Summer Songs of the Sixties and Seventies Quiz

Answer: Billy Stewart

Billy Stewart released several regional singles and made the Billboard Hot 100 with "Reap What You Sow" and "Strange Feeling". He released a powerful vocal rendition of "Summertime" from his "Unbelievable" LP in 1966 and reached the Number Seven slot on the US Billboard charts.

He followed up with a Top Forty version of the Doris Day hit "Secret Love" then released a series of unsuccessful singles. Billy was only 32 when his car careened off a bridge killing him and the occupants of the vehicle. Freddie Scott barely made the Top Forty in 1966 with the Number 39 "Are You Lonely for Me?". "The Ballad Of Irving" by Frank Gallop reached Number 34. "Barefootin'" was a 1966 Top Ten by Robert Parker.

Answer: "Theme from A Summer Place"-Percy Faith

"Theme from A Summer Place" was originally titled the "Molly and Johnny Theme" when "A Summer Place" was released in 1959. Molly and Johnny were played by Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue in the film. Percy Faith's version remained the longest running US Number One Instrumental on the Pop charts hit into the 21st century.
Canadian born Percy Faith was a violin player until an accident burned his hands and he turned to conducting and arranging. He went on to work with artists including Mitch Miller, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis and Doris Day and composed Guy Mitchell's hit, "My Heart Cries for You".
In addition to scoring Pop hits Faith also scored movie soundtracks and the theme for the sixties television show "The Virginian".
Hugo Winterhalter recorded the theme when the film soundtrack was compiled.
The Number Seven "A Summer Song" was released by Chad and Jeremy in 1964. "Summer Wind" was a 1966 Top Forty release by Frank Sinatra. "Summer Samba (So Nice)" by Walter Wanderley was a Number 26 single in 1966.

Answer: War

War was originally called Eric Burdon and War when it was formed in 1969. They released hits including "The Cisco Kid", "Low Rider" and "Spill the Wine". Producer Jerry Goldstein teamed Eric Burden with a band playing at a Hollywood club called The Rag Doll.

In 1970 they released "Eric Burdon Declares "War" and when "Spill the Wine" became a Number Three US hit the band began touring. Burden left for a solo career in the early seventies. War continued on and in 1976 they released a greatest hits compilation that contained one new selection titled "Summer".

The song reached Number Seven. Silver released the Top Twenty "Wham Bam Shang-A-Lang" in 1976. The Commodores released the Top Ten "Sweet Love" in 1976. The Spinners made it to Number Two in 1976 with "The Rubberband Man".

Answer: True

Eddie Cochran and his manager Jerry Capehart wrote "Summertime Blues" and took it to the US Top Ten in 1958. Although he had two other US Top Forty hits "Summertime Blues" was Cochran's only Top Ten hit in the US before he died at the age of 21 in 1960.
Blue Cheer was a rock band based in San Francisco that formed in 1967. After paring down to a power trio they recorded their "Vincebus Eruptum" album in 1968 and released "Summertime Blues" as their first single. The album reached Number 11 on the US album charts and the "Summertime Blues" single peaked at Number 14. It was Blue Cheer's only US Top Forty hit.
On July 6, 1970, The Who released a single of "Summertime Blues" from the "Live at Leeds" album. The single made it to Number 27 in the US.

Answer: Nat King Cole

"That Sunday, That Summer" and "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer" were Top Forty single releases from Nat King Cole's 1963 "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer" album. "In the Good Old Summer Time" was also recorded for the album. Nat King Cole's first album was a 78 RPM LP released in 1945 titled "The King Cole Trio". By 1952 Cole had recorded enough hits to release an album called "Harvest Of Hits" on Capitol Records. He released so many successful recordings on the Capitol label that when the Capitol Tower building was erected in 1956 it was dubbed "The House That Nat Built".
Nat King Cole's final album before he died in 1965 was "L-O-V-E".
"Charms" was a Number 13 1963 release from Bobby Vee. Wayne Newton had a big hit when "Danke Schoen" reached Number 13 in 1963. "Days of Wine and Roses" from the movie of the same name was a 1963 Top Forty single by Andy Williams.

