Songs with Earlier Histories Than the Hit Version

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Tagged: Bert Kaempfert

1960s, Pop

Danke Schoen

First recorded (as the instrumental “Candlelight Cafe”) by Bert Kaempfert (1959 |1962).
Hit version by Wayne Newton (US #13/MOR #3 1963).

From the wiki: “‘Danke Schoen’ was composed by Bert Kaempfert (‘Spanish Eyes’, ‘Strangers in the Night‘) and was first recorded as a jazzy instrumental titled ‘Candlelight Cafe’ in 1959 with Ladi Geisler on guitar, and again in 1962 in an ‘easy listening’ arrangement. Kurt Schwabach wrote the German lyrics.

“The song gained international fame when, in 1963, Milt Gabler wrote English lyrics and 21-year old singer Wayne Newton recorded an American version. The song was originally intended for singer Bobby Darin as a follow-up to his hit single, ‘Mack the Knife’, but after seeing Newton perform at the Copacabana, in Las Vegas, Darin passed the song along to Newton, transposing the arrangement to fit Newton’s voice. ‘Danke Shoen’ became Newton’s first US Top-20 hit.

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1960s, Pop

L-O-V-E

Co-written and first recorded by Bert Kaempfert (1964).
Hit version by Nat “King” Cole (B-side US #89/MOR #17 1965).

From the wiki: “‘L-O-V-E’ was composed by Bert Kaempfert, and was first recorded as an instrumental track on Kaempfert’s album Blue Midnight (1964).

“Nat ‘King’ Cole followed in 1965 with his vocal recording for his album of the same name (1965), with lyrics by Milt Gabler. The trumpet solo on the Cole recording was performed by Bobby Bryant. Released as the B-side to ‘I Don’t Want to See Tomorrow’, ‘L-O-V-E’ peaked at #89 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at #17 on the Easy Listening chart.

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1960s, Broadway/Movies/Television

Strangers in the Night

First recorded (as “Beddy Bye”) by Bert Kaempfert (1965).
Possibly based on “Stranci u noći” by Ivo Robić (1966)
First English-language recording by Jack Jones (1966).
Also recorded (in German, as “Fremde in der Nacht”) by Ivo Robić (1966).
Hit version Frank Sinatra (US #1/MOR #1/UK #1 1966).

From the wiki: “‘Strangers in the Night’ is credited to Bert Kaempfert with English lyrics by Charles Singleton and Eddie Snyder. It is sometimes claimed that the Croatian singer Ivo Robić was the original composer of ‘Strangers in the Night’ (performed as ‘Stranci u noći’), and that he sold the rights to Kaempfert after entering it without success in a song contest in Yugoslavia. These claims have not been substantiated.

“Robić, a pioneer of popular Yugoslav music from the early 1950s on, was the only artist from Yugoslavia whose records were available in the record shops of Europe and the rest of the world. He performed and collaborated with Kaempfert, Freddy Quinn, and Dean Martin. Robić would go on to record Yugoslav and German versions of ‘Strangers in the Night’, ‘Stranci u Noći’ with lyrics by Marija Renota and ‘Fremde in der Nacht’ with lyrics by Kurt Feltz.

“Kaempfert originally recorded the melody under the title ‘Beddy Bye’ as part of the instrumental score for the movie soundtrack to A Man Could Get Killed, which went on to win a Golden Globe Award in 1967 for Best Original Song in a Motion Picture.

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1940s, Pop

Red Roses for a Blue Lady

First recorded by John Laurenz (1948).
Hit versions by Vaughn Monroe & The Moon Men (US #3 1949), Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians (US #8 1949), Bert Kaempert (US #11/MOR #2 1965), Wayne Newton (US #23/MOR #4 1965), Vic Dana (US #10/MOR #2 1965).

From the wiki: “‘Red Roses for a Blue Lady’ was written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett, and first recorded in 1948 by John Laurenz. The best-selling recording was produced in 1949 by Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra Vocalists: Vaughn Monroe and The Moon Men. The song was revived three times in 1965: By vocalists Vic Dana and Wayne Newton, and by instrumentalist Bert Kaempfert. Dana’s version was the most successful of the three, peaking at #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the Easy Listening chart.”

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