Pendergrass (from his album Love Language) and Houston (from her self-titled debut album, Whitney).”
Inspired by “The Trip” by Donovan (1966).
Hit version by Sonny & Cher (US #6/UK #29 1967).
“The Trip” was written by English folk-rock singer Donovan about his popular engagement in Los Angeles at the Sunset Strip nightclub of the same name, and the “happenings” on the scene at the time.
The evidence is purely circumstantial, but:
“[Charlie Greene] discovered and built acts like Sonny and Cher, Buffalo Springfield and Iron Butterfly, from obscurity to stardom. The same groups would eventually have seizures until Greene was booted out of the very contracts he landed them. Every time. Sonny Bono paid $250,000 to buy back Greene’s contract.
“‘I hocked my typewriters for that first record, ‘Baby Don’t Go.’ Got $168, you know, it was just a West Coast hit anyway. And then Sonny stole . . . ah, wrote, ‘I Got You Babe’. . . . heheheheh. . . .
“‘Why the big laugh?
“‘It was a very timely song, man. Hey, Donovan had just come off ‘Catch The Wind’ and Sonny is very good at picking out certain commercial aspects of other hit songs. As are other writers. Sure. Just listen to them side-by-side, it’s an influence. Sonny’s clever. He’s not a good songwriter, but he’s a clever thief. No, thief is the wrong word. Influence . . . he uses influence well.
“. . . ‘The Beat Goes On,’ you might listen to Donovan’s ‘The Trip.’ ‘Baby Don’t Go,’ you might listen to ‘We’ll Sing in the Sunshine.’ Some are direct; some are indirect. I got to hand it to the mother-fucker for continuing to have perseverance on . . . ah . . . on an overabundance of a lack of talent. No, no, no, I got no complaint with Sonny.'”
– ‘As Bare As You Dare With Sonny and Cher’, Rolling Stone RS135, May 24, 1973
Based on “Brez besed” by Berta Ambroz (1966).
Hit versions by Mocedades (US #9/MOR #8/CAN #6/AUS #30/NZ #3/SPN #1 1973), Eydie Gorme (MOR #41 1973).
From the wiki: “‘Eres tu’ (‘It’s You’) was written in 1973 by Juan Carlos Calderón and performed by the Spanish music group Mocedades. The song was chosen as Spain’s entry in the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest. After reaching second place in the contest, ‘Eres tu’ was released as a single. The song also has an English version, titled ‘Touch the Wind’, with lyrics by Mike Hawker (which featured a completely different new set of lyrics rather than a translation of the original Spanish lyrics).
“Calderón was accused of plagiarism following suggestions that ‘Eres tu’ was merely a rewrite of the Yugoslav entry from the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest – ‘Brez besed’ (‘Without words’) – sung by Berta Ambrož. ‘Eres tú’ was not disqualified for what some suggested were political reasons – that Francisco Franco’s fascist Spain was seen as more part of the European mainstream than Josip Broz Tito’s communist Yugoslavia.”
First recorded by Helen Jepson (1936).
Hit versions by Billie Holiday (US #12 1936), Sidney Bechet (1939), Sam Cooke (US #81 1959), Al Martino (UK #49 1960), The Marcels (US #78/UK #46 1961), Billy Stewart (US #10/R&B #7/UK #39 1966), Fun Boy Three (UK #18 1982).
Also recorded by Janis Joplin (1968).
From the wiki: “‘Summertime’ is an aria composed in 1934 by George Gershwin for the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. The lyrics are by DuBose Heyward, the author of the novel Porgy, on which the opera was based, although the song is also co-credited to Ira Gershwin. The song soon became a popular and much recorded jazz standard, described as ‘without doubt … one of the finest songs the composer ever wrote … Gershwin’s highly evocative writing brilliantly mixes elements of jazz and the song styles of blacks in the southeast United States from the early twentieth century.’
“Gershwin began composing the song in December 1933, attempting to create his own spiritual in the style of the African American folk music of the period. Gershwin had completed setting Heyward’s poem to music by February 1934, and spent the next 20 months completing and orchestrating the remainder of the score for the opera.
First recorded by João Gilberto (1958).
Hit versions by Ella Fitzgerald (US #102/UK #38 1962), Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd (US #15/MOR #4/UK #11 1962).
Also recorded by Lambert, Hendricks & Bavan (1963).
