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June 13, 2020 6:49 pm  #1


Meanwhile, back on the charts......

...I've always been fascinated by the foreign language recordings that were big hits in the USA.  Having been a DJ back then, I played and charted several of them.  Limiting my research to Top 20 hits in the period of 1954 - 1970 I remember these.  Add on if I missed the ones you know....
Dominique--Singing Nun (#1)
Sukiyaki--Kyu Sakamoto (#1)
Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare)--Domenico Modugno (#1)
Al Di La--Emilio Pericoli (#6)
La Bamba--Ritchie Valens (#22)
Sailor (Your Home Is The Sea)--Lolita (#5)
El Watusi--Ray Barretto (#17)
(As listed in Billboard)

 

Last edited by Jim Southern (June 13, 2020 6:50 pm)

 

June 14, 2020 6:24 am  #2


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

Morgen -  Ivo Robic
 

 

June 14, 2020 7:07 am  #3


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

Even though "Love Is Blue" by Claudine Longet didn't reach the top 20, I'm going to add it.  If I'm not mistaken, critics and listeners didn't have a lot of nice things to say about it.  I always thought it was quite pretty.

 

June 14, 2020 7:21 am  #4


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

Eres Tu by Mocedades was always a favorite of mine. 

 

June 14, 2020 3:23 pm  #5


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

It's me Karen wrote:

Even though "Love Is Blue" by Claudine Longet didn't reach the top 20, I'm going to add it.  If I'm not mistaken, critics and listeners didn't have a lot of nice things to say about it.  I always thought it was quite pretty.

I couldn't agree with you more. Karen.  I was quite taken aback by her smooth, delicate interpretation of that music despite what the critics say.  It was her best on the Hot 100, only charting #71 just about 6 weeks after Paul Mauriat maxed the charts with the same song except his was an instrumental expression. 

 

June 15, 2020 3:16 pm  #6


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

Here's an odd offshoot of this thread - songs that were recorded by the original artists in a different language to serve other parts of the world.

A few that come to mind: 
 
Por Amor Viviremos (aka Love Will Keep Us Together) by the Captain & Tennille (and yes, "Sedaka Is Back" still gets mentioned in English in the unchanged backing track at the end.)

Sister Golden Hair, a version en Espanol by America

And of course probably the two most famous of all:

Sie Liebt Dich and Komm gib mir deine Hand by a few unknowns from Hamburg called The Beatles. If I recall correctly, they were so hot in 1964 that both versions, in English and German, made the charts.

I'm not sure how many other groups simultaneously charted in two different languages at the same time, but there can't be many.

Last edited by aflem (June 15, 2020 3:18 pm)

 

June 15, 2020 3:27 pm  #7


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

I remember hearing both 99 Luftballons and 99 Red Balloons by Nena at the same time on the radio in the Toronto area, and both versions appeared on the version of the 99 Luftballons album that was released here.

 

June 17, 2020 2:38 pm  #8


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

I thought of 99 Luftballons the other day but by the time I got back, Lorne had already posted it so I had to dig deep to remember a couple more.  If you don’t like my picks, it’s Lorne’s fault I had to go there.
 
 
Julus La Rosa - Eh Cumpari
 
And for half credit (because the second half is in English), Lou Monte - Lazy Mary

 

June 17, 2020 8:35 pm  #9


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

It doesn’t fit the time frame but baby boomers can’t forget Ricky Ricardo’s Babalu.
 
A partial foreign language that doesn’t fit in the time frame either, Perry Como ... Chi-baba, Chi-baba (My Babmbino Go To Sleep).
 
My father grew up on a farm.  He and most of his brothers and the one sister had married and moved off the farm.  Some of the family were visiting the farm one day and they ran out of milk so they went out to milk the cow.  A few tried but nobody could get the cow to give milk. Later my uncle John came home and went out and milked the cow.  According to him, the cow wouldn’t give milk without singing Chi-baba, Chi-baba.

 

June 18, 2020 7:03 pm  #10


Re: Meanwhile, back on the charts......

"Soul Makossa" Manu Dibango (#35 in 1973)

 

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