The Baby Boomer Radio Show returns!

Yes, indeed it has!
Not to TLC-FM 100.3 in Yamba, however, but to Valley FM 89.5 in the ACT.

This is the station where I first became involved in community radio, back at the beginning of this century and even when I moved here to Yamba in 2014 I would record the local show, edit it down to an hour and that would then be aired on Valley FM later in the week.
A similar procedure will be used for the revived program and whilst the program kicks off in a one-hour format, within a couple of weeks it will be extended to a two-hour show.

So commencing on Tuesday 3rd. December the new Baby Boomer will go to air at 1800 (6:00 PM) and will be replayed at 2105 (9:05 PM) each Thursday.

Format will be similar to what I've been doing for the past umpteen years; a veritable smörgåsbord of music with Top Forty hits from the Sixties, Seventies, Eighties, the occasional wander into the Nineties, Easy Listening, and every so often a snippet of comedy from some of the classic BBC radio shows of the 1950s and 1960s.

If you are a Baby Boomer then please join me and enjoy a relaxing trip down memory lane.
If you are a young whipper-snapper you just might hear something that you will enjoy!

Program for Wednesday 16th. July 2014

Today we revisit the 4BC Top Forty of exactly 52 years ago - the week of 15th. July 1962.

I will be playing every one of the 40 Hit Tunes listed on the playlist shown above, so come and relive exactly what we were listening to over fifty years ago!

The Comedy Spot at 2:00 PM will feature another classic BBC "Hancock's Half-hour".

Relocating to Yamba, NSW

From May 21st. the Baby-Boomer Radio Show will be heard on 2TLC (The Lower Clarence) 100.3, the community radio station located in Yamba, on the mouth of the Clarence River.

The program is scheduled for Wednesday afternoons, from midday until 4:00 PM, and will follow the same format as has been presented for the past several years in Canberra.

Please join me and wallow in the deep end of the nostalgia pool of pop music and radio comedy from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

Program for Friday 31st. - Back to the Fifties.

A selection of goodies from the Nineteen-Fifties is on the menu today and will include the following hits:-

• A Woman In Love - Frankie Laine (1956)
• Born Too Late - the Shannons (1958)
• Bye Bye Baby - Col Joye (1959) AUSTRALIAN
• Cannonball - Duane Eddy (1958)
• Chantilly Lace - the Big Bopper (1958)
• Ginger Bread - Frankie Avalon (1958)
• Gonna Get Along Without You Now - the Keynotes (1957) - Live, from Take It From Here.
• Happy Go Lucky Me - Paul Evans (1960)
• I See The Moon - the Stargazers (1954)
• It's All In The Game - Tommy Edwards (1954)
• Lisbon Antigua - Nelson Riddle (1956)
• Lonely Guitar - Annette Funicello (1959) Two versions of the same song.
• Lonely Teardrops - Jackie Wilson (1958)
• Moritat - the Dick Hyman Trio (1956)
• Mountain Greenery - Max Geldray (1956) Live, from The Goon Show 11-Oct-1956.
• My Blue Heaven - Fats Domino (1956)
• My Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own - Connie Francis (1960)
• Rag Mop - Lionel Hampton (1950)
• Seven Lonely Days - Georgia Gibbs (1953)
• So Tough - Johnny O'Keefe (1958) AUSTRALIAN
• Splish Splash - Bobby Darin (1958)
• Stardust - Ray Conniff (1956)
• The Big Hurt - Miss Toni Fisher (1959)
• The Twist - Chubby Checker (1960 & 1962)
• There's Only One Of You - the Four Lads (1958)
• Walkin' My Baby Back Home - Johnny Ray (1952)
• Whole Lotta Loving - Fats Domino (1958)
• Wishing For Your Love - the Voxpoppers (1958)
• You Belong To Me - Jo Stafford (1953)
• You Need Hands - Eydie Gorme (1958)
• You Are The Limit - the Delltones (1961) AUSTRALIAN

As mentioned in the last entry (for Monday 27th. May) I will be presenting the first episode in the BBC radio series, "The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy" in the half-hour immediately following the 3:00 PM news & weather.

Grab your towels, don your PJs and dressing-gown and prepare yourself for some whacky trans-universal comedy from the pen of Douglas Adams.

Monday 27th. May - Back 50 Years to 1963

For today's show I am going back fifty years - to 1963 and a look at and listen to what was receiving airplay during the twelve months of that year.