From the wiki: “‘Desafinado’ (a Portuguese word usually rendered into English as ‘out of tune’ or ‘off-key’) is a bossa nova song composed by Antonio Carlos Jobim with lyrics (in Portuguese) by Newton Mendonça as a response to critics who claimed that bossa nova was a new genre for singers who can’t sing. First recorded in late 1958 by João Gilberto, it was released in Brazil in February 1959 as a double-sided shellac 78 rpm and soon after, in May 1959, as one of twelve songs on Gilberto’s debut long-play album, Chega de saudade, the first collection of bossa nova songs ever released.
“English-language lyrics were later written, in 1962, by Jon Hendricks and ‘Jessie Cavanaugh’ (a pseudonym used by Howie Richmond of the Richmond Organization [TRO] music publishing conglomerate), and were first recorded in 1962 by Ella Fitzgerald whose promotional single “bubbled under” the Hot 100 in the US but charted Top 40 on the UK Singles chart. Lambert, (Jon) Hendricks & Bavan would release their own English-language arrangement in 1963.
“The 1962 recording by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd (from the album Jazz Samba) would become the definitive version of ‘Desafinado’, becoming a major Pop hit in 1962 in both the US and the UK. The song was voted by the Brazilian edition of Rolling Stone magazine as the 14th greatest Brazilian song. ‘Desafinado’ was also inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001.”
First recorded by The Regents (US #13/R&B #7 1961).
Also recorded by Jan & Dean (1962).
Other hit version by The Beach Boys (US #2/UK #3 1966).
From the wiki: “‘Barbara Ann’ was written by Fred Fassert and was first recorded by The Regents as ‘Barbara-Ann’. Their version was released in 1961. It reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and crossed-over, too, as a Top 10 R&B hit. The Beach Boys recorded their version on September 23, 1965 (five days after actress and model Barbara Anne Feldon coincidentally made her first television appearance on Get Smart). Dean Torrence is featured on lead vocals with Brian Wilson. Torrence was not credited on the album jacket but ‘Thanks, Dean’ is spoken by Carl Wilson at the end of the track.
“By late January 1966, ‘Barbara Ann’ was in position to replace ‘We Can Work It Out’ by The Beatles as the next #1 song. However, ‘My Love’, by Petula Clark, unexpectedly vaulted into the #1 position the week ending February 5, 1966. Consequently, ‘Barbara Ann’ peaked at #2 in the US Billboard Hot 100.”
Written and first recorded by John Martyn (1971).
Re-recorded by John Martyn (1973).
Hit album version by Eric Clapton (1977).
From the wiki: “‘May You Never’ became something of a signature song for its writer, John Martyn, becoming a staple of his live performances. Released in November 1971 as a single, in an early form with a full band, the first release of ‘May You Never’ had slightly different lyrics than appeared in subsequent recordings. ‘May You Never’ was re-recorded with a more sparse arrangement for the Solid Air album sessions in 1973. According to Songfacts.com, the night before producer John Wood was due to fly to New York to master the album, he was still waiting for the tape containing this tune. ‘It was by then nearly midnight,’ he recalled to Mojo magazine April 2013, ‘so I said to him, For Christ’s sake, John, just go back down into the studio and play it again, and we’ll record it. And he did, and it’s great.’
“Eric Clapton covered ‘May You Never’ on his 1977 album Slowhand. When Martyn was presented with a lifetime achievement award at the 2008 BBC Folk Awards, Clapton sent a message saying that [Martyn] was ‘so far ahead of everything else it was inconceivable’ and acknowledged the extent of his influence on ‘everyone who ever heard him.'”
Influenced by “Taj Mahal” by Jorge Ben Jor (1972).
Hit version by Rod Stewart (US #1/R&B #5/UK #1 1978).
From the wiki: “‘Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?’ was recorded by the British singer Rod Stewart for his 1978 album Blondes Have More Fun. It was written by Stewart, Carmine Appice and Duane Hitchings.
“It was alleged that Stewart created the song through partial musical plagiarism. A copyright infringement lawsuit was file by Jorge Ben Jor claiming ‘Do Ya Think I’m Sexy’ was derived from ‘Taj Mahal’, incorporating certain elements of the melody first written and recorded by Ben Jor in 1972. The case was ‘settled amicably’ according to Ben Jor. Stewart admitted to ‘unconscious plagiarism’ of the Ben Jor song in his 2012 autobiography Rod: The Autobiography.”
