One of my favorite late 50's/early 60's rock 'n' roll trends was the proliferation of teenage car wreck songs. They were weepy little mini-soap operas, usually told in flashback, and somebody usually died. They had song titles like "Teen Angel" and "Last Kiss" and "Tell Laura I Love Her," some featured sound effects ("Leader of the Pack," "Dead Man's Curve") and, looking back at the charts, were immensely popular at the time.
Today I came across an Everly Brothers song I had never heard before that takes the genre a step further. I proudly bring to you... the AIRPLANE CRASH song.
(Cannot stop staring at those pompadours. Plus, matching shirts!)
"Ebony Eyes," written by John D. Loudermilk and performed by the Everly Brothers, was released as a single in January of 1961 and peaked at #8 on the US charts. Incredibly, the song went to #1 in the UK despite the BBC initially banning it due to its somewhat disturbing content.
The B-side was "Walk Right Back," which would chart at #7 in the States and gave the Brothers another #1 in the UK. At some point the record companies switched the songs so that "Walk Right Back" became the A-side single and "Ebony Eyes" the B-side.
Another commonality I just noticed, "Ebony Eyes," "Leader of the Pack," and "Dead Man's Curve" all feature a few seconds of spoken word. I suppose that, given the narrative nature of these songs, this wasn't an unusual thing to do. Speaking to the listener is also a good dramatic ploy (as if these songs need to be any more dramatic).
Anyway, I love finding lost treasures like these. If anybody knows of any other old pop-music melodramas let me know. We will put on our high school letter jackets and mourn the mangled corpses of our lost fictitious sweethearts. It'll be fun!
[File under: They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To]
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