1961 Reflection

     I am a bit surprised on how 1961 turned out to be a rather good year in terms of #1 hits. Sure there were a few songs that weren't my style and a couple I didn't care for at all, but the majority of these songs not only were great, but they are still revered to this very day. 

     I found that Rock And Roll managed to make a stronger presence this year although the genre has certainly lost its dangerous edge that it had in the 1950's. R&B was quite bountiful this year as well, no doubt due to Motown making its much welcomed #1 debut on the list. 

     I was really glad that this was a year free of corny unfunny novelty songs. There were a couple non-serious tunes although these all had great music melodies and great vocals. Even easy listening ballads were a diminished presence, and there were only a couple that reached #1. Lots of great tunes, only a few mediocre ones, but which one do I feel was the greatest and which the worst? 

Best #1 Hit Song Of 1961 - "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" - The Shirelles. 

     This was one of the hardest decisions I had to make. The other two choices, which are practically tied, are "Running Scared" by Roy Orbison, and "Hit The Road Jack" by Ray Charles. Now, you may want to strangle me for not picking one of those two as the top. Just know that it was a strong tossup between these three as all of the artists are supremely talented. 

     However, when push comes to shove, I realized that though Roy Orbison's "Running Scared" is a fantastic song, it pales in comparison to his own "Crying" which was also released that year. In fact, had the latter been a #1 hit, I would have unquestionably ranked it as the top song. With Ray Charles, I felt that his previous #1 "Georgia On My Mind" was just marginally better than "Hit The Road Jack", although both songs are amazing. 

     "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", on the other hand is what I feel to be the best song The Shirelles did. It has a great musical melody and I love the vocal performance on it. Plus, unlike the previous two songs, it practically invented a genre of music. In the end, it came down to two songs which are great but not the artist's top songs, and another song being the best of an artist. I decided to go with the latter. 

Worst #1 Hit Song Of 1961 - "Calcutta" - Lawrence Welk.

     This was a rather easy decision as there really only three songs from this year that I truly disliked. The other songs were "Wooden Heart" and "Moody River" which just like "Calcutta", were all way too old fashioned/easy listening sounding, and came across as corny and dated. 

     However, it was "Calcutta" that actually made me say "Aw Jeez!" when listening to it, as the sap factor became unbearable. It's those sickeningly sweet backing vocals that just ruin what could have been a relatively harmless tune. The song is rendered so saccharine that I feel like I get tooth decay from all the sugar packed within those vocals. It's those reasons that I rank this song the unquestionable worst #1 hit song of 1961. 

     So join me next time as I tackle all the #1 hits of 1962. Many styles that have been building up in the underground these last two years finally reach the surface. We'll find out if pop music got better or worse, next time...

                          Coming Up Next - 1962 Overview. 

             Until Next Time - I'm Dr. Rock, See you in October!