"Why" | ||||
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Single by Frankie Avalon | ||||
B-side | "Swingin' on a Rainbow" | |||
Released | November 9, 1959 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 2:30 | |||
Label | Chancellor 1045 | |||
Songwriter(s) | Peter De Angelis, Bob Marcucci | |||
Frankie Avalon singles chronology | ||||
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"Why" is a hit song recorded by Frankie Avalon in 1959. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart published on the week of December 28, 1959. It was Avalon's second and final No. 1 hit. [1]
The song was covered by Donny Osmond, and this version reached No. 3 on the UK Singles chart.
"Why" was written and produced by Avalon's manager and record producer Robert "Bob" Marcucci and Peter De Angelis. [2] The melody is based on an Italian song. The Avalon version features an uncredited female singer (alleged to be Fran Lori), [3] heard in the repeat of the first four lines of the first part of the song, with Avalon replying, "Yes, I love you". He concludes the last quarter of the song with a coda, by himself.
The song topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week ending January 2, 1960, published on the week of December 28, 1959. [4] making it the last No. 1 single of the 1950s, and the first No. 1 single of the 1960s at the same time. It also became the first No. 1 single of the 1960s on the Cashbox magazine charts.
Avalon could not take full advantage of the song's success because he was filming on location in Texas. His concentration on his acting career detracted from his recording career, and "Why" became Avalon's seventh and final top 10 hit. [2]
Chart (1959–60) | Peak position |
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Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [5] | 11 |
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia) [6] | 18 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [7] | 11 |
Norway (VG-lista) [8] | 3 |
UK Singles (OCC) [9] | 20 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [10] | 1 |
"Why" | ||||
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Single by Donny Osmond | ||||
from the album Too Young | ||||
B-side | "Lonely Boy" | |||
Released | August 12, 1972 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 2:44 | |||
Label | MGM | |||
Songwriter(s) | Peter De Angelis, Bob Marcucci | |||
Producer(s) | Mike Curb, Don Costa | |||
Donny Osmond singles chronology | ||||
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Donny Osmond recorded "Why" in 1972, and it was released as a single from the album Too Young . It peaked at No. 3 in the United Kingdom. In the U.S., the song reached No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 19 on the Easy Listening chart. [11] Osmond’s version also reached No. 13 in the New Zealand. [12]
Chart (1972) | Peak position |
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New Zealand (Lever Hit Parade) [12] | 13 |
UK Singles (OCC) [13] | 3 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [14] | 13 |
US Adult Contemporary ( Billboard ) [15] | 19 |
"When I Fall in Love" is a popular song, written by Victor Young (music) and Edward Heyman (lyrics). It was introduced in the film One Minute to Zero as the instrumental titled "Theme from One Minute to Zero". Jeri Southern sang on the first vocal recording released in April 1952 with the song's composer, Victor Young, handling the arranging and conducting duties. The song has become a standard, with many artists recording it; the first hit version was sung by Doris Day released in July 1952.
"The Three Bells", also known as "The Jimmy Brown Song", "Little Jimmy Brown", or simply "Jimmy Brown", is a song made popular by the Browns in 1959. The song is an English adaptation of the French language song "Les Trois Cloches" written by Jean Villard, with English lyrics by Bert Reisfeld. The single reached number one in the U.S. on Billboard's Hot C&W Sides chart and the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1959.
"Les Trois Cloches" is a Swiss song written in French by Jean Villard Gilles. Edith Piaf recorded the song a cappella with the French vocal group Les Compagnons de la chanson in July 1946. The song became one of Édith Piaf's biggest hits, and when Piaf toured the US with Les Compagnons de la chanson, they introduced this song to an American audience. Tina Arena also record a hit version in 2000.
"Venus" is a song written by Ed Marshall. The most successful and best-known recording of the track was by Frankie Avalon and released in 1959, when it reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100.
"Lonely Boy" is a song written and recorded by Paul Anka. Recorded in August 1958 with Don Costa's orchestra in New York, "Lonely Boy" was not released until May 11, 1959. Anka sang this song in the film Girls Town. When released as a single, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks, becoming Anka's first song to do so, although he had earlier topped Billboard's Best Sellers in Stores chart with "Diana". Billboard ranked it as No. 5 for 1959. The song reached No. 2 in the Canadian CHUM Charts.
"Young Love" is a popular song, written by Ric Cartey and Carole Joyner, and published in 1956. The original version was recorded by Ric Cartey with the Jiva-Tones on November 24, 1956. It was released in 1956 by Stars Records as catalog number 539 and one month later by RCA Records as catalog number 47-6751. Cartey's version never charted.
"Puppy Love" is a popular song written by Paul Anka in 1960 for Annette Funicello, a Mouseketeer, whom he had a crush on. Anka's version reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 behind Percy Faith's "Theme from A Summer Place", No. 4 on the Canadian CHUM Charts, and No. 33 on the UK Singles Chart.