The playlist will feature the following songs (listed alphabetically, not necessarily in playing order):-

• As Usual - Brenda Lee
• Be My Baby - the Ronettes
• Blue Bayou - Roy Orbison
• Bombora - the Atlantics (Australian)
• Come A Little Bit Closer - the Delltones (Australian)
• Danke Shoen -Wayne Newton
• Eighteen Yellow Roses - Bobby Darin
• Fifty-five Days At Peking - Rob E G (Australian)
• Hangin' Five - the Delltones (Australian)
• Hello Muddah Hello Fuddah - Allen Sherman
• Hey Little Cobra - the Rip Chords
• Hey Little Girl - Major Lance
• James Hold The Ladder Steady - Sue Thompson
• Maria Elena - Los Indios Tabajares
• Move Baby Move - Johnny O'Keefe (Australian)
• Ring Of Fire - Johnny Cash
• So Much In Love - the Tymes
• Spanish Lace - Gene McDaniels
• Sugar Shack - Jimmy Gilmer & the Fireballs
• Surfside - Digger Revell & the Denvermen (Australian)
• Talk Back Trembling Lips - Johnny Tillotson
• Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days Of Summer - Nat King Cole
• Walk Right In - the Rooftop Singers
• Washington Square - the Village Stompers
• What Will Mary Say - Johnny Mathis
• You Don't Own Me - Leslie Gore
• You're Sixteen, You're Beautiful & You're Mine - Johnny Burnette

Today I will be presenting my final Hancock's Half-hour as the comedy feature which follows the 10:00 AM news & weather.

Today's show comes from the 29th. April 1958, features the full team of Kenneth Williams, Tony Hancock, Bill Kerr, Sid James and Hattie Jacques (left-to-right, above) and is entitled "The Grappling Game", in which Sid James is a wrestling promoter and Tony, Bill and Hattie attend the opening night. Kenneth Williams plays a multitude of roles, as usual!

So this will bring the Hancock's Half-hour radio presentations to a close for the time being.
Having played two per week since October 2012 I have exhausted the supply!

Therefore, starting next Friday, the 31st. May, I will present the first half-hour episode in the complete "Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy" radio series, as produced by the BBC in the 1990s.
Subsequent episodes will be featured in the regular Monday and Friday programs until exhausted (there are 24 episodes).

If you are a fan of the Douglas Adams books you will love this show, in which Peter Jones plays "the book".

For Friday 24th. May, back to 1964!

What a year this was - the first full year since the commenement of the "Top Forty" during which the Australian airwaves and the record stores featured more British artists than American.
The British Invasion had finally arrived and the predominantly American influence diminished almost overnight.

Today I am featuring a cross-section of artists and their songs from 1964 and the playlist will be made up of the following (listed in alphabetical order by song name):-

• A Fool Never Learns - Andy Williams
• Ain't That Good News - Sam Cooke
• All My Loving - the Beatles
• Always Something There To Remind Me - Sandie Shaw
• Baby I Love You - the Ronettes
• Bits & Pieces - the Dave Clark Five
• James Bond theme - John Barry
• Bread & Butter - the Newbeats
• Dawn (Go Away) - the Four Seasons
• Every Little Bit Hurts - Brenda Holloway
• Everybody Loves Somebody - Dean Martin
• Have I The Right - the Honeycombs
• Hawaii Tattoo - the Waikikis
• How Do You Do It - Gerry & the Pacemakers
• I Want To Love Him So Bad - the Jellybeans
• I'm Into Something Good - Herman's Hermits
• In The Misty Moonlight - Jerry Wallace
• Juliet - the Four Pennies
• Just Like Romeo & Juliet - the Reflections
• Little Old Lady From Pasadena - Jan & Dean
• Memphis (Tennessee) - Johnny Rivers
• No Particular Place To Go - Chuck Berry
• Nobody I Know - Peter & Gordon
• Reet Petite - Dinah Lee
• Ringo - Lorne Green
• She Wears My Ring - Johnny O'Keefe
• She's A Mod - Ray Columbus & the Invaders
• Such A Night - Elvis Presley
• Talkin' About My Baby - the Impressions
• Tell Me Why - Bobby Vinton
• That's The Way Boys Are - Lesley Gore
• Time Is On My Side - the Rolling Stones
• White Rabbit - Peter Posa
• Willow Weep For Me - Chad & Jeremy

The Comedy Spot which follows the 3:00 PM news & weather update is another in the classic Hancock's Half-hour radio series.
Today's show comes from the 13th. January 1957 and is entitled "Almost A Gentleman".
It features the "full" cast - Tony Hancock, Sid James, Bill Kerr, Kenneth Williams and Hattie Jacques.

Ladies Day.....Friday 17th. May 2013

The focus for today's program is on the female artists of the 1950s and 1960s.
So the following songs and artists will be included in the playlist:-

