Sounds Of The 60s Rewound (Part 1) Quiz

Answer: The Beatles

"Jojo was a man who thought he was a loner
..."

The Fab Four brought in Billy Preston to play keyboards on this song, and he was the only non-Beatle ever to share credit on a Beatles recording. Sadly he only got a session fee, but no share of the mechanical royalties.

The song was number ten on a list of Top 50 biggest selling Beatles singles compiled by the Official UK Singles Company. It topped the charts in 14 countries.

Since you are itching to know, the best selling Beatles single in the UK was "She Loves You".

Answer: Sam Cooke

The twist was a dance popular in the USA in the late 1950s and early 1960s and inspired a number of "twisting" songs.

Cooke wrote the lyrics of "Twisting The Night Away" after seeing television footage of wealthy old women doing the dance at a club.

Although recorded in New York City, session musicians of the famed Los Angeles 'Wrecking Crew' provided the music. In 1962 the song was a top ten hit on both sides of the Atlantic.

Answer: Leapy Lee

"Here they come pouring out of the blue ..."

"Little Arrows" was an early hit from the songwriting duo of Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood.

Although he had been singing professionally since 1962, it was not until 1968 that Lee hit the big time with "Little Arrows". It reached number two in the UK and number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. A one-hit wonder, Lee was never to achieve such success again.

Answer: James Brown

In about 1962, James Brown wrote a song called "I Found You", which was recorded by Yvonne Fair, a member of his band. It scored little success.

Three years later Brown re-wrote it, with changed lyrics, as "I Got You (I Feel Good)". He had some trouble getting the record released due to conflicts between record labels.

Eventually on release it went to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 - Brown's highest in that chart. Meanwhile, he had had 16 number ones hits on the R&B charts.

Answer: Donovan

"Sunshine Superman" was Donavan's response to a broken relationship. He had dated Linda Lawrence, former partner of Rolling Stone Brian Jones, but she broke it off. The "sunshine" was a reference to the drug LSD, so it's a bit surprising that it was not banned in the way some other similar songs were.

(Donovan and Linda Lawrence later marred.)

The single topped the US Hot 100 and was a number two in the UK. Donovan, sometimes dubbed "the British Dylan" had seven UK top ten hits.

Answer: Eydie Gormé and Steve Lawrence

"I don't wanna go to the party with you
I don't wanna go to the dance
I don't wanna go anywhere with you
I just wanna stay here and love you..."

The fertile minds of Gerry Goffin and Carole King wrote "I Want To Stay Here" in 1963. It was recorded by Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé and reached number three in the UK and number 28 in the US.

This was to be their biggest hit in a career that lasted from 1954 to 1979. As well as singing partners, the duo were married until the death of Gormé in 2013. Lawrence died in 2024.

Answer: Tom Jones

"Green Green Grass of Home" was written by Nashville songwriter Curly Putman. He claimed inspiration from the 1950 John Huston movie "The Asphalt Jungle".

Johnny Darrell was first to sing it, then Jerry Lee Lewis picked it up.

Tom Jones said in a newspaper interview: "I used to collect anything Jerry Lee Lewis recorded, and still do. I was in New York in 1965 when I bought his country album "Country Songs For City Folks". 'Green Green Grass Of Home' stuck out.

"I got on well with Jerry Lee. I did have a bit of a dust-up with him one night in Vegas, but most of the time, we got on great. He came over to do a British tour in 1966 and I had just recorded the song. He told me he'd love to hear it, so I played it to him in his hotel room. He was knocked out with it and said: 'You've done something different here, the arrangement is great."

The Tom Jones version was a UK chart topper and reached number 11 in the US.

Answer: Goldie & The Gingerbreads

"Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" was a US hit for Herman's Hermits in 1965 In the UK it had been the 'B'side of "Silhouettes".

That same year the all-female New York City quartet Goldie & the Gingerbreads took "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" to number 25 in the UK.

Unfortunately, the Herman's Hermits version was released in the USA two weeks before Goldie and reached number two on the Hot 100.

Answer: Billy J. Kramer with The Dakotas

"Bad To Me" was written by John Lennon for Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas - who, along with The Beatles, were managed by Brian Epstein. The song was a UK chart topper and reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100.


Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas had five songs in the UK top 10 between 1963 and 1965. The band split in 1968. Kramer started a solo career and a new version of the Dakotas formed in 1980.

Answer: The Elgins

So, who remembers The Elgins? They were a short-lived group - 1965 to 1967 - and had just one hit with "Heaven Must Have Sent You"
(Just to clear up any confusions, The Elgins was a name previously used by The Temptations.)

"Heaven Must Have Sent You" reached number nine on the Billboard R&B charts and number three on the UK Official Charts.

Answer: The Crazy World of Arthur Brown

Who can forget Arthur Brown singing "Fire" while wearing a flaming hat?
In 1968 "Fire" was a UK number one and reached number two in the US.

The band was active between 1967 and 1971, and then after a 22-year sabbatical returned to performing and recording in 1999.

While the hit single is often credited to The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, that was the name of an album; it should properly be credited to Arthur Brown.

Answer: The Supremes

"You Can't Hurry Love" was an adaption of a Gospel song "You Cant Hurry God" and was one of 12 smash hits for The Supremes in the USA.

The Supremes were one of the most important singing groups of their time, and at a time when America was divided on race lines, they also helped change the public image of African Americans during the civil rights era.

'Business Insider' noted that the Supremes were the most successful act to come out of the Motown stable. Between 1964 and 1970 The Supremes sold more than 46 million records.

Answer: The Kinks

"Waterloo Sunset" was a UK number two for The Kinks in 1967 and was written by lead singer Ray Davies. He described it as "a romantic, lyrical song about my older sister's generation."

The Kinks had 12 top ten hits in the UK, including the chart-topping "Sunny Afternoon", "Tired of Waiting for You" and "You Really Got Me".

Answer: Roy Orbison

"Oh, Pretty Woman" was a cross-Atlantic chart-topper for Roy Orbison
The song was written by Orbison and his writing partner Bill Dees. The 'pretty woman' in the song was Orbison's first wife, Claudette.

This was to be Orbison's last chart-topper. In a long career, he had nine US top ten hits. Elvis Presley called him "the greatest singer in the world".

Answer: The Four Seasons

"Beggin'" was a US number 16 hit for The Four Seasons in 1967. Earlier, they had four US number ones and briefly vied with The Beatles for record sales.

By 1967 their star was on the wane. They had a US number nine with "C'mon Marianne", also in 1967, but had to wait eight years for another number one, "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)".
(These statistics are separate from Frankie Valli's solo hits).

Altogether, five US chart toppers are attributed to The Four Seasons and 175 million record sales.