He had a lot of hits like this one.
But my favorite song of his was his last big hit, in 1972:
The acoustics on this are terrible, and this was recorded in 1985, thirteen years after the hit came out, but you can still hear the feeling in his voice. This is one of the few songs that really reached out to me as a teenager and as I got older I adopted more and more of the “If you can’t please everyone, you got to please yourself” philosophy. My understanding is that this song was the result of Ricky Nelson appearing at a star-studded concert at Madison Square Garden, a concert that included John Lennon (the Walrus), George Harrison (who was working on an album covering Dylan’s songs), Chuck Berry and a slew of others. Ricky sang some of his big 60s teen idol hits like “Mary Lou” and “Travelin’ Man” but then he turned to songs he was working on that were a fusion of country and rock, as he started his first of those songs, the fans began booing and he left the stage. That experience led to this song. Some who were there say that Ricky misunderstood the booing which was targeted at police who were pushing fans back from the stage, but whatever the reason, it left a mark on Ricky’s psyche.
There aren’t a lot of songs that I just want to sit back, close my eyes and listen to, but both of these Ricky Nelson songs fit that category. Ricky Nelson was a major talent, with a beautiful voice, but like many, if not most, teenage idols, he never managed to escape his past.
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Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackHA! Cosmic, two of my own personal favorites.
Weird, huh? In the first video you’ll see James Burton on guitar.
When I watched the second one, I knew immediately what you were saying.
Well, maybe I’m just saying what I think you meant…
Ricky Nelson was GOOD! I mean, GOOOOOOOOOOD! The guy had music built inside him, and a complex heart/soul/whatever.
He ended up being one of those guys that could not really let it shine (even though he tried) because of the general public’s preconceived notions. It’s a darned shame in a way. I think about guys like him…guys with so much to give. Kinda like Max Baer Jr. (a guy trapped in the Jethro stereotype), or Jim Nabors, or even gals like Farrah. (Maybe a bad example…)
They truly were trapped by how they were perceived by the general public.
I think one of the most often overlooked guys with a great voice, and truly under-appreciated talent was David Cassidy. (Don’t throw things at me, please)
The guy was very much like Rick Nelson…talented as all get out…really had a song in his heart. But so misrepresented, that he was misunderstood.
Sheesh! That comment made ZERO sense.
You’re welcome!
Garden Party…one of my favorites. Nelson is yet another reason why musicians should stay the heck out of flying vehicles…
Dadman…Yep! Nelson, Croce, Patsy, Buddy, my own kinfolk “The Gentleman”…
Airplanes and talent just don’t seem to mix well.
Well, at least in Nelson’s case it wasn’t at the height of his career, or the birth of his legend. The world lost a lot of beauty when Croce and Holly went down.
He was in Rio Bravo with John Wayne and Dean Martin. Oh, and Angie Dickinson.
He won a Golden Globe as “most promising male newcomer” for his role in Rio Bravo. I am a big fan of that movie and I think Ricky Nelson was an excellent casting choice. He and Dean Martin have a short duet in the movie.
His life is a sort of morality tale in a way. He was multi-talented, a natural musician with a near perfect tenor and a face that was compared favorably to Elvis himself. When Elvis joined the army it was Ricky Nelson, more than anyone else, who kept rock and roll alive. He had more hit songs on the charts for several years in the fifties and sixties than anyone but Elvis and Pat Boone (yes, Pat Boone).
The story is that Ricky Nelson was the first celebrity to be called a “teen idol” having that sobriquet adorning his Life magazine cover photo.
He could have done anything he wanted to, but he never got over the “teen idol” phase. His reluctance to act was in part due to his memories of acting all his childhood. Plus there are numerous credible reports that he let drugs take over his life. It’s hard to say anyone who did so much in his life “wasted” his life, but he truly did waste way too much of it.
One final comment on the late, lamented Eric (Ricky) Nelson. Ricky was the #5 ranked tennis player in California while in high school and for a while pursued the notion of a professional tennis career. He was the quarterback of his high school football team in the midst of his global superstardom. Just think of what that meant to opposing defensive linemen, linebackers and safeties. Man, it’s amazing he survived. His team went 6-2 that year.
He also was arrested twice for attacking passersby with a group of hoodlums and once sucker-punched a cop and narrowly avoided going to jail.
Isn’t the internet amazing?
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