Skip to main content

Del Shannon

I had just installed my new record player when Barry a neighbour from down the road arrived in to proudly play his most recent purchase. It was Del Shannon's "Runaway" which Barry really loved. It was not difficult to see why as it is a truly great pop record. And Del Shannon was destined to figure large in my early pop memories. No sooner had "Runaway" started to fade from the charts that Barry arrived in with the follow-up "Hats off to Larry" (which we renamed in his honour "Hats off to Barry") and then "So Long Baby". After all this time I can even recall the B sides. One in particular (on the flip side of "Hats off to Larry") stuck in my memory due to its strange title "Don't Gild the Lily, Lily". Another (on the flip side of "So Long Baby") was "The Answer to Everything" which became a huge hit subsequently in Ireland for Joe Dolan.

Del Shannon was very versatile with a truly distinctive and exciting pop voice. It should have ensured him lasting success but sadly this was not to be. Both personal and management difficulties undoubtedly contributed to his demise. Also he tended to become typecast following "Runaway" - and perhaps unwisely - tried to keep repeating this winning formula. For a while it worked but gradually began to become a bit too predictable. Likewise the pop group phenomenon broke quickly after his initial success. Though in many ways he served as a forerunner for their sound, he then seemed replaceable once it gained momentum.

Tragically he took his life in 1990 at a time when prospects for his revival were never greater. If he had overcome depression at that time he could well have lived to see himself once again regarded as a true pop legend. He certainly deserved that status.

Favourite Track

Probably "Little Town Flirt"; however I also love "The Answer to Everything". For some strange reason this has been overlooked and does not seem to appear on any of his CD collections. Indeed if this had been promoted along with, or perhaps instead of the A side, it could well have been a big hit and facilitated a transition away from the "Runaway" prototype.

Best Track

This has to be "Runaway" which was - and still is - just a marvellous pop song that was always guaranteed to be a runaway success.


Postscript

Nearly 50 years after introducing Del Shannon into my world, Barry celebrated his 60th birthday, with a disc jockey hired to play the music for the evening. Pride of place was of course given to "Runaway" with Barry himself joyously singing along. It was lovely to see for I never had doubted that here we had Del Shannon's biggest fan!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bert Jansch

In the early 70's I spent part of the summer doing some construction work with a motley group in a rehab centre in south Dublin. As the weather was good we lunched outdoors in the middle of the day. A record player was found and an album that I had never heard before was played which I found captivating. One song in particular "Needle of Death" really impacted with me in a way that only a handful of tracks have ever done. Music has the wonderful capacity to resonate - at least occasionally - in a profoundly meaningful manner. And this certainly was one such occasion! I remember looking at the album sleeve and mistakenly leaving with the impression that it was by Bert Yance. And on several occasions over the years, I tried without success to learn more about this artist. Then some 25 years or so later, I spotted a notice outside the College where I work in Dublin promoting an upcoming performance by Bert Jansch nearby in Whelans. In that moment I realised the true id
Post a Comment
Read more

Ray Charles

I cannot say that I was ever a great fan of Ray Charles though I could appreciate that he was very talented. I do remember however that one of the early singles that I purchased was his biggest hit "I Can't Stop Loving You". Those early single purchases were momentous occasions back then providing welcome relief from school routine. I recall the HMV label on which it was released in Ireland with its pale blue colour. In those days one would inevitably flip over the other side to see if it contained some hidden treasure. (It generally didn't)! However I can still hear the closing refrain "Born to lose, and now I'm losing you". As is well known the peak of Ray Charles' popularity came in the early 60's when - unusual for a black performer - he recorded two albums devoted to Country and Western material. "I Cant' Stop Loving You" was a single taken off the first album. However my own particular favourite was "Take Thes
Post a Comment
Read more

The Beatles

I saw the Beatles second film “Help” recently which proved a nostalgic experience (having seen it originally at the time of its release in 1965). The plot seemed even more ridiculous than it did the 1st time around. However what rescued the whole thing for me were the superb songs like “Help”, “You’re Going to Lose that Girl”, “Ticket to Ride” and George’s “I Need You”. They sounded better than ever which possibly is due to the fact that the film has since been remastered. Indeed their entire catalogue has just been remastered with simultaneous releases of the Box Set and all the individual albums (including other single, B side and EP tracks). Now in the first week of release no less than 11 of these are included in the UK Top 40 (40 years or more after the original recordings). For me, no other band even came close to the Beatles both in the quality and range of the output. Though occasional single tracks by other groups such as The Rolling Stones, Procul Harum, The Moody Blues and
Post a Comment
Read more