First recorded by Dinah Shore (1949).
Hit versions by Jo Stafford (US #14 1950), Harry Belafonte & Millard Thomas (UK #18 1957), The Browns (US #13 1959).
From the wiki: “‘Scarlet Ribbons (For Her Hair)’ is a popular song. The music was written by Evelyn Danzig, with lyrics by Jack Segal, in only 15 minutes in 1949 at Danzig’s home in Port Washington, New York after she invited lyricist Segal to hear the music. The first Recordings of the song by Dinah Shore and Juanita Hall in 1949 made no great impression but, in 1950, Jo Stafford’s recording breached the US Top 20. In 1952, Harry Belafonte, at his third session for RCA Records, covered the song with an arrangement using only his guitarist Millard Thomas and male vocal group. After receiving continually good responses in concert, Belafonte’s four-year-old recording finally became a success in 1956 after it appeared on his second album which reached #1 on Billboard’s album chart for six weeks. Belafonte’s recording also reached the UK Top 20 in late 1957.
“The most successful recording of ‘Scarlet Ribbons (For Her Hair)’ in the USA was recorded b The Browns, who reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 in December 1959. ‘Scarlet Ribbons’ has since become a standard with many recorded versions and has appeared on several Christmas albums.”
First recorded by The Ad Libs (US #8/R&B #6 1965).
Also recorded by Dave “Baby” Cortez (1965).
Other hit versions by Darts (UK #2 1978), The Manhattan Transfer (US #7/MOR #4 1981).
From the wiki: “‘The Boy from New York City’ was originally recorded by the American soul group The Ad Libs. Released as the group’s first single in 1964, it was produced by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (‘Hound Dog‘, ‘On Broadway‘). The song peaked at #8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in February 1965. The Ad Libs would never repeat their chart success.
“The song was later covered by Dave ‘Baby’ Cortez, as a 1965 instrumental; Darts, in 1978; and The Manhattan Transfer, in 1981. The latter two covers became chart hits in the UK and US, respectively. The Ad Libs recording also inspired a response song by The Beach Boys, ‘The Girl from New York City’, from their 1965 album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!).”
First recorded (as “Reginella campagnola”) by Carlo Buti (1939).
Also recorded by Kate Smith (1940).
Hit versions by The Andrews Sisters (US #7 1940), Glenn Miller & His Orchestra (US #1 1940).
From the wiki: “‘The Woodpecker Song’ (‘Reginella campagnola’) was originally an Italian song, written by Eldo Di Lazzaro, and first recorded by Carlo Buti in 1939. English lyrics were written by Harold Adamson and the song became a US hit in 1940, recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, The Andrews Sisters, and Kate Smith the same year. The Glenn Miller recording featured Marion Hutton on vocals and reached #1 on the Billboard charts in 1940.”
First recorded by Paper Dolls (1968).
Hit version by Jefferson (US #23/MOR #19/CAN #15 1969).
From the wiki: “Paper Dolls was founded in 1967 as a British female vocal trio from Northampton, UK, who appeared a couple of decades before similar all-girl recording acts, such as Bananarama, Atomic Kitten and Spice Girls, became commonplace. Pre-dating the Spice Girls, each member of the girl group had a nickname (Susanne Mathis, ‘Tiger’; Susan Marshall, ‘Copper’; Pauline Bennett, ‘Spyder’).
“Signed to Pye Records, Paper Dolls had one solitary chart success: The song, ‘Something Here in My Heart (Keeps A Tellin’ Me No)’, written by Tony Macaulay and John Macleod, was their debut single. It reached #11 on the UK Singles Chart in 1968. The group’s greatest professional disappointment came when their producers first arranged for them to record another Macaulay co-composition, ‘Build Me Up Buttercup’, in 1967. But, due to a misunderstanding, Paper Dolls never turned up for the session; instead, the song was given to The Foundations, whose version became a transatlantic hit.
First recorded by The Quarrymen (1958).
Also recorded by The “Beatals” (1960), The Beatles (1962), The Beatles (1963).
First released by Terry Manning (1968).
Hit album version by The Beatles (1969).
From the wiki: “‘One After 909’ is the oldest known Beatles song.
