BARRY LEVINE: Hamilton’s song a major hit 10 years later

March 16.

It’s a day quietly nestled between the Ides of March on March 15 and St. Patrick’s Day festivities on March 17.

Yet it was on March 16 that had a major impact on the careers of two major local rock ‘n’ roll stars.

It was on March 16, 1955, that Epic Records, a subsidiary of Columbia Records, released Roy Hamilton’s version of “Unchained Melody.” Hamilton was born in Leesburg in 1929 and lived there for 14 years before moving to Jersey City, N.J.

Thirteen years later on March 16, 1968, Otis Redding’s song “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” became the nation’s No. 1 hit. The song was recorded three days before the Dawson native was killed in an airplane crash in Madison, Wis., on December 1967 at age 26. This marked the only time a song reached No. 1 after the singer had died.

One of the more underrated singers of the 1950s and early 1960s, Hamilton scored with “Unchained Melody” as it reached No. 6 on the charts. Two other versions of that song reached the Top 10 that year. Les Baxter’s instrumental rose to No. 1 and Al Hibbler’s vocal climbed to No. 3.

Written by Alex North and Hy Zaret, the song came from the prison film “Unchained,” which was released in January 1955. The movie starred Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch, Barbara Hale and Chester Morris. Hirsch was an All-Pro running back for the Los Angeles Rams and has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“Unchained Melody” was covered by the Righteous Brothers in 1965 and became a Top 5 hit. The song surfaced again in 1990 in the movie “Ghost” starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoppi Goldberg. Because of its exposure in the movie, the Righteous Brothers’ version was re-released and became a Top 20 hit.

The song has been covered more than 500 times from everybody from Willie Nelson and LeAnn Rimes to Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley.

Hamilton did not begin to record commercially until 1953. Columbia wanted his services because the company felt he would be an ideal candidate to be a crossover for pop and R&B music.

Hamilton’s first release, “You’ll Never Walk Alone” in 1954 was No. 1 on the R&B chart for eight weeks. He then had three other Top 10 R&B hits in 1954 – “If I Love You,” “Ebb Tide” and “Hurt.” They preceded the release of “Unchained Melody” in 1955.

Hamilton had two other major pop hits – “Don’t Let Go” in 1958 and “You Can Have Her” in 1961. Both made the Top 15.

Elected to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 2010, Hamilton died from a stroke in 1969 at age 40.

Born in 1941, Redding lived in Dawson for three years before his family moved to an area on the outskirts of Macon.

Redding had seven Top 40 hits before reaching No. 1 with “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay.”

The soul singer had two Top 40 hits in 1965 – “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” and “Respect.”

Redding had three more in 1966 – “Satisfaction,” “Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa” and “Try a Little Tenderness” which was originally done by Ted Lewis in 1933.

He combined with R&B singer Carla Thomas to produce two Top 40 hits in 1967 – “Tramp” and “Knock on Wood.”

Redding had three other Top 40 hits in 1968 that were released after his death – “The Happy Song,” “Amen” and “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag.”

“(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” sold more than 4 million copies and won Grammys for Best R&B Song of the Year and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance of the Year in 1969.

Redding began writing the lyrics to the song in August 1967, while sitting on a rented houseboat in Sausalito, Calif.

He completed the song with the help of Stax producer and Booker T and the M.G.’s guitarist Steve Cropper. The song featured mimicked seagull whistles and sounds of the waves crashing on the shore.

Cropper later gained more fame as a member of the Blues Brothers Band.

Redding was elected to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1988 and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.

While Albany has done a superb job keeping the memory of native son Ray Charles alive, it is amazing that Leesburg and Dawson have done nothing to commemorate the achievements of both honored singers. The least the city fathers could do in Leesburg and Dawson is name a street in their memory.

Barry Levine is an entertainment writer for The Albany Herald. He can be reached at [email protected].