King was born Carol Klein on February 9, 1942 in Manhattan, New York, and grew up in Brooklyn. She was still in her teens when she scored her first number one as a songwriter – the Shirelles’ “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” co-written with her husband Gerry Goffin. The partnership with Goffin would produce some of the most memorable hits of the 1960s, including “One Fine Day,” “Up On The Roof,” “I’m Into Something Good,” and “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.” The Goffin and King songwriting team was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

King had a minor hit as a performer with the single “It Might As Well Rain Until September” in 1962, but it wasn’t until the early 1970s that she broke through as a performer with her album “Tapestry” topping the US album chart for 15 weeks. “Tapestry” won King four Grammys, including Album of the Year, and is one of the best selling albums of all time. The “Tapestry – Legacy Edition” was released in 2008, complete with a second disc of live versions.

“Tapestry” also yielded the number one single “It’s Too Late” which was backed with “I Feel the Earth Move.”

Carole King – “I Feel The Earth Move”

Another standout track on “Tapestry” was “You’ve Got A Friend,” which was covered by her friend James Taylor and became one of his signature tunes. King and Taylor also performed together in this period and in 2010 would celebrate the 40th anniversary of their early live collaborations with the best selling album “Live at the Troubadour” and the subsequent Troubadour Reunion Tour.

After “Tapestry,” King scored six Top Twenty albums in a row in the US, including “Music” (#1), “Rhymes and Reasons” (#2), and “Wrap Around Joy” (#1).

King has announced that her forthcoming memoir, “A Natural Woman,” will be published by Grand Central Publishing in April 2012. Deb Futter, VP and Editor-in-Chief of Grand Central Pubishing Hardbook Division, has said:

“Natural Woman” will also be released as an audio book.

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Highlights for February include:

• Paul McCartney’s “Kisses on the Bottom” in standard and deluxe editions (Feb 7)
• deluxe editions of the last five Queen albums (Feb 7)
• a number of classic Bob Dylan albums on limited edition vinyl (Feb 7)
• the Van Halen reunion album, “A Different Kind of Truth” (Feb 7)
• the 3-CD set “Santana Anthology 68-69″ (Feb 14) and “Santana – Live at Montreux” on DVD and Blu-ray (Feb 21)
• Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” in Experience, Immersion and Vinyl editions – Feb 28.

The Other Fab Four

In 1964, an album called “The Beatles Vs. the Four Seasons” pitted the then red-hot Beatles against probably the most successful United States singles act of the previous two years. Today the release, a cash-in by Chicago independent Vee Jay records (who had just lost the contract to the Four Seasons and were about to lose their interest in the Beatles), inspires chuckles amongst hipper-than-thou pop music fans. After all, how could the Four Seasons ever be compared with the Beatles?

The Four Seasons were nothing to laugh about though. Once upon a time, they were a real rival to the most popular group of all time – a rival that made a lasting contribution to popular culture.

The Start of the Seasons

Although you wouldn’t know it from traditional rock histories, the Seasons were ‘happening’ before and after the arrival of the Beatles. In the summer of 1962, the group exploded on the pop landscape with two massive hits— “Sherry” and “Big Girls Don’t Cry” —both of which stayed on top of the charts for five weeks. Neither the Rolling Stones nor the Beach Boys ever had a hit so big, let alone two.

The Four Seasons – “Big Girls Don’t Cry”

There wasn’t hysteria around the group the way there was around Elvis Presley in the ’50s, or the Beatles two years later, but they were probably the top single sellers in the United States in 1962 and 1963. Several of the Seasons’ hits from these years also made the R&B Top 40; something the Beatles never did.

As the Seasons played a more urban, American-based sound steeped in the vocal group tradition, many who still felt allegiance to a more ’50s-based style of rock clung to them as a standard bearer when the Beatles arrived. There’s a scene in the film “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” that makes that point, and Ed Ward mentions it as well in “The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock ‘n’ Roll”. To the kids at Ward’s school, the idea that the Beatles could be a rival to the Seasons was the absurdity, not the reverse.

What’s more, although many American acts saw their fortunes tumble when the British Invasion started, record buyers of the mid-1960s continued to find relevance in The Four Seasons’ sound. The group scored another nine Top Ten singles over the next four or so years, and had another half-dozen records make the Top Twenty. Psychedelia and the concept album finally marked their downfall around 1967.

