Bobby Vee died October 24th from complications due to Alzheimer’s. He was 73.
In the Fall of 1960, Boomers were just entering junior and senior high, and Vee, only a few years older than we were, was HOT on Top 40 radio with his first hit “Devil Or Angel.” **
Then, as now, popular music reflects and influences society: fashion, life-style, image. The songs we “liked” were representative of who were were and who we wanted to be. I don’t know what “the boys” thought, but millions of girls pondered the decision: with whom to align… the clean cut, vanilla, Bobby Vee, or to take a walk on the wild side via the intensity of Roy Orbison (“Crying”) or the raucous raunch of Ray Charles, who both had hits that year.
There’s a play about him: “Teen Idol: The Bobby Vee Story”, which wrapped up a run in St. Paul, MN earlier this week, and in one act Bobby is in New York City looking for material. His producer asked 19-year old Carole King to write a new song which turned out to be “Take Good Care Of My Baby” –his biggest hit—which ranked #12 on Billboard’s Top 100 for all of ’61.
His sons Jeff and Tommy, known as “The Vees,” have been performing with their late father for years and will insure his legacy continues along with their younger brother Robby, who enjoys a career as a solo act.
**For early rock music aficionados: Vee’s version was a cover of the original from five years earlier by The Clovers.