Ricky Nelson

Ricky Nelson

Ricky Nelson , from 1961 record releases as Rick Nelson (born May 8, 1940 in Teaneck , New Jersey , as Eric Hilliard Nelson , † December 31, 1985 in De Kalb , Texas in a plane crash), was an American actor , musician and Singer-songwriter . He was one of the first teenage stars in the United States.

Career

Child and TV star

His father Oswald George "Ozzie" Nelson had a big band , his mother Harriet Hilliard Nelson was the singer of this band. Eric "Ricky" Nelson began his career with his parents and older brother David Nelson on the radio and television show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet . The television series ran from October 3, 1952 to September 3, 1966. Ricky Nelson, his parents, and his brother David played the leading roles. All episodes of the series were written by "Ozzie" Nelson, who also directed and often incorporated the current songs by Ricky Nelson into the programs.

Rock and roll singer

Nelson's rock 'n' roll career began in 1957 . His first single, with which he wanted to impress his girlfriend, was released in April 1957 by the Verve record company and had the B-side I'm Walkin ' (originally by Fats Domino ). Nelson's cover version rose to number 4 on the bestseller charts and reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. The A-side with the song Teenager's Romance was even more successful (number 2 on the bestseller charts and number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100) . His appearance with the songs on his parents' television show contributed significantly to the rapid success of his first record.

After two singles that had appeared on Verve , Nelson moved to the record company Imperial Records , which already had Fats Domino under contract and with which he stayed until 1962. The next singles were so popular that mostly A and B sides of the records were able to place themselves in the charts. After the first record successes, Imperial Records tried to build Nelson as a "gentle alternative to Elvis Presley".

Nelson worked with great musicians, such as James Burton , whose accented guitar playing shaped the recordings of Nelson, Joe Maphis and Johnny and Dorsey Burnette . In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Nelson was one of the most commercially successful singers in the US with 33 top 40 hits, surpassed only by Elvis Presley and Pat Boone . In the group of "Teen Idols" he was certainly the most successful performer. From 1957 to 1962, two of his singles reached the top spot on the Billboard charts, Poor Little Fool in 1958 and Travelin 'Man in 1961. During this period he had 17 top ten hits, 23 top 20 hits and 29 top 40 hits .

Compared to his success in the USA, his international successes have been rather modest. Only in Canada was Nelson as successful as in the USA. Three titles reached number 1 on the charts, and a total of 20 made it into the top ten. In Great Britain a total of nine titles made it into the top 20 charts, five made it into the top ten. Nelson achieved several placements in the top ten in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Norway and the Netherlands.

His most successful song in Germany was Hello Mary Lou . Nelson received a gold record for this song, which reached number 2 on the singles chart in 1961 and stayed in the top ten for 20 weeks . Another placement in the single charts was only achieved with Travelin 'Man (also in 1961, number 29 in the single charts).

With the release of the LP Rick is 21 (Imperial LP-9152) Nelson deleted the "y" from his name and published from September 1961 under the name "Rick Nelson".

He signed a 20-year deal with Decca Records in 1963 , but after For You (1964) he had no major hits until 1972. The "British Invasion" of the English beat groups meant a career break for him as well as for many other teenage idols. His attempt in 1964 and 1965 to find an audience in the shallow pop field failed; Titles like Love And Kisses or Fire Breathin Dragon were unsuccessful. On March 26, 1966, the last episode of the TV series The Adventures Of Ozzie And Harriet ran , so that an important pillar of his success was no longer available. His leading role in the television production of the musical "On The Flip Side" written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David in December 1966, the soundtrack was also released as an LP, and neither did his return to a wide audience, nor did his moderation of the short-lived TV entertainment series " Malibu U. ”in the summer of 1967.

Country singer

Nelson had already recorded country songs during his rock 'n' roll time and had a few cross-over hits in the country charts, so that his turn to country music did not represent a fundamental reorientation. On May 30, 1966, the album Bright Lights And Country Music was released , which was produced by Owen Bradley in Nashville and yet did not follow the usual pattern of the Nashville sound . For the recording session, in addition to Nelson's regular band, Glen Campbell and Clarence White were engaged. In addition to an original composition and a composition by Glen Campbell, the album only contained cover songs of major country hits.

In Nelson's career, this album is seen as a transition from rock 'n' roll to country singer. Although the album was unsuccessful, appeared in April 1967 - again produced by Bradley in Nashville - the album Country Fever ; except for Walkin 'Down The Line , a composition by Bob Dylan, again a selection of country music classics. Both albums were unsuccessful, but with them Nelson created his own style of music, which can be described as the forerunner of country rock .