Later Hits and Rediscovery

Of course the Four Seasons, like the Beatles, didn’t speak just to the 1960s audience. Interest in the group has been remarkably persistent over the past four-and-a-half decades.

In the 1970s, a heavily realigned version of the group, led by Valli and produced by former member and chief songwriter Bob Gaudio, again assailed the charts with a small string of disco oriented hits, including the number one “December 1963 (Oh What a Night).” Out of almost nowhere, eighteen years later a remix of the song again crawled its way into the Top 20 and stayed in the charts for nearly a year. Although the record did not reach #1 in its second incarnation, it was as popular as a #1 hit. I remember going into nightclubs when the remix was out and the crowd would cheer when the DJs played it.

The Four Seasons – “December 1963 (Oh What a Night)”

In 2005, the public rediscovered again the music of the Four Seasons (albeit through a different interpretation) in the Broadway play Jersey Boys, while the summer of 2007 brought a #1 UK Dance hit with another remix, this time of 1967′s “Beggin”.

Yet the group gets little respect. Prominent rock critic Robert Hillburn worried that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame lowered its standards when it admitted the group in 1990. Entertainment Weekly wondered why Jersey Boys was such a hit when plays based on greater artists (read this as Beatles) failed.

To me, there is no mystery. The reason the group’s work has always spoken so well to people is because, in their prime, the Four Seasons were very, very good. This is the rub for many fans, and especially critics who believe the Beach Boys, the Stones and especially the Beatles leave the Seasons in their dust. Although those acts may measure up as greater in the overall picture, I think the Seasons were a real peer who mounted a much closer battle than most critics would lead you to believe.

Why the Skepticism?

A prime reason for the skepticism accorded to the Four Seasons is because the group mostly expressed its greatness in the singles medium, and because they hewed closer to the music’s ’50s R&B roots rather than align their fortunes to the more self-consciously artistic, conceptual style that became the vogue after Sgt Pepper. On their terms though, in their medium—the single—from 1962 to 1967 the Four Seasons were as good as anybody out there. “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Dawn (Go Away),” “Big Man in Town,” the shimmering “Rag Doll,” “Save it For Me,” “Let’s Hang On” and more than a dozen others are supreme classics, as listenable and compelling as anything to come out of the era.

One often ignored aspect of all that quality work is that, inspired by Phil Spector, the Four Seasons got sophistication long before the Beatles. In terms of production and arrangement, when the Beatles arrived, the Four Seasons’ records were far more ambitious and complicated than what the Beatles were doing in 1964. And if the Seasons owed a lot to Spector in this regard, so did the Beach Boys. Their sound separated itself from Spector in that Seasons producer Bob Crewe (aided by Gaudio and arranger Charlie Calelo) was a little more detailed, often drawing on an even broader palette than the West Coast production genius. There’s nothing in the Spector catalogue as driving as that hard rock guitar line that opens “Let’s Hang On.” A track like “Working My Way Back to You” was as unadorned as “Dawn” was booming. The Seasons even incorporated folk influences into their sound.

Working Class Themes

Like the Beach Boys, the Four Seasons brought their own lyrical themes to the table and pushed the boundaries of what the music could express.

The Seasons’ great theme was the struggle of the white working class—their limits, their sense of exclusion from the American Dream, and their quest to belong. By attempting to articulate these themes, a song like “Rag Doll” is far more ambitious than something like “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” In many ways, the class tensions that the early rock ‘n’ roll symbolized were verbalized on the best Four Seasons songs. Even the inflated machismo of “Walk Like a Man” captures the attitude of a hard-nosed class of realists. No woman (and surely no act of any man) should be enough to make a man cry. It’s his duty to understand what life has in store for him and not to blink.

The Four Seasons – “Walk Like A Man”

Perhaps it was this sense of class strictures that makes rock critics give the group short shrift. Rock ‘n’ roll is not supposed to recognize that limitations exist. If this is the case, I believe the group’s best work blows past their critics. We may lament the fact that money and class hamper our dreams, but the soaring harmonies on tracks like “Rag Doll” let us know that we do have a chance to reach a place where those things won’t matter anymore.

The Voice of Frankie Valli

What really made the Seasons special though was their singing. Nobody could sing better. Their harmonies were often intricate, original, and exciting. The vocal arrangement on a track like “Let’s Hang on” was a match for anything the Beatles did vocally. What the Four Seasons had that the Beatles didn’t have though, that really almost no other group could match, was the stunning lead voice of Frankie Valli.