• Are You Looking For A Sweetheart - Kitty Kallen (1950s)
• Billy - Kathy Linden (1958)
• Blonde-Headed Stompie-Wompie Real Gone Surfer Boy - Little Patty (1963)
• Born Too Late - the Poni-Tails (1958)
• Bumble Bee - Laverne Baker (1960)
• Ciao Baby - Lynn RAndell (1960s)
• Comes-A-Long-A-Love - Kay Starr (1950s)
• Don'cha Go 'Way Mad - Lucy AnnPolk (1950s)
• Everybody Loves A Lover - Doris Day (1958)
• Everybody's Somebody's Fool - Connie Francis (1960)
• Half As Much - Rosemary Clooney (1952)
• Hallelujah, I Love Him So - Dinah Lee (1965)
• He's Mine - Millie Small (1960)
• He's Not A Rebel - Vicki Carr (1962)
• Hi-Lilli Hi-Lo - Dinah Shore (1953)
• How High The Moon - Lola Albright (1958)
• How Much Is That Doggy In The Window - Lita Roza (1950s)
• I Love How You Love Me - the Paris Sisters (1961)
• I'll Never Fall In Love Agaian - Dionne Warwick (1969)
• I'm The Girl From Wolverton Mountain - Dorothy Baker (1962)
• I've Told Every Little Star - Linda Scott (1961)
• Jeepers Creepers - Hayley Mills (1962)
• Johnny Angel - Shelley Fabares (1962)
• Knock Knock, Who's There - Liv Maessen (1970)
• Left Right Out Of Your Heart - Patti Page (1958)
• Lollipop - the Chordettes (1958)
• Love Me To Pieces - Jill Corey (1957)
• Mr. Lee - the Bobettes (1957)
• Music Music Music - Teresa Brewer (1950)
• Picnic - Shalley Fabares (1962)
• Pineapple Princess - Annette Funicello (1960)
• Puppet On A String - Sandie Shaw (1967)
• Sugar In The Morning - the McGuire Sisters (1958)

In addition to the above, following the 3:00 PM news & weather will be another classic Hancock's Half-hour, this one from the 14th. October 1956 and entitled "Back From Holiday", featuring Tony Hancock, Sid James, Bill Kerr and Kenneth Williams.

Here we go for Monday 13th. May!

Today I am featuring a selection of  Top Forty hits from 1963 and 1964....and a couple of 1965 songs as well.

Here is the playlist (in alphabetical order):-

• Abilene - George Hamilton IV (1963)
• Baby I Need Your Loving - the Four Tops (1964)
• Be True To Your School - Bobby Rydell (1963)
• Blame It On The Bossa Nova - Eydie Gorme (1963)
• Blue Velvet - Bobby Vinton (1963)
• Cotton Candy - Al Hirt (1963)
• Deep Purple - Nino Temple & April Stevens (1963)
• Devil In Disguise - Elvis Presley (1963)
• Don't Think Twice - Peter, Paul & Mary (1963)
• Doo Wah Diddy Diddy - Manfred Mann (1964)
• Fools Rush In - Rick nelson (1963)
• Frankie And Johnny - Sam Cooke (1963)
• Go Now - the Moody Blues (1965)
• Honolulu Lulu - Jan & Dean (1963)
• I Should Have Known Better - the Beatles (1964)
• If I Had A Hammer - Trini Lopez (1963)
• I'll See You In My Dreams - Linda Scott (1965)
• It's My Party - Leslie Gore (1963)
• Last Kiss - J Frank Wilson & the Cavaliers (1964)
• Let It Be - Jerry Butler & Betty Everett (1964)
• Maybelline - Johnny Rivers (1964)
• More - Kai Winding (1963)
• My Boyfriend's Back - the Angels (1963)
• Our Day Will Come - Ruby & the Romantics (1963)
• Peaches And Cream - the Ikettes (1965)
• Popsicles And Icicles - the Murmaids (1963)
• Red Sails In The Sunset - Fats Domino (1963)
• Stop And Think It Over - Dale & Grace (1964)
• Sukiyaki - Kyu Sakamoto (1963)
• Wipeout - the Surfaris (1963)
• Wishing And Hoping - Dusty Springfield (1964)

In addition to these, following the news & weather update at 10:00 AM will be yet another in the Hancock's Half-hour radio comedies from the 1950s, today's entitled "The Smugglers", from 29th. September 1959, and featuring Tony Hancock, Sid James, Bill Kerr and Kenneth Williams.

Program for Friday 10th. May 2013

A veritable buffet of finger-food for you today!
The table will be loaded with pops and hits from the 1950s through the 1960s, plus a smattering of Easy Listening for your enjoyment.

Following the news & weather at 3:00 PM, another classic Hancock's Half-hour radio show from the 1950s will air.

So please join me for three hours of nostalgia this Friday afternoon.

Playlist for Monday 22nd. April

The start of a new week and today I will be presenting a selection of hits from the period 1963 - 1984, with an emphasis on the year 1964.
Included in the playlist are the following tracks:-

• A Summer Song - Chad & Jeremy (1964)
• Abigail Beecher - Freddy Cannon (1964)
• Baby Love - the Supremes (1964)
• Drip Drop - Dion (1964)
• Eso Beso - Cliff Richard (1965)
• Happy Blue Beat - Dinah Lee (1965)* AUS
• Hey There, Lonely Girl - Eddie Holman (1969)
• I Know A Place - Petula Clark (1965)
• It Hurts To Be In Love - Gene Pitney (1964)
• Little Honda - the Hondells (1964)
• Loving You - Francois Hardy (1968)
• Maybe I Know - Leslie Gore (1964)
• Mississippi - Pussycat (1976)
• Mountain Of Love - Johnny Rivers (1964)
• Much Too Late For Goodbyes - Julian Lennon (1984)
• My Aim Is To Please You - the Executives (1967) AUS
• My Boy Lollipop - Millie Small (1964)
• Navy Blue - Dianne Renay (1964)
• One Fine Day - the Chiffons (1963)
• Puppet On A String - Sandie Shaw (1967)
• San Francisco (Flowers In Your Hair) - Scott Mackenzie (1967)
• The Last Time - the Rolling Stones (1965)
• Walk On By - Dionne Warwick (1964)
• We Can Work It Out - the Beatles (1966)
• Windy - the Ventures (1967)
• Working In A Coalmine - Lee Dorsey (1966)
• You Can't Do That - the Beatles (1964)

