Teenage tragedy song

The teenage tragedy song is a style of ballad in popular music that peaked in popularity in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Examples of the style are also known as "tear jerkers," "death discs" or "splatter platters",[1] among other colorful sobriquets coined by DJs that then passed into vernacular as the songs became popular. Often lamenting teenage death scenarios in melodramatic fashion, these songs were usually sung from the viewpoint of the dead person's sweetheart, as in "Last Kiss"[2] (1964), or another witness to the tragedy, or the dead (or dying) person.[1] Other examples include "Teen Angel" by Mark Dinning (1959), "Tell Laura I Love Her" by Ray Peterson (1960), "Ebony Eyes" by the Everly Brothers (1961), "Dead Man's Curve" by Jan and Dean (1964), and "Leader of the Pack" by the Shangri-Las (1964).[3] The genre's popularity faded around 1965 (as a mostly American phenomenon it was one of many musical formats that was drowned out by the British Invasion),[4] but inspired a host of similar songs and parodies over the years.

Origins and format

By the mid-1950s, postwar youth culture in the U.S. was embracing rock and roll, and the folk revival was also approaching its zenith – the narrative style of many teenage tragedy songs had similarities to folk balladry.[5] Prison ballads (such as The Kingston Trio's "Tom Dooley", based on a folk song about a real murder) and gunfighter ballads (including Johnny Cash's "Don't Take Your Guns to Town"), with similar themes of death, were also popular during the heyday of teen tragedy songs.

The teen tragedy genre's popular era began with "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots", written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Released just before 24-year-old actor James Dean's death in an automobile accident in the fall of 1955, it climbed the charts immediately afterward.[6] Teenage tragedies had specific thematic[7] tropes such as star-crossed lovers,[7] reckless youth, eternal devotion, suicide, and despair over lost love; along with lyrical elements that teens of the time could relate to their own lives[5] – such as dating, motorcycles and automobiles (car songs also being popular during the 1950s), and disapproving parents or peers.[3] Contemporary girl groups of the '60s also borrowed the genre's melodramatic template (as well as the use of sound effects, orchestration, echo and other sonic touches) for non-fatal but otherwise tragic story-songs, such as Reparata and the Delrons' over-the-top "Saturday Night Didn't Happen" and its B-side, "Panic," in 1968. In The Pussycats' 1966 "Dressed in Black", (co-written by George 'Shadow' Morton, and originally a Shangri-Las B-side) and in "We Don't Belong" by UK singer Sylvan (1965), the heartbreak and melancholy are palpable - and in Sylvan's case, nearly suicidal.[4]

Ethnomusicologist Kirsten Zemke considers these songs as forming a strictly musical genre that was bound by common thematic tropes, musical style and production elements; and as being of their time. As for their popularity, she writes:

"They sold well in their time, and the style has persisted throughout the decades in various forms. And ….they have an interesting history. The question some writers have asked is “why?”. Some of the reasons suggested for this genre’s macabre popularity are:

These were the ultimate teen rebellion songs. The only way out of parents’ (and/or societal) control and expectations are death.
They were a natural extension of the “unrequited love” song, facilitated by the obvious rhyming of: good bye, cry and die.
There were a number of publicized deaths of pop stars and young actors during that period, including Sam Cooke, Johnny Ace, Eddie Cochran; and of course the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper in 1959. This might explain the interest in songs around death, tragedy and sorrow."[8]