Depending on whom you believe, Valli had a range of three or four octaves. Either way he could hit top notes that could almost bust glass. In his natural register, Valli’s voice wasn’t as pretty as Orbison’s or Elvis’ or Sam Cooke’s, but he had a sharp, staccato style of phrasing that had a way of telling the listener he meant business. It was also a way of telling listeners that, falsettos aside, he was a masculine man. That falsetto, though, was what made Valli truly great. Unlike many of today’s singers gifted with extraordinary instruments, Valli was extremely strategic with the use of his ultimate weapon. Often he would hold out the falsetto for an explosion on the chorus. Some great Seasons songs are sung straight.

On “Opus 17″ Valli uses the falsetto only for one thrilling moment, on the song’s climax. We’ve gone the whole way with a man surrendering the love of his life to another man, and Frankie has maintained his poker face. Then, as the song starts to fade, we hear a high pitched cry, “I’lll be strong!!!” Coming so late in the song, its impact is shocking, as if Valli’s character has finally succumbed to the emotion of this moment. Then, discretely, the song ends. This is, remember, a man who will not let us see his tears.

Valli’s often shrieking falsetto is, for some, the reason for their dismissal of the group. They think it sounds too much like the ’50s or that it is too novelty based. That the tool is not used greatly anymore is no reason to dismiss it. Like many styles that fall out of favor, it may yet be resurrected. But in or out of favor, such a tool can still be a powerfully expressive instrument. Nobody really yodels anymore, but only a fool would dismiss the work of country legend Jimmie Rodgers because that was a key element of his style.

For anyone willing to step out of the machine of routine popular music, the falsetto vocal says a lot. Its use was primarily popularized in black gospel music and communicated to listeners an ethereal, out of body experience, as if the singer was possessed by greater spirits.

All About “Sherry”

In contrast to later Four Seasons songs, the lyrics for “Sherry” are the definition of primitive. The singer is trying to entice his favorite girl out for the night and is giddy with anticipation.

Coming in after a chunking intro, Valli captures our attention by crooning in his falsetto. He’s gently reveling in the thought of Sherry. Once we get to the verses though, his real intentions come to the surface. Valli swings in and out of his falsetto in an effort to control himself. The Seasons keep harping “Come out” in their more masculine voices as Valli specifically articulates the enticements. It’s clear he’s their Id. Their give and take make the final moments of the second verse and the opening of the final chorus some of the most exciting ever caught on record.

“Why don’t you come out?” the Seasons bellow. “With your red dress on” Valli answers. “Come out.” “Mmmm, you look so fine.” Valli briefly slips into trembling falsetto. “Come out.” “Move it nice and easy,” Valli slightly regains control of himself, slipping back in his normal voice. Finally, it’s more than he can take. “GIRL YOU MAKE ME LOSE MY MIND!!!” He screams in his normal register and then he lets that falsetto loose “Sheeeeeeeeeerrrry!!!!!” The Seasons have already finished saying her name twice and are into the next part of the chorus before Valli’s done. The group keeps chanting “Come, come, come out tonight” in the record’s final moments, while Valli keeps shrieking her name in his falsetto voice, as if he is no longer able to think of anything else and even less able to reduce his state of arousal. It’s a stunning moment, far more erotic and powerful than many of the more explicit records of the modern era.

The Four Seasons – “Sherry”

Even many who enjoy Valli’s dizzying vocal style don’t give the group enough respect because of their reputation as a vocal group first and foremost. While Valli’s vocal style is proof enough that a singer can be expressive solely through the way he or she sings a song, the Four Seasons were also the self-contained artistic unit so beloved by critics.

While the group made great use of studio musicians like the great drummer Buddy Saltzman, the Seasons could and did play on their hit songs. Bob Gaudio played keyboards. Tommy DeVito played the guitar and Nick Massi played bass as well as sang it. Gaudio wrote the vast majority of the group’s hits and in and out member Charlie Calello handled most of the arrangements. The Four Seasons sound came from within. It was not imposed upon the group.

