US Top Forty Hits of 1960 with One Word Titles Quiz

Answer: The Fireballs

The Fireballs formed in Raton, New Mexico. They began as an instrumental group with George Tomsco on lead guitar. The group began recording at Norman Petty's studio in Clovis, New Mexico, the studio made famous by Buddy Holly. The group took their name from Jerry Lee Lewis' song, "Great Balls of Fire". They charted successful hits including "Torquay" in 1959, "Bulldog" the following year and "Quite a Party" in 1961.
They later added a singer and as Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs the group topped the US charts for five weeks in 1963 with "Sugar Shack".

"Beatnik Fly" by Johnny and The Hurricanes reached Number 15 in 1960. Bill Black's Combo scored a Number 18 hit with their version of "Josephine" and "Ooh Poo Pah Doo (Part 2)" was a Number 28 single by Jessie Hill in 1960.

Answer: Togetherness

Before he began making Beach Blanket themed films with Annette, Francis Thomas Avallone was playing trumpet on local television shows by the age of 12. In 1954 he released "Trumpet Sorrento" on the X label. Three years later he released his first Top Ten US hit, "De De Dinah". In 1959 "Why" became his first US Number One single. "Togetherness" became his 11th and final Top Forty single.
Avalon began his acting career in 1957, appearing in "Jamboree". In addition to the Beach themed movies he had serious parts in films such as "The Alamo" (1960), "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" (1961) and "Drums of Africa" (1963).

"Footsteps" was a Top Ten single for Steve Lawrence in 1960. Fabian scored a big hit with "Tiger" in 1959. Brook Benton released "Endlessly" in 1959.

Answer: Ruby

Although Ray Charles had realized success on the Rhythm and Blues charts, his first US Top Forty single was "Swanee River Rock" in 1957. By 1959 he had broken the US Top Ten with "What'd I Say" before switching from Atlantic Records to ABC Paramount. Ray finally topped the US charts in 1960 with "Georgia on My Mind", charted the Number 26 "Ruby" and made it to Number 40 with "Sticks and Stones".
In 1961 he topped the charts again with "Hit the Road Jack" and went on to have an incredible career with Country, Pop, Jazz and Rhythm and Blues genres.

Bobby Darin took his rendition of "Clementine" to Number 21 in 1960. "Donna" was a 1959 hit by Ritchie Valens. The Everly Brothers took their version of Little Richard's hit, "Lucille", to Number 21 in 1960.

Answer: Larry Hall

Larry Hall's appearance on "American Bandstand" in late 1959 helped propel "Sandy" into the US Top Twenty. He briefly became popular and dated a number of female singers. He married in 1961 and settled in Oregon. He never scored another US Top Forty hit but sang in local clubs, frequently joined by his brother Gene. Larry owned and operated a 120-acre farm and performed throughout Oregon until his death in 1997.

"Money (That's What I Want)" was Barrett Strong's only US Top Forty hit. Buster Brown charted his only hit, "Fannie Mae", in 1960. Billy Bland's biggest success was the 1960 release "Let the Little Girl Dance".

Answer: Night

"Night" by Jackie Wilson reached Number Four in 1960. His only previous US Top Ten hit was "Lonely Teardrops" in 1958. In addition to making the Top Ten with "Night" he also released the Number Eight single "Alone At Last" in 1960. He scored more Top Ten hits until he collapsed on stage in 1975 while singing "Lonely Teardrops" as part of the lineup in Dick Clark's "Good Ol' Rock and Roll Revue" show. He never regained his ability to perform again and passed away in 1984.

"Enchanted" was released by The Platters in 1959. "Tragedy" was released the same year by Thomas Wayne and "When" was released by The Kalin Twins.

Answer: Bobby Rydell

Bobby Rydell first hit the US Top Ten in 1959 with the Number Eight "We Got Love". The following year was successful for Bobby when he almost topped the charts with the Number Two "Wild One", the Number Four "Volare", the Number Five single "Swingin' School" and "Sway". "Sway" was a remake of a 1953 Mambo recording by Brazilian artist Pablo Beltran Ruiz. Dean Martin released the first English rendition the following year and Bobby Rydell released his rendition in 1960.

Norman Gimbel wrote the English lyrics for Dean Martin's version. Michael Buble and The Pussycat Dolls also released versions of "Sway" in 2004. Over 20 artists have released renditions of the song internationally.
Chubby Checker released "The Twist" in 1960. Major Lance had a 1963 dance hit with "The Monkey Time" and Marvin Gaye's 1963 dance hit was "Hitch Hike".

Answer: True

Maurice Williams composed "Stay" in 1953 when he was a teenager. By 1960 he had formed a group calling themselves The Zodiacs and they recorded a demo of the song. The band's manager shopped the song around and New York's Herald Records expressed interest but wanted a better version recorded. The reworked version entered the US Billboard 100 in October and by the following month it topped the charts. After being at the top for only a week it was replaced by Elvis' "Are You Lonesome Tonight?".
In 1964 The Four Seasons released a Top Twenty version of "Stay". Jackson Brown released a popular version in 1977.
"Stay" was featured on the soundtrack of the 1987 film, "Dirty Dancing", giving it a resurgence in popularity. "Stay" has sold over 8,000,000 copies.

Answer: The Fleetwoods

The Fleetwoods formed when three high school students from Olympia, Washington, combined their singing and songwriting skills and began singing at high school functions. They got a deal with Dolphin Records to record their composition "Come Softly To Me". The trio of two girls and a boy recorded "Come Softly to Me" acapella and the tracks were sent to a Los Angeles studio where bass and guitar tracks were added. When it was released it shot to the top of the US charts.
When "Mr. Blue" topped the charts later the same year The Fleetwoods became the first group to have more than One Number One Hit top The Billboard Pop charts in a year.

The Little Dippers had US Top Ten chart success with "Forever" in 1960. "Barbara" was a Number 29 single by the New York based Doo-Wop group The Temptations the same year. In 1959 The Bell Notes released "I've Had It".

Answer: Connie Francis

"Mama" was recorded by Connie Francis at London's Abbey Road Studios in 1959 for an album of Italian tunes titled "Connie Francis sings Italian Favorites". Connie already had chart success with "Stupid Cupid" and "Who's Sorry Now".
When "Connie Francis sings Italian Favorites" was released it reached Number Eight on the US album charts. The album was the first of several albums recorded by Connie of Irish, Jewish and German tunes over the next three years while she continued to chart Pop hits including "Breakin' in a Brand New Broken Heart" and "Where the Boys Are".

"Emotion" was a 1960 single by Brenda Lee. "(I Can't Help You) I'm Falling Too" by Skeeter Davis barely made the Top Forty at Number 39. "In My Little Corner of the World" was a 1960 Top ten single from Anita Bryant.

Answer: The Famous Flames

The Flames originally formed in Georgia in 1953 as a Gospel group. After seeing a performance in 1955 Little Richard's agent suggested they add "Famous" to their name. James Brown joined the band and after the release of "Please, Please, Please" in 1955 Brown emerged as the group's front man and the group changed their format to Rhythm and Blues. The Famous Flames worked out tight harmonies and choreography to back Brown's energetic performing.
In 1960 "Think" became Brown's first US Top Forty single.

"Daddy's Home" was a 1961 hit by Shep and The Limeliters. "A Little Bit of Soap" was released by The Jarmels the same year. "How Sweet It Is (To be Loved by You)" was done by Jr. Walker and The All Stars in 1966.