Pollin' Tracks Spo-Dee-O-Dee! ILM does the 1950s—THE TOP 101 RESULTS THREAD

101 tracks on the Spotify playlist, I mean.

Thelonious Monk's Brilliant Corners was the original #102 and got bumped up.

Also I added two versions of one particular song, I added them both in because the votes for both were merged. Something about an ocean liner, definitely a nautical theme (don't have Spotify at work)...

Ah, righto.

Ah, "Sea Cruise", both tracks have the same backing track.

Play 'em simultaneously, make a duet!

Played some Chuck Berry for my seventh-grade class today on the last day of summer school. "What's this music?" one student asked. "Rock 'n' roll," I said, without thinking. They looked at the cover and seemed surprised. "He sounds white," another said. They liked it and wanted me to burn them a copy. But then they just wanted me to play Wiz Khalifa.

"He sounds white," another said.

Future ILXor in the making

Couldn't find Lou Reed quote I was looking for, but I did find this, from when he inducted Dion into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame:

It was 1958 and the cold winds of Long Island blew in from the ocean. Their high pitched howl mixing with the dusty musky mellifluous liquid sounds of rock and roll. The sounds of another life, the sounds of freedom. As Alan Freed pounded a telephone book and the honking sax of Big Al Sears seared the air waves with his theme song "Hand Clappin'," I sat staring at an indecipherable book on plane geometry, whose planes and angles would forever escape me. And I wanted to escape it and the world of SAT tests, the college boards - leap immediately and eternally into the world of Shirley and Lee. The Diablos, The Paragons, The Jesters, Lilian Leech and The Mellows -- "Smoke From Your Cigarette," Elica and The Rockaways -- "Why Can't I Be Loved?" -- a question that certainly occupied my teenage time. The lyrics sat in my head like Shakespearian sonnets with all the power of tragedy: "Gloria," "Why Don't You Write Me Darling, Send Me A Letter" -- The Jacks.

And then there was Dion -- that great opening to "I Wonder Why" engraved in my skull forever. Dion, whose voice was unlike any other I had heard before. Dion could do all the turns, stretch those syllables so effortlessly, soar so high he could reach the sky and dance there among the stars forever. What a voice that had absorbed and transmogrified all these influences into his own soul, as the wine turns into blood, a voice that stood on its own, remarkably and unmistakably from New York. Bronx Soul. It was the kind of voice you never forget. Over the years that voice has stayed with me, as it has, I'm sure, stayed with you. And whenever I hear it I'm flooded with memories of what once was and what could be.

It's been my pleasure to get to know Dion over the years and even, my idea of heaven, sing back-up for him. He doesn't know how long I'd rehearsed those bass line vocals. I was ready to back-up Dion. He had the chops and he practically invented the attitude. "Ruby Baby," "Donna The Prima Donna." 'I'll open my shirt and show her Rosie on my chest' -- "The Wanderer," a line so good that 20-odd years later I couldn't resist doing a variant on it for one of my own albums.

here's my boring ballot

2 Link Wray & His Ray Men - Rumble
3 Bo Diddley - Who Do You Love?
5 Ray Charles - What'd I Say
12 Jackie Wilson - Lonely Teardrops
14 Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues
16 Sam Cooke - You Send Me
17 Johnny Cash - Folsom Prison Blues
19 The Platters - Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
20 Chuck Berry – Maybelline
21 Peggy Lee — Fever
22 Little Richard - Tutti Frutti
29 Jacques Brel - Ne Me Quitte Pas
35 Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire
37 The Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five
38 The Isley Brothers - Shout
39 Richie Valens - La Bamba
49 Big Mama Thornton — Hound Dog
56 Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode
61 The Chordettes - Mr. Sandman
62 Little Richard - Keep a Knockin'
78 Nat King Cole - Unforgettable
85 Buddy Holly – Not Fade Away
86 Mighty Sparrow — Jean and Dinah
88 Fats Domino - Blueberry Hill
91 Little Richard - Long Tall Sally
93 The Teddy Bears - To Know Him Is To Love Him
101 Thelonious Monk — Brilliant Corners
108 Frank Loesser - Sit Down, You're Rocking The Boat
112 Buddy Holly - That'll Be the Day
124 Chuck Berry - Roll Over Beethoven
140 Benny More y Pedro Vargas – Obsesion
141 Hank Williams - Long Gone Lonesome Blues
156 Ray Charles - I Got A Woman
181 Anton Karas - Theme from The Third Man
184 Sonny Rollins – St. Thomas
186 Little Richard - The Girl Can't Help It
190 Little Richard - Lucille
191 Webb Pierce - There Stands The Glass
194 Marilyn Monroe - Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend
215 Elvis Presley – Blue Moon of Kentucky
230 Hank Williams - Ramblin Man
242 Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim — Tonight (West Side Story)
243 Olavi Virta ja Harmony sisters - Sinitaivas
251 Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock
263 Esquerita - Rockin' the Joint
288 Bo Diddley - Diddy Wah Diddy
298 Ray Charles - Hallelujah I Love Her So
315 Johnny Guitar Watson - Gangster Of Love
The Dave Brubeck Quartet — Blue Rondo a la Turk
Don Gibson - I Can't Stop Loving You

RIP Gil Bernal, who played sax on "Youngblood" and "Searchin'" among others. http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/2011/07/rip_gil_bernal_los_angeles_ten.php

:(

Didn't know much about him, thought King Curtis played all those, but see here: Gil Bernal - Search & Destroy

Enjoying listening to the playlist. There are a couple of re-records instead of originals here and there but I supposed that couldn't be helped. Really liking how the different strands intertwine, like I-95 and the Hutchison River Parkway.