Traditional Singles Artists

For all that, though, there are some legitimate criticisms to be leveled at the group, especially in comparison to the Beatles and the Beach Boys. The strongest is the fact that the group’s greatness was almost entirely contained on singles. There were great Seasons songs beyond their hits, mostly these were B-sides like “Silence is Golden” and “Cry Myself to Sleep.” There was also the fine odd album track like “Danger” and “No Surfin’ Today.” However, there are no great Four Seasons LPs outside of greatest hits collections. Further, many of the group’s LPs were kind of haphazard efforts without much thought behind the collections or even the individual songs. The relative unimportance of LPs to the Seasons in their early years can be seen in the fact that “Big Girls Don’t Cry” was repeated on two consecutive LPs in 1962. That was a reflection of their era though.

The group certainly did try when the industry mode of expression turned to LPs in the late 1960s. Efforts like 1969′s “Genuine Imitation Life Gazette” are definitely worth a listen, but well short of what they accomplished on single and what artists like the Beatles were able to achieve on LP. That the group fell short on LP, and its prime was relatively compressed, means the Seasons catalogue doesn’t quite have the depth of a Beatles or a Beach Boys. Still, it’s as deep or deeper a catalogue of great works than that of more celebrated acts like the Kinks.

Another legitimate claim against the group, in comparison to the Beatles and the Beach Boys, is that their innovations refined existing traditions rather than creating new ones. The big reason the Seasons didn’t generate hysteria was because their work did not represent a massive break with tradition. That’s no call against them. It just places them a little behind the most elite pop innovators.

Compelling, Enduring

Despite these reservations, the group was indeed one of the greats. Their work remains amongst the most compelling from one of pop’s most compelling decades. The endurance of their mass popularity is only exceeded by the Beatles, Sinatra and Presley. That they have been so often depicted as period also-rans not worthy of mention next to the brightest pop icons is a disservice to the group, its fans and the history of popular music.

The best of the Four Seasons’ work can be found on the 2-CD “Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons – The Definitive Pop Collection.”

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The Studio Two presentation will include a fascinating talk on “80 Years of Recording at Abbey Road Studios” by “Recording the Beatles” authors Brian Kehew and Kevin Ryan. The talk will utilise rare archive photos, film and audio to explore the studio’s decades of landmark recordings and sonic innovations. Artists discussed will include Sir Edward Elgar, The Shadows, Peter Sellers, Helen Shapiro, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Hollies, The Zombies, the Swingin’ Blue Jeans and Kate Bush. There will also be time to consider the magical film scores recorded over the years at Abbey Road, including “Star Wars,” “Lord of the Rings,” and “Harry Potter.”

Visitors will also be able to enjoy an exhibition of vintage instruments, microphones, and studio hardware used to create classic tracks.

Tickets for the event went on sale today, price £75 via www.seetickets.com

Abbey Road Studios is located at 3 Abbey Road, London, NW8 9AY.

Update – The March 10 events are sold out, but two extra sessions have been announced for March 11.

Highlights for January include:

• “Elvis Country – Legacy Edition” – Jan 3
• a number of releases in the Original Album Classics series from the likes of Johnny Cash, Elvis, Journey, the Byrds, Bob Dylan and David Bowie – Jan 17
• the Doors’ “L.A. Woman – 40th Anniversary Edition” and “Mr. Mojo Risin’” DVD and Blu-ray releases – Jan 24
• Dion DiMucci’s “Tank Full of Blues” – Jan 24
• Leonard Cohen’s “Old Ideas” on CD and vinyl – Jan 31.

Milano was born in New York on August 26, 1939 and formed the Belmonts as a teenager in the mid-1950s, along with Angelo D’Aleo and Carlo Mastrangelo. After joining forces with Dion DiMucci, the group entered their most successful period, with classic singles including “I Wonder Why” and “Teenager In Love.”

Carlo Mastrangelo, Fred Milano, Dion DiMucci and Angelo D’Aleo

Dion and the Belmonts – “Teenager in Love”

Dion and the Belmonts went their separate ways in 1960, but the Belmonts continued to record with some success, including the singles “Tell Me Why,” “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” and “I Need Someone.”

The Belmonts – “Tell Me Why”

Milano featured in a shortlived reunion of Dion and the Belmonts in 1966 with the release of the album “Together Again,” and another reunion in 1972 for a Rock and Roll Revival Show, which yielded a live album. Shortly after, the Belmonts (minus Dion) recorded a highly regarded acappella album called “Cigars, Acappella, Candy.”

