Pat Boone has had one of the
most amazing careers of anyone from the Rock and Roll era. Here's a few
stats for you: he is the artist with the longest chart career of anyone
- he had songs on the chart from 1955 to 2003. He is the #2 male
artist of the rock era, right behind Elvis Presley (who
said in an interview that Pat Boone was his favourite singer), he's
the #10 artist with the most charted hits; of all recording artists, he
is #6 with the most Top Ten hits, he even had 21 double-sided hits.
What a career!
Some people have criticized Pat Boone for 'stealing' hits from artists such as Little Richard, Fats Domino, Ivory Joe Hunter,
and others. The fact is that these R and B artists recorded at the
time for small regional labels with very limited distribution and
airplay, certainly not on a national basis. Were it not for white
artists such as Pat Boone, there is a good chance the rock and roll era
would have turned out completely different. By recording these Rhythm
and Blues hits, the white listening audience was exposed to some
exceptional music, which opened the door to the black R&B artists
getting the opportunity to have their own hit records from coast to
coast. There is no denying the success and impact Pat Boone has had on
the Rock and Roll era.
This week on Treasure Island Oldies, Voice Your Choice spotlights two of Pat Boone's biggest hit songs: Bernadine and Don't Forbid Me. Make your decision for the song you'd like me to play by going to the Voice Your Choice Page and casting your vote. I'll play the winner in the 3rd hour of next week's show.