Linda Scott | |
---|---|
Born | Linda Joy Sampson June 1, 1945 |
Occupation | Singer |
Years active | 1959–67 |
Children | 1 |
Linda Scott (born Linda Joy Sampson; June 1, 1945) [1] is an American pop singer and actress who was active from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. Her biggest hit was the 1961 million-selling single, "I've Told Every Little Star". [1] She went on to place twelve songs on the charts over the next four years, the last being "Who’s Been Sleeping In My Bed," inspired by the film and written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach. In 1962, she portrayed a fictionalized version of herself in the musical film Don't Knock the Twist .
Born in Queens, New York, Linda Sampson was 11 years old when she moved with her family to Teaneck, New Jersey. According to syndicated columnist Dick Kleiner, when Sampson was 13, she read a local newspaper article about songwriter Jane Douglass White. Sampson wrote White (also a New Jersey resident), the two were introduced, and White helped produce a demonstration cut which helped Sampson get attention, White playing piano on the record. [2] She was attending a junior high school in Teaneck when she auditioned to appear on Arthur Godfrey's popular CBS Radio show in 1959. [3] After having won a place on the show, Sampson and other young performers became regular guests. During the show's run, the singer came to the attention of Epic Records, and made her recording debut (singing as Linda Sampson) with the single, "In-Between Teen". [4]
Though still in Teaneck High School, class of ‘63, she signed in 1961 with Canadian-American Records, which had struck gold with the Santo & Johnny's "Sleep Walk". The label changed her performing name to Linda Scott, producing and releasing the hit "I've Told Every Little Star," a standard written by Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern for their 1932 production Music In The Air. [5] The track sold over one million copies, earning a gold disc for Scott. [1]
Scott's three biggest hits came in that first year, with "I've Told Every Little Star" (U.S. #3), "I Don't Know Why" (U.S. #12), and "Don't Bet Money Honey" (U.S. #9). The first two were standards, while the third was one of Scott's own compositions. Scott also charted with a song that peaked at #44 on the Billboard charts, "Starlight, Starbright". It was mostly a regional hit played in the Northeast. It reached #44 in August 1961.
Scott was the showcase artist when Canadian-American started a subsidiary label, Congress Records, in 1962, and in fact both labels released new material of hers simultaneously. The following year, she sang her hit "Yessirree" which she composed in the Chubby Checker film, Don't Knock the Twist .
In 1963, American Bandstand signed Scott to Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars national U.S. tour which was scheduled to perform its 15th show on the night of November 22, 1963 at the Memorial Auditorium in Dallas, Texas until the Friday evening event had to be suddenly cancelled moments after U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated that afternoon while touring Dallas in an open car caravan. [6] [7]
Scott's final U.S. chart appearance was "Who's Been Sleeping In My Bed," released in January 1964, the same month that The Beatles made their first chart appearance. In 1965, she became a cast member of the variety show Where the Action Is , which she co-hosted with singer Steve Alaimo. Her last U.S. recording, "They Don't Know You", was released in 1967 on RCA Records. She continued to record as a backing vocalist (most notably on Lou Christie's 1969 hit, "I'm Gonna Make You Mine") [8] before finally quitting show business in the early 1970s.
In 2022, Scott's hit I've Told Ev'ry Little Star was featured in an advert for store H&M, reaching a whole new generation of fans to her music. [9]
Scott was an army laboratory technician for two years, stationed in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, and received a degree in Theology from Kingsway Christian College and Theological Seminary in Des Moines, Iowa, according to an interview she gave to Goldmine in 1987. [10] During her time in the army, she met and married a fellow serviceman. The marriage produced one child in 1973 and ended in divorce. She later taught music at the Christian Academy in New York City. [ citation needed ]
The compilation CD, The Complete Hits of Linda Scott, was released by Eric Records in 1995; while her recording of "I've Told Every Little Star" was included in director David Lynch's film, Mulholland Drive . [11]
Year | Album | Record label |
---|---|---|
1961 | Starlight, Starbright | Canadian-American Records |
1962 | Great Scott! | Canadian-American Records |
1962 | Linda | Congress Records |
1965 | Hey, Look At Me Now! | Kapp Records |
Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Record Label | B-side | Album | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US | US AC | US R&B | UK | |||||
1959 | "In-Between Teen" (as Linda Sampson) | — | — | — | — | Epic Records | "Lover of the Year" | |
1961 | "I've Told Ev'ry Little Star" | 3 | — | 22 | 7 | Canadian-American Records | "Three Guesses" | Starlight, Starbright |
"Don't Bet Money Honey" | 9 | 3 | — | 50 | "Starlight, Starbright" (US #44) | |||
"I Don't Know Why" | 12 | 2 | — | — | "It's All Because" (US #50) | |||
1962 | "Yessiree" | 60 | — | — | — | Congress Records | "Town Crier" (US #116) | Linda |
"Bermuda" | 70 | 16 | — | — | Canadian-American Records | "Lonely for You" | ||
"Count Every Star" | 41 | 10 | — | — | "Land of Stars" | Starlight, Starbright | ||
"Never in a Million Years" | 56 | 15 | — | — | Congress Records | "Through the Summer" | Linda | |
"I Left My Heart in the Balcony" | 74 | — | — | — | "Lopsided Love Affair" | |||
"I'm So Afraid of Losing You" | — | — | — | — | "The Loneliest Girl in Town" | |||
1963 | "Ain't That Fun" | — | — | — | — | "Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" | ||
"Let's Fall in Love" | 108 | — | — | — | "I Know It, You Know It" | |||
1964 | "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" | 100 | — | — | — | "My Heart" | ||
"Everybody Stopped Laughing at Janie" | — | — | — | — | "I Envy You" | |||
"That Old Feeling" | — | — | — | — | Kapp Records | "This Is My Prayer" | Hey, Look at Me Now! | |
1965 | "Patch It Up" | 135 | — | — | — | "If I Love Again" | ||
"Don't Lose Your Head" | — | — | — | — | "I'll See You in My Dreams" | |||
"You Baby" | — | — | — | — | "I Can't Get Through to You" | |||
1966 | "Take a Walk, Bobby" | — | — | — | — | "Toys" | ||
1967 | "They Don't Know You" | — | — | — | — | RCA Victor | "Three Miles High" | |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1962 | Don't Knock the Twist | Linda Scott | Musical |
Patsy Cline was an American singer from the state of Virginia. She is considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century and was one of the first country music artists to cross over into pop music. Cline had several major hits during her eight-year recording career, including two number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country and Western Sides chart.
