Song:Sail Along Silvery Moon
Album:The Best Of
Alto saxophonist Billy Vaughn had success in the 50s as a bandleader recording easy listening music. Sail Along Silvery Moon was a top five hit in 1957. He was also musical director at Dot Records. He was born Apr. 12, 1919 in Glasgow, KY. His father was a barber who loved music and inspired Vaughn to teach himself to play several musical instruments. Like Perry Como, Vaughn's original plan was to follow in his father's footsteps and become a barber. But he decided to become a musician while serving in the US Army during WWII. Vaughn studied music composition at Western Kentucky University. He eventually got a job as a pianist for the vocal group The Hilltoppers. They had success and that led Vaughn to become musical director at Dot Records. Vaughn produced Dot artists like The Fontane Sisters, Gale Storm and Pat Boone while he recorded his own music as a bandleader. Vaughn's signature sound was multitracking alto saxes. It's in all his hits like Melody Of Love, The Shifting, Whispering Sands, Raunchy and Sail Along Silvery Moon. Sail Along Silvery Moon reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1957 despite the rising popularity of Rock 'N' Roll. The song was a hit for Bing Crosby in 1937. It was written by veteran songwriters Harry Tobias and Percy Wenrich. Vaughn continued to be successful in Europe especially Germany. And this 2CD comp from Repertoire includes a lot of his German hits. He recorded albums through the 60s and toured internationally until his death on Sept. 26, 1991 at age 72. Here's a video for Sail Along Silvery Moon by Billy Vaughn & His Orchestra. I'm sure you've heard this song without knowing what it is.
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