Robin Clark (pop singer)

Last updated
Robin Clark
Birth nameSharon Ilo Hershiser
Born (1949-09-21) September 21, 1949 (age 71)
Tuscaloosa, Alabama, U.S.
Genres Pop
Occupation(s)Singer
Instruments Vocals
Years active1960–1962
Labels Capitol (1960-1962)

Robin Clark (born Sharon Ilo Hershiser on September 21, 1949) is an American pop singer who released four singles on Capitol Records in 1961 and 1962, and was at one time the youngest artist signed to a major record label in the United States. [1] Clark's best known recording was her debut single, the novelty song "Daddy, Daddy (Gotta Get a Phone in My Room)", which was released on January 9, 1961, [1] reached #1 on radio station WHYN in Springfield, Massachusetts on March 4, 1961, [2] before it "bubbled under" at #120 on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 13, 1961. [3]

Contents

Early life

Sharon Ilo Hershiser was born on September 21, 1949, [4] on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, where her parents, Charles Arthur "Charlie" Hershiser (born February 5, 1925, in Akron, Ohio; died December 23, 1999, in Foley, Alabama), [4] [5] a political science major, [6] and his wife, Barbara A. Hines (born June 21, 1928), [4] were both students. [7] [8] Clark is the younger sister of Charles Arthur "Chuck" Hershiser, Jr. (born April 26, 1948), [4] and the granddaughter of pioneer television hostess and cook Caroline Ilo Burchfield Hines Salyer (born in Loudon, Tennessee on February 17, 1902; died 1995 in Largo, Florida), who (as Ilo Salyer) hosted a 30-minute program Memo from Ilo five days a week on WJHL-TV in Johnson City, Tennessee from 1957 to 1966. [9] [10] [11] Salyer was also a noted whistler who toured the churches of East Tennessee imitating birds and accompanied by the piano. [12] [13]

After his graduation from the University of Alabama in 1951, [6] Charles Hershiser and his wife and two children moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where Charles was a commercial agent for the Mason and Dixon Lines. [14] By August 1953, the Hershiser family had relocated to Nashville, [15] and by 1957 Charles had been promoted to District Sales Manager of the Mason & Dixon Lines, and the family had relocated to the Nashville suburb of Donelson. [16]

After attending high school in Donelson, Clark attended the Cookeville High School (as Ilo Hershiser) in Cookeville, Tennessee, graduating in 1967. [17] After graduation, Clark matriculated to the Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville, [18] where she was both an honor student and a work scholar, and where she completed a BS in Food and Nutrition in 1971. Soon after graduation, Clark enrolled in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she graduated with a MS in Dietitian, Food and Nutrition in 1972.

Musical career

By the age of three, Clark (as Ilo Hershiser) had appeared as a dancer on television, and by August 1953 was scheduled to appear on television in Birmingham, Alabama and Atlanta, Georgia. [15] In a January 1961 interview, Clark indicated that she had had no formal voice lessons, but had been singing since the age of four, although she had studied dancing under Nashville choreographer Gene Nash, who also worked with singer Eddy Arnold. [19] According to Barbara Hershiser, Nash recommended Ilo to Arnold, who in turn recommended her to his manager, Dick Linke, [20] who signed her to a contract and changed her professional name to Robin Clark, [19] with Clark being the family name of one of her maternal great great grandfathers, Ira Napoleon Clark.

By November 1960 Clark has been signed to Capitol Records and had recorded "The Butterfly Tree" written by Edmonton songwriter Harvey D. Judd [21] [22] in Nashville.