A Belmonts line-up comprising Milano, D’Aleo, William Gradus and Daniel Elliott would become a popular live act, playing up to 100 gigs per year right up until 2011.

Dion DiMucci has paid tribute to his old friend:

Dion and the Belmonts – “I Wonder Why”

January

• 4 Jan – Gerry Rafferty (solo singer-songwriter and former member of the Humblebums and Stealers Wheel), age 63
• 4 Jan – Mick Karn (bassist with Japan), age 52
• 7 Jan – Phil Kennemore (bassist with Y&T), age 57
• 10 Jan – Pat Moran (record producer for Robert Plant and Iggy Pop), age 63
• 12 Jan – Tommy Crain (country rock guitarist and songwriter), age 59
• 13 Jan – Alex Kirst (former drummer with Iggy Pop), age 47
• 14 Jan – Trish Keenan (member of Broadcast), age 42
• 17 Jan – Don Kirshner (song publisher/producer), age 76
• 20 Jan – Margaret Whiting (pop and country singer), age 86
• 22 Jan – Bobby Poe (singer with 1950s rockabilly band Bobby Poe and the Poe Kats), age 77
• 26 Jan – Charlie Louvin (country singer), age 83
• 26 Jan – Gladys Horton (member of the Marvelettes), age 65
• 29 Jan – Bruce Jackson (audio engineer), age 61
• 29 Jan 11 – Milton Babbitt (composer), age 94
• 30 Jan – John Barry (Oscar-winning composer), age 77.

February

• 1 Feb – Doc Williams (bandleader and singer), age 96
• 6 Feb – Gary Moore (rock guitarist), age 58
• 14 Feb – George Shearing (jazz pianist), age 94
• 20 Feb – Harrell “Buddy” Jones (drummer), age 70
• 27 Feb – Eddie Kirkland (blues singer), age 88.

March

• 4 Mar – Johnny Preston (pop singer), age 71
• 8 Mar – Mike Star (bassist with Alice in Chains), age 44
• 9 Mar – Robert Marcucci (record company owner and songwriter), age 81
• 12 Mar – Joe Morello (jazz drummer), age 82
• 14 Mar – Todd Cerney (songwriter and musician), age 57
• 14 Mar – Ronnie Hammond (former lead singer for the Atlanta Rhythm Section), age 60
• 15 Mar – Nate Dogg (rapper), age 41
• 15 Mar – Melvin Sparks (soul and jazz guitarist), age 64
• 17 Mar – Ferlin Husky (country singer), age 85
• 18 Mar – Jet Harris (bassist with the Shadows), age 71
• 20 Mar – Joseph “Pinetop” Perkins (blues pianist), age 97
• 20 Mar – Ralph Mooney (steel guitar pioneer), age 82
• 21 Mar – Loleatta Holloway (soul/disco singer), age 64
• 30 Mar – Harley Allen (country music songwriter), age 55
• 31 Mar – Mel McDaniel (country singer), age 68.

April

• 5 Apr – Gil Gibbons (folk singer), age 80
• 9 Apr – Roger Nichols (Grammy-winning recording engineer), age 66
• 11 Apr – Lacy Gibson (Chicago blues guitarist), age 74
• 11 Apr – Billy Bang (jazz violinist and composer), age 63
• 22 Apr – Hazel Dickens (bluegrass singer-songwriter), age 75
• 25 Apr – Poly Styrene, aka Marianne Joan Elliott-Said (singer with punk band X-Ray Spex), age 53
• 26 Apr – Phoebe Snow (singer-songwriter), age 60
• 29 Apr – David Mason (classical musician who played the piccolo trumpet on “Penny Lane”), age 85.

May

• 3 May – Odell Brown (jazz organist and songwriter), age 70
• 7 May – John Walker (founding member of The Walker Brothers), age 67
• 8 May – Cornell Dupree (guitarist for Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin and more), age 69
• 9 May – Dolores Fuller (actress and songwriter), age 88
• 12 May – Lloyd Knibb (drummer for The Skatalites), age 80
• 13 May – Jack Richardson (record producer), age 81
• Bob Flanigan – (singer with the Four Freshmen), age 84
• 19 May – Kathy Kirby (pop singer and television host), age 72.

