The Del-Vikings are an American doo-wop musical group, who recorded several hit singles in the 1950s, and continued to record and tour with various lineups in later decades. The group was notable for being one of the few racially integrated musical groups to attain success in the 1950s.

Whispering Bells reached #49 on the Billboard top 100 songs in 1957.  This song turned out to be an "Our Song" for a special couple during that formative year.  "It wasn't me though. . . Nope! . . . Not Me."

"It's All in the Game" was a 1958 hit for Tommy Edwards.  Carl Sigman composed the lyrics in 1951 to a wordless 1911 composition entitled "Melody in A Major," written by Charles Dawes, later Vice President of the United States  under Calvin Coolidge. It is the only No. 1 pop single to have been co-written by a U.S. Vice President or winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. 
The song has become a pop standard, with cover versions by dozens of artists, some of which have been minor hit singles.  Edwards' song ranked at No. 38 on Billboard's All Time Top 100.

"Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock band "The Beatles", written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon-McCartney. The ballad evolved from "Hey Jules", a song McCartney wrote to comfort John Lennon's son, Julian, during his parents' divorce. 

"Hey Jude" was released in August 1968 as the first single from the Beatles' record label Apple Records. More than seven minutes in length, it was at the time the longest single ever to top the British charts.  It also spent nine weeks at number one in the United States, the longest for any Beatles single. "Hey Jude" tied the "all-time" record, at the time, for the longest run at the top of the US charts. The single has sold approximately eight million copies and is frequently included on professional critics' lists of the greatest songs of all time. In 2013, Billboard named it the 10th biggest song of all time.

"Sentimental Journey" is a popular song, published in 1944. The music was written by Les Brown and Ben Homer, and the lyrics were written by Bud Green. 

​Les Brown and His Band of Renown had been performing the song, but were unable to record it because of the 1942-44 musicians' strike. When the strike ended, the band, with Doris Day as vocalist, had a hit record with the song,
Day's first #1 hit, in 1945. The song's release coincided with the end of WWII in Europe and became the unofficial homecoming theme for many veterans.  The recording was released by Columbia records.  The record first reached the Billboard charts on March 29, 1945 and lasted 23 weeks on the chart, peaking at #1.  

The Tokens are an American male doo-wop style vocal group and record production company group from Brooklyn, New York. They are known best for their chart-topping 1961 single, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight.  

That's nice, we all know that song . . . but how about "Tonight I fell in Love"  which made it to #15 on the Billboard top 100 in 1961!  Not sure I've ever heard this song . . .  but it's a winner!

The Dells were an American R&B  vocal group. Formed in high school in 1952 by founding members Marvin Junior, Verne Allison, Johnny Funches, Chuck Barksdale, and Mickey and Lucius McGill, under the name the El-Rays, they released their first recording in 1954.  In 1955, the group renamed themselves the Dells and signed with Vee-Jay Records. Two years later they had their first R&B hit with "Oh what a Night" which hit #5 on the R&B singles chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.  The song is ranked #260 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of  "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". 

George Hege Hamilton IV (July 19, 1937 – September 17, 2014) was an American Country Musician.  He began performing in the late 1950s as a teen idol.  Hamilton recorded "A Rose and a Baby Ruth" for a Colonial Records. The song, written by John d. Loudermilk, climbed to No. 6 on the United States Billboard Hot 100 chart.  By 1960, "A Rose and a Baby Ruth" had attained gold record status.  

                             BONUS TO ALL "DO-WOP ROCKERS"!
Famed for their lone hit, "Puddin' n' Tain," The Alley Cats were one of the many studio groups employed by the legendary pop producer and Svengali Phil Spector.   "Puddin' n' Tain," ascended to number 21 on the R&B chart in early 1963.  A Classic Oldie!
                                                      Does anyone remember this little jewel???

The following email was sent to me by Dale Sievert.
​​
"My three favorite earlier songs are: "Rave On" by Buddy Holly, "Walk, Don't Run" by the Ventures, and "Lariat," by The Legends, a Milwaukee band of the 60s.  The lead guitarist, Sam McCue, was the lead guitarist from 1963-1973 for the Everly Brothers (we saw The Legends as a pre-act for the EB in July 1963, after which he was hired).  He did the song around 2000 with another local band, and that version has higher quality recording."

OK Dale . . .  Let's start with "Lariat" (The Legends 1961)

Artist Biography by Bruce Eder
"Sam McCue has been compared to James Burton by music writers who know whereof they speak, and has played alongside such luminaries as The Everly Brothers.  Born into a musical family -- his father played the trumpet semi-professionally and his mother sang and played the fiddle -- he took up the ukulele at age six and later switched to the guitar. By the early '60s, he was a member of the Legends, a Milwaukee-based outfit that rocked the city with their early single releases of "Lariat," "Bop-a-Lena," and "Say Mama" on the Ermine label, all of which topped the local charts. The group was good enough to get signed by Capitol Records, through which they released two LPs and a single in 1962 and 1963. And even though none of those records charted nationally, the exposure was enough to get McCue -- by then recognized as the main driving force within the group -- snapped up by the Everly Brothers,  for the lead guitar spot in their backing band, and was with them into the start of the 1970s. During the latter decade, he also joined Crowfoot for their final LP. He remains a guitar hero in Milwaukee and the surrounding area -- it's amazing no one ever tried getting him onto That 70's Show for some verisimilitude -- in addition to playing guitar for various artists (Atlee Yeager, et al.), he has also served as a producer for artists such as Steve Cohen."

"Uploaded on Dec 29, 2007
Remember the dances at Muskego Beach? Then you will remember these 2 Milwaukee Music Icons, Larry Lynne of The Skunks and Sam McCue of The Legends. Watch them play together along with the Doo Wop Daddies this summer in Wauwatosa."  Youtube

Interesting stuff Dale.  I never heard of these guys before but they sound good and seem to be having a really fun time. This segment must have been from 2007 or thereabouts.  So here they are performing 2 great songs from the 50's!

And now your 2 "other" favorites from the 50's / 60's.  Buddy Holly and The Ventures! 

Hope everyone enjoyed this walk down memory lane with Dale! 

Till Next Week

Harv