Posted on 01/02/2013 10:27:49 AM PST by Borges
One of America's musical icons, Grammy-Award winner Patti Page, has died at a nursing home in Encinitas according to her personal manager. In her seven-decade recording career, Page sold more than 100 million records making her one of the most successful female recording artists. Page performed all over the world and was often asked to sing her biggest-selling record, "The Tennessee Waltz" which she recorded in 1951. Others know her as the voice behind the recording "(How Much Is That) Doggie In The Window." Page, whose real name was Clara Ann Fowler, died Tuesday night at the age of 85 according to staffers at the Seacrest Village nursing home in Encinitas. The singer called Rancho Santa Fe her home for the last four decades. She was set to be honored with a life-time achievement award at the Grammys in February.
Oh my goodness... she was so beautiful!
I'll remember her for the innovation of over-laying her own voice in order to sing as a quartet on "Old Cape Cod" as well as her smooth, seamless delivery throughout her vocal range.
Patti Page, the Singing Rage, is gone and with her she takes a true popular vocalist tradition in American music that has only been replaced with soulless, auto-tuned crap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wu1dXq2iupo
My Dad was from Provincetown and I remember my first 9 hour trip to P-town from Utica, NY the year this song came out, in a Kaiser!
“Actually, I think any of the above would have fared pretty well vocally”
There’s always good voices around and today’s artists like Rihanna* simply fill the role occupied by Patti Page et al in the 50s. And Whitney Houston was functionally her generation’s Ella Fitzgerald except with more nose candy and a less dignified exit.
All of the above could have easily succeeded today except perhaps Sinatra because he mostly got lucky that he escaped WWII with a medical deferment and was the only male singer of consequence for a while.
But man oh man, did the GIs ever hate his guts because he was in Hollywood surrounded by babes while they were sleeping in mud and getting shot at.
And of course I get the distinct feeling that there’s some crotchety old men in this thread who believe that the 50s was a lost golden age of pop music, but really it’s always been a genre of disposable fluff songs that are designed for a shelf life of 5 minutes. That was every bit as true in 1953 as 2013. One of the effects of nostalgia goggles is that we filter out the numerous extremely bad music acts of past eras because nobody remembers them anyway.
“Please, spare me from that doggie doo. Page disliked that song even though it was a hit. She considered it a novelty song.”
You could name many dozens of artists who’s biggest hit was a song they didn’t want to record.
“Patti Page, the Singing Rage, is gone and with her she takes a true popular vocalist tradition in American music that has only been replaced with soulless, auto-tuned crap.”
Auto-tuning is a much abused feature today; no one disputes that.
*Does not necessarily reflect my opinion on Rihanna, who is a talentless hack
I often hear Patti Page, the Chordettes, the Four Knights, Joni James and other fifties artists played over the PA system in markets, malls, etc. when I go shopping. Six decades from now, will shoppers be hearing the likes of Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars, Psy or Snoop Doggie Dogg?
That's just up the road from me if you head north on Long Beach Blvd. Historic Route 6 runs from downtown Long Beach, Calif. to P-Town.
My mom was a member of the RCA victor club. We got pattis records
Tennessee waltz one of my favorite all time songs
RIP.
I love “Allegheny Moon” What a voice!!! RIP
I believe it’s Provencetown, on Cape Cod/
I believe it’s Provencetown, on Cape Cod/
As you drive north and east from Long Beach, Calif., Route 6 can take you through some beautiful country. Last summer, I drove along Route 6 through Towanda, Pa.
Lucky you. You may know she was originally from Claremore, Oklahoma. Just 30 mins from me.
LOL! Thanks, didn’t know that!
Claremore is also the setting for the play "Oklahoma!"
Who knows, really? If you can remember those days, they said Elvis was garbage and why would anyone want to listen to that now, let alone decades later? Although really if you care to think about it, it was the rock and roll guys that swept the older singers like PP and Bing Crosby from the charts. But that’s neither here nor there.
“I often hear Patti Page, the Chordettes, the Four Knights, Joni James and other fifties artists played over the PA system in markets, malls, etc. when I go shopping”
I’m reminded of that time when Michael Savage was complaining how he went in a mall during the Christmas season and instead of playing White Christmas, they were on this ghettoblaster music.
Small world
I live in oceanside twenty minutes from where she died.
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