* I have included a track from the debut album recorded by Dinah Lee in 1965, "Introducing Dinah Lee".
This LP was produced following her major success that year with her first hit, "Don't You Know, Yockomo?".

Following the 10:00 AM news & weather I will present another classic in the Hancock's Half-hour radio shows, today's entitled "The 13th. Of The Series" and which first went to air on the 6th. of January 1957.

Back to the Seventies! - Monday 8th. April

Today's program takes us back to the era of Mission Brown, Burnt Orange, fondue parties, flared pants, body-shirts, mini-skirts edging lower and, of course, discos!

Yep, we are grooving to the sounds from 40 years ago and the playlist for today will feature the following tracks:-

• Ain't Gonna Bump No More - Joe Tex (1977)
• Alone Again, Naturally - Gilbert O'Sullivan (1972)
• Boom Sha La - Hand Poulson (1970) AUS
• Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon & Garfunkel (1969)
• Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep - Middle Of The Road (1971)
• Don't Pull Your Love Out On Me Baby - Hamilton & Reynolds (1971)
• Everything Is Beautiful - Ray Stevens (1970)
• Free Me - Uriah Heep (1978)
• Get Dancin' - Disco Tex & the Sex-O-Lettes (1975)
• Gimme Dat Ding - Frankie Davidson (1970) AUS
• Heartbeat, It's A Love Beat - DeFranco Family (1973)
• Hey There Lonely Girl - Eddie Holman (1969/70)
• Hold The Line - Toto (1978)
• In The Summertime - the Mixtures (1971) AUS
• Kung Fu Fighting - Carl Douglas (1974)
• Lola - the Kinks (1970)
• Look What They've Done To My Song - the New Seekers (1971)
• Love Can make You Happy - Mercy (1969)
• Love Will Keep Us Together - the Captain & Tenille (1975)
• Melanie Makes Me Smile - the Strangers (1969) AUS
• Moonlight Feels Right - Starbuck (1976)
• Nutbush City Limits - Ike & Tina Turner (1973)
• Oliver's Army - Elvis Costello (1979)
• One Less Bell To Answer - the 5th. Dimension (1970)
• Out Of Time - Chris Farlowe (1966)
• Rock & Roll, Part 1 - Gary Glitter (1972)
• Sarah Smile - Hall & Oates (1976)
• September - Earth, Wind & Fire (1978)
• Shannon - Henry Gross (1975)
• She's Not There - Santana (1972)
• Sky High - Jigsaw (1975)
• Spill The Wine - Eric Burdon (1970)
• Stuck In The Middle With You - Stealers Wheel (1972)
• Sugar Baby Love - the Rubettes (1975)
• The Last Song - Edward Bear (1972)
• The Other Guy - Little River Band (1982) AUS
• Theme from "Rush" - Brian May & ABC Showband (1974) AUS
• Venus - Shocking Blue (1970)
• You Took The Words - Meatloaf (1977)
• Your Momma Don't Dance - Bootleg Family Band - feat. Brian Cadd (1973) AUS

The Comedy Spot following the 10:00 AM news & weather is another classic Hancock's Half-hour from the 1950s.

Program for Friday 5th. April 2013

Baby-Boomer Radio will be presenting a veritable smorgasbord of memories in today's program, with a mix of hits and easy-listening popular music from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

The regular comedy spot following the 2:00 PM news & weather will be yet another in the classic Hancock's Half-hour series.

Please join me for a paddle in the deep end of the nostalgia pool.

Monday 25th. March 2013

The program for today takes us back fifty-one years - to 1962 - and includes the following titles:-

