Artist:Frankie Laine
Song:Jezebel
Album:16 Most Requested Songs
Frankie Laine was one of the most popular singers of the 50s. Today he is mainly known for singing western movie themes. Though the 1951 single Jezebel was not his biggest hit, it was his first big hit when he moved from Mercury to Columbia. So it set him up for future success. He was born Francesco LoVecchio Mar. 30, 1913 in Chicago. His parents emigrated from Sicily. His father was Al Capone's personal barber. Laine started singing in church as a child. After watching Al Jolson in the film The Singing Fool, Laine knew he wanted to be a singer. His biggest early influences were Bessie Smith and Gene Austin. After graduating from high school, Laine worked for the Chicago ballroom The Merry Garden singing during dance marathons. His big break came in 1937 when Perry Como left Freddy Carlone's band and Como recommended Laine as his replacement. Laine moved to New York in 1938 to sing at radio station WINS and that's when he took the name Frankie Laine. Laine moved to Los Angeles in 1943. Songwriter Hoagy Carmichael saw him perform and this led to a contract with Mercury Records in 1946. His first big hit was That's My Desire in 1946 followed by the 1949 #1 hits That Lucky Old Sun and Mule Train. Mitch Miller produced those records when he was working for Mercury. When Miller moved to Columbia in 1950, he wasted no time bringing Laine there once his contract ended. Laine's first single for Columbia was Jezebel with Rose, Rose, I Love You. Jezebel reached #2 on the Hit Parade and Rose, Rose, I Love You reached #3. Jezebel was written by Wayne Shanklin who also wrote the 1959 Toni Fisher hit The Big Hurt. So his songs were dramatic and Jezebel has a biblical theme. Miller produced the record with Norman Luboff's choir and pianist Carl Fischer who had worked with Miller and Laine at Mercury. Laine went on to be one of the most popular singers of the 50s. He especially had great success singing western movie themes. This budget comp is a good intro to his Columbia recordings. Laine faded after he left Columbia in 1963. But he continued to perform until his death on Feb. 6, 2007 at age 93. Here's Frankie Laine performing Jezebel probably from a 1955 episode of his variety show Frankie Laine Time.
No comments:
Post a Comment