"Daddy, Daddy (Gotta Get a Phone in My Room)"

On January 9, 1961, Capitol Records released Clark's debut single, "Daddy, Daddy (Gotta Get a Phone in My Room)". The novelty song was written by orchestra leader and composer Bob Davie, his wife Mary Davie, and singer Bette Anne Steele, [23] [24] who originally recorded and released it (as Betsy Brye) in 1959 (Canadian-American Records CAN AM 106; [25] UK: Columbia Records Recording 45-DB 4350). The Jordanaires provided backing vocals for the song. [26] On the flipside, Clark recorded "Love Has Come My Way" that was composed by Don Gibson. [27]

Clark appeared on Eddy Arnold's Today on the Farm program on NBC-TV on Saturday, January 14, 1961, [28] Both songs were rated 3 stars in Billboard magazine on January 16, [27] with "Daddy, Daddy" picked to be a hit on January 30, [29] and being played extensively on radio stations in Nashville, [30] where the flipside "Love Has Come My Way" debuted at #34 on WKDA. [31]

"Daddy, Daddy" was #1 on radio station WHYN in Springfield, Massachusetts on March 4, 1961, [2] and also charted locally in Worcester (#2 on WORC); [32] Syracuse (#5 on WOLF); [33] Boston (#5 on WHIL); [34] [35] Hartford (#8 on WDRC); [36] and Louisville (#13 on WKLO). [37] After Clark appeared on both the Bob Clayton and Ray Doey shows on Boston's WHDH-TV channel 5 to promote "Daddy, Daddy" in early March 1961, [38] "Daddy, Daddy" "bubbled under" at #120 on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 13, 1961. [39]

Other singles

On May 4, 1961, Clark recorded her second session for Capitol Records in Nashville. [40] By June 5, 1961, Clark released her second single: "Billy" (written by former prison inmate Robert Stanley Riley, co-writer of "Just Walkin' in the Rain", [41] and Jerry Crutchfield) backed with "For Your Sake", with both sides rated 4 stars (Strong Sales Potential) by Billboard magazine. [42] Despite these predictions, "Billy" failed to chart, however "For Your Sake", written by Terry Phillips and Jerry Vance, charted locally in Boston (#28 on WHIL); Springfield, Massachusetts (#16 on WHYN); Hartford (#46 on WDRC); and Nashville (#29 on WKDA) between June and August 1961. [43]

By October 9, 1961, Clark released her third single: "It's Love" backed with "The Butterfly Tree", with Billboard magazine rating them both as 3 stars (Moderate sales potential). [44] "It's Love", written by Nashville brothers Jan L. Crutchfield (born 1938 in Kentucky; died October 30, 2012) [45] and Jerry Don Crutchfield, [46] [47] failed to chart nationally, but charted locally in Springfield, Massachusetts (#26 on WHYN and #34 on WSPR); and Philadelphia (#67 on WIBG) between October and December 1961. [48]

Clark's fourth and final single, "Tellin' Myself" (written by Dave Burgess) backed with "I Gotta Be Sure" (written by Larry Kolber and Jack Keller) was released by Capitol on June 2, 1962, with "Tellin' Myself" rated as having strong sales potential. [49] However, neither side of this single charted.

Personal life

On February 3, 1973, Clark married Michael Larry "Mike" Tefft (born July 19, 1949; died October 2013) in Cookeville in Putnam County, Tennessee, and subsequently had three children: Justin M. Tefft (born about 1974), Babs M. Tefft Koch (born about 1977), and Clarke M. Tefft (born 1981).

Discography

Singles

EP

Album

Compilation albums

Related Research Articles

Cookeville, Tennessee Largest city and county seat of Putnam County, Tennessee, United States

Cookeville is the county seat and largest city of Putnam County, Tennessee, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was reported to be 34,842. It is recognized as one of the country's micropolitan areas, smaller cities which function as significant regional economic hubs. Of the twenty micropolitan areas in Tennessee, Cookeville is the largest. The Cookeville micropolitan area's 2010 Census population was 106,042. The U.S. Census Bureau ranked the Cookeville micropolitan area as the 7th largest-gaining micropolitan area in the country between 2018-2019, with a one-year gain of 1,796 and a 2019 population of 114,272. The city is a college town, home to Tennessee Technological University.

