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Songs by Ricky

Songs by Ricky
Studio album by
Ricky Nelson
ReleasedNovember 1959
Genre
Length32:24
LabelImperial
ProducerCharles "Bud" Dant
Ricky Nelson chronology
Ricky Sings Again
(1959) 		Songs by Ricky
(1959) 		Ricky Sings Spirituals
(1960)
Singles from Songs By Ricky
  1. "Just a Little Too Much" b/w "Sweeter Than You"
    Released: June 1959
  2. "A Long Vacation"
    Released: June 1963

Songs by Ricky is the fourth rock and roll album by Ricky Nelson, released in November 1959.[1] The Jordanaires provide vocal accompaniment, the last Nelson album on which they do so. it features a group of songs from The Burnettes, Baker Knight, & His Uncle Don Nelson.[2] Jimmie Haskell was the arranger, and Charles "Bud" Dant produced the album.

The album debuted on the Billboard Best Selling LPs chart in the issue dated September 29, 1959, remaining on the chart for 26 weeks and peaking at number 22.[3] It reached No. 9 on the Cashbox albums chart during a 19-week stay on the chart.[4] Successful singles from the album include "Just a Little Too Much" and "Sweeter Than You", both of which peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[5] They reached numbers 11 and 18, respectively, on the Cashbox Singles Chart[6] and peaked at numbers 11 and 65 in the UK[7]

The album was released on compact disc by Capitol Records on June 19, 2001, as tracks 18 through 29 on a pairing of two albums on one disc with tracks 1 through 12 consisting of Nelson's other Imperial album from January 1959, Ricky Sings Again.[8] Bear Family included also the album in the 2001 The American Dream box set.[9]

Reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[10]

Variety notes "Nelson has a pleasnt set of pipes which he uses well within the relatively narrow vocal and emotional range of songs",[11] Cashbox gave the album a positive reviews, describing the album as a "Great teen merchandise"[12]

William Ruhlmann of AllMusic thought "The result was a consistent record by a writing and performing team at the peak of its powers, everyone contributing to an overall sound that was a rhythmic, smooth development on the kind of raw rockabilly invented in Memphis by the original artists at Sun Records. and Nelson had turned into a supple vocalist with a sure sense of the material."[1]

Track listing

[edit]

Side one

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."You'll Never Know What You're Missing"Baker Knight2:34
2."That's All"Bob Haymes, Alan Brandt2:05
3."Just a Little Too Much"Johnny Burnette2:12
4."One Minute to One"Baker Knight2:05
5."Half Breed"John D. Loudermilk2:05
6."You're So Fine"Dorsey Burnette2:26

Side two

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Don't Leave Me"Johnny Burnette2:16
2."Sweeter Than You"Baker Knight2:19
3."A Long Vacation"Dorsey Burnette2:08
4."So Long"Don Nelson2:01
5."Blood From a Stone"Johnny Bachelor, Rupert Stephens2:12
6."I've Been Thinkin'"Johnny Burnette2:06

Charts

[edit]

Album

[edit]
Chart (1959) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Best Selling LPs (Billboard)[3] 22
U.S. Cashbox[4] 9

Singles

[edit]
Year Title U.S. Hot 100[5][13] U.S. Cashbox[6]
1959 "Just a Little Too Much" 9 11
"Sweeter Than You 18
1963 "That's All" 48 53
"A Long Vaction 120 107

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Ricky Nelson – Songs by Ricky: Review". AllMusic. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  2. ^ Selvin, Joel (1990). Ricky Nelson: Idol for a Generation. Chicago: Contemporary Books. p. 123. ISBN 978-0-8092-4187-3.
  3. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2001). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Albums 1955-2001. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 622. ISBN 0898201470. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Hoffmann, Frank W (1988). The Cash box album charts, 1955-1974. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. p. 268. ISBN 0-8108-2005-6.
  5. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2009). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles (12th ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 697. ISBN 0898201802. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Downey, Pat (1994). Cash box pop singles charts, 1950-1993. Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited. pp. 244–245. ISBN 1-56308-316-7.
  7. ^ "RICKY NELSON". Official Charts. 1958-02-27. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
  8. ^ "Ricky Sings Again - Songs By Ricky". allmusic.com. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  9. ^ "The American Dream: The Complete Imperial and Verve 1957-1962". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  10. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 1020. ISBN 9781846098567. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  11. ^ "Variety Album Reviews: Songs by Ricky". Variety. Vol. 215, no. 12. August 19, 1959. p. 46.
  12. ^ "Album Reviews Popular Picks Of The Week: Songs by Ricky". Cash Box. Vol. 20, no. 48. August 29, 1959. p. 34.
  13. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1982). Joel Whitburn's Bubbling under the hot 100, 1959-1981. Menomonee Falls, Wis: Record Research. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-8982-0047-8.