1. He's A Rebel - Crystals
2. Monster Mash - Bobby "Boris" Pickett
3. Big Girls Don't Cry - 4 Seasons
4. Green Onions - Booker T & MGs
5. Don't Hang Up - Orlons
6. All Alone Am I - Brenda Lee
7. Sherry - 4 Seasons
8. Surfin' Safari - Beach Boys
9. Popeye The Hitchhiker - Chubby Checker
10. Nothing Can Change This Love - Sam Cooke
11. Patches - Dickie Lee
12. Ramblin' Rose - Nat "King" Cole
13. You Beat Me To The Punch - Mary Wells
14. Desafinado - Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd
15. Alley Cat - Bent Fabric
16. Next Door To An Angel - Neil Sedaka
17. Only Love Can Break A Heart - Gene Pitney
18. Gina - Johnny Mathis
19. Ride! - Dee Dee Sharp
20. Return To Sender - Elvis Presley
21. Let's Dance - Chris Montez
22. Bobby's Girl - Marcie Blane
23. The Cha-Cha-Cha - Bobby Rydell
24. I Left My Heart In San Francisco - Tony Bennett
25. When My Little Girl Is Smiling - Jimmy Justice
26. Lie To Me - Brook Benton
27. Limbo Rock - Chubby Checker
28. Venus In Blue Jeans - Jimmy Clanton
29. I Was Such A Fool - Connie Francis
30. What Kind Of Love Is This - Joey Dee & Starliters
31. I Remember You - Frank Ifield (Australian singer - one of the first in the US charts)
32. Don't Ask Me To be Friends - Everly Brothers
33. Love Came To Me - Dion

The following Australian tracks from 1962 will also be featured:-

1. I've Been Everywhere - Lucky Starr
2. Si Senor - Rob E.G.
3. Southern 'Rora - Joy Boys
4. Sing - Johnny O'Keefe

Following the 10:00 AM news & weather I will present another classic Hancock's Half-hour comedy show.

Monday 18th. March - Easy Listening & Pops

In a similar format to last Friday's program, today will also feature a mix of Easy Listening and Popular music from the 50s, 60s and 70s

The Comedy Spot following the 10:00 AM news and weather will once again feature a classic Hancock's Half-hour from the 1950s.

Just a reminder that you can tune into the program either on your FM radio at 89.5 if in the Tuggeranong area of Canberra, or, no matter where you are living anywhere in the world, via Live Streaming straight into your computer.
There is a link in the right-hand column.

For Friday 15th. March 2013

A mix of all things good from the 50s, 60s and 70s for today's program.
I am not targeting any specific day, week, month or year, so if you enjoy the pop & easy-listening music from those decades then please join me.

The Comedy Spot following the 3:00 PM news and weather will once again feature a classic Hancock's Half-hour from the 1950s.

Just a reminder that you can tune into the program either on your FM radio at 89.5 if in the Tuggeranong area of Canberra, or, no matter where you are living anywhere in the world, via Live Streaming straight into your computer.
Click on the link in the right-hand column and you will be transported!

Monday 4th. March - continuing from Friday's show.

In today's program I will be continuing from where I left off last Friday (1st. March).
Starting with #45 on the list, we will hear the remaining five in the Fabulous 50 Top Tunes for the week ending 1st. March 1959.

Then I will be playing the 10 songs that on the chart were listed as the Best New Releases (released for sale that week), followed by the 10 Up-And-Coming Discs (issued to the radio stations for airplay but not yet available for sale).

The regular Comedy Spot that follows the 10:00 o'clock news & weather will return, once again featuring a classic Hancock's Half-hour.

Please join me for this time-travel trip back to the first week of March, 1959.

March 1st. 2013 = March 1st. 1959!!

Here we go again!
The second (first, chronologically) of the Radio 2UW "Fabulous Fifty Top Hits" to be re-broadcast 54 years later is this one from the week-ending 1st. March 1959.
Although a Sunday, it was beautifully coincidental that the date just happened to align with my Friday edition of the Baby-Boomer Radio Show.

So this Friday's show will feature 48 of the Fab Fifty - the two songs that won't be included are those by UK artist Ronnie Hilton - "I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face" and "The Street Where You Live" (sitting at #6 and #9 respectively back then). I have not been able to source the 45 disc which featured these tracks (A and B sides of the one 45).

However, that still means that 96% of the list will be broadcast and in addition to the Fifty there are also the ten "Best New Releases" of that week and ten "Up-And-Coming" songs.
Just take a look at the playlist (counting down from #1 to #50), taken from the chart shown above:-

