Hi everyone. Truly Judy’s Uncommon Oldies takes us to WKIX 850 AM in Raleigh, North Carolina, to their Hit Parader survey in August, 1961.
My survey artist was born in Kansas and grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. He started out singing gospel music in his church choir and then developed a love of jazz. He also learned to play the saxophone and trumpet. When he started singing in jazz clubs, he came to the attention of Sy Waronker of Liberty Records.
After he had put out a couple of singles and an album that didn’t do too well, he was teamed with Snuff Garrett, and his first hit, “A Hundred Pounds Of Clay”, reached #3 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in early 1961. That was my mother’s favorite song, so it’s very special to me. Two of his other songs landed in the Top 10 in 1961 into early 1962, as well.
On the WKIX Raleigh, North Carolina, survey at #24 in August of 1961, with the #1 song being Michael by the Highwaymen, here is Gene McDaniels with A Tear, a song that peaked at #31 nationally and was on the Liberty label.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_McDaniels
