Despite hearing it in innumerable TV shows and commercials, have you ever seen the real thing?
Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream. Turn him into the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. The year is 1958. The current incarnation of rock & roll is starting to take shape under President Eisenhower. But don’t say that to the Chordettes. The radio was astonished by the Sheboygan harmonizing girls, Janet, Alice, Lynn, and Jinny, who performed “Mr. Sandman” and “Lollipop,” mostly a cappella.
The Chordettes, sometimes compared to a barbershop quartet, showcase their talents in this live television performance. Can you remember every “bum-bum-bum” in the song? You’ll be shocked to hear that the group sings a single “bum” quickly one after the other. How did they manage to do that without any problems?
Although the racially explicit lyrics plead with Mr. Sandman to provide them with a lovely man to sleep with, the allure of these women and their long, exquisite robes evoke a feeling of earlier propriety.
Mr. Sandman himself, who is fairly young and lovely, appears on screen to answer their call in a funny sequence that was made especially for this performance. You’ll laugh at this insert shot even as you swoon to the famous “Mr. Sandman” music.
Did you know that singer Janet Everly’s daughter was married to Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers? It was undoubtedly a musical match made in heaven. The Chordettes’ appearance on the first nationally televised episode of American Bandstand solidified their place in American music history.
Despite their fame, the incredible Chordettes weren’t the first to record this song. Actually, the original version was played in 1954 by a musician named Vaughn Monroe and his orchestra. But the Chordettes’ inspired rendition, which was recorded later that year, was far better than his.
“No foul language? Not even a drop? Without any gaudy beats? No unintelligible technical terms? Not auto-tune? One sympathetic onlooker remarked, “So pure.”
My grandma used to sing this to me when I was a little child. It’s fascinating to hear her stories of being a crazy adolescent in the 1950s. “She’s my best friend, and I’m glad I inherited her love for the ’50s,” said another guest who enjoyed this nostalgic trip.
