Variety (September 1956)

WedneMfayV September 1956 MUSIC S7 X Pfi&Eh Scoreboard OF TOP TALENT AND TUNES Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution Encompassing the Three Major Outlets Com Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music as Published in the Current issue NOTE: The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is arrived at under d statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets enu¬ merated above. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive with Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de-» veloped from the ratio of points scored, two ways in the case of talent (coin machines t retail disks) and three ways in the case of tunes (coin machines • retail disks and retail sheet music). POSITIONS This Last Week Week 1 1 2 2 8 3 4 4 5 6 6 9 7 5 8 7 9 8 10 POSITIONS This Last Week Week 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 A 8 6 e 5 7 8 7 9 10 10 8 TALENT ARTIST AND LABEL TUNE fHound Dog ELVIS PRESLEY (Victor) .^Don’t Be Cruel II Want You, I Need You PLATTERS (Mercury).{Kfon Earth DORIS DAY (Columbia) ..... Whatever Will Be', Will Be HUGO WINTERHALTER (Victor) .Canadian Sunset' PATTI PAGE (Mercury) .. Allegheny Moon PATIENCE & PRUDENCE (Liberty) ....... Tonight You Belong To Me BUCHANAN & GOODMAN (Luniverse) .. .Flying Saucer GENE VINCENT (Capitol).Be-Bop-A-Lula MITCH MILLER (Columbia).. Song For A Summer Night JERRY VALE (Columbia) ....You Don’t Know Me TUNES (♦ASCAP. fBMI), TEJNE •WHATEVER WILL BE, WILL BE .... •MY PRAYER .. fCANADIAN SUNSET.. •ALLEGHENY MOON. tHOUNDDOG..... tDON’T BE CRUEL. •TONIGHT YOU BELONG TO ME tWAYWARD WIND . •SONG FOR A SUMMER NIGHT ..... .FLYING SAUCER.... PUBLISHER ......Artists ... Shapiro-B ... Meridian -..... .Oxford ..... Presley Shalimar-F . BVC .Warmari ....... April . Luniverse BETAIL SHEET BEST SELLERS Music Biz Gets Religion Continued from page 1 ment and the Catholic Testament in 16% rpm. Since that is half the speed of the conventional 33% rpm, there is ai simple gadget distributed by out¬ fits such as the Audio Book Co., of St. Joseph, Mich., which, when placed over the 33 rpm turntable in a certain manner (quite simple), cuts the Speed in half. As "Audio Book” indicates, this type of wax works is literally a book-in-sound, designed for the blind, sehoolrooms, text treatises, and for recording long works like the Bible r etc.. The thre§ Bible editions are all on 7-inch • platters because? if longer, the sound would become distorted, hence the Old and New Testaments, retailing at $30 each, comprise, 26 disks (52 sides) and the Catholic Bible, which runs longer, retails at $35 and has 30 disks, also' in the 7-inch size at 16 rpm. Abner Levin, g.m. for Sam Goody, in New Yotfk, who is per¬ haps the world's largest record re¬ tailer, and who does a worldwide business, noticed of late how his south and southwest mail order business picked up in the religiosos; The sacred, gospel or “popular” version of a religioso (a Variety coinage) is as much a postwar manifestation as such offbeat tem¬ pos as cha-cha-cha, merengue and even rock ’n’ roll. Where these are “heated,” the reljgiosos have a sacred fervor all .their own, and some of them—notably the Mahalia Jackson brand—are replete with a rhythmic beat that stems from the revivalist tradition. Whatever the tempo, Miss Jack- son generates not only hyper-en¬ thusiastic disciples but also sales. Incidentally, amidst gome high- powered pro-Democratic talent at the recent convention in Chicago Miss Jackson’s gospel chirping of “I See God,” heralded as “a trib¬ ute to Alben W. Barkley,” was a scene-stealer. Always a Demand Retailers of gospel, hymnal and other sacred music aver that there always has been a demand for this sort of music merchandise, but it usually requires something special to spark a peak highlight but then it usually settles back into a .steady trade. However, this type of music and/or combination music-book- store dealer, at the retail level, has come to realize that there is ex¬ citement—and coin—in the Bibli¬ cal cycle. For one thing, the packaged goods—albums, EPs, and the like —are giving it the same stature— and more—as books and kindred bulk merchandise. Fbi; another, the wave of “positive thinking,” moral | rearmament, “name” rainister- ! authors, either with radio-tv or im¬ portant key city pulpit reps, have put religion on a “popular” level. ; (The tv angle, incidentally, is sen¬ sitive to the sky pilots who claim . “miracle healing” or have bpx nuipbers, which they pump over the air ip solicitations for contri¬ butions “to carry on K the Lord’s work.” In fact, there is a militant antagonism to this specie within ministerial circles). Incidentally, there are contradic¬ tions in the clerical