The story of Tennessee's contribution to American music is essentially the story of three cities: Nashville, Memphis, and Bristol. While Nashville is most famous for its status as the long-time capital of country music, Bristol is recognized as the "Birthplace of Country Music". Memphis musicians have had an enormous influence on blues, early rock and roll, R&B, and soul music, as well as an increasing presence in rap.

Vern Gosdin American country music singer

Vernon Gosdin was an American country music singer. He had 19 top-10 solo hits on the country music charts from 1977 through 1990. Three of these hits went to Number One: "I Can Tell By the Way You Dance ", "Set 'Em Up Joe", and "I'm Still Crazy".

<i>Dreamlovers</i> (album) 1980 studio album by Tanya Tucker

Dreamlovers is the 11th album by Tanya Tucker. The album features two duets with Glen Campbell, "My Song" and "Dream Lover", a song written and originally sung by Bobby Darin in 1959, which was released as a single. It peaked at only #59 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. The biggest hit single from the album was "Can I See You Tonight," which peaked at #4. Another charting single was the #40 "Love Knows We Tried." The album itself peaked at #41 on the Country Albums chart.

WMDB Radio station in Nashville, Tennessee

WMDB is a Regional Mexican-format AM radio station broadcasting on a frequency of 880 kHz in Nashville, Tennessee. The station formerly broadcast at 1240 kHz as WSNG; current power is 2,500 Watts. The station is currently owned by Mahan Janbakhsh, through licensee TBLC Media #2, LLC. Nighttime power is reduced to 2 watts to protect the signal of WCBS in New York, New York. WCBS is the dominant Class A signal on 880 AM.

Matthew Hill

Matthew Joseph Hill is an American talk show host, businessman, and politician who served as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives from 2005 to 2021.

"Tennessee Saturday Night" is a Western swing ballad written by Billy Hughes.

<i>Keys in the Mailbox</i> 1991 studio album by Barbara Mandrell

Key's in the Mailbox is the 23rd solo studio album released by American country artist Barbara Mandrell. The album was released September 24, 1991, on Capitol Records and was produced by Jerry Crutchfield. It was Mandrell's fourth and final album for the Capitol label.

Byron Gallimore is an American record producer known for more than two decades of work in the field of country music. He has worked with artists Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Sugarland, Lee Ann Womack, and Jo Dee Messina. Faith Hill's 1999 album Breathe won him the Grammy Award for Best Country Album. Gallimore also produced the single "Breathe" from the album.

WNVL Radio station in Nashville, Tennessee

WNVL is a radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican music format. Licensed to Nashville, Tennessee, United States, the station is currently owned by Mark Janbakhsh, through licensee TBLC Media, LLC.

I Wouldnt Be a Man

"I Wouldn't Be a Man" is a song written by Mike Reid and Rory Bourke. Originally recorded by Don Williams, it has also been covered by Billy Dean and Josh Turner. Williams's version of the song was a Top Ten country hit in late 1987–early 1988, while versions by Dean and Turner also charted.

Wanda Jackson singles discography

The singles discography of Wanda Jackson, an American recording artist, consists of 81 singles, nine international singles, one other charted song, and three music videos. In 1954 at age sixteen, she signed as a country artist with Decca Records. Her debut single was a duet recording with Billy Gray which reached the eighth spot on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, also in 1954. Refusing to tour until completing high school, Jackson's further singles for Decca failed gaining success. She signed with Capitol Records in 1956 and began incorporating rock and roll into her musical style. Jackson's first Capitol single exemplified this format and became a national top-twenty country hit. Follow-up rock singles between 1957 and 1959 failed gaining enough attention to become hits including, "Hot Dog! That Made Him Mad", "Fujiyama Mama", and "Honey Bop". In 1960 however, the rock and roll-themed, "Let's Have a Party", became Jackson's first Billboard top-forty pop hit after it was picked up by an Iowa disc jockey.

"Fancy Satin Pillows" is a song written by Jerry Crutchfield and Dee Moeller. It was recorded and released as a single by American country, rock, and Christian artist, Wanda Jackson.