In 1969 Nelson formed a new band, the Stone Canyon Band , which accompanied him on recordings and touring for the next sixteen years. Randy Meisner ( Eagles , Poco ), Dennis Larden ( Every Mother's Son ), Richie Hayward ( Little Feat ) and Steve Love ( The New Riders of the Purple Sage ) played in this band at times .

He had a modest success in 1969 with the song She Belongs To Me composed by Bob Dylan . From 1969 his records appeared under the artist name Rick Nelson And The Stone Canyon Band . Nelson increasingly recorded songs he had composed himself; on Rudy The Fifth there are eight original compositions and two Dylan tracks, on the album Garden Party there are six original compositions and two more by members of the Stone Canyon Band.

His last top ten hit was Garden Party , released in July 1972. Nelson composed this song after being whistled for not being whistled at a rock 'n' roll revival concert in New York's Madison Square Garden in 1971 played his old hits but only new songs. In the lyrics, Nelson reflects on his turning away from rock 'n' roll, which is no longer up to date, and his turn to a new, individual style of music. The statement in the text culminates in the sentence that he would rather work as a bus driver than just play his old hits at some revival concerts. Garden Party reached number 6 on the US charts and Nelson received a gold record for this single.

Lack of success 1973–1985

Up until the early 1980s, Nelson released a number of records, from 1973 to 1975 with MCA (six singles), 1977 to 1979 with Epic (three singles) and 1981 to 1982 with Capitol (two singles), but only Palace Guard (1973 ) was able to place itself in the Hot 100 with position 65. From 1973 onwards, only a few new albums were released: Windfall (1974), Intakes (1977), the already recorded LPs Back To Vienna (1978) and Rockabilly Renaissance (1979) were not even released by "Epic Records". When he moved to the Capitol Records label in 1981, his album Playing To Win was released in 1981 . His last three singles came out on Capitol: It Hasn't Happened Yet (January 1981), Believe What You Say (March 1981) and Give 'Em My Number (October 1982).

During his phase as a country singer he never managed to place his records in the country charts. Because of his hippie appearance, his past as a teenage idol and his individual musical style in the seventies and eighties, he obviously did not fit into the image of the seasoned country fan. He also did not allow himself to be tied to one musical style, for example he sang the songs Life and He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother in the 1972 TV film adaptation of Fol-de-Rol dressed as a medieval bard . Due to the lack of success, he started playing his old hits again at concerts from the late 1970s. One of his last major concerts was on August 22nd, 1985, when he performed with Fats Domino, both played their rock 'n' roll hits and sang I'm Walking together for the finale .

Film actor

Nelson also played in films, the best known is probably his appearance in the western classic Rio Bravo (1959) at the side of John Wayne and Dean Martin , with which he sang the songs My Rifle, My Pony and Me and Cindy, Cindy . For his role in the film, he was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Young Actor.

In addition to Jack Lemmon , Nelson played the leading role in the comedy The Wackiest Ship In The Army (1960), which was shown in German cinemas from March 21, 1961 under the title Auf schrägem Kurs . In 1965 he starred in the comedy film Love and Kisses , directed by his father, but neither the film nor the album of the same name were successful. After his stronger focus on country music , he took on two roles in western films in which his wife Kristin Harmon also starred, The Over-The-Hill-Gang (1969) and The Resurrection of Bronco Billy (1970) with Johnny Crawford in the lead role .

In the mid-1970s he was a guest star on the television series Petrocelli and sang some of his country songs here.

Honors

He has been a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame since 1987 and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .

Private life

From 1963 to 1981 Nelson was married to Kristin Harmon, the older sister of actor Mark Harmon . The family lived on a ranch in Laurel Canyon, California, where Kristin Harmon ran an art gallery and Nelson, when the 200 or so live performances a year gave him time, devoted himself to his hobby - horse riding. Her twin sons Gunnar and Matthew Nelson are founders of the hard rock band Nelson , and their daughter Tracy Nelson is an actress.

Rick Nelson died on December 31, 1985 in a plane crash in De Kalb, Texas on his way from Alabama to a gig in Dallas . With him his girlfriend Helen Blair and all members of the Stone Canyon Band perished. During the official investigation into the accident, traces of drugs were found in the blood of Nelson and four of his band members, and cocaine and residues of a strong painkiller in Nelson. He was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood .

