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The Song of the Year 1960
This was the year of Chubby Checker and the Twist. It became the craze of 1960. Its impact was felt as millions who could not do the Jitterbug took to the dance floors. Around the world freeform dancing began which has lasted until today.
Billboard Top 40 of 1960
1. The Twist - Chubby Checker
Top Albums of 1960
Bob Newhart - Button Down Mind Oliver - Original London Cast Everly Brothers's - Everly Time Elvis Presley - Elvis Is Back South Pacific - Original Soundtrack
The Grammy's 1960
Record of the Year - Theme From A Summer Place, Percy Faith
The Tony's (Musicals) 1960
Musical - Fiorello!The Sound of Music Actor - Jackie Gleason, Take Me Along Actress - Mary Martin, The Sound of Music Supporting Actor - Tom Bosley, Fiorello! Supporting Actress - Patricia Neway, The Sound of Music Director - George Abbott, Fiorello!
The Sound of Music Rodgers and Hammerstein with Mary Martin in the lead role, 1443 performances. Memorable Songs: Edelweiss My Favorite Things Climb Every Mountain Do-Re-Mi
Fiorello!, the story of NY mayor La Guardia who busted Tammany Hall.
Oliver, original London production with Davy Jones (The Monkees) and Phil Collins (Genesis) to name of few of the child stars.
Jazz 1960
Dave Brubeck and saxophonist Paul Desmond release Take Five. It becomes the top selling jazz single of all time.
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Music News 1960
The heyday of Rock & Roll seemed over, a fad they claimed. Elvis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Bo Diddley had taken back seats to the pretty boy crooners and the new rumblings of Soul. Rock & Roll stagnated until the British Invasion of 1964.
Elvis Presley who had been drafted in 1958 returned to the real world. Something happened over those years which caused him to lose his Rhythm & Blues roots. He spent the rest of his life making mediocre music and awful movies.
The House of Representatives investigated the "Payola" scam which dominated the record industry in the late fifties. Dick Clark got in some trouble while the father of Rock & Roll (who gave it it's name) Alan Freed took the brunt of it with eight other disc jockeys and was convicted on two counts of bribery. Though his fines were light and his sentence suspended, he was fired from WINS in New York, moved to Los Angeles and faded away.
The 1950's brought us the 45 single and the 33 1/3 album which replaced the 78. But it wasn't until the Beatles that Rock musicians began putting many hits on each album that albums finally replaced the 45rpm single. In 1960 the expense of albums was beyond most teenage allowances resulting in most sales to adults who bought movie soundtracks, comedy, Broadway musicals, Blues and Jazz.
It was a very slow year for any real Rock & Roll other than Chubby Checker and The Twist. The only guitar work of the year was from the Ventures with their instrumental album, Walk Don't Run.
In the top 40 we lost Tommy to a car crash, an Angel to a train wreck, a young cowboy to a bullet and of course both Running Bear and Little White Dove to that raging river. The musicians holding the longest run over these years were the Everly Brothers, Ray Charles, Roy Orbison, Brenda Lee, Connie Frances, Bobby Darin and Chubby Checker who managed a hit with a new spin on the twist or some other new dance craze for years to come.
Rhythm
& Blues 1960
Ray Charles has his first hit album, The Genius Hits the Road. The album includes his big hit from 1959, Georgia on My Mind and Hit the Road Jack
El Paso by Marty Robbins became the top Country song of the year. Other notable C&W hits were Hank Locklin with Please Help Me, I'm Falling and Ferlin Husky with Wings of a Dove.
The Porter Wagoner Show premiered and became the most successful country music television show of all time. It ran in syndication for 21 more years and in 1968 created a Country Western icon in a young singer named Dolly Parton.
Folk Music 1960
Joan Baez begins her career.
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The Year That Was
A retro, nostalgic multimedia journey through the years
Sixites - Counterculture - 1960s
(c) Copyright 2006 - 2009
Soul
music developed out of a mix of gospel
and rock. Examples in 1960 were Cathy's Clown by the Everly Brothers and Chain Gang by Sam Cooke. This led Berry Gordy to open a studio in
Detroit called 
became the template
for the next decade of
harmonic multi-part singing. As the
decade progressed Gordy signed such
notables as Stevie Wonder, Marvin
Gaye, The Supremes, The
Temptations, The Four Tops, The Jackson
5, and Gladys Knight & the Pips.
Though
the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival was shut
down because of rioting college students
outside the venue (which also caused the
cancellation of the festival the
following year) one of the great
live albums came out of it:
