Tom Jones performing on the British television series “The Beat Room” on October 5, 1964
THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
Man, this song gives me chills and fever. Ronald Dunbar (“Ronnie Love”) released the original version as a soul A-side at the end of ’60, then two scintillating Tom Jones covers were released (including Jones’ first ever A-side in ’64), and then Fort Wayne, Indiana’s Serfmen released a cool garage rock cover in ’65. Chills and fever three ways, it’s making me delirious!
1,690) Ronnie Love — “Chills and Fever”
Ronald Dunbar (as “Ronnie Love & His Orchestra”) released the original version in December ’60. His only charting song as a performer, it reached #15 on the R&B charts and #72 on Billboard (https://www.musicvf.com/Ronnie+Love.songs#gsc.tab=0), was a big hit in Chicago (#5 on WLS) (MrPedantic, https://www.45cat.com/record/4516144), and was a “[b]ig hit in the teen dance clubs in Pittsburgh back in the 60’s”. (davidoswald5293, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NNb-mhWJfE) Dwightwest6358 writes “Are you kidding me?? Tom Jones?? I am Welsh but the Ronnie Love/Dove New Orleans R&B is Freakin Killer!!! Can’t sit still when it’s on!! I do get Chills, without the Fever!!!!”(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NNb-mhWJfE)
“Chills” was written by Bobby Rackep and Billy Ness. Mickey Rat explains that:
Bobby Rackep was a pseudonym of one Herman Peckar (name reversed) and Billy Ness was a pseudonym of Eddie Mesner (current BMI database renames him Billy Ross). The music publisher was Hermes (probably derived from Herman and Mesner). The record first came out on Startime 5001 as by Johnny Love. Startime was a Los Angeles label started by Eddie and Leo Mesner after their Aladdin label fell in a heap. The Mesners leased the record to Dot.
Dunbar “received a 1970 Grammy award for R&B songwriting as the co-writer (with General Johnson) of ‘Patches’ – recorded by Chairmen of the Board (B-side) and Clarence Carter (#2 [R&B] hit).” (Noomz-of-Earl, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw2yQz9N_BQ) Daniel Slotnick writes:
Mr. Dunbar started working with Berry Gordy soon after Mr. Gordy founded Motown Records in 1959. He worked closely with the production and songwriting team of Lamont Dozier and the brothers Brian and Eddie Holland, better known as Holland-Dozier-Holland, and he received more recognition after he left Motown with them in the late 1960s. At Holland-Dozier-Holland Productions, Mr. Dunbar worked with artists as an executive and was credited with writing several hits released on the company’s Invictus label. He and Edythe Wayne . . . were listed as the writers of “Give Me Just a Little More Time,” a plaintive but upbeat single by Chairmen of the Board, and on Freda Payne’s [see #794] “Band of Gold,” a tale of marital desertion, both of which reached No. 3 on the Billboard singles chart in 1970. Because the Holland brothers and Mr. Dozier were involved in a legal dispute with Motown at the time, they were unable to release recordings on which they were credited by name. Edythe Wayne is widely acknowledged to have been a pseudonym the three used, and Mr. Dozier has cast doubt on Mr. Dunbar’s involvement with the songs. Mr. Dunbar shared a songwriting Grammy with General Johnson, Chairmen of the Board’s lead singer, for best rhythm-and-blues song in 1971, for the hit “Patches,” a rustic lament sung by the blues and soul singer Clarence Carter [see #296, 1,652]. The song, about an impoverished young farmer struggling to care for his family after his father dies, became a crossover hit, reaching No. 4 on the Billboard pop chart in 1970. After Invictus went out of business in the late 1970s, Mr. Dunbar became an artist and repertoire director for George Clinton’s expansive roster of funk musicians. He was one of the credited writers of the Parliament [see #249, 308, 723, 1,080] song “Agony of DeFeet” (1980) and the Brides of Funkenstein song “Never Buy Texas From a Cowboy” (1979). He continued working with Mr. Clinton off and on, and in the late 1990s he came full circle, working for Eddie Holland at Holland Group Productions.
Here’s a list of Dunbar’s charting songs: https://www.musicvf.com/songs.php?page=artist&artist=Ronald+Dunbar&tab=songaswriterchartstab#gsc.tab=0.
Here it is on the Startime label (by “Johnny Love”):
Here it is on the Dot label (by “Ronnie Love”):
1,691) Tom Jones — “Chills and Fever”
Tom Jones (see #330, 380) had two versions of the song. The first recording was produced by “Joe Meek . . . made in 1963, when [Jones] was still called Tommy Scott & The Senators, but not released until 1965 by which time Tom Jones had already released his 1964 re-recording of this with Decca.” (Buzzer365, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Chh7wz5bO-k)
The Decca version is “a great cover with girls backing, the energy in his performance is a joy, clearly he put the meters into the red a few times. Powerful voice.” (teabiscuit, https://www.45cat.com/record/f11966) I prefer the Decca version, but it is Jones’ “Beat Room” performance which has the impact of an A-bomb. Talk about A-Tom-Ic Jones!
(https://www.discogs.com/release/3661894-Tom-Jones-A-Tom-Ic-Jones/image/SW1hZ2U6Mjc5NTIzMjY=)
Noomz-of-Earl explains:
In 1964, Tom Jones’s first record was a startlingly strong R&B-rocking cover version . . . which represented exactly the type of young recording artist he wanted to be. Unfortunately the record didn’t sell in acceptable numbers on either side of the Pond [though it did reach #125 in the U.S.], putting him in a position whereby he had no choice (not wanting to return home to Wales and give up the dream of being a recording artist) but to record the pop tune he was offered: “It’s Not Unusual.” It went straight to #1 in the UK and Top Ten in the US , propelling him down the path of major pop stardom.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine adds:
Born Thomas John Woodward in Wales, Jones began singing professionally in 1963, performing as Tommy Scott with Senators, a Welsh beat group. In 1964, he recorded a handful of solo tracks with record producer Joe Meek and shopped them to various record companies to little success. Later in the year, Decca producer Peter Sullivan discovered Tommy Scott performing in a club and directed him to manager Phil Solomon. It was a short-lived partnership and the singer soon moved back to Wales, where he continued to sing in local clubs. At one of the shows, he gained the attention of former Viscounts singer Gordon Mills, who had become an artist manager. Mills signed Scott, renamed him Tom Jones, and helped him record his first single for Decca, “Chills and Fever,” which was released in late 1964. The track didn’t chart, but “It’s Not Unusual,” released in early 1965, became a number one hit in the U.K. and a Top Ten hit in the U.S.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-jones-mn0000609396#biography
Here is the Joe Meek version:
Here is the Decca version:
Here is another live version, from ’66:
1,692) The Serfmen — “Chills and Fever”
Fort Wayne, Indiana’s Serfmen released this cool garage take on the song in ’65. “[T]he vocals are totally gnarly!” (CydnotCharrise1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tjy3dMs0NLw) Indeed — it sounds like Dr. John [see #177] to me!
The Serfmen later became the Olivers and the Triad. (Discogs, https://www.discogs.com/artist/356107-The-Olivers?redirected=true) Ankimo1957 writes that “I was at this recording session when I was 8 years old. My dad is Al Russell, and it was recorded in his studio at WGL radio in Fort Wayne, IN.” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tjy3dMs0NLw)
Here are other cool versions:
Jet Harris (’62):
Allen Wayne (’65):
Samantha Fish (’17):
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