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The Sixties: Pre-Sixties Pop Music

This guide covers the decade 1960 - 1970

Vocal Standards

Radio taught America--and the world--how to sing. The radio was perfect for the human voice. In the first half of the twentieth century, most Americans got their music from the radio or the jukebox or movies, and later from television. But mostly from the radio. With radio, an extraordinary group of popular vocalists came along to fill the medium with great vocals. These pop vocalists saw singing as an art form. They, and the songs they sang, have had an influence on Rock & Roll. Maybe not as strong as the blues and country but, like jazz, it's been there with every well-crafted song and with every voice that manged to have a long career.

 

Pre-Sixties Pop Male Vocalists

  • St. James Infirmary (Gambler's Blues), Louis Armstrong (1929)
  • If I Didn't Care, Ink Spots (1939)
  • Paper Doll, Mills Brothers (1942)
  • Swinging on a Star, Bing Crosby (1944)
  • Mona Lisa, Nat King Cole (1950)
  • Cry, Johnny Ray (1951)
  • Istanbul (Nor Constantinople), The Four Lads (1953)
  • I've Got the World on a String, Frank Sinatra (1953)
  • Graduation Day, Four Freshmen (1956)
  • Chances Are, Johnny Mathis (1957)
  • Young and Warm and Wonderful, Tony Bennett (1958)
  • Everybody Loves Somebody, Dean Martin (1964)

Songs found on Spotify
Musicians found on allmusic.com

12 of American's Most Popular Songs

Can a song hold up and last for decades? These 12 songs prove that a song can. They were written in the 1920s and 1930s, yet they have been recorded by hundreds of artists since, and continue to be performed. And some have even become hits decades after they were composed. Examples of this are Bobby Darin's version of "Mack the Knife" and the recording of "I Got Rhythms" by the Happenings. That is why they are considered standards. For the playlist, artists for these songs were selected because they were working in the 1950s and 1960s.

Year Composed Song Artist performing song Year version released
1914 St. Louis Blues Les Paul & Mary Ford 1952
1927 Ol' Man River Johnny Nash 1962
1927 Stardust Dinah Washington 1961
1928 Mack the Knife Bobby Darin 1959
1930 Body and Soul Jackie Wilson 1962
1930 I Got Rhythm The Happenings 1967
1931 As Time Goes By Peggy Lee 1961
1932 Night and Day Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 1967
1933 Stormy Weather Etta James 1960
1935 Summertime Sam Cooke 1957
1937 My Funny Valentine Chet Baker 1954
1938 Lush Life Nancy Wilson 1967

Source: Stardust Melodies: the Biography of 12 of America's Most Popular Songs. by W. Friedwald
Songs found on Spotify
Musicians found on allmusic.com

Pre-Sixties Pop Male Vocalists

"Without feeling, whatever you do amounts to nothing." --Billie Holiday (Covach & Flor, p. 276)

  1. Don't Blame Me,  Ethel Waters (1933)
  2. Over the Rainbow, Judy Garland (1939)
  3. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Andrews Sisters (1941)
  4. Gloomy Sunday, Billie Holiday (1941)
  5. La Vie en Rose, Edith Piaf (1947)
  6. It's Magic, Sarah Vaughan (1948)
  7. Secret Love, Doris Day (1954)
  8. Cry Me a River, Julie London (1955)
  9. Summertime, Ella Fitzgerald (1959)
  10. What a Difference a Day Makes, Dinah Washington (1959)
  11. As Long As He Needs Me, Shirley Bassey (1960)
  12. Sweet Dreams, Patsy Cline (1963

Songs found on Spotify
Musicians found on allmusic.com

Additional References

Covach, J. R., & Flory, A. (2015). What's that sound?: An introduction to rock and its history. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
Feuer, J. (2007). The Hollywood musical. Indiana university press.
Friedwald, Will. Stardust Melodies: the Biography of 12 of America's Most Popular Songs. Chicago Review Press, 2006.
Hamill, P. (2016). Why Sinatra matters. Little, Brown and Company.
Stempel, L. (2011). Showtime: a history of the Broadway musical theater. W.W. Norton & Company.