Outstanding Songs and Performers in 1963


© Patricia Jacobs

The Four Seasons had another great year. "Walk Like A Man" was their third no. 1 hit (And they just debuted last year!) in late Jan. "Ain't That A Shame!" hit no. 22 in May. The group scored a double-sided hit with "Candy Girl", a no. 3 smash in late July, backed by "Marlena" (no. 36 in Aug). "New Mexican Rose" capped off the year at no. 36 in Nov.

There was a new teen queen on the scene, and Lesley Gore was her name. Her first top 40 hit was the no. 1 smash "It's My Party" in May. The follow-up, "Judy's Turn To Cry" was a no. 5 smash in late July. "She's A Fool" also hit no. 5 in mid-Oct. (Quincy Jones was her arranger and producer!)

Among other trends, singing couples were hot this year as one of them, Paul and Paula (actually Ray Hildebrand and Jill Jackson), also scored a no. 1 (for three weeks!) smash with their first top 40, "Hey Paula" in Jan. "Young Lovers" was a no. 6 hit in late March, and "First Quarrel" peaked at no. 27 in late June. And they never charted top 40 again.

Ruby and The Romantics (lead singer, Ruby Nash) had a similar fate. ( This was an all-male group originally called The Supremes (!) who didn't make the charts, until they added Nash and renamed themselves. ) "Our Day Will Come" was a no. 1 smash in late Feb. "My Summer Love" was a no. 16 hit in mid-June, while "Hey There Lonely Boy"(the original version) peaked at no. 27 on Aug. 31st. They also never charted top 40 again. The group's also known for "Young Wings Can Fly (Higher Than You Know)" and "When You're Young And In Love" (the original version). This was one of the decade's best vocal groups. And those songs have been successfully revived by many others. Timeless!

Sam Cooke continued his hit-making streak with "Send Me Some Lovin'", a no. 13 hit in early Feb. He returned to the top 10 with Another Saturday Night" (no. 10) in May. "Frankie And Johnny" peaked at no. 14 in mid-Aug., and "Little Red Rooster" capped off the year at no. 11 in Nov.

Dion (Di Muci or DiMucci) had an exceptional year, with a total of six hits! "Ruby Baby" was a no. 2 smash for three weeks in late Jan., "Sandy" made no. 21 on March 30th. "This Little Girl" also made no. 21 in May, and "Be Careful Of Stones That You Throw" peaked at no. 31 in late July. "Donna The Prima Donna" and "Drip Drop" returned Dion to the top 10, both peaking at no. 6 in late Sept. and late Nov., respectively. "Drop" would be his last top 10 and top 40 hit until 1968.

Go To Page: 1 2 3


The copyright of the article Outstanding Songs and Performers in 1963 in 60s Music is owned by . Permission to republish Outstanding Songs and Performers in 1963 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Post this Article to facebook Add this Article to del.icio.us! Digg this Article furl this Article Add this Article to Reddit Add this Article to Technorati Add this Article to Newsvine Add this Article to Windows Live Add this Article to Yahoo Add this Article to StumbleUpon Add this Article to BlinkLists Add this Article to Spurl Add this Article to Google Add this Article to Ask Add this Article to Squidoo