June

• 3 Jun – Andrew Gold (singer, musician and songwriter), age 59
• 4 Jun – Martin Rushent (record producer), aged 62
• 10 Jun – Kenny Hawkes (DJ and producer), age 42
• 10 Jun – Darryl Pandy (singer and producer), age 48
• 12 Jun – Carl Gardner (member of the Coasters), age 83
• 16 Jun – Larry Wayne Fischer, aka Wild Man Fischer (songwriter), age 66
• 18 Jun – Clarence Clemons (saxophonist with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band), age 69
• 30 Jun – Jimmy Roselli (pop singer), age 85.

July

• 7 Jul – Manuel Galbán (guitarist with Los Zafiros and Buena Vista Social Club), age 80
• 9 Jul – Michael “Würzel” Burston (former Motorhead guitarist), age 61
• 11 Jul – Rob Grill (singer and bassist with Grass Roots), age 67
• 23 Jul – Amy Winehouse (pop singer), age 27
• 24 Jul – Dan Peek (co-founder of America), age 60
• 25 Jul – Mike Reaves (former guitarist with Full Devil Jacket), age 52
• 26 Jul – Joe Arroyo (Columbian singer-songwriter), age 55
• 29 Jul – Gene McDaniels (singer-songwriter), age 76
• 31 Jul – Tom Garvin (pianist and composer), age 67.

August

• 4 Aug – Conrad Schnitzler (multi-instrumentalist and composer), age 74
• 6 Aug – Marshall Grant (bass player with Johnny Cash & the Tennessee Two), age 83
• 10 Aug – Billy Grammer (singer-guitarist), age 85
• 11 Aug – Jani Lane (former lead singer of Warrant), age 47
• 22 Aug – Nick Ashford (soul/R&B singer), age 70
• 22 Aug – Jerry Leiber (songwriter/producer), age 78
• 24 Aug – Frank DiLeo (music executive, actor and former manager of Michael Jackson), age 63
• 29 Aug – David “Honeyboy” Edwards (blues guitarist and singer), age 96.

September

• 13 Sep – Richard Hamilton (pop artist who designed “White Album” cover), age 89
• 16 Sep – Willie “Big Eyes” Smith (singer and harmonica player), age 75
• 21 Sep – John DuCann (guitarist), age 65
• 26 Sep – Harry “Cuby” Muskee (singer), age 70
• 26 Sep – Sylvia Robinson (singer-songwriter and owner of Sugar Hill Records), age 75.

October

• 1 Oct – David Bedford (composer, musician), age 74
• 5 Oct – Bert Jansch (folk guitarist), age 67
• 8 Oct – Roger Williams (pianist), age 87
• 8 Oct – Mikey Welsh (former Weezer bassist), age 40
• 12 Oct – Paul Leka (songwriter, producer and pianist), age 68
• 18 Oct – Bob Brunning (original Fleetwood Mac bassist), age 68
• 20 Oct – Barry Feinstein (rock photographer), aged 80
• 29 Oct – Sir Jimmy Savile (DJ and television presenter), age 84.

November

• 3 Nov – Cory Smoot, aka Flattus Maximus (Gwar guitarist), age 34
• 7 Nov – Andrea True (singer and actress), age 68
• 8 Nov – Heavy D (rapper), age 44
• 12 Nov – Doyle Bramhall (singer-songwriter and drummer), age 62
• 14 Nov – Lee Pockriss (songwriter), age 87
• 15 Nov – Mark “Moogy” Klingman (musician, songwriter and producer), age 61
• 23 Nov – Montserrat Figueras (soprano singer), age 69
• 25 Nov – Don DeVito (record producer), age 72
• 27 Nov – Sultan Khan (sarangi player and singer), age 71
• 28 Nov – Tom Roady (percussionist), age 62.

December

• 2 Dec – Howard Tate (soul singer and songwriter), age 72
• 4 Dec – Hubert Sumlin (blues guitarist), age 80
• 6 Dec – Dobie Gray (singer-songwriter), age 71
• 8 Dec – Dan “Bee” Spears (bass player for Willie Nelson), age 62
• 8 Dec – Dick Sims (keyboarist for Eric Clapton), age 60
• 14 Dec – Billie Jo Spears (country singer), age 74
• 18 Dec – Ralph MacDonald (percussionist and composer), age 67
• 21 Dec – Nilesh Patel, aka Nilz (mastering engineer), age 46
• 25 Dec – Jim Sherwood (saxophonist and singer for the Mothers of Invention), age 69
• 26 Dec – Sam Rivers (jazz musician and composer), age 88
• 28 Dec – Kaye Stevens (singer and actress), age 79.