FABULOUS 50 TOP TUNES

1. Beep Beep - the Playmates
2. Summertime, Summertime - the Jamies
3. Bim-Bom-Bay - Jimmie Rodgers
4. Summertime Blues - Eddie Cochrane
5. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - the Platters
6. I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face - Ronnie Hilton (not available)
7. Topsy II - Cozy Cole
8. Old Black Magic - Louis Prima & Keely Smith
9. The Street Where You Live - Ronnie Hilton (not available)
10. She Was Only Seventeen - Marty Robbins
11. Walking Along - the Diamonds
12. A House, A Car, A Wedding Ring - Mike Preston (before he came to Australia from the UK)
13. Mr. Success - Frank Sinatra
14. I Got Stung - Elvis Presley
15. What Do I Care - Johnny Cash
16. Come Prima - Tony Dallara (Dalardo)
17. Mandolins In The Moonlight - Perry Como
18. The Children's Marching Song - Cyril Stapleton & Chorus
19. Lazy Summer Night - the Four Preps
20. Lonesome Town - Ricky Nelson
21. La Paloma - Billy Vaughn
22. Hard-Headed Woman - Elvis Presley
23. Treasure Of Your Love - Eileen Rodgers (plus Australian Laurel Lea's cover)
24. To Know Him Is To Love Him - the Teddy Bears
25. I Ain't Gonna Do It - Fats Domino
26. Heartbeat - Buddy Holly
27. I Wanna Be Happy Cha Cha - Enoch Light Orchestra
28. Bing Bang Bong - Sophia Loren (Yep...you read it correctly!)
29. The Teen Commandments - Paul Anka, Johnny Nash & George Hamilton IV
30. Red River Rose - the Ames Brothers
31. Cimarron - Billy Vaughn
32. Forget Me Not - the Kalin Twins
33. Tom Dooley - the Kingston Trio
34. Ain't I The Lucky One - Marty Robbins
35. It's So Easy - Buddy Holly
36. Volare - Domenico Modugno (Eurovision winner & a year before Bobby Rydell's cover)
37. Born Too Late - the Poni-Tails
38. Problems - the Everly Brothers
39. Saturday Girl - Johnny O'Connor <<<< AUSTRALIAN!
40. Baby Face - Little Richard
41. Lonely Tear Drops - Jackie Wilson
42. Sweetie Pie - Tommy Blake
43. The Magician - Dean Martin
44. Firefly - Tony Bennett
45. A Lover's Question - Clyde McPhatter
46. Pretend Cha Cha - Carl Mann version (reference could not be found to "Cha Cha" suffix)
47. Blue Ribbon Baby - Tommy Sands
48. It's Only Make Believe - Conway Twitty
49. Hey, Sheriff - Johnny Rebb <<<< AUSTRALIAN!
50. Gotta Travel On - Ray Melton (Cover of the Billy Grammer version)  <<<< AUSTRALIAN!

BEST NEW RELEASES

• Hawaiian Wedding Song - Andy Williams (A year before Elvis' "Blue Hawaii")
• Little Drummer Boy - Harry Simione Chorale
• (Oh) Donna - Richie Valens
• My Happiness - Connie Francis
• It's Only The Beginning - the Kalin Twins
• La Bamba (flip) Plain Jane - Bobby Darin ("Flip" = A-side & B-side of the same 45)
• A Letter To An Angel - Jimmy Clanton
• Philadelphia, USA - the Nu Tornados
• Blue Hawaii (flip) Tico Tico ("Flip" = A-side & B-side of the same 45)
• Woman From Liberia - Jimmie Rodgers

UP-AND-COMING DISCS

• Enchanted Island - the Four Lads (Jane Morgan also had a version)
• Big Bopper's Wedding - the Big Bopper
• The Blob - the Five Blobs
• Turvy I and II - Cozy Cole (neither tracks available)
• All American Boy - Bill Parsons
• Tarrytown - Harry Belafonte (not available)
• May You Always - the McGuire Sisters
• Cocquette (flip) Whole Lot Of Living - Fats Domino ("Flip" = A-side & B-side of the same 45)
• What Do You Know - Johnny O'Keefe  <<<< AUSTRALIAN!
• Caravan I & II - Cozy Cole
• The World Outside - the Four Aces
• The Diary - Neil Sedaka

There are several things that stand out in neon lights a mile high in the above list of 70 songs.
One is the fact that there is only one British artist. One - Ronnie Hilton.
Boy, was all that to change in about 4 year's time!
Secondly, from a parochial viewpoint, only four Australian artists (not including Laurel Lea).
Another obvious fact is that male artists outnumbered females by a HUGE majority. The girls hardly had a look-in.
And the oddest sight of all is that of Sophia Loren's name up there at #28!
Things have certainly changed in 54 years!

But put those "let's be wise in hindsight" observations aside and WOW!, what a list of 50s/60s music that is! Fabulous examples of the formative years of rock 'n' roll.

Like the first show of this type (Friday 22nd. March), what cannot fit into the three hours will be carried over to the Monday program.

I hope that you can join me in our time-capsule and travel back to March 1st. 1959.
If you were a Sydney-sider (like me) then we can imagine that we are sitting in our cars overlooking Bondi Beach, or whatever it was that took your fancy back then. :)

Monday 25th. - continuing from Friday

In Friday's program I played up to and including the Top Forty from the 2UW  "Fabulous Top Fifty" chart for 14th. June 1959.
So today I will continue on and play the final "bottom 10" (i.e., 41 to 50) from that list and then the New Releases and Up-And-Coming records that were also shown, as follows:-

• 41    Maybe Someday - the Young Lions --/1
• 42    You Made Me Love You - Keely Smith --/1
• 43    Dream Lover - Bobby Darin --/1
• 44    I Need Your Love Tonight - Elvis Presley --/1
• 45    Charlie Brown - the Coasters 29/7
• 46    She Say - the Diamonds 24/5
• 47    I Think I'm Gonna Kill Myself - Buddy Knox --/1
• 48    Turn Me Loose - Fabian --/1
• 49    There'll Never Be Anyone Else But You - Ricky Nelson --/1
• 50    My Happiness - Connie Francis 45/7

