J. J. Cale has died at the age of 74. Better known to musicians than to the general public, Cale was the writer behind such songs as Eric Clapton's After Midnight and Lynyrd Synyrd's Call Me the Breeze. Here he is on Mama Don't.
The summer of 1963 — 50 years ago! — featured an amazing number of great tunes in several different genres. Here is a sample from the Billboard Top 100.
Country Crossover
Dave Dudley, Six Days on the Road
Bobby Bare, Detroit City. I don't reckon Bobby be a pinin' for DEE-troit these days. Can't get no PO- lice protection.
Lonnie Mack, Memphis. Mighty fine guitar slingin.'
Johnny Cash, Ring of Fire
George Hamilton IV, Abilene
Surf Music
Jan and Dean, Surf City
Hot Rods
Beach Boys, Shutdown
Folk/Protest/Social Commentary
Peter, Paul, and Mary, Blowin' in the Wind
Trini Lopez, If I Had a Hammer
New Christy Minstrels, Green, Green
Romantic/Torch
Brenda Lee, Losing You
Barbara Lewis, Hello Stranger
Ruby and the Romantics, Our Day Will Come
Bobby Vinton, Blue on Blue
Black Girl Groups
Orlons, Not Me
Shirelles, Foolish Little Girl
Chiffons, One Fine Day
Crystals, Da Doo Ron Ron
Solo Black Artists
Doris Troy, Just One Look
Inez Foxx, Mockingbird
Sam Cooke, Another Saturday Night
White Boy Groups
Randy and the Rainbows, Denise
Dovells, You Can't Sit Down
Four Seasons, Candy Girl
Solo White Artists
Bobby Darin, 18 Yellow Roses
Wayne Newton, Danke Schoen
Elvis Presley, Devil in Disguise
Those were just some of the songs from that summer of '63, the summer before the JFK assassination. It was a hopeful time, race relations were on the mend. But then everything fell apart and here we are 50 years later in the midst of serious national decline with a incompetent race-baiting leftist occupying the White House.