Also liking the closely placed Minguses. May be time to go see the Mingus Big Band again soon, especially while Conrad Herwig is playing with them.

24 Charles Mingus - Haitian Fight Song
25 Edgard Varèse - Poème électronique
26 Muddy Waters - Mannish Boy
27 Johnny Burnette - The Train Kept A-Rollin'
28 Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong - Summertime
29 Jacques Brel - Ne Me Quitte Pas
30 Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs - Foggy Mountain Breakdown
31 Karlheinz Stockhausen - Gesang der Jünglinge
32 Frankie Ford - Sea Cruise

Is there a more schizophrenic sequence of tracks in any other ILM poll?

not sure it's schizophrenic. feel it reflects the age, tho that's a dangerous concept I realise. traps of telescoping, imposition of canon, bias of inclusivity - a good one - all at play.

but classical from period is still fairly well known, jazz was in its extended heyday, rock and pop in mid-teen genesis.

great poll.

Ha, that's great. Someone should put on a 50s club night and mix that sequence.

We've done a lot of corkers, but this was the best poll.

It's an excellent run, is what it is. And yeah, this is definitely right up there in 'best polls' for me.

a ilm masterpiece

Please help me locate a complete list of nominations and/or a list of the winning tracks from this poll?

http://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmydPg1ULhKNdFlOdWpJWmhkT0ZaVThEQ0k5bW96WEE&hl=en_US&pli=1#gid=0

yes!!! thank you!!!

No problem, nominations thread here: Pollin' Tracks Spo-Dee-O-Dee! ILM does the 1950s— NOMINATIONS THREAD.

one more question - i know there was a spotify playlist -- is there a youtube playlist?

just looking through the list of songs on that spreadsheet is making me absurdly happy
i asked my mom about her experience as a kid listening to music in the 1950s (she was age 5-15 during that decade) and she had a lot to say but really lit up when she talked about buddy holly. it almost made me cry how much she loved buddy holly <3

Buddy Holly rules. in many ways so ahead of his time. plus he could write a tune.

"in the still of the night" snuck up on me -- i was reading through the list (again) and thinking about how much i like all of these songs and then POW -- that one. i adored this song as a kid. in 6th grade i made my friends perform a lip synch routine to it with choreography and everything. i was super into it. this is a most excellent list of songs, thank you so much.

just like this only we were 12 year old girls, lol (i don't remember ever seeing this clip before -- thank you youtube)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBT3oDMCWpI

Got into a "Who's left?" (from the '50s) thing on Facebook today, following the death of Huey Smith.

A friend suggested Smokey Robinson and Chubby Checker, both of whom I consider '60s guys...until I checked, and the Miracles' first two charted hits were indeed from the '50s, and both were iconic ("Got a Job" and "Bad Girl"). "The Twist" is 1960, one minor hit from '59; that one's shakier.

After that--and discounting Pat Boone/Frankie Avalon-types--all I could come up with were Dion (83), Billy Emerson (not all that well known, but 97!), and Sonny Curtis (Crickets' guitarist, 85). There are undoubtedly some doo-wop people left, but not anyone who also had solo success, I don't think. Berry Gordy and Mike Stoller, too, but they're different.

The '50s are almost gone. Even more today than yesterday.

Huh, fun to scroll back through this one. Along with Madonna and Elton John, this was my favorite ILM poll to run.

Real long shot, I know, but you don't have a spreadsheet anywhere with voters' lists, do you? I only post my Top 10, and I'm curious what my other 40 were. I usually have these lists in my e-mail, but this one was a Google Form.

sad to note the Spotify playlist has been deleted

xp I'm sure I don't. That was 2 computers ago.

There’s a spotify playlist with the nominations https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4dZR1lNRm0gmFVX5Ovg7vH?si=wfX4LsjWQ1GwZcSbW_CugA

Maybe someone’s keen enough to do the top 101.

Brenda Lee (78) and Wanda Jackson (85) are still around.

...and Jackie DeShannon (81) made her first records in the '50s.

Hey hey, Ronald Isley (81).

As Tom and Jerry, Simon and Garfunkel had a charting single in the 50s (although of course they're not "seen as 50s").

Those listed below are probably insufficiently rockin' but:

I watched the 1956 musical comedy The Girl Can't Help It last night; Fats Domino and Little Richard are gone, but which musical performers from the film are still around?

Johnny Olenn, 85
Nino Tempo, 87
Ray Anthony, 100

― Halfway there but for you, Friday, October 21, 2022 6:43 PM (three months ago) bookmarkflaglink

Brenda Lee and Wanda Jackson were pointed out to me on the FB thread. Definite oversights, in that they had iconic singles in the '50s. (I went by two online lists that missed them too.) Ronald Isley too, obviously--I'm sure I missed a few people who members of groups. I do think of Jackie DeShannon as the '60s, in spirit if not in fact.

"who were"

Ditto Simon & Garfunkel.

Cliff Richard (82) & Hank Marvin (81)

Marilyn Maye is more of the '60s but first sang on a record in the '50s and is now 94 and still singing. She appeared on Johnny Carson's show more often than any other singer.

Elephant In The Room: Pat Boone (88)

Smaller elephant: Frankie Avalon (82), who started charting in '54 and had two #1s in the '50s.