Oldies But Goodies Music

There’s a long-standing dispute among oldies but goodies collectors and fans as to whether the song “Suspicion” was better done by Elvis Presley or by Terry Stafford.

The song “Suspicion” was written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, a prolific songwriting team that composed many songs recorded by Elvis Presley and numerous other artists. It was first recorded and released by Presley on the album “Pot Luck With Elvis” in 1962. According to what data I’ve been able to gather, the single never charted in the U. S.

“Suspicion” by Elvis Presley was re-released as the B-Side of “Kiss Me Quick,” another song from “Pot Luck…” in 1964. The Billboard and CashBox charts indicate “Kiss Me Quick” charted as high as #34, while “Suspicion” never broke into the Top100.

Terry Stafford’s version of “Suspicion,” released initially in 1964, peaked at #3 on the U. S. charts that year. Interestingly, that was during a week when The Beatles held every other top position on the charts.

OK, so much for dry stats and data. I’m simply going to say that the Terry Stafford version was the first I heard, and it became a favorite. I didn’t have a clue that Elvis had done the song originally two years earlier, and his version wasn’t getting airplay at that time, or any other time, apparently.

It wasn’t until the advent of CD technology, and the growth of the re-issue industry, that I discovered older albums and songs that I’d missed the first time around. Remember, in the 50′s, 60′s, 70′s and even 80′s there were no computers, downloads, MP3′s, YouTubes, Napsters or Amazons. Finding and getting music was strictly a manual thing. You had to go shopping outside the house! That, or mail- or phone-order from catalogues, and all without hearing it first.

I honestly can’t say that either version is better than the other. They both have their good points. While it’s the same song, and both versions are incredibly similar in style and delivery, I actually prefer the sound quality of the Elvis version. It was obviously recorded, mixed and mastered by professionals. The stereo is excellent.

On the other hand, the Terry Stafford version is more in tune with the music of its period, having a similarity to the British Invasion “sound.” It was reported that “Suspicion” was recorded as a demo for a record label, not intended for release. The label did some re-mastering and released it anyway. I think they could have done a better job, actually. Still, the song has irresistible charms.

For what it’s worth, Terry Stafford was not an Elvis Presley imitator. That was his voice. I’ve read that he really didn’t like being pidgeon-holed, but in those days recording artists did what they were told.

So what do you think? Do you have a preference? Just for fun, listen to a sample of each of the versions of the song by clicking the links below. Then, if you dare, tell me which version you prefer, and why.

Click to hear Suspicion by Elvis Presley

Click to hear Suspicion by Terry Stafford

Download the full mp3 of Suspicion by Elvis Presley

Buy the CD “Suspicion” by Terry Stafford

Mitch Miller, composer, musician, conductor and leader of Mitch Miller And The Gang passed away today at the age of 99.

Mitch Miller? I know the question must be circling around up there. What’s Mitch Miller have to do with a blog about rock ‘n’ roll oldies but goodies music? The answer is really very simple.

Before I ever heard my first note of rock ‘n’ roll, I’d grown up listening to, and enjoying, the music my parents and grandparents listened to. That music included everything from big bands to opera and the pop standards of the era, including the music of Mitch Miller. I remember many evenings sitting in front of the family television watching Sing Along With Mitch, and loving the words and music of those old-time songs.

Even after I discovered rock ‘n’ roll, I didn’t lose my musical interest in the older stuff. I remember Mitch Miller getting some airplay on then-current rock ‘n’ roll and pop stations I listened to. Yes, Mitch Miller got rock ‘n’ roll airplay. That’s material for another post, though.

As a matter of coincidental fact, just a few weeks ago, I went net-shopping for some music by Mitch Miller. My brother and I had been talking about old movies we loved, and I mentioned The Guns Of Navarone back around 1962 or so. Later I remembered that one of the old LP albums I’d owned as a kid was the soundtrack from that film (composed by Dmitri Tiomkin). One of the songs on that album was the main title theme sung by Mitch Miller and the Gang! So I went searching for it.

It appears that not only is the song no longer available, but the original soundtrack album from then isn’t either. But I did find almost everything else Mitch Miller, including a couple of surprises.

For example, I found a CD called “Sing Along” which contains stereo versions of “The Yellow Rose of Texas” and “March From River Kwai/Col. Bogey.” I also found several of his albums and individual songs available as MP3 Downloads.

Mitch Miller will be missed by this long-time fan.