"The Twelfth of Never" is a popular song written in 1956 and first recorded by Johnny Mathis the following year. The title is a popular expression, which is used as the date of a future occurrence that will never come to pass. In the case of the song, "the 12th of Never" is given as the date on which the singer will stop loving his beloved, thus indicating that he will always love her.
"Lara's Theme" is the name given to a leitmotif written for the 1965 film Doctor Zhivago by composer Maurice Jarre. Soon afterward, the leitmotif became the basis of the song "Somewhere, My Love". Numerous versions, both orchestral and vocal, have been recorded, among the most popular was the version by Ray Conniff Singers.
"Go Away Little Girl" is a popular song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. It was first recorded by Bobby Vee for Liberty Records on March 28, 1962. The lyrics consist of a young man asking a young attractive woman to stay away from him, so that he will not be tempted to betray his steady girlfriend by kissing her. The song is notable for making the American Top 20 three times: for Steve Lawrence in 1963, for The Happenings in 1966, and for Donny Osmond in 1971. It is also the first song, and one of only nine, to reach US number 1 by two different artists. Also notable in each of the solo versions is the similar double-tracked treatment of the singer's voice.
"Grease" is a song written by Barry Gibb and recorded by Frankie Valli : it was released as a single in May 1978. It is the title song for the musical motion picture Grease of that year, which was in turn based on the 1971 stage play Grease. Valli's song message celebrates the greaser lifestyle, and it sold over seven million copies worldwide and appeared twice on the film's soundtrack, first as the opening track and again as the closing track. "Grease" was one of four songs written specifically for the film that had not been in the stage production.
"Paper Roses" is a popular song written and composed by Fred Spielman and Janice Torre. It first was a top five hit in 1960 for Anita Bryant. Marie Osmond recorded it in 1973 and took her version to number one on the US country chart.
"C'mon Marianne" is a song composed by L. Russell Brown and Raymond Bloodworth and popularized by The Four Seasons in 1967. Produced by Bob Crewe, the single was the last Four Seasons single to reach the Top Ten of the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the 1960s, and their last Top Ten hit until "Who Loves You" in 1975.
"I'm Leaving It Up to You" is a song written by and originally performed by Don Harris and Dewey Terry in 1957. It was later popularized in 1963 by the American duo Dale and Grace, who took it to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 1974, Donny and Marie Osmond reached the top five on the US Hot 100 chart and peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart with their cover.
The discography of American pop singer Donny Osmond contains 18 studio albums, nine compilation albums, one live album, four video albums, three extended plays, four music videos, 25 singles and eight additional appearances. After several years collaborating with his siblings' band, The Osmonds, he embarked on a solo career in 1971. His debut single, "Sweet and Innocent," reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and made him a teen pop star. Its follow-up entitled "Go Away Little Girl" topped the same chart in 1971. Also in 1971 his debut studio album was released called The Donny Osmond Album. It peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200 all-genre chart. His third studio release, Portrait of Donny, reached number six on the Billboard 200 and is his highest-charting album to date. Its two singles became top ten hits on the pop chart: "Hey Girl" and "Puppy Love." He released his fourth studio effort in 1972, Too Young. The record peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200. It spawned the top 20 pop hits: the title track and "Why." In 1973, Alone Together marked his fifth studio album release and peaked at number 26 in the United States. It spawned his cover of "The Twelfth of Never," which reached number eight on the Hot 100. By the mid 1970s, Osmond reached adulthood and his career began to decline despite collaborations with his sister, Marie Osmond. In 1976, he recorded an album of disco, which only reached number 145 on the Billboard 200.
Les Compagnons de la chanson were a French harmony vocal group, formed in 1946 from an earlier group founded in Lyon, France in 1941. Their best known song was "Les trois cloches" recorded with Edith Piaf in 1946. They were eight or nine members in the group, and they were popular in France with some success internationally, and they continued to perform until 1985.
"The Green Leaves of Summer" is a song by Paul Francis Webster, with music by Dimitri Tiomkin, written for the 1960 film The Alamo. It was performed in the film's score by the vocal group The Brothers Four. In 1961, the song was nominated for an Academy Award; its parent soundtrack, for the film The Alamo, was awarded a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score.
"I Knew You When" is a song written and composed by Joe South. It became a popular hit in 1965 when recorded by American pop and country singer Billy Joe Royal. There have also been several other hit cover versions of this song, including by Donny Osmond and Linda Ronstadt.
"Pretty Blue Eyes" is a song written by Teddy Randazzo and Bobby Weinstein. In 1959, it was a hit single for Steve Lawrence, and in 1960 for Craig Douglas.
"Greenfields" is a song written by Frank Miller, Richard Dehr, and Terry Gilkyson and performed by The Brothers Four. In 1960, the track reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 40 on the UK Singles Chart.