Bobby Vee: Legendary Masters
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Where we last left off, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper, all died in a plane crash on February 3, 1959, leaving their big Moorhead, Minnesota, gig wide open. Bobby Vee, then only 15 years old, and his friends, all volunteered to fill in for Buddy Holly as The Shadows. The show was a success, and thus began Bobby Vee's music career.
Soon afterward, they released the single "Suzie Baby", and signed to Liberty Records later in 1959. "Suzie" was a nod to Buddy Holly's "Peggy Sue", and it didn't hurt that Vee later covered "Everyday" as a b-side to "Rubber Ball". Anyway, Vee had a string of Billboard hit singles, from "Rubber Ball" to "Devil or Angel" to "Run To Him" to "Come Back When You Grow Up", but he's probably best known for his number #1 hit song "Take Good Care of my Baby".
My favorite all-time Bobby Vee song is "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes", which was the title track to his 1963 album. The "Thousand Eyes" might refer to the stars, watching over the "runaround lover". Although it is a pop song, it doesn't sound like the usual songs of that time period. A really good example can be found in the movie Dark City, which Anita Kelsey (lip-synced by Jennifer Connelly) sings "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" as a classic jazz standard.
A little trivia, but early in Vee's career, Elston Gunnn briefly toured with the band. Gunnn later went on to perform under the name Bob Dylan; Dylan, obviously a massive influence on music today. When Dylan came back on his "hometown" gig at Midway Stadium in St. Paul earlier this year, July 10, 2013, he covered Bobby Vee's "Suzie Baby". In his introduction to the song, Dylan said how Bobby Vee was "the most meaningful person I've ever been on the stage with."
Anyway, Bobby Vee is actually still active in the music scene, often playing live as Bobby Vee and The Vees (his band, The Vees includes his two eldest sons).
Soon afterward, they released the single "Suzie Baby", and signed to Liberty Records later in 1959. "Suzie" was a nod to Buddy Holly's "Peggy Sue", and it didn't hurt that Vee later covered "Everyday" as a b-side to "Rubber Ball". Anyway, Vee had a string of Billboard hit singles, from "Rubber Ball" to "Devil or Angel" to "Run To Him" to "Come Back When You Grow Up", but he's probably best known for his number #1 hit song "Take Good Care of my Baby".
The Night Has a Thousand Eyes 7"
United Artists Records
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A little trivia, but early in Vee's career, Elston Gunnn briefly toured with the band. Gunnn later went on to perform under the name Bob Dylan; Dylan, obviously a massive influence on music today. When Dylan came back on his "hometown" gig at Midway Stadium in St. Paul earlier this year, July 10, 2013, he covered Bobby Vee's "Suzie Baby". In his introduction to the song, Dylan said how Bobby Vee was "the most meaningful person I've ever been on the stage with."
Anyway, Bobby Vee is actually still active in the music scene, often playing live as Bobby Vee and The Vees (his band, The Vees includes his two eldest sons).