My Top Ten Picks of Songs from the 60's

I was a teenager by the late 60's but I had two older sisters that introduced me to the 60's music at an early age. I remember having posters of the Beatles all over our bedroom walls. I remember watching the Beatles, Dave Clark 5, Herman's Hermits and many more for the first time on the Ed Sullivan Show. I was screaming right along with all the drooling teenage girls in the audience.

What follows in this article are my top 10 picks from the songs that I listened to in the 60's.

1. She Loves You This is a song that the Beatles released in 1963. It was one of the first songs to be heard by a substantial number of Americans. Paul McCartney and John Lennon wrote this song in a hotel in Newcastle England. It set a record in the United States by being one of five Beatles songs which held the top 5 positions on the music charts simultaneously.

2. Can't Help Falling in Love This song was written by George Weiss, Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore based on "Plaisir d'amour by Jean Paul Egide Martini. It was re-written in 1961 for Elvis Presley to perform in the movie Blue Hawaii.

3. Travelin' Man Ricky Nelson made this song number 1 in 1961. It was written by Jerry Fuller. There was a short film made to promote the song and thus its claim to fame as the first music video. This song is about a traveling man who opened his heart to at least one lovely girl in every port he visits.

4. Blue on Blue Bobby Vinton released this song in 1963. It was on an album by the same name. The entire album was devoted to songs referring to the color blue.

5. Where the Boys Are This song was released in 1960 by Connie Francis. Miss Francis also co-starred in a movie by the same name. The movie was about spring break in Fort Lauderdale. It focused on four girls and the guys that they met and how spring break could change their lives forever.

6. Breaking Up Is Hard To Do This song was recorded by Neil Sadaka. It was described by Allmusic as "2 minutes and 16 seconds of pure pop magic." It hit #1 on Billboards Hot 100 chart in August 1962.

7. Only the Lonely This was the first major hit for singer Roy Orbison. Recorded in 1961, it was an operatic ballad. A sound unheard of at that time in the music era.

8. End of the World This 1962 pop hit by Skeeter Davis was an International success. It went to #2 on Billboards Hot 100, #2 on Billboards Country Singles, #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. It even went to #4 on the R & B chart, making Ms Davis one of the very few caucasian female vocalists to enjoy a top ten on this chart.

9. California Girls Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love. The Beach Boys released it in 1965. It features contrasting verse-chorus form. It is part of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's top 500 songs that shaped Rock and Roll.

10. Strawberry Fields Forever This was a 1966 hit by the Beatles named after a Salvation Army Children's house on Beaconsfield Road in Woolton, Liverpool. John Lennon had fond memories of playing there as a child. This song is one of the defining works of the psychedelic rock genre. This song had strong surrealistic and psychedelic overtones.

There you have it. My choice of some of the best songs from the 60's era. If you haven't heard them before then I hope that you will take time to listen to them now and if you already know these songs from the 60's then I hope you will revisit that time and enjoy the 60's music again.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org