BEST NEW RELEASES THIS WEEK

• Five Pennies Saints- Danny Kaye & Louis Armstrong
• A Teenager In Love - Dion & the Belmonts
• The Kissing Tree - Billy Grammer
• I Still Get A Thrill (Thinking Of You) - Joni James
• The Mating Game - Debbie Reynolds
• Pathway To Paradise - Johnnie Rebb <<<< AUSTRALIAN
• The Walls Have Ears - Patti Page
• The Mocking Bird - the Four Lads
• I Don't See Me In Your Eyes - Carl Perkins (Also Jim Reeves).
• She's The Ginchiest - Lee Gordon <<<< AUSTRALIAN (Lee was an American who came to Australia in 1953 and became a successful promoter. He died in England in 1963).

UP-AND-COMING DISCS

• Only You - Frank Pourcel
• Sorry - the Impalas
• Tragedy - Thomas Wayne
• Come To Me - Marv Johnson
• Mason-Dixon Line - the Ames Brothers (copy not available)
• Ciao Ciao Bambina - Johnny's Boys version (Teddy Reno copy not available)
• Up Jumped A Rabbit - Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers
• Darlin' Cora - Harry Belafonte
• Gone Gone Gone - the Crewcuts (copy not available)
• Lonesome Old House - Don Gibson

Time will allow for the regular half-hour Comedy Spot following the 10 AM news & weather and will feature another in the Hancock's Half-hour series.

Please join me if you can as we wallow in the deep end of the nostalgia pool - as usual!

A SPECIAL program - Friday 22nd. February

I have been able to source play-list information from a half-dozen of the weekly Top Fifty lists in 1959 for Sydney radio station 2UW.
These single sheets, usually about the size of what we would think of as an A4 sheet of paper, were available from record stores and were also displayed in the lobbies of the various radio stations that targeted the teenagers of the day.
They were, quite literally, the "charts" referred to by the disc-jockies of the period.
With no video promotion, it was the presenters who held sway over what was played and, as a result, what became successful or otherwise.

So in today's program I will feature as many of the tracks that I can fit in to the three-hour time period from the list that was issued for the week of June 14th. 1959 and to do so I will be omitting the regular half-hour comedy spot that follows the 3:00 PM news & weather update.

I take this opportunity to acknowledge the contributions made by two You Tube channels, TheLimePopsicle and MaltShopPopsicle, without which several of the hit songs would not have been available. Many thanks, Tom.

Below is the list of songs as taken from that chart, with current position, previous week's position and number of weeks in the charts - shown by the two numerals following the track information.

FABULOUS FIFTY TOP TUNES

1. Bye Bye Baby - Col Joye  1/5                       <<<<  AUSTRALIAN
2. Pink Shoelaces - Dodie Stevens  2/5
3. A Fool Such As I - Elvis Presley  3/7
4. Alvin's Harmonica - the Chipmunks (David Seville)  6/5
5. The Happy Organ - Dave 'Baby' Cortez  9/4
6. Personality - Lloyd Price  19/2
7. Wang Dang Taffy Apple Tango - Pat Boone 22/4
8. Take A Message To Mary - the Everly Brothers  20/2
9. Detour - Duane Eddy  15/6
10. Tell Him No - Travis & Bob 18/3
11. It's Just A Matter Of Time - Brook Benton   11/3
12. It's Late - Ricky Nelson  14/4
13. Big Blonde Baby - Ronnie Self  27/5
14. Everybody Loves To Cha Cha - Sam Cooke  16/4
15. Tijuana Jail - Kingston Trio  23/3
16. Tall Paul - Annette Funicello  8/12
17. Come Softly To Me - the Fleetwoods  10/10
18. For A Penny - Pat Boone  26/2
19. Poor Jenny - the Everly Brothers  21/2
20. I Got A Wife - the Mark IV  12/6
21. Luther Played The Boogie - Johnny Cash  7/6
22. Venus - Frankie Avalon  4/12
23. Theme from the movie "Separate Tables" - Frank Sinatra?  17/2
24. Quiet Village - Martin Denny  --/1
25. Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me - Shirley Bassey  36/2
26. Walking Through My Dreams - the Big Bopper  --/1
27. Two Brothers - the Lettermen  --/1
28. Oh Donna - Richie Valens
29. I'm Never Gonna Tell - Jimmy Rodgers  17/6
30. Yep! - Duane Eddy  30/2
31. Jo-jo The Dog-Faced Boy - Annette Funicello  --/1
32. La Plume De Ma Tante - Hugo & Luigi  --/1
33. Guitar Boogie Shuffle - the Virtues  35/2
34. Sixteen Candles - the Crests  11/11
35. Black Nightgown (from the movie "I Want To Live") - Gerry Mulligan  --/1
36. There Must Be A Way - Joni James  42/5
37. As Time Goes By - Johnny Nash  39/3
38. Apple Blossom Time - Tab Hunter  --/1
39. No Fool Like A Young Fool - Terry Dene  --/1
40. Blah Blah Blah - Nicola Paone  35/9
41. Maybe Someday - the Young Lions  --/1
42. You Made Me Love You - Keely Smith  --/1
43. Dream Lover - Bobby Darin  --/1
44. I Need Your Love Tonight - Elvis Presley  --/1
45. Charlie Brown - the Coasters  29/7
46. She Say - the Diamonds  24/5
47. I Think I'm Gonna Kill Myself - Buddy Knox  --/1
48. Turn Me Loose - Fabian  --/1
49. There'll Never Be Anyone Else But You - Ricky Nelson  --/1
50. My Happiness - Connie Francis  45/7

