Too little, too late, I learned to appreciate Bobby Darin. I happen to have come across stack of 1950s and 60s Hollywood magazines which were quite popular at the time and he was prominent in so many of them.
I think you for this article on Darin, especially for enlightening me about his health condition. I had known what he died of far, far too young, but I did not know that he had this death sentence hanging over him, and that he was aware of it.
I recall thinking, “…and just as he was reinventing himself, too.”
His song, “If I Were a Carpenter,” showed him in a whole new light.
Thank you, Debra, for once again introducing me to a singer and songs I knew very little about or had not given a fair hearing before. I used to make fun of the crooners, but the older I get, the more I appreciate them. Of course, it doesn't hurt that my wife is a big Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin fan. She is of Italian heritage.
So much joy in reading about this singer, this song, and in hearing them! I could picture the twirling couples on the dance floor, and heard where the accompaniment took a manly character, then a womanly response. What gladness!
In the late 1960s Bobby Darin became interested in prison reform after the bodies of three murdered inmates were dug up at a notorious Arkansas prison farm during that era. He wrote and performed "Long Line Rider," a reference to trusted inmates at that prison farm who were armed while riding horseback to patrol other inmates working the fields. On the Ed Sullivan Show Bobby Darin, dressed in prison denim, began singing, "There's a farm in Arkansas, got some secrets in its floor,..." His song was referenced in a Congressional investigation into a situation where the inmates were virtually running the prison.
Yes, thanks for posting that, Ed. He was dealt a bad hand in life, but he lived a lot in his 37 years. There were things I couldn't get to in my short essay, like the fact that when the crooners started going out a fashion in the 60's and early 70's, he -- like the rest of them -- had to try to reinvent himself as a singer. That's too bad, because he had pitched his tent with the old music, and the newer stuff didn't do him justice. Protest songs were a thing, of course, but that song evidently was based in fact. The poor guy really began to look bad near the end, but what a career he had while HE lasted. And he didn't really succeed at getting his own generation to love the standards. He always appealed best to the former generation.
So enjoyed this! A favorite song (along with Mack the Knife!)…and especially enjoyed hearing the French version. I agree with Kathleen above—love your writing style on these little historical jaunts into great songs!
Thank you, Louise. I learn a lot when I read about these songs. Sometimes the stories appear in odd places, too. I was holding off on doing Bobby Darin FOR "Mack the Knife," but the right "word" never came along for that. I'll get to it one of these days. <3
Love this song! Thank you for the background on it and Bobby Darin. If the toes aren’t tapping when listening to this song, well all I can say is, start dancing!😃 I love your writing style!
Ah, Kathleen, you are kind. Bobby Darin "had it," that's for sure. The older singers like Frank Sinatra didn't know where to have him, at first. I mean, the "kids" were rejecting the old music, and then here comes this brash young guy, charging onto the scene in Vegas! And he MADE IT there, and not only made it, but from what I read helped then-young singers like Wayne Newton make it there. As always there are so many stories behind these singers and their music.
Too little, too late, I learned to appreciate Bobby Darin. I happen to have come across stack of 1950s and 60s Hollywood magazines which were quite popular at the time and he was prominent in so many of them.
I think you for this article on Darin, especially for enlightening me about his health condition. I had known what he died of far, far too young, but I did not know that he had this death sentence hanging over him, and that he was aware of it.
I recall thinking, “…and just as he was reinventing himself, too.”
His song, “If I Were a Carpenter,” showed him in a whole new light.
I do hope that he rests in peace.
Thank you, Debra, for once again introducing me to a singer and songs I knew very little about or had not given a fair hearing before. I used to make fun of the crooners, but the older I get, the more I appreciate them. Of course, it doesn't hurt that my wife is a big Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin fan. She is of Italian heritage.
One of my all time favorite songs by one of my long time favorite singers! Thank you Debra!
Bobby Darin! Nothing more needs to be said.
So much joy in reading about this singer, this song, and in hearing them! I could picture the twirling couples on the dance floor, and heard where the accompaniment took a manly character, then a womanly response. What gladness!
In the late 1960s Bobby Darin became interested in prison reform after the bodies of three murdered inmates were dug up at a notorious Arkansas prison farm during that era. He wrote and performed "Long Line Rider," a reference to trusted inmates at that prison farm who were armed while riding horseback to patrol other inmates working the fields. On the Ed Sullivan Show Bobby Darin, dressed in prison denim, began singing, "There's a farm in Arkansas, got some secrets in its floor,..." His song was referenced in a Congressional investigation into a situation where the inmates were virtually running the prison.
Yes, thanks for posting that, Ed. He was dealt a bad hand in life, but he lived a lot in his 37 years. There were things I couldn't get to in my short essay, like the fact that when the crooners started going out a fashion in the 60's and early 70's, he -- like the rest of them -- had to try to reinvent himself as a singer. That's too bad, because he had pitched his tent with the old music, and the newer stuff didn't do him justice. Protest songs were a thing, of course, but that song evidently was based in fact. The poor guy really began to look bad near the end, but what a career he had while HE lasted. And he didn't really succeed at getting his own generation to love the standards. He always appealed best to the former generation.
And Pat Boone’s failed foray into Heavy Metal further proves your point, Debra!
Ed, I heard about some of Pat Boone's forays into modern "entertainment," and WHAT was he thinking?
I had no idea Pat Boone tried heavy metal. Wow! I learn something new in this Substack every time.
Can’t even get my head around that one.
So enjoyed this! A favorite song (along with Mack the Knife!)…and especially enjoyed hearing the French version. I agree with Kathleen above—love your writing style on these little historical jaunts into great songs!
Thank you, Louise. I learn a lot when I read about these songs. Sometimes the stories appear in odd places, too. I was holding off on doing Bobby Darin FOR "Mack the Knife," but the right "word" never came along for that. I'll get to it one of these days. <3
Love this song! Thank you for the background on it and Bobby Darin. If the toes aren’t tapping when listening to this song, well all I can say is, start dancing!😃 I love your writing style!
A blast from the past thank you so much.
Ah, Kathleen, you are kind. Bobby Darin "had it," that's for sure. The older singers like Frank Sinatra didn't know where to have him, at first. I mean, the "kids" were rejecting the old music, and then here comes this brash young guy, charging onto the scene in Vegas! And he MADE IT there, and not only made it, but from what I read helped then-young singers like Wayne Newton make it there. As always there are so many stories behind these singers and their music.