Potpourri topics – In other words a whole bunch of unrelated stuff!

Having journeyed last week to the year 1982 and the major events thereof, we are back in the present day – with several questions and comments. The first question is, “Where did fade-outs on rock and roll songs come from and why do they exist?” Technically speaking, a fade-out is the gradual decrease in the audio signal at the end of a recording. It is something that the audio engineer accomplishes in the control room. The most famous fade-out of all time is the Beatles record, “Hey Jude”. They poked fun at the typical fade-out, which only lasted a few seconds by making the fade-out on “Hey Jude” last for four full minutes. The Beatles’ fade-out on that tune lasted longer than the entirety of most songs on the Top 40 list. The boys from Liverpool were famous for fooling around with the fade-out feature of their songs and even perfected several fade-outs that faded back in such as “Strawberry Fields.” The tune was released in 1967 as a “double A-side” tune along with “Penny Lane.” Elvis got into the act the very next year (1968) with “Suspicious Minds” that also had a fade-out/fade-in feature. It went to #1. No one really knows why songs were typically recorded with fade-outs, but there is some speculation that it made it easier for the DJs at radio stations to transition to the next song, or it made for easier listening to albums as a transition between cuts.
Speaking of Elvis, what’s your favorite Elvis song? My favorite Elvis song is “(Marie’s the Name) His Latest Flame.” This hit did pretty well for Elvis in 1961 before the British Invasion came along. It shot to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 even though Elvis was not the first to record it. That distinction went to Del Shannon who included it on his “Runaway with Del Shannon” album just a few weeks before Elvis released it. My favorite Elvis album might surprise you, it’s a sacred album “His Hand in Mine.” My Mother bought that record when it came out in 1960 and I’ve listened to various tracts on the album hundreds of times.
Here’s another unrelated item that you may have no interest in. My first car that had a MacPherson strut suspension was an Audi Fox in about 1977. I had no idea what the MacPherson suspension was, I just loved the way it handled. That is, I loved that car until I blew up the engine. I got it fixed and drove it another two or three years although it burned oil like a chainsaw. It was my first front wheel drive and the best car on snow that any car I’ve ever had. I looked up the MacPherson suspension and found that an automotive engineer for General Motors developed it in in the mid-1940s. It’s not a big surprise that he named his patented device after himself: Earle S. MacPherson. “MacPherson strut” sounds a lot better than “Earle strut.” It took decades for General Motors to use it.
What is the saddest song you’ve ever heard? There is no shortage of sad songs. A short list might include “Cat’s in the Cradle” by Harry Chapin, “Candle in the Wind” by Elton John, “One Less Bell to Answer,” by the Fifth Dimension, “Amarillo By Morning,” by George Strait, “Against All Odds (Take a Look At Me Now)” by Phil Collins, “Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout the Good Ole Days)” by The Judds, and Patti Page’s 1950 hit “Tennessee Waltz.” All these are great, and there are other’s too, but my favorite tear-jerker is “Hello Darlin’” written and recorded by Conway Twitty. It went to #1 on Billboard’s country music chart in 1970. The ballad recalls a conversation that a man has with this lost love as they meet unexpectedly on the street. The second verse seals the deal as saddest song for me. “What’s that darlin’? How am I doing? Guess I’m doing all right, except I can’t sleep and I cry all night to dawn. What I’m trying to say is I love you and miss you and I’m so sorry that I did you wrong.” Now that’s a real tear-jerker, country style. I’ll see you on down the trail.