The Dead Rock Star Club website offers a more extensive list of musicians we lost in 2011 and before.

The Christmas number one has long been regarded as a prestigious achievement in the UK, with some of the biggest artists competing for the honour. Over the years, the Christmas number one has been occupied by classic pop songs, fun seasonal offerings, best forgotten novelties and, in recent years, the debut singles of television talent show winners.

The Beatles hold the record for the most UK Christmas number ones with four, followed by Cliff Richard and the Spice Girls who both have three.

* – As established by the Official Charts Company, the official British singles chart is the New Musical Express chart from 1952 to 1960, the Record Retailer chart from 1960 to 1969, and the Official UK Singles Chart from 1969 on.

The 1950s

The first Christmas number one on the UK singles chart was Al Martino’s “Here in My Heart” which was at number one for nine weeks in 1952.

Pre-rock ‘n’ roll favourites Frankie Laine, Winifred Atwell and Johnny Ray all hit the top spot at Christmas after this, with the latter’s “Just Walkin’ in the Rain” staying on top for seven weeks.

The first rock ‘n’ roller to achieve a Christmas number one was Conway Twitty, with the classic “It’s Only Make Believe” in 1958.

Harry Belafonte’s “Mary’s Boy Child” and Dickie Valentine’s “Christmas Alphabet” were the only songs with a Christmas theme to reach number one at Christmas in the 1950s.

Harry Belafonte – “Mary’s Boy Child”

The 1960s

Although Cliff Richard and Christmas are linked in the public consciousness, his first Christmas number one was the chirpy love song “I Love You” which carried no seasonal theme. This trend continued throughout the decade, with none of the remaining Christmas number ones having anything to do with Christmas.

Elvis Presley recorded the best selling Christmas album of all time, but his only Christmas number one was the pop classic “Return to Sender.”

Each of the Beatles’ Christmas number ones were in the 1960s, starting with “I Want To Hold Your Hand” in 1963 and concluding with “Hello, Goodbye” in 1967.

The Beatles – “I Feel Fine”

Tom Jones’ “Green Green Grass of Home” occupied the top spot for Christmas 1966.

The 1970s

In contrast to the previous decade, the 1970s saw several Christmas-themed songs achieve the coveted Christmas number one, including the perennial favourite “Merry Xmas Everybody” by Slade, Mud’s “Lonely this Christmas,” Johnny Mathis’ “When a Child is Born” and “Boney M’s “Mary’s Boy Child.”

Slade – “Merry Xmas Everybody”

The novelty song tends to do well around Christmas time in the UK and the 1970s saw two examples reaching the Christmas number one – Benny Hill’s “Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West) and Jimmy Osmond’s “Long Haired Lover from Liverpool.”

The 1980s

The 1980s Christmas chart toppers are a real mixed bag, including the great synth pop song “Don’t You Want Me” by the Human League, a welcome vintage offering in the shape of Jackie Wilson’s “Reet Petite” and a handful of classic Christmas songs.

Band Aid’s “Do they Know It’s Christmas?” reaching the top spot in both its original incarnation and when re-recorded by a new batch of pop stars, including Cliff Richard who had the previous year’s Christmas number one with “Mistletoe and Wine.”

Cliff Richard – “Mistletoe And Wine”

The other seasonal offering to reach the top spot in the 1980s was Shakin’ Stevens’ very catchy and still popular “Merry Christmas Everyone.”

The 1990s

Cliff Richard’s third and final Christmas number one, “Saviour’s Day,” was the only Christmas-themed song to reach the top spot at Christmas in the 1990s.

Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” had already been a Christmas number one in 1975 and repeated the feat in 1991 (backed with “These Are the Days of Our Lives”) in the wake of Freddie Mercury’s untimely death.

The Spice Girls were the biggest thing in pop in the mid-late 1990s, as reflected by their hat-trick of Christmas number ones from 1996 to 1998.

Spice Girls – “2 Become 1″

The year before the Spice Girls’ period of dominance began, Michael Jackson achieved his first and only Christmas number one with “Earth Song.”