Answer: Marianne Faithfull

Marianne Faithfull's career began when she sang folk songs in coffeehouses. She was attending a release party for the Rolling Stones when she was invited to sing a composition penned by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards entitled "As Tears Go By". The song became a hit, reaching the Number 24 spot in the US. It would be her highest charting US single. Marianne followed with "Summer Nights", "This Little Bird" and "Come and Stay With Me".
The Rolling Stones' single release of "As Tears Go By" made the US Top Ten in 1965.
Cilla Black was born Priscilla Maria Veronica White. Her highest charting US single was "You're My World" in 1964. Petula Clark's first US hit was "Downtown". Dusty Springfield's sixties US hits included "I Only Want to Be with You", "Wishin' and Hopin'" and "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me".

Answer: Hot Summer Nights

"Hot Summer Nights" was the debut single from Night's eponymous 1979 debut album. The group's 1980 follow up, "Long Distance", was the groups second and final album. Night formed in 1978 and was comprised mostly of session musicians from England. Vocalist Chris Thompson had worked with Manfred Mann's Earth Band.
Walter Egan had enjoyed a modest hit with "Hot Summer Nights". Night's cover version became their biggest international hit. The band released "Love on the Airwaves" from their second LP. It was their final single release before they disbanded in 1982.
"Summer Sand" was a 1971 single by Dawn. "Summer Rain" was released by Johnny Rivers in 1968. "Summer (The First Time)" went to Number 21 for Bobby Goldsboro in 1973.

Answer: The Champs

The Champs had a big hit with "Tequila" in 1958. Jimmy Seals, Dash Crofts along with Glen Campbell joined The Champs then parted ways with the group in 1963 to form a band behind Glen called "Glen Campbell and the GCs". They worked regularly for two years until Seals and Crofts returned to their native Texas and formed a group called The Dawnbreakers.
They began working as a duo and signed with Warner Brothers Records in 1971. Their second Warner album was titled "Summer Breeze" and the single release of "Summer Breeze" reached Number Six in the US.
Booker T and the M.G.'s had a hit with "Green Onions" in 1962. The Ventures were formed by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle and charted their first Instrumental, "Walk, Don't Run", in 1960. In 1963 The Chantays had a hit with "Pipeline".

Answer: Monty Kelly and His Orchestra

Monty Kelly was a staff arranger for 101 Strings. They released over 100 albums of mood music in the fifties and sixties. In 1954 Monty released an album for the Essex record Company's "I Love" series titled "I Love Monty Kelly". "Monty Kelly Takes Me To Far Away Places" was released the following year.

He began releasing records as Monty Kelly's Chorus and when he covered Aker Bilk's "Summer Set" he was billed as Monty Kelly and His Orchestra. "Summer Set" was Kelly's highest charting US Pop Billboard single release. Ferrante and Teicher took "The Theme from "The Apartment" (Jealous Lover)" to Number Ten in 1960. "Tracy's Theme" by Spencer Ross reached Number 13. "Ooh Poo Pah Doo (Part 2)" was a Number 28 Instrumental by Jessie Hill.

Answer: Olivia Newton-John

In 1971 "If Not for You" was Olivia Newton-John's first major hit in the US. John Travolta advocated for her to star with him in "Grease" even though she had only played a small role in a science fiction film in 1970. Olivia insisted on doing a screen test before being cast. Marie Osmond was also being considered for the role of Sandy Olsson.
Henry Winkler was invited to play the lead male role but turned the offer down out of concerns of being typecast. Director Randal Kleiser had worked with Travolta in 1976 in "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble" and cast Trovalta as Danny Zuko.
"Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee" was a song from the movie sung by Rizzo and the Pink Ladies. Stockard Channing played Betty Rizzo. Michelle Pfeiffer starred in the 1982 sequel to "Grease" titled "Grease 2".