“It was written as early as 1957, one of the first Lennon-McCartney compositions (‘[‘One After 909′] was something I wrote when I was about seventeen,’ John Lennon explained in his 1980 Playboy magazine interview), and was first recorded c. 1958 by The Quarrymen according to Mike McCartney.
“The then-named ‘Beatals’ also recorded ‘One After 909’ sometime between January-August 1960, after Stu Sutcliffe had joined as the bass player but before the addition of Pete Best on drums. The Beatles, sans Sutcliffe but with Best on drums, also recorded the song during rehearsals in 1962 at The Cavern Club, Liverpool. The group first recorded ‘One After 909’ in a studio during the 1962 sessions for the group’s third single, ‘From Me to You’, with Ringo Starr on drums, but that recording was unreleased until Anthology I in 1995.
First recorded by Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five (R&B #1 1945).
Other hit versions by Erskine Hawkins (US #12/R&B #2 1945), Woody Herman & His Orchestra (US #2 1945), James Brown (US #95 1964).
Also recorded by Champion Jack Dupree (1967), B.B. King (1971).
From the wiki: “‘Caldonia’ is a jump-blues song, written by Louis Jordan (but crediting his then-wife, Fleecie Moore, for tax-evading purposes) and first recorded in 1945 by Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five. The lyrics may have been inspired by a real character: a tall Crescent City drag queen wearing oversized shoes.
“A cover version by Erskine Hawkins (‘Tuxedo Junction‘), also released in 1945, was described by Billboard magazine as ‘rock and roll’, the first time that phrase was used in print to describe any style of music. Woody Herman and his orchestra also covered ‘Caldonia’ in 1945, arranged by the young Neal Hefti, with Herman singing the lead vocal.
First recorded by Bonnie Raitt (1972).
Hit versions by Linda Ronstadt (US #51/MOR #23 1973), Daryl Braithwaite (AUS #5 1977).
Also recorded by Libby Titus, co-writer (1977).
From the wiki: “‘Love Has No Pride’ was written by Eric Kaz and Libby Titus, and was first recorded in 1972 by Bonnie Raitt for her album Give It Up of which critic Dave Marsh wrote ‘[it comes] closest to perfecting her approach. She [mingles] her blues resources with a variety of contemporary and folk-oriented songs, coming up with classics in ‘Been Too Long at the Fair’ and Eric Kaz’s ‘Love Has No Pride.’ Her version of the latter remains definitive …’
“Linda Ronstadt covered ‘Love Has No Pride’ for her 1973 album Don’t Cry Now. Her recording was released as the album’s first single. It peaked at #51 on the Billboard Hot 100, but has song has endured over the years to be remembered as one of Ronstadt’s signature songs.
“Australian singer Daryl Braithwaite covered ‘Love Has No Pride’ in 1977, scoring a Top 5 hit on the Australian Singles chart. The song’s co-writer, Libby Titus, covered her own song in 1977 for her self-titled album Libby Titus. Titus would go on to musically collaborate with the likes of Burt Bacharach, Dr. John, and Donald Fagen, and perform bit parts in the motion pictures Heartburn and Awakenings.”
First recorded by The Foundations (US #11/UK #1/CAN #1 1967).
Re-recorded by The Foundations (1968).
Also recorded Alton Ellis (1967), Lana Cantrell (1968), The Marble Arch Orchestra (1968).
Other hit version by Alison Krauss & Union Station (C&W #49 1995).
From the wiki: “‘Baby, Now That I’ve Found You’ was written by Tony Macaulay and John MacLeod, parts of it in the same bar of a Soho tavern where Karl Marx is supposed to have written Das Kapital. When ‘Baby Now That I’ve Found You’ was first released, as The Foundations’ debut single in 1967, it went nowhere. Meanwhile, BBC Radio’s newly founded Radio 1 were looking to avoid any records being played by the pirate radio stations (e.g. Radio Caroline, Radio London) and they looked back at some recent releases that the pirate stations had missed. ‘Baby, Now That I’ve Found You’ was one of them. The single then took off and by November it was #1 in the British charts.
“Another version of the song was recorded by The Foundations in 1968 featuring Colin Young, Clem Curtis’ replacement. This was released on a Marble Arch album of newer stereo versions of previous hits. The same year the record label’s Marble Arch Orchestra recorded an instrumental version of the song for the 1968 album Tomorrow’s Standards.
First recorded (as “I Found You”) by Yvonne Fair & the James Brown Band (1962).