Discography

Albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		US
1957	Ricky	US1 (33 weeks) US
1958	Ricky Nelson	US7 (9 weeks) US
1959	Ricky Sings Again	US14 (19 weeks) US
	Songs By Ricky	US22 (26 weeks) US
1960	More Songs By Ricky	US18 (22 weeks) US
1961	Rick Is 21	US8 (49 weeks) US
	Album Seven By Rick	US27 (20 weeks) US
1962	Best Sellers by Rick Nelson	US112 (4 weeks) US	Best of album
	It's up to you	US128 (5 weeks) US	compilation
1963	For your sweet love	US20 (19 weeks) US
1964	Rick Nelson Sings "For You"	US14 (22 weeks) US
1970	In concert	US54 (19 weeks) US	Recorded live at the Troubador Club in Los Angeles
1972	Garden party	US32 (18 weeks) US	as Rick Nelson & the Stone Canyon Band
1974	Windfall	US190 (4 weeks) US	as Rick Nelson & the Stone Canyon Band
1981	Playing to Win	US153 (6 weeks) US
2005	Greatest hits	US56 (18 weeks) US

More albums

• 1962: Million Sellers
• 1962: A Long Vacation
• 1964: The Very Thought of You
• 1965: Spotlight on Rick
• 1965: Best Always
• 1965: Love and Kisses
• 1966: Bright Lights and Country Music
• 1966: On the Flip Side
• 1967: Another Side of Rick Nelson
• 1967: Country Fever
• 1968: Perspective
• 1970: Rick Sings Nelson
• 1971: Rudy The Fifth
• 1977: Intakes
• 1978: Return to Vienna
• 1985: All My Best
• 1986: The Memphis Sessions
• 1989: Lonesome Town
• 1991: Best Of (US:gold)
• 2007: Ricky Rocks

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)			Remarks
		DE	UK	US
1957	I'm walking teen time	-	-	US17 (17 weeks) US
	A Teenager's Romance Teen Time	-	-	US8 (19 weeks) US
	You're My One And Only Love Teen Time	-	-	US16 (12 weeks) US
	Be-Bop Baby Ricky	-	-	US5 (20 weeks) US
	Have I Told You Lately That I Love You Ricky	-	-	US29 (9 weeks) US
1958	Waitin 'In School Best Sellers by Rick Nelson	-	-	US18 (14 weeks) US
	Stood Up Best Sellers by Rick Nelson	-	UK27 (2 weeks) UK	US5 (18 weeks) US
	My Bucket's Got A Hole In It	-	-	US18 (12 weeks) US
	Believe What You Say Ricky Sings Again	-	-	US8 (12 weeks) US
	Poor Little Fool Ricky Nelson	-	UK4 (14 weeks) UK	US1 (15 weeks) US
	I got a feeling	-	UK27 (1 week) UK	US10 (17 weeks) US
	Lonesome Town Ricky Sings Again	-	-	US7 (18 weeks) US
	Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You) Ricky Nelson	-	UK9 (13 weeks) UK	-
1959	Never Be Anyone Else But You Ricky Sings Again	-	UK14 (10 weeks) UK	US6 (16 weeks) US
	It's Late Ricky Sings Again	-	UK3 (20 weeks) UK	US9 (13 weeks) US
	Just A Little Too Much Songs By Ricky	-	UK11 (8 weeks) UK	US9 (13 weeks) US
	Sweeter Than You Songs By Ricky	-	UK19 (3 weeks) UK	US9 (12 weeks) US
	Mighty Good Songs By Ricky	-	-	US38 (9 weeks) US
	I Wanna Be Loved Million Sellers	-	UK30 (1 week) UK	US20 (11 weeks) US
1960	Young Emotions Million Sellers	-	UK48 (1 week) UK	US12 (13 weeks) US
	Right By My Side Million Sellers	-	-	US59 (6 weeks) US
	I'm Not Afraid More Songs By Ricky	-	-	US27 (8 weeks) US
	Yes Sir, That's My Baby Million Sellers	-	-	US34 (6 weeks) US
	You Are The Only One Million Sellers	-	-	US25 (8 weeks) US
1961	Milk Cow Blues Million Sellers	-	-	US79 (3 weeks) US
	Travelin 'Man Rick Is 21	DE29 (8 weeks) DE	UK2 (18 weeks) UK	US1 gold (16 weeks)US
	Hello Mary-Lou Rick Is 21	DE2 (28 weeks) DE	UK2 (18 weeks) UK	US9 (15 weeks) US
	Everlovin '	-	UK23 (5 weeks) UK	US16 (10 weeks) US
	A Wonder Like You	-	-	US11 (11 weeks) US
1962	Young World	-	UK19 (13 weeks) UK	US5 (13 weeks) US
	Summertime album Seven By Rick	-	-	US89 (2 weeks) US
	Teenage Idol	-	UK39 (4 weeks) UK	US5 (11 weeks) US
	It's Up To You It's Up To You	-	UK22 (9 weeks) UK	US6 (12 weeks) US
	I need you it's up to you	-	-	US83 (4 weeks) US
1963	I'm In Love Again Best Sellers by Rick Nelson	-	-	US67 (6 weeks) US
	That's All Songs By Ricky	-	-	US48 (6 weeks) US
	You Don't Love Me Anymore (And I Can Tell) For Your Sweet Love	-	-	US47 (7 weeks) US
	I Got A Woman For Your Sweet Love	-	-	US49 (6 weeks) US
	If you can't rock me it's up to you	-	-	US100 (1 week) US
	Old Enough To Love Ricky Sings Again	-	-	US94 (3 weeks) US
	Gypsy Woman For Your Sweet Love	-	-	US62 (9 weeks) US
	String Along For Your Sweet Love	-	-	US25 (9 weeks) US
	Fools Rush In Rick Nelson Sings "For You"	-	UK12 (9 weeks) UK	US12 (13 weeks) US
	Today's Teardrops album Seven By Rick	-	-	US54 (9 weeks) US
	For You Rick Nelson Sings "For You"	-	UK14 (10 weeks) UK	US6 (11 weeks) US
1964	Congratulations album Seven By Rick	-	-	US63 (5 weeks) US
	The Very Thought Of You The Very Thought Of You	-	-	US26 (7 weeks) US
	There's Nothing I Can Say	-	-	US47 (6 weeks) US
	A Happy Guy Spotlight On Rick	-	-	US82 (4 weeks) US
1965	Mean Old World Best Always	-	-	US96 (2 weeks) US
1969	She Belongs To Me Rick Nelson In Concert	-	-	US33 (18 weeks) US
1970	Easy To Be Free Rick Nelson In Concert	-	-	US48 (6 weeks) US
1972	Garden Party Garden Party	-	UK41 (4 weeks) UK	US6th gold (19 weeks)US	with The Stone Canyon Band
1973	Palace Guard Garden Party	-	-	US65 (5 weeks) US

