John1948Eleven32's video: Ronnie Self - Flame Of Love

Why Ronnie Self never made it as a performer is one of the great mysteries and injustices of pop music history. He had the look and the sound -- a mix of country, rockabilly, and R&B that sometimes made him sound like a white Little Richard, but mostly like the young Elvis or Carl Perkins -- and he wasn't lacking for good songs, which he mostly wrote himself. He should have been there, thought of in the same breath as Perkins or Jerry Lee Lewis; instead, he's a footnote in rock & roll history outside of Europe, where he's treated as a legend. Ronnie Self (July 5, 1938 -- August 28, 1981) was a United States rockabilly singer and songwriter. His solo career was unsuccessful, despite being signed to contracts with Columbia and then Decca from the late 1950s through the early 1960s. His only charted single was "Bop-A-Lena"; recorded in 1957 and released in 1958, it reached on the Billboard charts. His boastful country anthem "Ain't I'm a Dog" was a regional hit in the South, but failed to score nationally. Rumoured to be the first Rock N Roll singer signed to Columbia despite the objections of the Columbia A&R performer Mitch Miller. A talented performer and songwriter, Self's career was blighted by his severe alcoholism and erratic behavior, including incidents of violence. However, Brenda Lee's cover of his songs "I'm Sorry" and "Sweet Nothin's" became major pop classics and his country gospel song "Ain't That Beautiful Singing", recorded by Jake Hess, was awarded a Grammy for Best Sacred Performance in 1969. He died in Springfield, Missouri. ~SOURCE ArtistDirect and Wikipedia PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads among multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your browser for instant access to an index with links to all of John1948's oldies classics. LINK: http://john1948.wikifoundry.com/page/John1948%27s+Youtube+Index