Tag: Morris Stoloff

My Favorite Song for Every Year, Part 1: 1955-1979

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Favorite Songs40 Comments

Just for fun, I thought I’d do a series of posts listing my favorite songs for each year starting with 1955, when many music historians claim the so-called “rock era” began, as well as the first full year of my life, to the present. There were so many tremendously great songs, especially from about 1964 through 1973, it was a real challenge to pick just one for each year. That said, this listing will provide a sort of snapshot of my life, at least in terms of the music I’ve loved over the years. I’ve written in some detail about many of these songs in previous posts over my eight-plus years of blogging, so won’t write lengthy narratives about any of them here. Just the year, the song and the artist, followed by one sentence and the best video I could find for each one. Enjoy!

1955 ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK – Bill Haley & His Comets

Often considered to be the first big rock’n’roll hit song that set the standard for many to come.

1956 MOONGLOW & THEME FROM “PICNIC” – Morris Stoloff

A sublime melding of an old standard and the score from one of the best films of the 1950s.

1957 LITTLE DARLIN’ – The Diamonds

A rather silly, over the top song I foolishly thought would be fun to sing karaoke to back in the 1990s. Boy was I wrong, as I humiliated myself!

1958 AT THE HOP – Danny & the Juniors

Just a delightfully upbeat rock’n’roll song celebrating the joys of youth and going to a dance, that always makes me happy.

1959 MACK THE KNIFE – Bobby Darin

A great, sophisticated classic by one of the finest singers of his time.

1960 THEME FROM “A SUMMER PLACE” – Percy Faith

A bit overly sentimental and cheesy, but my favorite instrumental track of all time.

1961 RUNNING SCARED – Roy Orbison

A short, but emotionally powerful song by one of the greatest male vocalists of all time.

1962 ONLY LOVE CAN BREAK A HEART – Gene Pitney

Few songs are as overwrought as this one, but I love Gene Pitney’s heartrending vocals and the lush orchestration.

1963 BE MY BABY – The Ronettes

The Mt. Rushmore of Phil Spector’s wall of sound production, and a stellar performance by the great Ronnie Spector and Co.

1964 SHE LOVES YOU – The Beatles

An exuberant love song by the greatest band ever, and one of my all-time favorites of their many incredible songs.

1965 (I CAN’T GET NO) SATISFACTION – The Rolling Stones

Though grossly overplayed over the many years since its release, I still love this song and its biting lyrics.

1966 CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ – The Mamas & The Papas

Their vocal harmonies were exceptional, the lyrics simple yet profound, and oh my, that gorgeous flute! My third-favorite song of all time.

1967 LIGHT MY FIRE – The Doors

It’s the extended album version, showcasing Ray Manzarek’s spectacular organ riff, that makes this my second-favorite song of all time.

1968 HEY JUDE – The Beatles

It goes on a bit too long, but a great song nevertheless.

1969 AQUARIUS/LET THE SUNSHINE IN – The 5th Dimension

I remember how much my mother loved both “Hey Jude” and this song by the fabulous 5th Dimension.

1970 BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER – Simon & Garfunkel

A stunning masterpiece that slowly builds to a stirring crescendo.

1971 IT’S TOO LATE – Carole King

An understated yet powerful song that perfectly encapsulates the painful reality of a break-up.

1972 STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN – Led Zeppelin

What can I say about this monumental tour-de-force by one of the greatest hard rock bands of all time? It’s remained my favorite song for the past 50 years.

1973 DANNY’S SONG – Anne Murray

This lovely cover by Anne Murray of a sweet Kenny Loggins song just resonated with me for some reason, and I adore it.

1974 LOVE’S THEME – Love Unlimited Orchestra

I’ve always been a sucker for lush, cinematic instrumentals, and this one by Barry White and his Love Unlimited Orchestra is one of my favorites.

1975 I LOVE MUSIC – The O’Jays

The greatest Disco song ever in my opinion, by one of the finest R&B bands to come out of Philadelphia in the 1970s. It could also serve as my own theme song!

1976 LOVE HANGOVER – Diana Ross

Once again, it’s the extended version of this song by one of the greatest female vocalists of all time that makes this a favorite of mine. I can’t remember how many times I danced to this.

1977 DREAMS – Fleetwood Mac

My favorite song by one of my all-time favorite bands, “Dreams” strongly resonated with me as I went through a painful breakup at the time.

1978 STAYIN’ ALIVE – Bee Gees

Though technically not a Disco song, “Stayin’ Alive” nevertheless came to represent the entire genre and all that was both great and bad about it. That said, it’s a perfect song.

1979 DO YA THINK I’M SEXY? – Rod Stewart

I know many fans of Rod Stewart absolutely hated this song, but I loved it the moment I heard it, and never grew tired of it.

EML’s Favorite Songs – “Moonglow and Theme from Picnic” by Morris Stoloff

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Favorite Songs11 Comments

One of my favorite songs from the 1950s is “Moonglow and Theme from Picnic” by composer Morris Stoloff. Stoloff served as music director at Columbia Pictures from 1936 to 1962, and was subsequently tapped by Frank Sinatra to be music director of his label Reprise Records.

The beautiful instrumental piece is actually a medley arranged by Stoloff that combined the popular 1933 song “Moonglow”, written by Will Hudson, Irving Mills and Eddie DeLange, with the “Theme from Picnic”, written by George Duning for the 1955 film starring William Holden, Kim Novak, Rosalind Russell, Betty Field, Cliff Robertson, Arthur O’Connell and Susan Strasberg. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Picnic by William Inge, the film was adapted for the screen by Daniel Taradash, and directed by Joshua Logan, who also directed the Broadway production. Stoloff’s piece was used in the film, and later released as a single in early 1956. The song spent three weeks at #1 on the Billboard Most Played by Jockeys chart that spring (from 1955-57, Billboard had four distinct, and rather childishly-named, pop charts: Best Sellers in Stores, Most Played by Jockeys, Most Played in Jukeboxes, and Top 100).

From the 1940s to the early 1980s, instrumentals were quite popular and often released as singles. Beginning with the Big Band era and continuing all the way through to the Rock and Disco eras, numerous instrumentals became big hits. Some of the iconic instrumentals that went to #1 include the Benny Goodman classic “Sing Sing Sing”, Perez Prado’s “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White”, Percy Faith’s “Theme from A Summer Place”, Booker T & the MGs’ “Green Onions”, Paul Mauriat’s “Love is Blue”, Hugo Montenegro’s “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly”, Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas”, MFSB’s “T.S.O.P”, Barry White’s “Love’s Theme” and Vangelis’ “Theme from Chariots of Fire”. For me, “Moonglow and Theme from Picnic” ranks among the best of them. The cool percussion, jazzy piano keys and stirring orchestral strings are positively sublime.

The song is wonderful all by itself, but what makes it even more significant is the fact that it was used for one of the most important and memorable scenes in Picnic. A rather intoxicated Hal, played by William Holden, dances to the song with his college friend Alan’s girlfriend Madge, played by the devastatingly beautiful Kim Novak, while her younger sister Millie, played by Susan Strasberg, watches with teenage envy as she swigs liquor from a bottle hidden in Hal’s jacket. The also intoxicated middle-aged schoolteacher Rosemary, played by Rosalind Russell in one of her finest performances, and the hapless Howard (Arthur O’Connell) watch from the sidelines. Rosemary stews with bitter jealousy as she watches the younger, more beautiful Madge dance with Hal, who she finds both attractive and repellant. It’s an incredible scene taut with sexual tension and desire, and the sensuous song sets the perfect mood.