More singles

• 1962: Mad, Mad World
• 1962: I've Got My Eyes on You (And I Like What I See)
• 1963: A Long Vacation
• 1963: There's Not a Minute
• 1963: Down Home
• 1964: Lucky Star
• 1964: Lonely Corner
• 1964: Don't Breathe a Word
• 1965: Come Out Dancing
• 1965: Love and Kisses
• 1966: Fire Breathin 'Dragon
• 1966: You Just Can't Quit
• 1966: Things You Gave Me
• 1967: They Don't Give Medals (To Yesterday's Heroes)
• 1967: Take a City Bride
• 1968: Suzanne On A Sunday Morning
• 1968: Dream Weaver
• 1969: Don't Blame It on Your Wife
• 1969: Don't Make Promises
• 1970: I Shall Be Released
• 1970: We Got Such A Long Way To Go
• 1971: How Long
• 1971: Life
• 1972: Thank You Lord
• 1972: Gypsy Pilot
• 1973: Lifestream
• 1974: windfall
• 1974: One Night Stand
• 1975: Try (Try to Fall in Love)
• 1975: Rock and Roll Lady
• 1977: You Can't Dance
• 1978: Gimme a Little Sign
• 1979: Dream Lover
• 1979: It Hasn't Happened Yet
• 1979: Believe What You Say
• 1979: Give 'em My Number
• 1979: You Know What I Mean

Video albums

• 2006: Ricky Nelson Songs (US:gold)

Filmography (selection)

• 1952: Here Come the Nelsons
• 1952–1966: The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet (TV series, 433 episodes)
• 1953: was it great love? (The Story of Three Loves)
• 1959: Rio Bravo
• 1960: On a sloping course (The Wackiest Ship in the Army)
• 1969: The Over-the-Hill Gang (TV movie)
• 1972: A Sheriff in New York ( McCloud ; TV series, 1 episode)
• 1972/1974: Owen Marshall - Defense Attorney ( Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law ; TV series, 2 episodes)
• 1973: The Streets of San Francisco ( The Streets of San Francisco ; TV Series, 1 episode)
• 1974: Petrocelli (TV series, 1 episode)
• 1978: Love Boat (TV series, 1 episode)

literature

• Bashe, Philip: Teenage Idol, Travelin 'Man: The Complete Biography of Rick Nelson . New York: Hyperion, 1992. ISBN 1-56282-969-6 .
• Fresh, Jamie: Mulholland Days And Nights. The True Inside Story Of Rick Nelson . Beverly Hills, CA: Fresh Pub., 2002. ISBN 0-9710617-0-X .
• Selvin, Joel: Ricky Nelson. Idol For A Generation . Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1990 (XIII + 331 pages, illustrated, large format). ISBN 0-8092-4187-0 .

