Ask “Mr. Music”
Jerry Osborne



FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 24, 2005

DEAR JERRY: I enjoy reading the frequent questions and answers about my favorite group, the Beatles. I am too young to have experienced Beatlemania in the mid-'60s, but I am learning as much as I can now.

It seems like most of their singles are double-sided hits, but how many of them were not?

Did anyone from the rock era have more two-sided hits than the Fab Four?

Lastly, a line from “You Can't Do That” has always baffled me. It is (I think) “everybody scream 'cause I'm the one who won your love.”

Why would this make them scream?
—Archie Cooke, Lancaster, Pa.

DEAR ARCHIE: In chronological order, here are the Beatles B-sides that did not chart separately: “I'll Get You” (1964 flip of both “She Loves You” and “Sie Liebt Dich”); “I'm Down” (1965 flip of “Help!”); “You Know My Name (Look Up My Number)” (1970 flip of “Let It Be”); and “Old Brown Shoe” (1970 flip of “The Ballad of John and Yoko”).

Of the 30 principal single releases by the group, these four are the only single-sided hits.

Not included in this research are anomalous issues, on labels such as MGM, Atco, and Capitol of Canada, and releases after spring 1970, when the boys disbanded.

Having 26 two-sided hits ranks the Beatles second in that category — a permanent position, I suspect.

Elvis Presley, with an amazing 52, has twice as many and will never relinquish the double-sided hit crown.

In third place is Fats Domino, whose 24 places him just two behind the Beatles.

Rounding out the Top 10 stars who regularly gave us two hits for the price of one are: Pat Boone (21); Nat King Cole (21); Rick Nelson (20); Brenda Lee (17); Ray Charles (16); Perry Como (14); and Connie Francis (13).

With vinyl singles obsolete as far as the charts are concerned, these rankings are as good as frozen.

As for that perplexing line in “You Can't Do That,” it is more about envy than screeching. It really is “everybody's green 'cause I'm the one who won your love,” as in green with envy. To the ear, “everybody's green” sounds very much like “everybody scream.”

DEAR JERRY: Many people recorded “The Glory of Love,” but which group made the version with an Ink Spots inspired narrative in the middle?

One memorable line in this one is “My only mistake was I loved you too much.”
—Smilin' Jack, U.S. Ice Station, Almighty, Antarctica

DEAR SMILIN' JACK: Just as you say, many recorded versions of “The Glory of Love” exist.

Written in 1936, by Billy Hill, this infectious tune became the nation's No. 1 hit that summer, by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra.

The soulful rendering you speak of came out in 1957 by the R&B group, the Velvetones (Aladdin 3372).

Other noteworthy “Glory of Love” waxings include ones by Sanford Clark (1957), Roommates (1961), Don Gardner & Dee Dee Ford (1962), Otis Redding (1967), and the Dells (1971).

It's nothing like the style of the Velvetones, but Sanford Clark's rock-a-ballad slant to “The Glory of Love” is a real gem.

DEAR JERRY: The group Climax is best known for “Precious and Few,” but I'd like to find the B-side of that hit. It is a sugary song that may be titled “Life and Breath,” but it doesn't seem to be available any longer.
—Carl L. Graham, Chicago

DEAR CARL: I can see how this could be confusing, but clearing such things up is what we do.

The original 1972 hit single of “Precious and Few” has “Park Preserve” as the flip (Rocky Road 30055). Their follow up, and only other hit, is “Life and Breath,” which has as its B-side, “If It Feels Good, Do It” (Rocky Road 30061).

Many years later, a back-to-back hits single came out, pairing their only two hits: “Precious and Few” and “Life and Breath” (Arise 091177). This is likely the one you recall.

Fortunately, this Climax disc is still available. Oldies.com (800 336-4627) has it for $2.50.

IZ ZAT SO? For those wondering about Perry Como's overall double-sided hit total (1943 to '60), add another 30 to the 14 noted above, giving him 44 for his career.

Then there is the ultra productive Bing Crosby, who, from 1931 to '56, turned out 70 double-sided hits.





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