Also recorded by James Brown (1964).
Hit version by James Brown (US #3/R&B #1/UK #29 1965).
From the wiki: “‘I Got You (I Feel Good)’ was developed from an earlier Brown-penned song, ‘I Found You’, with a nearly identical melody and lyrics. ‘I Found You’ was recorded by Brown’s back-up singer, Yvonne Fair, and was released as a single in 1962 with little success.
“In 1964, Brown recorded an early version of ‘I Got You (I Feel Good)’ with a different arrangement, including a stuttering rhythm and prominent baritone sax line, under the title ‘I Got You’. This version appeared on the Smash Records album Out of Sight and was used in the 1965 film Ski Party, in which Brown lip-synched his performance. It was intended for a single release but was withdrawn due to a court order from King Records, with whom Brown was involved in a contract dispute.
“Re-recorded and released as a single in 1965 titled ‘I Got You (I Feel Good)’, the song would go to become Brown’s highest-charting song and is arguably his most widely-known recording.
Written and first recorded (as “Hey Lolly Lolly”) by Woody Guthrie (1944, released 1952).
Also recorded by Pete Seeger (as “Hey Li-Lee”, 1954), The Vipers Skiffle Group (sa “Hey Liley Liley Lo”, 1957), The Limeliters (as “Hey Li Lee Li Lee”, 1961).
Hit version by Chubby Checker (US #12/R&B #4 1963).
From the wiki: “Woody Guthrie recorded a version of “Hey Lolly Lolly” in 1944 which was not released until 1952. Pete Seeger recorded ‘Hey Li-Lee’ in 1954 but the song did not first gain wide familiarity until The Limeliters recorded their variation, ‘Hey Li Lee Li Lee’, during the early ’60s Folk music revival. Chubby Checker further adapted the song, recording ‘Hey Lolly Lolly’ in 1963 and going Top 20 with it on the Billboard Hot 100 and Top 5 US R&B charts.”
First recorded by Bing Crosby (US #12 1946).
Other popular versions by Ethel Merman & Ray Middleton (1946), Frank Sinatra (US# 2 1946), Perry Como (US #4 1946)
From the wiki: “‘They Say It’s Wonderful’ was written by Irving Berlin for the musical Annie Get Your Gun (1946), where it was introduced on Broadway by Ethel Merman and Ray Middleton. The song was first recorded and released on a 78 rpm by Bing Crosby in 1946, a version that say modest chart success. Merman and Middleton released a recorded ‘cast’ version later in 1946. Frank Sinatra and Perry Como both charted in 1946 with covers of ‘They Say It’s Wonderful’.
“In 1979, Merman recorded a ‘camp’ version for The Ethel Merman Disco Album but it was not released until issued as a bonus track on the CD reissue in 2002.”
First performed by Jackie Gleason (in Papa’s Delicate Condition) (1963).
Also performed by Judy Garland (1963).
Popular versions by Frank Sinatra (1963), Jack Jones (US #75 1963).
From the wiki: “”Call Me Irresponsible” was composed in 1962 by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Sammy Cahn. According to the Mel Tormé book The Other Side of the Rainbow with Judy Garland on the Dawn Patrol, Van Heusen originally wrote the song for Garland to sing at a CBS dinner. At that time, Garland had just signed to do The Judy Garland Show on CBS-TV, and the intent of the song was to parody her well-known problems. Garland later did sing the song, on the seventh episode of her variety show.
“However, in 1988, Sammy Cahn said that the song was originally written for Fred Astaire to sing in the film Papa’s Delicate Condition in which Astaire was to star. Cahn personally auditioned the song for Astaire’s approval, which was given. However, Astaire’s contractual obligations prevented him from making the film and the role went to Jackie Gleason, who introduced the song. It would go on to win the Academy Award for ‘Best Original Song’ at the 36th Academy Awards held in 1964.”
First recorded (as demos) by David Crosby (1968), Stephen Stills (1968).
Hit album versions by Crosby, Stills & Nash (1969), Jefferson Airplane (1969).
(Above: David Crosby demo.)
(Above: Stephen Stills demo)
From the wiki: “‘Wooden Ships’ was written by David Crosby, Paul Kantner, and Stephen Stills. The song was composed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on a boat named ‘Mayan’ owned by Crosby, who composed the music, while Kantner and Stills wrote most of the lyrics. ‘Wooden Ships’ was first recorded as a demo by Crosby in March 1968 with the melody but no lyrics. Stills recorded his own demo the following month with most of the lyrics in place.
