1961: The GREATEST SONGS. This post: #1. This concludes the countdown. 

Check here for  new countdown beginning in 2 days.

Caffe´Latte´presents~

1961

THE 61 GREATEST SONGS

MCMLXI

 

This was the year that saw Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space; the Bay Of Pigs botched invasion in Cuba; the Berlin Wall was built dividing East & West Germany; John F. Kennedy was inaugurated as U.S. President and the world enjoyed the film version of ‘West Side Story’.

Here are 61 examples of the music that was the soundtrack for the year 1961:

1

 

STAND BY ME

Ben E. King

 

Ben E. King had quit The Drifters in 1960 and launched a solo career. One of his first solo releases was this self-penned (with producers Leiber & Stoller) enduring song about friendship. It was revived in 1986 when featured in a Levi's 501 ad and film of the same name, resulting in a return to the charts around the globe.