October 20, 2023      —–     Chart #216

Hello Music Friends,

Hey folks, welcome to another edition of Chart of the Week. Today we are going with a real “oldie”, grass roots rock and roots history here. “Bye Bye Love” is a popular song written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant and published in 1957. It is best known in a debut recording by the Everly Brothers, issued by Cadence Records as catalog number 1315. The song reached No. 2 on the US Billboard Pop charts and No. 1 on the Cash Box Best Selling Record charts. The Everly Brothers’ version also enjoyed major success as a country song, reaching No. 1 in the spring of 1957. The Everlys’ “Bye Bye Love” is ranked 210th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time”.In 1998, The Everly Brothers version of “Bye Bye Love” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

The Beatles covered the song during the Let It Be sessions in 1969. George Harrison reinterpreted it for his 1974 album Dark Horse, changing the words to reference his wife Pattie Boyd leaving him for his friend Eric Clapton. “Bye Bye Love” has also been covered by Simon & Garfunkel.

The guitar intro was not originally part of the song, but was something that Don Everly had come up with and was tacked on to the beginning. Chet Atkins was the lead guitar player on the session. Floyd Chance was the upright bassist and Buddy Harman was the drummer.

On the Ed Sullivan Show: https://youtu.be/0xKf93xOLTk?si=kD7iZrO8TSc7Itew

The Everly Brothers have a long string of wonderful hits that accent their dual harmony vocals and early rockabilly guitar. I just love these guys. Get two singers together and play this song. You will have a blast.

Keep Rockin’,

Stan Bradshaw