Examples

Title Original artist Year Songwriter(s) Notes
"Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" The Cheers 1955 Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller U.S. #6
"Endless Sleep" Jody Reynolds 1958 Jody Reynolds, Dolores Nance U.S. #5, precursor of the genre.[9] The singer's sweetheart is saved in the last verse; in Reynolds' original version, she dies.
"Running Bear" Johnny Preston 1959 J. P. Richardson (The Big Bopper) U.S. #1
"Teen Angel" Mark Dinning 1959 Jean Dinning, Red Surrey U.S. #1
"Tell Laura I Love Her" Ray Peterson[10] 1960 Jeff Barry, Ben Raleigh U.S. #7, cover by Ricky Valance was #1 in the UK
"Ebony Eyes" The Everly Brothers 1961 John D. Loudermilk U.S. #8, UK #1, Can. #2
"Johnny Remember Me" John Leyton 1961 Geoff Goddard UK #1, produced by Joe Meek; later covered by psychobilly band The Meteors
"Moody River" Pat Boone 1961 Gary D. Bruce U.S. #1
"The Water Was Red" Johnny Cymbal 1961 Stanley Wagner
"The Prom" Del Shannon 1961 Del Shannon
"Leah" Roy Orbison 1962 Roy Orbison U.S. #25, Can. #7
"Call Me Lonesome" Arthur Alexander 1962 Arthur Alexander Unreleased until 1987; early version of "Lonely Just Like Me"
"Patches" Dickey Lee 1962 Barry Mann, Larry Kolber U.S. #6
"Echo" The Emotions 1962 The Emotions, Henry Boye
"Chapel Bells Ringing" Gene Summers 1962 M. Torver
"Last Kiss"[2] Wayne Cochran & the C.C. Riders 1962 Wayne Cochran Cover by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers was a 1964 U.S. #2
Cover by Pearl Jam was a 1999 U.S. #2
"A Young Man Is Gone" The Beach Boys 1963 Bobby Troup, Mike Love
"B.J. the D.J." Stonewall Jackson 1963 Hugh X. Lewis U.S. Country #1
"Dead Man's Curve" Jan and Dean 1964 Jan Berry, Roger Christian, Brian Wilson, Artie Kornfeld U.S. #8. (Protagonist survives but is severely injured)
"Terry" Twinkle 1964 Lynn Ripley (Twinkle) UK #4[4]
"Leader of the Pack" The Shangri-Las 1964 George "Shadow" Morton, Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich U.S. #1, Can. #3
"The Hero" Bernadette Carroll 1964 B. Nosal, P. Maheu a regional airplay hit in North Carolina (#1), Florida, West Virginia and elsewhere[11]
"Laurie (Strange Things Happen)"[12] Dickey Lee 1965 Milton Addington, Cathie Harmon U.S. #14, Can. #6
"Give Us Your Blessings" The Shangri-Las 1965 Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich U.S. #29, Can. #11
"I Can Never Go Home Anymore" The Shangri-Las 1965 George "Shadow" Morton U.S. #6, Can. #2
"A Young Girl of Sixteen" Noel Harrison 1965 Charles Aznavour, Oscar Brown Jr., Robert Chauvigny U.S. #51, Can. #5. From a French song also recorded by Aznavour in 1959[13] and by Edith Piaf in 1951
"Nightmare"[14] Lori Burton/
The Whyte Boots 		1966 Pam Sawyer, Lori Burton "The Whyte Boots" were a fabricated girl group; Burton sang lead and the track is on her 1967 LP Breakout[4]
"Ode to Billie Joe" Bobbie Gentry 1967 Bobbie Gentry U.S. #1, Can. #1
"Condition Red" The Goodees 1968 Don Davis, Freddie Briggs U.S. #46, Can. #14[4]
"Run Joey Run" David Geddes 1975 Paul Vance & Jack Perricone US Billboard #4, Cash Box #1; Canada #12
"Hello, This Is Joanie" Paul Evans 1978 Paul Evans, Fred Tobias UK #6

Deathless themes

Teenagers meeting with tragedy in song was not new in the 1950s (or for that matter in the 1650s, around the time "Barbara Allen" was popular). In literature, it has been a recurring and resonant theme over centuries, most notably in William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". Another early example in song is "Oh My Darling, Clementine", published in 1884 but based on earlier songs and apparently written as a parody.[15]

As popular music and the society it mirrored changed from the late 1960s onward, the themes carried on in different forms and styles. Songs and spoken-word productions about the dangers of drug abuse joined the parade of pathos on radio airwaves, ranging from three-minute morality plays to lamentations (from the parental perspective) on the generation gap. These include "Once You Understand" by Think ( U.S. #23, 1971) and radio and TV host Art Linkletter's Grammy-winning single "We Love You, Call Collect". Recorded before his daughter Diane's apparent suicide in 1969, the record also included Diane speaking the reply, "Dear Mom and Dad".[16] Into the 1970s, as the Vietnam War continued, hit ballads of youth and death included B. J. Thomas' "Billy and Sue" (1972) and Terry Jacks' No. 1 hit "Seasons in the Sun" (1974), their protagonists of indeterminate age, or slightly older than teens. Hard-rock acts recorded vehicular death scenarios such as "D.O.A." (Bloodrock, 1971), "Detroit Rock City" (Kiss, 1976) and "Bat Out of Hell" (Meat Loaf, 1977).

