Johnny Preston - 45 Johnny Preston (2017)

Early rock & roll singer Johnny Preston, most remembered for his 1960 number one hit "Running Bear," was born John Preston Courville in Port Arthur, Texas on August 18, 1939, of Cajun and German descent. After graduating from high school, during which he sang in high-school choral contests throughout the state, he attended Lamar State College in Beaumont, Texas, where he formed his first band, the Shades, in 1957 and began playing local club dances. It was at one of these club dances in 1958 that he was spotted by J.P. Richardson, better known by his stage name the Big Bopper. Richardson had written a song called "Running Bear," a sort of goofy American Indian version of Romeo and Juliet, and he took Preston into Gold Star Studios in Houston to record it. Bill Hall was the producer on the session, with Link Davis sitting in on saxophone and Hall, Richardson, and a young George Jones handling the vocal background chants that gave the song its rhythmic structure. Richardson took the finished track to Shelby Singleton at Mercury Records. Richardson was already signed to Mercury, and had delivered, as the Big Bopper, a big hit with "Chantilly Lace" earlier in 1958, so a deal was soon in place and Preston became a Mercury artist. "Running Bear" was released as a single shortly after Richardson perished in the same plane crash that claimed the lives of Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens in October of 1959. By January of 1960, "Running Bear" was the number one single in the U.S., and by March it was topping the U.K. charts as well, going on to sell over a million copies worldwide. A follow-up single, "Cradle of Love," a sort of nursery rhyme novelty song, also went Top Ten in both the U.S. and U.K., while "I'm Starting to Go Steady" and its flip side, a revival of Shirley & Lee's "Feel So Fine," both went Top 20 later in 1960, but "Leave My Kitten Alone," a song later immortalized by John Lennon, only climbed as high as number 73 on the Billboard charts as 1960 drew to a close. Preston went on to record for other labels, including Imperial Records, TCF Hall, ABC Records, Kapp, and Hallway, but he never hit the charts again. Preston performed in nostalgia package tours, played the circuit, and ended up in the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, but his recording days were behind him. Plagued by heart problems, he died on March 4, 2011 in Beaumont, Texas.

TRACKLIST

01. Token of Love
02. My Heart Knows
03. Cradle of Love
04. City of Tears
05. Feel so Fine
06. I'm Starting to Go Steady with the Blues
07. Running Bear
08. Charming Billy
09. Up in the Air
10. New Baby for Christmas
11. Leave My Kitten Alone
12. Willy Walk
13. She Once Belonged to Me
14. Let Them Talk
15. Free Me
16. Earth Angel
17. Chief Heartbreak
18. Kissin' Tree
19. Broken Hearts Annonymous
20. Let's Leave It That Way
21. I Feel Good
22. Let the Big Boss Man (Pull You Through)
23. The Day After Forever
24. What Am I Living For
25. Guardian Angel
26. Hearts of Stone
27. The Twist
28. You'll Never Walk Alone
29. Pretend
30. Danny Boy
31. Dream
32. Madre De Dios (Mother of God)
33. That's All I Want
34. The Angels Gave You to Me
35. Please Believe Me
36. My Imagination
37. Sitting Here Cryin'
38. Just Little Boy Blue
39. Four Letter Word
40. I Played Around with Your Love
41. Chosen Few
42. Over and Over
43. Do What You Did
44. Lucky in Love
45. (I Want A) Rock and Roll Guitar