2000+

The Christmas number one spot has been dominated by reality tv show winners since 2002. The only exceptions have been Michael Andrews and Gary Jules’ “Mad World” and Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name,” with the latter only achieving the top spot as a result of a Facebook campaign to prevent the X-Factor winner hitting number one.

Robbie Williams was at his commercial peak when his duet with Nicole Kidman on the Sinatra classic “Somethin’ Stupid” reached number one for Christmas 2001.

Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman – Somethin’ Stupid”

Each of the band members have commented on the news…

Brian Wilson says:

Mike Love says:

Al Jardine says:

Bruce Johnston says:

David Marks says:

Details are scarce on the new album, which will be the first in decades to feature the original surviving members of the band. It is known that the album will be produced by Brian Wilson and executive produced by Mike Love, and that several tracks have already been recorded.

Here’s footage of the guys in the studio earlier this year recording “Do It Again” for the new album:

There will also be a number of 50th Anniversary commemorative Beach Boys releases in 2012, including a new hits collection and a career-spanning box set.

“Last Train to Clarksville” was released on single in August 1966, backed with “Take a Giant Step,” and also appeared on the band’s self-titled debut album.

The Monkees were assembled in 1966 for an American musical/comedy television show inspired by the Beatles and other British invasion bands. The band comprised Micky Dolenz, Mike Nesmith, Peter Tork and Davy Jones, but at the outset they had little control over their music. They could all play instruments, with varying degrees of proficiency, but contributed only vocals to their early records, including “Last Train to Clarksville” which featured a great lead vocal from Micky Dolenz.

Despite its feel-good, catchy melody, “Last Train to Clarksville” is actually about a soldier calling his girlfriend to ask her to “get the last train to Clarksville” so that they can spend a night together before he leaves. Although never stated explicitly, the repeated line “And I don’t know if I’m ever coming home” implies that he is going off to war.

Musically, the song borrows strongly from the Beatles sound, with its great intro and sharp staccato chording. Songwriter Bobby Hart has said that the Beatles’ “Paperback Writer” was the main inspiration for the song. The intro is also not dissimilar to that of the Rolling Stones’ classic track “The Last Time.”

The Monkees – “Last Train to Clarksville”

Authorship

“Last Train to Clarksville” was written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. The pair had been assigned to the project by Don “The Man With the Golden Ear” Kirshner and they contributed several other songs to the debut album, including “(Theme from) The Monkees,” “I Wanna Be Free,” and “Lets Dance On.”

Recording date/location

“Last Train to Clarksville” was recorded on July 25, 1966 at RCA Victor Studio A, Hollywood.

Musicians

The following musicians appeared on “Last Train to Clarksville”:

• Micky Dolenz – lead vocal
• Tommy Boyce – acoustic guitar
• Wayne Erwin, Gerry McGee and Louie Shelton – electric guitar
• Larry Taylor – bass
• Billy Lewis – drums
• Gene Estes and David Walters – percussion.

Chart performance

“Last Train to Clarksville” was the Monkees’ first number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, hitting the top spot on October 30, 1966. They repeated the feat with “I’m a Believer” later in the year and “Daydream Believer” in 1967. “Last Train to Clarksville” peaked at number 23 in the UK.

“The Monkees” album hit number one on the Billboard 200 album chart on November 6, 1966. This began a remarkable chart run for the band which saw them at number one for eight months straight, save one week when Herp Albert hit the top spot. This amazing success was achieved with three albums – “The Monkees” (13 weeks), “More of the Monkees” (18 weeks) and “Headquarters” (1 week).

“The Monkees” and “More of the Monkees” were also number one albums in the UK.

Other notable versions

Grascals – “Last Train to Clarksville”

The Grascals released a catchy bluegrass version of “Last Train to Clarksville” on their 2010 album “The Famous Lefty Flynn’s.” As you would expect from the genre, the rendition features tight harmonies and some effective banjo licks.

Four Tops – “Last Train to Clarksville”

The Four Tops included covers of both “Last Train to Clarksville” and “I’m a Believer” on their 1967 album “Reach Out.” “Last Train to Clarksville” isn’t a song that would be considered natural territory for the group, but the added touches of soul make this an interesting, genre-hopping cover.

There will be a new Song of the Week on December 12.

The Monkees’ “Last Train to Clarksville” is available on the group’s self-titled debut album, which is available in standard and deluxe editions.

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