Web links

Commons : Ricky Nelson  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Ricky Nelson
• Ricky Nelson in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Ricky Nelson at Rock'n'Roll AG
• Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Individual evidence

1. ^ Joel Whitburn: Top Pop Singles 1955-1993. Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls / Wisconsin 1994, p. 424
2. ↑ Shestack, Melvin: The Country Music Encyclopedia. Omnibus Press, London / New York / Sidney 1977, pp. 174f. In the April 10, 1957 show entitled Ricky, The Drummer , Nelson performed the song I'm Walkin - in a tuxedo with a bow tie and an expressionless face.
3. ^ Charlie Gillett: The Sound Of The City. The history of rock music . German by Teja Schwaner. Zweiausendeins Verlag, Frankfurt / Main 1979, p. 125
4. ^ Christian Graf: Rockmusic Lexicon. America, Vol. 2 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 709.
5. ^ Greg Shaw: The Teen Idols . In: Jim Miller (Ed.): The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll . Random House, New York 1976, pp. 96-101
6. ↑ On Poor Little Fool, see Bronson, Fred: The Billboard Book of Number One Hits . 3rd revised and expanded edition. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications, 1992, p. 40
7. ^ Bronson, Fred: The Billboard Book of Number One Hits . 3rd revised and expanded edition. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications, 1992, p. 90
8. ^ Joel Whitburn: Top Pop Singles 1955-1993. Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls / Wisconsin 1994, pp. 424f.
9. ↑ Stephen Nugent / Annie Fowler / Pete Fowler: Chart Log Of American / British Top 20 Hits 1955-1974 . In: Charlie Gillett / Simon Frith (eds.): Rock File 4 . Panther Books, Frogmore 1976, pp. 256f.
10. ^ Günter Ehnert (Ed.): Hit balance sheet. German chart singles 1956 to 1980 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1990, p. 150
11. ↑ Kent Demaret: Rick Nelson 1940-1985 . In: People, January 20, 1986
12. ^ Christian Graf: Rockmusic Lexicon. America, Vol. 2 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 709
13. ^ Christian Graf: Rock Lexicon. America. Vol. 2 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 710
14. ↑ Rudy The Fifth 1971 (Decca 75297) LP cover
15. ↑ The album reached number 27 on the US LP charts. Günter Ehnert: US Chart LPs 1964 - 1982 Taurus Press, Hamburg 1990, p. 155
16. ↑ Garden Party 1972 (Decca 75391) LP cover, there also the handwritten draft of the text for the title song.
17. ^ Christian Graf: Rockmusic Lexicon. America, Vol. 2 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 710
18. ^ Joel Whitburn: Top Pop Singles 1955 - 1993. Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls / Wisconsin 1994, p. 425 and Frank Laufenberg / Ingrid Hake: Rock and Pop Lexicon. Vol. 2, Econ Verlag, Düsseldorf / Vienna 1994, p. 1081; deviating from this, Günter Ehnert (ed.) noted: Hit Guide. US Chart Singles 1971 - 1980. Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 136. 4th place
19. ^ Joel Whitburn: Top Pop Singles 1955-1993. Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls / Wisconsin 1994, p. 425; also here different Günter Ehnert (Ed.): Hit Guide. US Chart Singles 1971 - 1980. Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 150, with place 85
20. ↑ Stephen Holden : Nelson Is Back, Leading Five-Piece Band . In: New York Times, February 27, 1981.
21. ↑ cf. Joe Hembus: Western Lexicon. 1324 films from 1894-1978. Heyne Verlag, Munich 1978, pp. 479-483
22. ↑ Melvin Shestack: The Country Music Encyclopedia . Omnibus Press, London / New York / Sydney 1977, p. 175
23. ↑ For a detailed description of the crash and the circumstances, see Rick Everitt: Falling Stars. Air Crashes That Filled Rock And Roll Heaven . Augusta / Georgia: Harbor House Books, 2004, pp. 102–119
24. ^ Christian Graf: Rockmusic Lexicon. America, Vol. 2 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1989, p. 710
25. ^ New York Times, February 5, 1986
26. ↑ knerger.de: The grave of Ricky Nelson
27. ↑ Description of the funeral services in: Kent Demaret: Rick Nelson 1940 - 1985 , in: People from January 20, 1986
28. ↑ ^{a b} Chart sources: DE UK US singles before 1958
29. ^ The Billboard Albums by Joel Whitburn , 6th Edition, Record Research 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7