“On the original Crosby Stills & Nash release in 1969, Kantner could not be officially credited as one of the joint authors-composer due to legal issues. Crosby later said, ‘Paul called me up and said that he was having this major duke-out with this horrible guy (Matthew Katz) who was managing the band, and [Katz] was freezing everything their names were on. ‘He might injunct the release of your record,’ [Kanter] told me. So we didn’t put Paul’s name on it for a while. In later versions, we made it very certain that he wrote it with us. Of course, we evened things up with him with a whole mess of cash when the record went huge.’
Written and first recorded by Larry Williams (US #69 1958).
Also recorded by Ronnie Hawkins & the Hawks (1959), The Fabulous Echoes (1965), The Plastic Ono Band (1969).
Hit album version by The Beatles (1965).
From the wiki: “‘Dizzy Miss Lizzy’ was composed and first recorded by Larry Williams (‘Nobody‘) in 1958, sharing some similarities with the Little Richard-composed hit ‘Good Golly Miss Molly’. Williams’ original recording peaked at #69 on the Billboard Hot 100 but failed to chart R&B.
“The song has been covered many times, including, and most notably by, the Beatles on the 1965 Help! album. (The recording was initially intended for the 1965 American album Beatles VI, along with the Larry Williams cover, ‘Bad Boy’, recorded by the group on the same day.) Paul McCartney has stated that he believes ‘Dizzy Miss Lizzy’ to be one of the Beatles’ best recordings.
First recorded (as “Dis Train”) by The Florida Normal and Industrial Institute Quartette (1924).
Also recorded (as “This Train”) by Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1939).
Hit version adapted by Willie Dixon and recorded (as “My Babe”) by Little Walter & His Jukes (R&B #1 1955).
Also recorded (as “My Babe”) by Cliff Richard (1959), The Uniques (1969), Willie Dixon (1970).
From the wiki: “‘My Babe’ was based on the traditional Gospel song ‘This Train (Is Bound For Glory)’, first recorded in 1924 by The Florida Normal and Industrial Institute Quartette. It was also first recorded by Sister Rosetta Tharpe as ‘This Train’ in 1939; a second version would be recorded by Tharpe in 1947 with the Sam Price Trio.
“‘My Babe’ was written by Willie Dixon (‘Hoochie Coochie Man’, ‘Spoonful’, ‘Little Red Rooster‘) for Little Walter. Dixon reworked the Gospel arrangement and lyrics from the sacred (the procession of saints into Heaven) into the secular (a story about a woman who won’t stand for her man to cheat): ‘My baby, she don’t stand no cheating, my babe, she don’t stand none of that midnight creeping.’
“Released in 1955 on Checker Records, the song was the only Dixon composition ever to become a #1 R&B single, one of the biggest hits of either of Dixon’s or Walter’s careers. Backing Little Walter’s vocals and harmonica were Robert Lockwood, Jr. and Leonard Caston on guitars, Willie Dixon on double-bass, and Fred Below on drums.
First performed (as “Alla Fine Della Strada”) by Junior Magli (1969) & The Casuals (1969) @ the Sanremo Music Festival 1969.
Recorded (as “Love Me Tonight”) by The Casuals (1969).
Hit version by Tom Jones (US #13/MOR #2/UK #9/CAN #4/IRE #7/BEL #2 1969).
[Above: Junior Magli’s performance at the 1969 Sanremo Music Festival]
[Above: The Casuals’ performance at the 1969 Sanremo Music Festival]
From the wiki: “Junior Magli made his debut in the early 1960s, performing in various Italian clubs and competitions and publishing some 45 songs under his real name, Luigi Pazzaglini, before adopting the stage name ‘Junior Magli’. In 1968, Magli recorded a cover of ‘Delilah’ (the 1968 Tom Jones hit), with which he participated in the 1968 International Music Fair in Venice.
“In 1969, Magli entered the Festival of Sanremo and, in conjunction with the expatriate UK band the Casuals, premiered ‘Alla Fine Della Strada’. (According to the competition rules, every song entry was performed in a double performance by a couple of singers or groups.) But, neither Magli or The Casuals made the competition short-list.
