Johnny Preston
Early rock & roll singer Johnny Preston, most remembered for his 1960 number one hit "Running Bear," was born John Preston Courville in Port Arthur, Texas on August 18, 1939, of Cajun and German descent. After graduating from high school, during which he sang in high-school choral contests throughout the state, he attended Lamar State College in Beaumont, Texas, where he formed his first band, the Shades, in 1957 and began playing local club dances. It was at one of these club dances in 1958 that he was spotted by J.P. Richardson, better known by his stage name the Big Bopper. Richardson had written a song called "Running Bear," a sort of goofy American Indian version of Romeo and Juliet, and he took Preston into Gold Star Studios in Houston to record it. Bill Hall was the producer on the session, with Link Davis sitting in on saxophone and Hall, Richardson, and a young George Jones handling the vocal background chants that gave the song its rhythmic structure. Richardson took the finished track to Shelby Singleton at Mercury Records. Richardson was already signed to Mercury, and had delivered, as the Big Bopper, a big hit with "Chantilly Lace" earlier in 1958, so a deal was soon in place and Preston became a Mercury artist. "Running Bear" was released as a single shortly after Richardson perished in the same plane crash that claimed the lives of Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens in October of 1959. By January of 1960, "Running Bear" was the number one single in the U.S., and by March it was topping the U.K. charts as well, going on to sell over a million copies worldwide. A follow-up single, "Cradle of Love," a sort of nursery rhyme novelty song, also went Top Ten in both the U.S. and U.K., while "I'm Starting to Go Steady" and its flip side, a revival of Shirley & Lee's "Feel So Fine," both went Top 20 later in 1960, but "Leave My Kitten Alone," a song later immortalized by John Lennon, only climbed as high as number 73 on the Billboard charts as 1960 drew to a close. Preston went on to record for other labels, including Imperial Records, TCF Hall, ABC Records, Kapp, and Hallway, but he never hit the charts again. Preston performed in nostalgia package tours, played the circuit, and ended up in the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, but his recording days were behind him. Plagued by heart problems, he died on March 4, 2011 in Beaumont, Texas.
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Golden Selection (Remastered)
Pop - Lançado por Master Tape Records em 10/10/2019
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ROCK
Pop - Lançado por Universal Digital Enterprises em 03/12/1960
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Greatest Hits
Pop - Lançado por Rockabilly Records em 01/09/2013
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Running Bear and All His Hits - 2 Complete Albums Plus Bonus Singles
Pop - Lançado por Jasmine Records em 17/08/2014
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Running Bear (Mono Version)
Rock - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Essential Masters
Rock - Lançado por Classic Music International em 21/09/2010
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Token of Love
Rockabilly - Lançado por Old but Gold Music em 07/02/2022
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Hit Collection
Rockabilly - Lançado por Remember that Records em 07/02/2022
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Up in the Air
Rock - Lançado por Notser Music Publishing em 07/10/2022
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All The Best
Pop - Lançado por Retro Music Box em 06/05/2020
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Free Me
Rockabilly - Lançado por Notser Music Publishing em 07/12/2022
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The Best of Johnny Preston
Rock - Lançado por Vintage Jukebox em 16/04/2020
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The Very Best Of
Pop - Lançado por Play Digital em 23/11/2012
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All the Best
Pop - Lançado por Vintage Jukebox em 05/07/2019
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Heart Made Of Stone
Rock - Lançado por Reminisce Music em 29/05/2023
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Running Bear: the Best of
Rock - Lançado por Burning Fire em 29/09/2009
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Running Bear
Rock - Lançado por Music Manager em 28/05/2015
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The Greatest Hits Collection
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Lançado por Music Manager em 13/07/2015
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