Fact #152633
When:
Short story:
Tennessee Ernie Ford records Sixteen Tons and You Don't Have To Be A Baby To Cry in Capitol Records' Studios, Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Full article:
Country legend Merle Travis wrote 16 Tons as a commission from Capitol Records who wanted an album of contemporary folk tunes. Travis soon found himself in deep trouble with the prevailing anti-communist hierarchy in the US who regarded songs about workers' rights as subversive. When the massively popular Ernie Ford featured it in 1955 on his tv show, response was such that he released it as a single which become the fastest-seller in Capitol's history. It works because it's simple, memorable and as powerfully real as anything written thirty years later by Springsteen. The poignant b-side provided a major 1963 hit for The Caravelles.
(Source : Johnny Black, Mojo, 2002)
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(Source : Johnny Black, Mojo, 2002)