Vinyl Record Lovers Newsletter
(VIP Club)

The golden age of vinyl records and all things retro are the highlights of my Newsletter. Writing stories about our vinyl record memories with added content from my collection is another way of sharing memories and keeping the oldies alive.

I do hope that you enjoy these little stories I write. They are short, they will not win any prizes for literature, but it’s all about the music and our vinyl record memories.

We wish you lots of fun on this journey to the time of Drive-In Movies, Pizza Parlors, Malt Shops, and those memorable Friday & Saturday night school dances.

Issue #135, August, 2024

In This Issue:

  • Showtime...A Return Visit To The Country Doo Wop Show.
  • Spotlight Song of The Month - 1958 Buddy Holly Classic.
  • Framed Album Cover Art of The Month - Pure Prairie League.
  • Who Wrote It and Who Made It Popular? Help Me Make It Through The Night.
  • Poetry In Motion - Girl Watching - An American Pastime.
  • You Might Also Like These Vinyl Record Memories.
  • What's Next?

Take a trip down memory lane with with the original classic oldies show - Monday thru Saturday from 1pm to 3pm, all times Pacific, on KNCP Newberry Mix 107.3 FM.  Ned Ward turns music into memories playing yesterday's country favorites and the classic hits of the 50's and 60's Doo Wop style.

Original Country Doo Wop Show

Country Doo Wop Spotlight Song of The Month.
Buddy Holly - True Love Ways

A Country Doo-Wop Show return visit with Ned and his producer, Mr. Barney, for another on air oldies song review. Ned's song choice this month is a Buddy Holly favorite and very special one as Holly wrote this song for his wife as a wedding gift.  A great pick for the Country Doo Wop Spotlight song of the month.

Buddy Holly True Love Ways from 1958.

True Love Ways was recorded on October 21, 1958, as part of Buddy’s final studio session at New York’s Pythian Temple, alongside "Moondreams, Raining In My Heart, and It Doesen't Matter Anymore." Norman Petty was trying to broaden Holly's career and one of the first results was to record him with the Dick Jacobs Orchestra.

Known by fans as “the string sessions” it would be the first and only time Holly worked with an orchestra, in this case, an 18-piece ensemble composed of former NBC Symphony Orchestra members under the conductorship of Dick Jacobs. Five hours after they met, Buddy Holly proposed to Maria Elena Santiago at PJ Clarke's in New York on June 20, 1958 at Table 53 and soon thereafter wrote this song for her as a wedding gift. Enjoy this perfect Country Doo Wop Spotlight Song of The Month, True Love Ways.

Album Cover Art - It Makes A Statement!

At a time when listeners increasingly download or upload songs, creating personal playlists on MP3 players and I-Pods, the art of packaging music seems to be fading away. But, for more than 70 years, musicians have released their work inside brilliantly-designed packages that made an important statement about their music and style.

The Framed Album Cover Art below is another example of the LP Albums I display on the walls of my "Hobby Room" home office.

Pure Prairie League Framed Album Cover Art.
("If The Shoe Fits")

Pure Prairie League was an American country rock group formed in 1971 and disbanded in 1987. Their biggest hit, "Amie" reached #27 on the charts in 1975.

Their ongoing album mascot was a rootin' tootin' saloon-patronizing cowboy character named Luke who was originally painted by Norman Rockwell. This cowboy character appears on nearly all of Pure Prairie League's album covers.

Pure Prairie League at vinyl record memories.

Many may not know that country music star, Vince Gill, achieved his first mainstream attention as lead singer of this soft rock band from 1978-1982.

Kris Kristofferson & The Highwaymen.
A Man of Many Talents.

Kris Kristofferson and The Highwaymen - Help Me Make It Through The Night...Kris wrote the song and Sammi Smith took it to number one but you gotta love this live version by Kris and The Highwaymen. Read below the video the many talents of this gifted individual, Kris Kristofferson...

The Kris Kristofferson biography reveals a pretty interesting life. He earned a Rhodes scholarship, attained the rank of Captain while in the Army, became a helicopter pilot and completed Army Ranger School.

He has also been in several movies and received a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his role in the 1976 move A Star is Born.

But he is best known for his songwriting ability and nearly all of the Kris Kristofferson songs are written solely by him. His distinctively rough voice may have kept his own audience to a minimum.

Poetry In Motion - Girl Watching - An American Pastime.

Poetry in Motion vinyl record memories.

Girl watching has long been a popular American pastime. Millions of men spend parts of their lunch hour watching the pleasurable form of a woman walking by, sharing memories of their own special girl, or just thinking of the gal they'll be meeting when the workday is done.

Songwriters Paul Kaufman and Mike Anthony looked up from their work one day and saw a parade of young ladies passing by their window.

One of them remarked, now that's "Poetry in Motion", and together wrote a song that would send Johnny Tillotson to fame and fortune.

Recorded in Nashville in 1960 with Boots Randolph on sax and Floyd Cramer on piano, "Poetry In Motion" vinyl memories became Johnny's first hit peaking at #2 during the fall of that year and going to #1 in the UK the following January. Read the story here...

You might also like these stories...

  • This song was originally written for Elvis Presley for his movie "King Creole" in 1958. The song was titled "Danny" after Elvis' character but was dropped and replaced with the song, "Trouble." Under a new title, "Lonely Blue Boy", it became a #6 song for Conway Twitty in 1959.
  • The song that started it all for Billy Joel. After the song was recorded, Joel didn't think much of it and thought it would only get played at weddings. This was Joel's breakthrough hit, peaking at #3 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1978, and our favorite Billy Joel song.
  • A Beautifully delivered sad song centered around the emotion of regret for wasting his chance of spending the rest of his life with the woman he loved. Session piano player, Barry Beckett, pulls this song together perfectly. Read the story here...

I hope you find time to visit more great stories about growing up in the 50s, 60s and 70s. You can start here....


Looking for that special song, artist, or group on this site?


What's Next?

"American Bandstand," one of the most influential TV shows of the 20th century, debuted 67 years ago in a West Philadelphia studio, with Dick Clark hosting singer Billy Williams and The Chordettes, a female quartet known for its 1954 chart-topper "Mr. Sandman." We have both...

More Original Framed Album Cover Art  including a 1982 George Strait album purchased new and in like new condition.


Ever thought of having your own website? I built Vinyl Record Memories "from scratch" with SoloBuildIt! Click below to find out more....


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