George Gershwin, 1898-1937. Library of Congress
George Gershwin composed his brilliant jazz standard “Summertime” for the 1935 opera, Porgy and Bess. This timeless song is recognized as one of the most covered in the history of recorded music, with more than 25,000 renditions by a diverse range of artists.
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Echos of a Rock Era
In the early 1950s, a sidewalk singing group called The Crows were discovered at The Apollo Theater’s Wednesday night talent show. The Crows signed with an independent label, Rama Records, who released their hit single “Gee” as a b-side in June of 1953.
“Gee” went on to become the first R&B record ever to crossover from the rhythm and blues chart to the pop chart, and the first 1950s doo-wop record to sell over 1 million copies. Historically the song has been credited as the first rock n’ roll hit by a rock and roll group. It was also the most popular track on Decadio for the month of April and is available from Amazon.
The Shocking Blue in 1970. Nationaal Archief.
Thank you to everyone who tuned in to Decadio during the month of February. The most popular decade was the 1960s with the 2000s not far behind.
The most popular track, “Hot Sand” by the Shocking Blue, was released in 1969 as the b-side to their number one hit, “Venus.”
In 1988, Nirvana covered the Shocking Blue song, “Love Buzz” as their debut single. Listen for both renditions now playing in the 1960s and 1980s.
