1960: The Year In Music

It’s been a while since I’ve done a music-related series on this blog, so I thought I’d go all-in with a focus on music history – I’ll look at the most popular / highest-rated albums and singles from each year since 1960, giving my opinions on each as well as the year as a whole.

A couple of things to keep in mind – I’ll be judging most songs based on personal opinion and longevity / how well they aged, and I’ve chosen the “popular” or “highest-rated” tracks based on the online sources listed in each section. These might not be the unequivocal best tracks and albums of each year, but I have to judge it somehow!

Before we begin, you can check out some of my related blog posts below:

Billboard Top 10 (Popular) Singles

Source: Wikipedia

10 – The Twist (Chubby Checker)

Considering how Billboard regularly cites “The Twist” as one of the greatest hits of all time, I was astonished to find it as low as tenth on this list.

It’s a classic dance number, and it has stuck in the public consciousness for far longer than most of these other tracks.

9 – Stuck on You (Elvis Presley)

“Stuck on You” isn’t one of Elvis Presley’s best. I appreciate the homage to blues, but it feels derivative.

8 – Handy Man (Jimmy Jones)

It’s got a lot of energy and whimsy, but “Handy Man” gets annoying quickly. That whistling in the background sounds terrible.

7 – It’s Now or Never (Elvis Presley)

Now this is a much better Elvis Presley track!

The smooth lounge singer vibe suits him much better than outright blues, and the chic percussion and piano still sound great today.

6 – I’m Sorry (Brenda Lee)

The harmonies are lovely, and Lee’s sombre vocals are particularly stand-out.

5 – Teen Angel (Mark Dinning)

Questionable title aside, “Teen Angel” has some nice harmonies but is overall a bit slower and lethargic than I wanted.

4 – Running Bear (Johnny Preston)

“Running Bear” feels tacky with its background vocals and blues swing, but the woodwind is pretty cool.

3 – Cathy’s Clown (The Everly Brothers)

The Everly Brothers are one of my favourite early-60’s artists, and “Cathy’s Clown” is one of their best.

Their harmonic vocals are gorgeous, and the percussion and piano gives the instrumentation an infectious energy.

2 – He’ll Have to Go (Jim Reeves)

I like Reeves’ warm approach to the Nashville sound, but “He’ll Have to Go” is easily one of the most unremarkable hits on this list.

1 – Theme from A Summer Place (Percy Faith)

It’s so cool to me that a film’s theme song made it into the top ten hits … but I don’t know if it should’ve been the number one song.

Percy Faith’s orchestration is gorgeous, but it feels wrong somehow having an orchestral piece above the more commercial pop songs.

As an added bonus, I’ll give my favourite and least favourite song from the popular singles:

FAVOURITE – “It’s Now or Never” (Elvis Presley)

LEAST FAVOURITE – “Handy Man” (Jimmy Jones)

Top-Rated Songs

Source: http://www.besteveralbums.com

10 – Solea (Miles Davis)

The 12-minute runtime might be off-putting to some, but “Solea” contains some fantastic musical storytelling and Spanish influence.

9 – Wonderful World (Sam Cooke)

One of the most feel-good songs of all time, Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World” is a heart-warming ode to love and everything positive in the world.

8 – Georgia On My Mind (Ray Charles)

This list was sorely missing some Ray Charles. “Georgia On My Mind” is one of his best, with some fittingly emotional piano playing.

7 – Cathy’s Clown (The Everly Brothers)

The only song to be in both the most popular and highest-rated ten songs of 1960.

It’s a testament to The Everly Brothers’ early prowess that they managed to make a hit song so engaging and musically intelligent.

6 – Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (Charles Mingus)

The Blues isn’t my favourite musical genre, but Charles Mingus was the expert of pushing boundaries and breaking new ground. That saxophone player blew like his life depended on it!

5 – Naima (John Coltrane)

John Coltrane is one of my favourite Jazz artists of the 1960’s, and he was a real inspiration during my saxophone-playing days.

“Naima” is on the slower, more subtle side of things, but I love how emotive and engrossing the band sounds.

4 – Concierto De Aranjuez (Miles Davis)

Stand aside “Solea” and your 12-minute runtime, “Concierto De Aranjuez” and the 16-minute length has something to say!

It feels like it has less to say than the aforementioned track, but I can’t deny this song’s powerful performances and atmosphere.

3 – Giant Steps (John Coltrane)

“Giant Steps” gives Coltrane and his band a chance to truly shine – everyone gives it their all, and the drummer in particular did a great job of keeping up.

2 – Moanin’ (Charles Mingus)

That baritone saxophone riff is iconic, and the rest of the song does a great job of adding musical layers and expanding upon musical ideas.

1 – At Last (Etta James)

A song so good I was amazed it didn’t make the popular songs list.

The string arrangement is phenomenal, and Etta James’ powerhouse vocals deserve all the acclaim they can get.

BEST SONG OF 1960 – “At Last” (Etta James)

Top-Rated Albums

Source: http://www.besteveralbums.com

5 – Workin’ With The Miles Davis Quintet (Miles Davis Quintet)

Miles Davis was on top in 1960, and his quintet creates far more noise than I thought possible for five musicians.

The opening two songs – “It Never Entered My Mind” and “Four” – are probably my picks of the bunch.

4 – Blues & Roots (Charles Mingus)

A couple of songs from “Blues & Roots” featured in the highest-rated songs list, so I don’t really need to explain why this album is so acclaimed.

3 – Quiet Kenny (Kenny Dorham)

“Quiet Kenny” is the only of these five albums to not have any songs feature in the highest-rated list. Considering how strong this Jazz is, I’m not really sure why.

Kenny Dorham really rips into his trumpet, and the album has some of the nicest sounding arrangements of the year.

2 – Sketches Of Spain (Miles Davis)

Miles Davis has two albums in the top five highest-rated of the year – an incredible feat in itself!

I’ve already talked about the musical storytelling and atmosphere present on these tracks, and the Spanish influences are unlike any of the music released in 1960.

1 – Giant Steps (John Coltrane)

The other Blues and Jazz albums were solid in 1960, but John Coltrane was a cut above the rest.

His and his band’s work is truly magical across “Giant Steps”, and every track here has something profound and exciting to say.

BEST ALBUM OF 1960 – “Giant Steps” (John Coltrane)

This time I gave the “best of” awards to both highest-rated entries anyway, but that won’t happen all the time in this series.

Final Thoughts

The pre-Beatles years were weird. You could listen to some interesting Blues, Swing and Jazz – with the occasional Elvis thrown in – but the hits were mostly forgettable.

What ranks this year down, I think, is how many times the artists repeated across the lists. It gave me the impression that the musical scene wasn’t varied at all, and that there wasn’t much going on for the average music consumer.

Overall Grade: D+

Aaaaand that’s my list! Hopefully this’ll turn into a regular series … until then, you can check out some of my latest blog posts below: