Bobby Vinton turns 90 today, having made his mark on the Billboard charts over the years. The singer, who gained the nickname “The Polish Prince,” had four No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and three top 10 albums on the Billboard 200.
Vinton holds a special footnote in pop culture history: He had the last No. 1 of the pre-Beatles era. His revival of the old song “There! I’ve Said It Again” was knocked out of the top spot in February 1964 by the Fab Four’s electrifying smash “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” But the Beatles’ arrival didn’t end Vinton’s career — five of his nine top 10 hits were released after the Fab Four invaded our charts.
In December 1964, when he topped the Hot 100 for the fourth time, Vinton became just the fourth artist to amass four No. 1 hits, following Elvis Presley, who had accumulated seven Hot 100 leaders at that point; The Beatles, who had had five; and The Four Seasons, who had also had four. (Presley also had No. 1 hits pre-dating the inception of the Hot 100 in August 1958.)
Vinton was born in Canonsburg, Pa., the same town that gave us Perry Como, who was a popular recording artist from the 1940s into the 1970s, and The Four Coins, which had a hit in 1957 with the rapturous “Shangri-La.”
Vinton had three consecutive hits in 1963-64 – “Blue Velvet,” “There! I’ve Said It Again” and “My Heart Belongs to Only You” – that were remakes of oldies from the 1940s and 1950s. Vinton’s biggest hits also include songs written by legendary songwriters Barry Mann and Burt Bacharach & Hal David, as well as a few that he co-wrote himself.
Here’s an annotated list of Bobby Vinton’s biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits.
Based on actual performance on the weekly Billboard Hot 100. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at lower ranks earning less. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted to account for different chart turnover rates over various periods.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 11/Jan. 7, 1967
Songwriters: Gene Allan, Bobby Vinton
Producer: Robert Mersey
Notes: At the time this song was a hit, approximately 380,000 American troops were in South Vietnam. The song doesn’t mention Vietnam, but that was the war that was top-of-mind when this song was being played on the radio.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 9/March, 28, 1964
Songwriters: Dorothy Daniels, Frank Daniels
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: June Christy introduced this ballad in 1953. Jackie Wilson had a No. 65 hit with it on the Hot 100 in 1961. As you will see, Morgan produced most of Vinton’s biggest hits.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 9/Dec. 14, 1968
Songwriters: Larry Kolber, Barry Mann
Producer: Billy Sherrill
Notes: The Paris Sisters had a No. 5 hit on the Hot 100 in 1961 with this song. Sherrill was a top Nashville producer who specialized in the “countrypolitan” sound. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2010. None of Vinton’s 10 biggest Hot 100 hits made Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, but he did finally break onto that chart in 1980 with “My Elusive Dreams,” which Sherrill produced and co-wrote.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 6/Nov. 18, 1967
Songwriters: Ollie Blanchard, Johnny Malone
Producer: Billy Sherrill
Notes: Sherrill also produced this song. Tommy Edwards had a No. 61 hit on the Hot 100 with this song in 1958. Cathy Jean & the Roommates took it to No. 12 in 1961.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 3/July 6, 1963
Songwriters: Burt Bacharach, Hal David
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: This was an early hit for the peerless pop team of Bacharach and David. At the time of this session, Vinton had had a No. 1 hit (“Roses Are Red (My Love)”). Bacharach and David wouldn’t land their first No. 1 until 1968 (Herb Alpert’s “This Guy’s in Love With You”). Bacharach also arranged and conducted this lilting recording.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 3/Nov. 16, 1974
Songwriters: Henry Mayer, Bobby Vinton
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: For a while, it looked like this might become Vinton’s fifth No. 1 hit on the Hot 100. In two weeks in the fall of 1974, it jumped from No. 17 to No. 6 to No. 3. But that’s where it stopped. This comeback smash was sung partially in Polish. It is a decidedly old-fashioned-sounding record, especially when you consider that it was in the top 10 alongside such hits as Elton John’s “The Bitch Is Back” and John Lennon’s “Whatever Gets You Thru the Night.” Vinton followed it up with a remake of the 1939 hit “Beer Barrel Polka,” which cracked the top 40 in 1975.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 1 (one week)/Dec. 12, 1964
Songwriters: Gene Allan, Bobby Vinton
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: Vinton recorded this song at the same session (on Feb. 16, 1962) that yielded “Roses Are Red.” (Now, that’s a fruitful session.) Buddy Greco, also on Epic, released “Mr. Lonely” first. His version reached No. 64 on the Hot 100 in 1962. Vinton’s version is most notable for his reaches into falsetto, which echoes Roy Orbison, and for the abject heartbreak in his vocal. Vinton received his only Grammy nomination for this performance. He lost to Petula Clark’s exciting “Downtown.” The category they competed in might surprise you: Best rock & roll recording. Neither record really fit the category.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 1 (three weeks)/Sept. 21, 1963
Songwriters: Lee Morris, Bernie Wayne
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: This song was first a hit in 1951 for Tony Bennett and was covered in the mid ’50s by The Clovers and The Moonglows. Vinton’s version was used to great effect in David Lynch’s 1986 film Blue Velvet, which also featured such other songs of the period as Roy Orbison’s “In Dreams.”
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 1 (four weeks)/Jan. 4, 1964
Songwriters: Redd Evans, Dave Mann
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: This was another case of Vinton reaching back to revive an old song. This song was introduced in 1941 by the Benny Carter Orchestra. Vaughn Monroe had a smash with it in 1945. Sam Cooke took it to No. 81 on the Hot 100 in 1959. Vinton’s version is most famous as the last No. 1 of the pre-Beatles era.
Hot 100 peak/date: No. 1 (four weeks)/July 14, 1962
Songwriters: Al Byron, Paul Evans
Producer: Bob Morgan
Notes: This was Vinton’s very first Hot 100 hit. It has a loping, countryish gait, but it wasn’t a country hit. Robert Mersey arranged and conducted the song. He would also serve in those capacities on “Mr. Lonely” and “Coming Home Solider.” Co-writer Evans was a singer/songwriter who had had a pair of top 10 hits on the Hot 100 as an artist in 1959-60, “Seven Little Girls (Sitting in the Back Seat)” and “Happy-Go-Lucky-Me.” Evans also co-wrote hits for Elvis Presley and The Kalin Twins.
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