By the end of the 1970s, teenage tragedy would chart without the element of melodrama – in 1979, "I Don't Like Mondays" by the Boomtown Rats, written by Bob Geldof in response to a senseless school shooting in the news while he was on tour in the U.S., went to No. 1 in the UK, and No. 4 in Canada.[17] The Smiths 1987 song Girlfriend In A Coma also took inspiration from teenage tragedy songs, by taking the melodramatic aspect and pushing it to extremes. Some songs merely updated the sound of the previous era, such as "Racing Car" by Dutch group Air Bubble (1976); while others used the melodic and stylistic tropes of teen tragedy in tougher, grittier settings, as in the Ramones' "You're Gonna Kill That Girl" (1977) and "7-11" (1981), and The Misfits' "Saturday Night" (1999). "Teen Idle" by Marina and the Diamonds (2012), evoking an archetype of disenfranchised youth, is a thematic heir to the original teen tragedy oeuvre.[18]

Satires and parodies

Notable parody songs, satires and send-ups of teen tragedy over the decades have included:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Alternative Love Songs from the Teenage Tragedy Vault". NPR. February 14, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Last Kiss: The Incredible, Convoluted Story Behind This Classic #1 Hit". Forgotten Hits. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  3. 1 2 Luan Lawrenson-Woods (July 2, 2013). "Leader of the Pack". The Popular Romance Project. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Sheila Burgel (2005). "One Kiss Can Lead to Another: Song by Song". Rhino Entertainment.
  5. 1 2 Todd Leopold (March 30, 2006). "The teenager's death song". CNN. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  6. 1 2 "Splatter Platters: A Look at Teenage Tragedy Songs". Go Retro. July 9, 2013. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Genre Rules with Dr. Kirsten Zemke: 'Teenage Coffin Songs'". 95bFM, Auckland, New Zealand. November 18, 2011. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  8. ↑ Kirsten Zemke (September 22, 2015). "What the Genre? Teenage Coffin Songs". APRA/AMCOS. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  9. ↑ R. Serge Denisoff (1989). "'Teen Angel': Resistance, Rebellion and Death – Revisited". In Timothy E. Scheurer. American Popular Music: The age of rock. Popular Press. p. 96.
  10. ↑ "Ray Peterson, balladeer of teenage tragedy". Boston Globe. January 29, 2005. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Ask 'Mr. Music'". Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  12. ↑ "More Music Madness: Teen death songs will never die". NBC News. September 14, 2007. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  13. ↑ "A Young Girl of 16". Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Lori Burton::Nightmare (Mono Single Version)". Aquarium Drunkard. October 3, 2011. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  15. ↑ Andrew Butler, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014, p.9
  16. ↑ "TV Show Host Art Linkletter Dies at 97". foxnews.com. 2010-05-26. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  17. ↑ Clarke, Steve (18–31 October 1979). The Fastest Lip on Vinyl. Smash Hits. EMAP National Publications Ltd. pp. 6–7.
  18. ↑ Monger, James Christopher. "Electra Heart – Marina and the Diamonds". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  19. ↑ "Man/Valerie 45". 45cat. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  20. ↑ Richie Unterberger. "The Detergents | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  21. ↑ Daryl W. Bullock (2015). "Jimmy Cross: I Want My Baby Back". The World's Worst Records: Volume One: An Arcade of Audio Atrocity. Bristol Green Publishing. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  22. ↑ Kevin Courrier, Randy Newman's American Dreams, ECW Press, 2005, pp.104-105
  23. ↑ http://www.metrolyrics.com/johnny-dont-do-it-lyrics-10-cc.html
  24. ↑ "The Homecoming Queen's Got A Gun - Julie Brown". The Demented Music Database. Retrieved April 8, 2016.

External links

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