Special Sub-Topic: Transistor Memories 1963 Authored by: richicago Sub-topic of: Music from 1963

"Washington Square" by the Village______ went all the way to #2. Complete the name of this Greenwich, New York group.

Stompers. This was one of the few Dixieland instrumentals to chart in the modern pop Top 10.

Two songs hit #1 during 1963 that had something in common that was quite unusual. What was the common bond?

Neither was sung in English. Sukiyaki by Kyu Sakamoto, and Dominique by The singing Nun, were sung in Japanese and French respectively. Not being able to understand these lyrics helped prepare us for appreciating the more contemporary "Rap" music of today!

Bobby Vinton had two back-to-back Top 10 hits in 1963. What did they have in common?

A color. Bobby had hits with "Blue On Blue"(#3) and "Blue Velvet"(#1), both in 1963. I'm sure that the "Polish Prince" wasn't blue after getting all those royalty checks!

"Louie Louie" was one of the most controversial records of all time. Everybody remembers the song, but do you remember the name of the group?

The Kingsmen. The lyrics of this song were unintelligible, so many listeners drew the wrong conclusions. Paul Revere And The Raiders would subsequently come out with the understandable, and less popular version. Interesting note: The flip side of the Kingsmen version was an instrumental entitled "Haunted Castle" which was neither scary nor medieval.

"Memphis" was a big 1963 hit for what artist?

Lonnie Mack. This was the instrumental version of Chuck Berry's song, which ironically, did not make the Top 40. Johnny Rivers' vocal version hit #2 in 1964.

Doris Troy hit the charts with what love song?

Just One Look. Doris was a singer/songwriter who later performed as a background voice on Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon".

This Mongo Santamaria instrumental was about a certain kind of "man". What was that descriptive word?

Watermelon. Mongo was a Cuban bandleader who had worked with Perez Prado, among others.

Skeeter Davis gave us a great county ballad entitled "The End of ______". Finish the title.

The World. This country song went all the way to #2 on the Pop charts in 1963. (Her real first name - Mary ).

"Two Faces Have I" was a #6 hit for what singer/songwriter?

Lou Christie. Lou would later be shocked to learn that he had a #1 hit with "Lightnin' Strikes" in 1966.

Finishing off 1963 is this folk trio that made it big with "Walk Right In".

The Rooftop Singers. Members of the group had ties to The Tarriers and The Weavers.