Ryan Williams (politician)

Ryan Williams is an American politician and a Republican member of the Tennessee House of Representatives representing District 42 since January 2011. In 2016, he was elected by his colleagues to serve as the Republican Caucus Chairman.

The Tennessee Women's Hall of Fame is a non-profit, volunteer organization that recognizes women who have contributed to history of the U.S. state of Tennessee.

<i>Wonderful Wanda</i> 1962 studio album by Wanda Jackson

Wonderful Wanda is a studio album by American recording artist Wanda Jackson. It was released in August 1962 via Capitol Records and contained 12 tracks. It was the fourth studio album in Jackson's music career and her first to consist entirely of country music songs. Wonderful Wanda included the songs "In the Middle of a Heartache", "A Little Bitty Tear" and "If I Cried Every Time You Hurt Me". All three recordings became commercially-successful singles on both the country and pop charts respectively.

<i>Love Me Forever</i> (album) 1963 studio album by Wanda Jackson

Love Me Forever is a studio album by American recording artist Wanda Jackson. It was released in May 1963 via Capitol Records and contained 12 tracks. It was Jackson's fifth studio album of her career and the second to included orchestrated production. Love Me Forever was a collection of country and pop music standards composed by other artists. The album received positive reviews from critics following its release.

<i>Ive Gotta Sing</i> 1971 studio album by Wanda Jackson

I've Gotta Sing is a studio album by American recording artist Wanda Jackson. It was released in February 1971 via Capitol Records and contained ten tracks. It was the seventeenth studio record released in Jackson's career and the seventeen released with the Capitol label. The project included one single release titled "Fancy Satin Pillows", which became a top 20 charting song on the American country music chart. I've Gotta Sing received a positive review from Billboard magazine following its original release.

<i>Praise the Lord</i> (album) 1972 studio album by Wanda Jackson

Praise the Lord is a studio album by American recording artist Wanda Jackson. It was released in March 1972 via Capitol Records and contained ten tracks. The project was Jackson's eighteenth studio recording and her first collection of gospel music. The album would be among a series of gospel recordings Jackson would make in her career following a rediscovery of religion. The album produced one single and received a positive review from Billboard in 1971.

