"Teen Angel" is a teenage tragedy song written by Jean Dinning (1924–2011) and her husband, Red Surrey, and performed by both Jean's brother, Mark Dinning, and Alex Murray in 1959. "Teen Angel" was released in October 1959. The song was not an instant success, with radio stations in the U.S. banning the song, considering it too sad. Despite the reluctance of radio stations, the song continued to climb the charts. In the last week of 1959, the single jumped from #100 to #50 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It went on to reach #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (February 1960)
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MARK DINNING
ReplyDeleteYou may not be the kind to laugh at a funeral, but you may be the kind to spy a business opportunity.
In the early rock and roll era, it wasn’t just songs with suggestive lyrics that got banned. For instance, a novelty song called Transfusion was banned because the topic (blood transfusions) was deemed “not a joking matter” and even an instrumental tune called Rumble was banned simply on the basis of its inflammatory title. Against that backdrop, it s not surprising that Mark Dinning’s Teen Angel was banned from many radio stations at the time of its release. Its subject matter (stalled car, railroad tracks) was shocking to many, and in making your Birth song into a legendary smash hit, your Birth star did two things: (1) he proved the futility of censorship in the age of rock and roll; and (2) he created an entirely new sub genre of pop by exposing the marketability of romantic death songs. Last Kiss, Tell Laura I Love Her, Moody River, Ebony Eyes, and Leader Of The Pack were the most notable follow-ups to Teen Angel, the sole and legendary offering from a Forgotten star who bestowed upon those born under his influence an incurable romanticism that is deeply entangled with their mile wide morbid streaks.