I’m taking a short break from fulfilling medley requests and going back to spending a week focusing on a particular year in music. This week that year is 1963.
It was the year President John F. Kennedy was assassinated and his alleged killer, Lee Harvey Oswald was shot and killed on national TV; George Wallace was sworn in as governor of Alabama with a pledge of “”segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.”; the “Onion Field” killing took place in Bakersfield, CA; Alcatraz prison closed; the “Birmingham Bombing” killed 4 young girls; Martin Luther King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech.
Pope John XXIII died; Medgar Evers was fatally shot in front of his home in Jackson, MS; the Supreme Court ruled 8-1 to strike down rules requiring the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer in public schools; the first members of football’s Hall of Fame were named; Patsy Cline, “Cowboy” Copas and “Hawkshaw” Hawkins died in a plane crash; poet Robert Frost died.
Cleopatra, Lilies Of The Field, The Great Escape, The Pink Panther, Dr. No, The Birds, PT 109 and Tom Jones all premiered in U.S. theaters; Wild Kingdom, The Fugitive, Outer Limits, My Favorite Martian and General Hospital all premiered on television.
The average income in the U.S. was $5,800; the average cost of a new home was $12,600; the average cost of a new car was $3,200; gasoline was 29 cents per gallon; the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the year at 762.
And in music?
It was the last gasp for many American singing stars. As the year ended, the British Invasion was just around the corner and while females fared somewhat better than their male colleagues in 1964, both had no idea what the music from “across the pond” was going to mean to their careers.
Please Note… I will be getting back to the medley requests next week. If you have 7-10 oldies (preferably between 1955 and 1980) you want to hear in a medley, please send the names of the songs to me at Raylemire@aol.com.
Play button is on the left … Volume slider is on the right
Vintage 1963 Medley / Part 1
Chiffons – Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs
Crystals – Dale & Grace – Steve Lawrence
Rooftop Singers – Bobby Vee – Bobby Darin
In 1963 I was a sophomore in high school. Like most guys I was trying to figure out how to behave in the “almost” adult world. Girls were pretty much of a mystery to me. To hear the Chiffons & the Crystals sing of their love and devotion to their boyfriends was comforting, they liked guys just like we liked Girls, what a revelation! It was sad to me that the strong girl groups were, for the most part, a causality of the British Invasion. The deep Bobby Vee cut,(not Rubber Ball”), was nice to hear. I always felt I shared his relationship views. 18 Yellow Roses has that kind of “Country twist” that I enjoy.
Thank you Ray for another time travel start to my day.
Thank you, Don.
I was a 7th-grader in 1963 and I was much more into sports than girls. THAT changed a couple of years later. 😉
I love playing deep cuts but sometimes I find that a lot of people don’t recall them. That’s the part I enjoy because it’s always nice to give listeners a musical surprise every now and then. 🙂
I love this medley, Ray. ’61-’64, were my high school years, so lots of memories involved. I hadn’t heard “I’m Leaving It All Up To You” in years.(one of my very favorites) Can’t wait for the rest of the week’s songs!
Thanks, Pat 🙂
I hope you realize I added Dale & Grace just for you. I remembered that you loved it.
I hope this week will bring back a lot of great memories for you.
I try to listen and identify the artist/group performing the songs before looking at your list. You stumped me with 18 Yellow Roses. I can honestly say I do not have any recollection of that song. Thanks again for another good start to a snowy morning. In mid 🇺🇸
Thanks, Marty.
18 Yellow Roses is my favorite Darin song … and I am humbled that I played something you didn’t remember 😉
Stay Safe in Snowville!
Excellent! I hadn’t heard a few of these for a very long time! This was a true treat to listen to twice today! Thank you, thank you, thank you! XOXOXOXO
Thank you, Wendyl ❤️
It is always my goal to give the people who listen a reason to smile. Your responses to my efforts always put a big smile on my face!
XOXOXOXO
Well now I’ve decided 1963 was definitely a good year. Loved today’s songs … every one of them. The history snip-its are fantastic, especially the cost of houses, cars and the year end DOW figure. Must thank you again for all the time and effort you put into these. Each is so good and so many people enjoy them. You are definitely a very special man …. and were we really in 7th grade then …. yikes where have the years gone!!! Hope you rocked the day yesterday Ray.
We’ve been on leaf clean up for the last few weeks – now the oaks are falling so we are almost done. Stay safe!
Thank you, Barbara 🙂
7th grade seems so long ago … wait, it WAS a long time ago!
I enjoy doing those yearly time capsules. It reminds me there were plenty of things wrong with our world no matter what year it was. We just didn’t have the instant access to the news back then (probably a good thing).
I raked a lot today. The oaks, and I have a couple of massive ones, decided to drop a ton of leaves last night and this morning. But yes, it’s almost over. Good thing, with snow on the way tomorrow!
Glad you enjoyed the music!
ROCK THIS EVENING!