References

  1. 1 2 Paula Giliam, "News and Notes from the Women's News Department", Kingsport Times-News (Kingsport, TN: January 8, 1961):2-D.
  2. 1 2 "KTKT 990 Tucson Survey 05/28/60". Las-solanas.com.
  3. ↑ "Bubbling Under the Hot 100", Billboard Music Week (March 13, 1961)
  4. 1 2 3 4 Forrest D. Myers and Jerry Allan Clouse, Briner Family History: a genealogy of George Michael Breiner and Anna Catharina Loy, married 1756/7 in Pennsylvania (A.E. Myers, 1984):286.
  5. ↑ U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-Current Source Citation: Number: 422-16-6676; Issue State: Alabama.
  6. 1 2 "Miscellaneous Escambia County, Florida Obituaries".
  7. ↑ The Corolla, Yearbook of the University of Alabama (1947):258-259.
  8. ↑ Rock and Roll Songs (1961).
  9. ↑ Fred W. Sauceman, The Place Setting: Timeless Tastes of the Mountain South, from Bright Hope to Frog Level, Second Serving (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2007):6-8; "Sauceman publishes second volume of Place Setting" (March 30, 2007)
  10. ↑ The Working Press of the Nation, Vol. 3 (National Research Bureau, 1963):450.
  11. ↑ Kingsport News (Kingsport, TN: September 16, 1964):5.
  12. ↑ Fred W. Sauceman, The Place Setting: Timeless Tastes of the Mountain South, from Bright Hope to Frog Level, Second Serving (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2007):8.
  13. ↑ Dorothy Ring, "News and Notes from the Women's News Depattment", Kingsport Times News (Kingsport, TN: August 30, 1953):10-C.
  14. ↑ Charlotte City Directory (Charlotte, NC: 1951):419.
  15. 1 2 Dorothy Ring, "News and Notes from the Women's News Department", Kingsport Times News (Kingsport, TN: August 30, 1953):10-C.
  16. ↑ Nashville City Directory (Nashville, TN: 1957):503.
  17. ↑ Cavalier (Yearbook of Cookeville High School) (1967):58, 136, 157.
  18. ↑ Eagle (Yearbook of Tennessee Technological University) (1970):197.
  19. 1 2 Paula Giliam, "News and Notes from the Women's News Department", Kingsport Times-News (Kingsport, TN: January 8, 1961):2-D.
  20. ↑ "Music As Written", Billboard Music Week (April 3, 1961):4.
  21. ↑ "Music As Written", Billboard Music Week (November 21, 1960):37.
  22. ↑ Library of Congress. Copyright Office, Catalog of Copyright Entries, Vol 14 Part 5: January to June 1960, 3rd ed. (U.S. Govt. Print. Off.):48.
  23. ↑ Library of Congress. Copyright Office, and United States. Dept. of the Treasury, Catalog of Copyright Entries (U.S. Government Printing Office, 1960):1843.
  24. ↑ Scott Richards, "Bette Anne Steele Bio" (Summer 2005)
  25. ↑ "45 Discography for Canadian American Records". Globaldogproductions.info. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  26. ↑ Paula Giliam, "News and Notes from the Women's News Department",Kingsport Times-News (Kingsport, TN: January 8, 1961):2-D.
  27. 1 2 "Reviews of New Pop Records", Billboard Music Week (January 16, 1961):42.
  28. ↑ "Music As Written", Billboard Music Week (December 19, 1960):168.
  29. ↑ "Picked to Be Hits", Billboard Music Week (January 30, 1961):51.
  30. ↑ "Talent Topics",Billboard Music Week (January 30, 1961):52.
  31. ↑ "WKDA Official Big Sound Survey" (February 6, 1961).
  32. ↑ "WORC OFFICIAL TOP TUNES" (March 11, 1961).
  33. ↑ "WOLF RADIO 1490: TOP 31: WEEK OF MARCH 12 THRU MARCH 18, 1961".
  34. ↑ "WHIL - DIAL 1430 NEW ENGLAND'S ORIGINAL RECORD SURVEY GREATER BOSTON'S TOP 30" (MARCH 27, 1961).
  35. ↑ "Robin Clark — Daddy, Daddy (Gotta Get a Phone in My Room) [1961]" (Airheads Radio Survey Archive).
  36. ↑ "WDRC 1360 AM: HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT: Week: 03/20/61".
  37. ↑ ""WKLO - LOUISVILLE'S NO. 1 STATION HIT PARADER'S TUNEDEX: MARCH 11, 1961"".
  38. ↑ "Music As Written",Billboard Music Week(March 13, 1961):44.
  39. ↑ "Bubbling Under the Hot 100", Billboard Music Week (March 13, 1961):31.
  40. ↑ "Music As Written", Billboard Music Week (May 8, 1961):4.
  41. ↑ Peter Nickols, "Joe Tex" (2012)
  42. ↑ "Strong Sales Potential", Billboard Music Week (June 5, 1961):23.
  43. ↑ ""Robin Clark — For Your Sake [1961]"".
  44. ↑ "Moderate Sales Potential", Billboard Music Weekly (October 9, 1961):34.
  45. ↑ Robert K. Oermann, "Songwriting Great Jan Crutchfield Dies" MusicRow (November 5, 2012).
  46. ↑ Jim Bessman, "Jerry Crutchfield", MusicWorld (March 28, 2007).
  47. ↑ ""It's Love (Legal Title): BMI Work #744810"".
  48. ↑ ""Robin Clark — It's Love [1961]"".
  49. ↑ "Reviews of New Singles", Billboard Music Week (June 2, 1962):34.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.