Columnist Joe Delaney: Recalling 'blue-eyed soul' pioneer Laine's road to top

Joe Delaney's column appears Thursdays and Fridays. Reach him at 259-4066 or [email protected]

Frankie Laine's voice and presentation, at age 86, is as true and vigorous as ever. ... Laine is back in the Orleans hotel showroom, tonight through Sunday, after a very successful benefit performance there less than a year ago. ... In the first six months of 1999 there were two new CD releases by Laine, reissues on the Sony, formerly Columbia, label, plus "The European Concert" video and a companion two-CD set.

Laine was born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio, March 30, 1913, in the Little Italy section of Chicago, the oldest of eight children whose parents were Sicilian immigrants. ... Laine recalls his childhood when his father was gangster Al Capone's personal barber.

Music was important in his early childhood, but Laine first left home at age 17, in 1930, to become a dancer in the marathons that were all the rage at that time. ... He and his partner, Ruth Smith, set the all-time marathon dance record on the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, N.J., a few years later.

First sighting

We caught Laine the first time in the Camden, N.J., Convention Hall Annex, while he was singing at a marathon and doubling as straight man in Red Skelton's comedy routines, circa 1936. ... Once the marathons died out Laine made a living as a jazz singer in small nightclubs all over the country, finally gaining notice in L.A. at Billy Berg's famous nightclub in the 1940s.

Composer Hoagy Carmichael heard Laine sing Hoagy's classic, "Rocking Chair" and helped him land a contract with Mercury Records, based in Chicago. ... His first releases were jazz standards with mild reaction.

In 1947, at a Mercury recording session in L.A., he had finished the first three of the four songs when the producer rejected the fourth selection and asked if Laine had anything else in his repertoire they could use as a substitute. ... There was an obscure song he had been singing at Billy Berg's that audiences kept requesting.

Anent the song

Laine's pianist and conductor, the late Carl Fischer, had a heavy date and had skipped the recording session. ... Laine had a phone number, they called Fischer, got him out of bed, dressed and to the studio where he taught the song to the other musicians so they could finish the session. ... The song was "That's My Desire," which launched both the Mercury label and Laine's incredible career.

Laine was really the first of the so-called "blue-eyed soul singers," long before that label was permanently attached to the Righteous Brothers. ... "That's My Desire" hit first in black neighborhoods. ... This was true of first releases by Johnny Ray and Elvis Presley.

In fact, many of Ray's early fans not only thought he was black but female as well, on "Cry" and "The Little White Cloud That Cried." ... All three artists eventually sold well everywhere.

In conclusion

It was "Mule Train," "Rawhide," "Cry of the Wild Goose," "Jezebel" and "That Lucky Old Sun" that made Laine a megastar but he sold equally well on "I Believe" and other inspirational songs. ... Laine's career has spanned seven decades. ... All of his hits, resulting in millions of records sold, have become standards. ... A living legend, see him this weekend at the Orleans and take along the whole family.

Friday addenda

Russian recording artist Philip Korkorov's Saturday 7 p.m. concert in the MGM Grand Garden Arena, is sold out. ... Tickets are still available for tonight's concert. ... Ricky Martin was originally booked into the Mandalay Bay Events Center for one night, last Friday. ... Ticket sales were so heavy a second concert was added for Nov. 11.

This is common practice when an artist can be made available for a second night, either before or after. ... The MGM has done just that, adding a New Year's Day Barbra Streisand concert after her New Year's Eve show.

Saturday special: Premier season performance of the Las Vegas Philharmonic, featuring guest violin soloist Robert McDuffie, performing selections by Brahms, Barber and Tchaikovsky, 8 p.m. in UNLV's Artemus Ham Hall.

Reminder: The New York Voices perform at 8 this evening in UNLV's Artemus Ham Hall, a don't-miss. ... Musicians, if eligible, please vote Saturday at Local 369 headquarters and, everyone, support the Variety Club/KFM 102-FM radiothon today and Saturday. ... See you next Friday. ... Have a nice Thanksgiving Day.

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