Lulu Kennedy-Cairns is a Scottish singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Her career has spanned six decades. Her debut single, a cover version of The Isley Brothers song "Shout", reached the top ten of the UK Singles Charts in 1964. In 1967 she rose to international prominence after appearing in the film To Sir, with Love, singing the theme song, which topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks.
Brian Hyland is an American pop singer and instrumentalist who was particularly successful during the early 1960s. He had a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini" in 1960. Other hits include "Sealed with a Kiss" and "Gypsy Woman" which each reached No. 3. Hyland continued recording into the 1970s. AllMusic journalist Jason Ankeny said "Hyland's puppy-love pop virtually defined the sound and sensibility of bubblegum during the pre-Beatles era." Although his status as a teen idol faded, he went on to release several country-influenced albums and had additional chart hits later in his career.
Neil Sedaka is an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard "Howie" Greenfield and Phil Cody.
Eva Narcissus Boyd, known by the stage name of Little Eva, was an American singer, well known for her 1962 hit "The Loco-Motion".
Robert Thomas Velline, known professionally as Bobby Vee, was an American singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s and also appeared in films. According to Billboard magazine, he had thirty-eight Hot 100 chart hits, ten of which reached the Top 20. He had six gold singles in his career.
Frederick Anthony Picariello, Jr., better known by his stage name Freddy Cannon, is an American rock and roll singer. His biggest international hits included "Tallahassee Lassie", "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans", and "Palisades Park".
Brenda Holloway is an American soul singer who was a recording artist for Motown Records during the 1960s. Her best-known recordings are the hits "Every Little Bit Hurts", "When I'm Gone", and "You've Made Me So Very Happy". The latter, which she co-wrote, was later widely popularized when it became a Top Ten hit for Blood, Sweat & Tears. She left Motown after four years, at the age of 22, and largely retired from the music industry until the 1990s, after her recordings had become popular on the British "Northern soul" scene.
Danny Williams was a South African-born British pop singer who earned the nickname "Britain's Johnny Mathis", for his smooth and stylish way with a ballad. He is best known for his 1961 UK number one version of "Moon River" and his 1964 U.S. top ten hit, "White on White".
Dee Dee Sharp is an American R&B singer, who began her career recording as a backing vocalist in 1961.
Luigi Alfredo Giovanni Sacco, known professionally by his stage name Lou Christie, is an American pop and soft rock singer-songwriter known for several hits in the 1960s, including his 1966 US chart-topper "Lightnin' Strikes" and 1969 UK number-two "I'm Gonna Make You Mine".
Carl Edward Dobkins Jr. was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his 1959 hit, "My Heart Is an Open Book", which went to No.3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The record sold over one million copies, resulting in the award of a gold disc.
Peggy March is an American pop singer. In the United States, she is primarily known for her 1963 million-selling song "I Will Follow Him". Although she is sometimes remembered as a one-hit wonder, she continued to have success in Europe well into the 1970s.
The Dovells were an American doo-wop group, formed at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1957, under the name 'The Brooktones'. The original members were Arnie Silver, Len Borisoff, Jerry Gross, Mike Freda, and Jim Mealey. Their first single "No, No, No" was a local hit for The Brooktones.
The Jaynetts were an American girl group based in the Bronx, New York, who became a one-hit wonder in 1963 with the song "Sally Go 'Round the Roses", which reached No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Jimmy Clanton is an American singer who became known as the "swamp pop R&B teenage idol". His band recorded a hit song "Just a Dream" which Clanton had written in 1958 for the Ace Records label. It reached number four on the Billboard chart and sold a million copies. Clanton performed on Dick Clark's American Bandstand and toured with popular artists like Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis and the Platters.
Anita Madeleine Harris is an English actress, singer and entertainer.
Dodie Stevens is an American rock and traditional pop singer. She is best known for her 1959 song "Pink Shoe Laces." It debuted at number 96 on the Billboard Hot 100 when Stevens was one day short of 13 years old, and eventually peaked at number 3.
"I've Told Ev'ry Little Star" is a popular song with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, published in 1932. The song was introduced in the musical Music in the Air. The first hit recording of the song was released in 1932 by Jack Denny and His The Waldorf-Astoria Orchestra, featuring the vocals of Paul Small. It has since been recorded and sampled by many artists, including Mac Miller on the track "Knock Knock" from his 2010 mixtape K.I.D.S..
In 1959, radio and television personality and television producer Dick Clark organized and produced a concert tour of rock and roll and rhythm and blues artists, many of whom had appeared on his music performance and dance television program, American Bandstand. The show was billed as Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars. Its success prompted additional tours. The last of the concerts toured in 1966.