With the benefit of nearly sixty years of hindsight, we can pick out a few interesting facts from the above list, not the least of which is that of the fifty records listed, only one is by an Australian artist (Col Joye.)
Another statistic is that there were no records from artists in Great Britain; the British Invasion was almost five years away. Ninety-five percent of our popular music came from the USA.

In addition to the Top Fifty, the 2UW chart also included the following two categories:-

BEST NEW RELEASES THIS WEEK

• Five Pennies Saints- Danny Kaye & Louis Armstrong
• A Teenager In Love - Dion & the Belmonts
• The Kissing Tree - Billy Grammer
• I Still Get A Thrill (Thinking Of You) - Joni James
• The Mating Game - Debbie Reynolds
• Pathway To Paradise - Johnnie Rebb      <<<< AUSTRALIAN
• The Walls Have Ears - Patti Page
• The Mocking Bird - the Four Lads
• I Don't See Me In Your Eyes - Carl Perkins (Also Jim Reeves).
• She's The Ginchiest - Lee Gordon      <<<< AUSTRALIAN (Lee was an American who came to Australia in 1953 and became a successful promoter. He died in England in 1963).

UP-AND-COMING DISCS

• Only You - Frank Pourcel
• Sorry - the Impalas
• Tragedy - Thomas Wayne
• Come To Me - Marv Johnson
• Mason-Dixon Line - the Ames Brothers (copy not available)
• Ciao Ciao Bambina - Johnny's Boys version (Teddy Reno copy not available)
• Up Jumped A Rabbit - Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers
• Darlin' Cora - Harry Belafonte
• Gone Gone Gone - the Crewcuts (copy not available)
• Lonesome Old House - Don Gibson

Please join me for a HUGE nostalgia trip back to the 14th. of June, 1959, as we immerse ourselves in the pops and hits of 54 years ago.

Monday 18th. February - we go back 50 Years!

The program for today will feature the Top 30 from exactly fifty years ago; in other words, what was being played on the 18th. February 1963.

The playlist includes the following tracks. (Numbers in brackets indicate the highest that they charted in the USA):-

• I Saw Linda Yesterday - Dickey Lee (14)
• Mama Didn't Lie - Jan Bradley (14)
• Walk Like A Man - the Four Seasons (1)
• Wild Weekend - the Rebels (8)
• From A Jack To A King - Ned Miller (6)
• I Wanna Be Around - Tony Bennett (14)
• Go Away Little Girl - Steve Lawrence (1)
• South Street - the Orlons (3)
• Loop De Loop - Johnny Thunder (4)
• Fly Me To The Moon - Joe Harnell & his Orchestra (14)
• Rhythm Of The Rain - the Cascades (3)
• Hey, Paula - Paul & Paula (1)
• You're The Reason I'm Living - Bobby Darin (3)
• Tell Him - the Exciters (4)
• Blame It On The Bossa Nova - Eydie Gorme (7)
• Our Day Will Come - Ruby & the Romantics (1)
• Walk Right In - the Rooftop Singers (1)
• The Night Has A Thousand Eyes - Bobby Vee (3)
• Up On The Roof - the Drifters (5)
• The End Of The World - Skeeter Davis (2)
• He's Sure The Boy I Love - the Crystals (11)
• Two Lovers - Mary Wells (7)
• Send Me Some Lovin' - Sam Cooke (13)
• Greenback Dollar - the Kingston Trio (21)
• Baby Workout - Jackie Wilson (5)
• You've Really Got A Hold On Me - the Miracles (8) (the Beatles covered it in July)
• Little Town Flirt - Del Shannon (12)
• What Will Mary Say - Johnny Mathis (9)
• That's The Way Love Is - Bobby 'Blue' Bland (33)
• My Colouring Book - Kitty Kallen (18)
• Don't Make Me Over - Dionne Warwick (13)
• Mr. Bass Man - Johnny Cymbal (17)

The Comedy Spot (following the 10:00 AM news & weather) is a Hancock's Half-hour, this one entitled "The Insurance Policy" and featuring Tony Hancock, Sid James, Bill Kerr, Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams. It was first broadcast by the BBC on the 11th. February 1958.

Tony considers taking out life insurance and, you guessed it, Sid James just happens to operate an insurance business!
Kenneth Williams plays a veterinarian in this show. Yes, a vet! You'll have to listen to it to find out.