Please Click Here to read an UPDATE to information about the availability of Mitch Miller’s Guns Of Navarone

“Runaway” by Del Shannon was recorded during a one-day session and released as a single in January of 1961. It reached the #1 position on the Billboard (US) chart in April of that year. It immediately became a rock ‘n’ roll classic. I suppose you could say it was a “runaway hit.”

Some songs become personal favorites because they have particular meaning. I associate them with specific events or circumstances in life. Others are just great songs, period. “Runaway” by Del Shannon is an example of the latter. In 1961, “Runaway” had what I thought was a unique sound, as compared to what else was popular at the time.

Del Shannon‘s voice was incredible. His range could go from a brooding growl to a piercing falsetto and back again in an instant. The song itself had such a catchy melody it was hard to resist. Lyrically, “Runaway” portrayed the requisite teen angst of breakup common at the time, which (at the age of 12) wasn’t a factor for me.

But I think what really hit me about “Runaway” was that instrumental bridge. It was provided by Max Crook, a keyboardist, playing his own invention, the musitron. It was an early version of a synthesizer, and had a totally unique sound in its day.

“Runaway” by Del Shannon is more than just an oldie but goodie. It’s a legitimate baby boomer rock ‘n’ roll classic. It was re-recorded and re-released by Del Shannon himself twice – first in 1967, as “Runaway ’67,” and again in 1986, with new lyrics, to be the opening theme for the television series Crime Story (1986 – 1988). “Runaway” has also been covered by The Ventures, as an instrumental, by Bonnie Raitt and by The Traveling Wilburys, with Jeff Lynne re-creating Max Crook’s musitron solo note-for-note. In 2009, “Runaway” by Del Shannon was used in an episode of the TV series Heroes (ep. 21, season 3).

Until recently, I had only ever heard “Runaway” in its original mono version. I was totally overjoyed to find an actual stereo release on a CD called Radio Gold, where it’s listed as an “alternate stereo take.” The sound had been digitally re-mastered, and sounded better than ever. Much of Del Shannon’s back catalog has since been re-issued and may still be available.

Del Shannon, having suffered bouts of alcoholism and depression, committed suicide on February 8, 1990. The music world lost one of its greats.

Recommended Del Shannon:

1. 25 All-Time Greatest Hits (Sample/Purchase)

2. Runaway With Del Shannon (Sample/Purchase/Download)

3. Complete Career Anthology (Purchase)

“Only The Lonely” by Roy Orbison is one of those songs that grabbed me and never let go. It was another of those songs I first heard during those couple of weeks I was home sick from seventh grade. It has always been one of my all-time favorites.

From the first strains of that famous “dum dum dum dum dee doo wah” intro, it struck a chord that would set the criteria by which I’d judge what I considered good pop music for years to come. Add in Roy Orbison’s incredible vocal range and the emotion it both portrays and elicits, and “Only The Lonely” becomes an instant rock ‘n’ roll classic.

Now, I have to say that perhaps, beyond the greatness of the song itself, “Only The Lonely” may have affected me on another level. The particular night I first heard it, I was alone in the house. My parents and younger brother had gone out to a Cub Scout meeting of some sort. It was the first time in my young life that I’d been left alone at all, and here it was at night. They weren’t going to be gone long, of course. But when you’re twelve years old, at night, in a big, old three-bedroom house, it can be a little disconcerting.

Although the lyrics of the song are really about a guy who’s lonely in his love life, that night I was feeling lonely myself, and the song just seemed to be talking to me. It comforted me, and made me feel like I wasn’t really alone after all.

There’s a bit of a chuckle tucked away in this, too. I heard Roy Orbison before I’d ever heard Elvis Presley. The first time I did hear The King, my first thought was that he was a Roy Orbison sound alike! That probably sounds odd, since Elvis was all over the place in those days, but that’s how it worked out.

“Only The Lonely (Know The Way I Feel)” – the full title – was Roy Orbison’s first hit for the Monument Records label. Roy passed away on December 6, 1988.

Enjoy Roy Orbison:

1. 1. The Essential Orbison (Purchase/Download)
2. 2. Roy Orbison: 16 Biggest Hits (Purchase/Download)
3. 3. Roy Orbison: A Black & White Night (Purchase/Download)
4. 4. Roy Orbison: The Soul Of Rock & Roll (Purchase/Download)

Recommended Reading:

Roy Orbison: Invention Of An Alternative Rock Masculinity (Sound Matters)