readings. Where Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, who . was figured to be a natural, especially since 1 his tv renown, has been a disappointing seller on Decca,: Charles Laughton’s “Christ-** mas Carol” and kindred readings do well. In the same paradox, Claude Rains’ Xmas seasonal read¬ ings (also Decca, as is Laughton) are not. selling. . But religiosos when sung, even including Gre¬ gorian and kindred sacred music, do much better on wax. The hymn and gospel sohg as we know it today, borders on the hill¬ billy or country & western idiprri in song, and with the mushrooming of the c&w vogue, the solemn, sonorous, ofttimes nasal twang of the religiosos have clicked in the . same market. This accounts for the Red Foley (Decca) vogue with hymns aiid spirituals. Same is true :; also of Ernest Tubb, and the Mills Bros., both also Decca artists in the gospel idiom. The Mariners’ “Hymns” (Columbia) and George Beverly Shea (RCA Victor), who is particularly big, are in the . same’ , idiom. - Pop Songs and Pop Artists But the real impetus has. come* from .such "popular”. artists., as Jane Froman with her “I Believe” Capitol LP, Al Hibbler’s “He” (Decca)* Perry Como’s “Somebody Up .There Likes Me” (Victor), etial. A reprise of some current s(nd recent artists pop artists and selec¬ tions speak for themselves: Roberta Sherwood’s “Faith Unlocks the Door” and “My Heart Is , A Chapel” are on Decca, as are oth¬ ers by Caterina Valente, “There But For The Grace Of God Go.I,” Billy Ward and His Dominos, “St. Theresa bf the Roses,” the Dream Weavers’ “Give Us This Day,” the Sunday School . Church Chdir, “Don’t Send Your Kids to Sunday School (Get Up and Take ’Bin Yourself”). Bill. Haley’s Comets’ “The Saints Rock ’n’ Roll” also qualifies, albeit rather raucously and loosely into Decca’s religioso cycle. RCA Victor offers currently, be¬ sides Como’s “Somebody,” Tony Martin’s “Walk Hand In Hand” apd Sunny Gale’s “Try a Little Prayef,” MGM has Joni James with “Giye Us This Day,” Roger Coleman’s “Only The One,’. Danny Knight’s “Beachcomber, Beachcomber,” Kay Armen’s “Tenderly He Watches” From Coral comes Lawrence Welk’s “Faith Unlocks The Door;” Tom Giazer’s “The Fourth R;— Religion.” Kapp’s biblical belt tunes: Russ Miller’s “One God,” Denny Vaughan’s ‘/Walk Hand In Hand,” and Lucille Watkins’ “His Hand In Mine.” Still others: Frankie Laine, “Make Me A Child Again” (Colum¬ bia); Russell Anns, “Is There A Heaven?” (Era); Gordon MacRae, “I Ask The Lord” (Capitol); Oscar Mc- Lollie, “God’s Green Earth” (Wing); The Ravens, ‘i'Kneel and Pray” (Ar¬ go); Andy Williams, “Walk Hand In Hand” (Cadence); The Masters, “I’m Gonna Have Supper With My Lord (Choice). Still other pop entries include such titles as “I Believe,” “One Lit¬ tle Candle,” “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” "Suddenly There’s A Val¬ ley,” "It Takes -Time,” "There’s Never A Prayer Unanswered,” “Only One,” “I Found A Friend,” “Somebody Bigger Than You and I,” “Cross Over The Bridge” (Patti Page, Mercury), "This Ole House” (Stuart Hamblen who specializes in these religiosos but Rosemary Clooney on Columbia had the ver¬ sion) “Crying In The Chapel,” “It Is No Secret,” “Bless This House,” “I Passed Your House” arid “Thanks Be To God.” Himber, Schaefer Team For Wax ‘Oscar’ Awards; RIAA Cool to Event Rudolph J. Schaefer, head of the beer company which bears his name, has joined Richard 1 Himber in the sponsorship of the Apollo awards for “the 10 all-time great recording stars.” The Apollo Awards.. Committee was . set up in conjunction with Jjlie Disk Jockey Salute to the Diamond Jubilee of the Recording Industry, promoted by Himber, which begins a run at the N. Y. Coliseum Friday (7). The awards will be presented at New York’s Harwyn Club this af¬ ternoon (Wed). Artists in N. Y. : will be presented the Apollos per¬ sonally while others will receive them by proxy. Those up for statu¬ ettes are Perry Como, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Al Jolson, Glenri Miller, Fraiik Sinatra, Kate Smith, Rudy Vallee and Paul Whiteman. Tag for the exhibition 'was origi¬ nally The Diamond Jubilee of the Record Industry but was turned into a disk jockey salute since ’Himber received no official sanc¬ tion from, the Record Industry Assn, of America. To date the only major diskery to take a booth at the Coliseum has been Decca. Records. Dr Sigmund Spaeth, w.k. music pundit, has been ^ added to the guest lineup to discuss the prcls and cons of rock *ri’ roll. Jones Joins Columbia As Editor of Catalog • David .Howell Jones has- joined Columbia Records as catalog edi¬ tor. The new post 1 entails prepara¬ tion and supervision of all cata¬ logs and listings of record product of Columbia and its subsid label, Epic Records. Jones will headquarter jin disk* ery’s New York offices.