CARL DOBKINS Jr.

Volker hat mich daran erinnert, dass ich noch einige Dobkins-Singles ungepostet habe, was ich jetzt ändern werde. Die BRUNSWICK 12 211 habe ich selbst auch, nur ist meine schon etwas abgegriffen. Da hat Volker gerade die Richtige erwischt. Diese Single hat übrigens den Prüf-Code M 59, also Dezember 1959, kam aber erst im Februar 1960 einschließlich der STEREO-Ausgabe auf den Markt. Vielleich war zu Weihnachten zuviel los. Wenn ich nicht irre, dürfte es die einzige Stereo-Single von Dobkins auf der deutschen BRUNSWICK sein.

Kurz-Bio:
Der Pop-Sänger und Songwriter Carl Dobkins, Jr. wurde am 13. Jänner 1941 in Cincinnati, Ohio, geboren. Dobkins, der einer musikbegeisterten Appalachenfamile entstammt, lernte schon sehr früh einige Instrumente. In seiner Highschool-Zeit fing er an Songs zu schreiben, die er auf Demo-Bänder aufnahm. Als er den Disc-Jockey Gil Sheppard kennenlernte, spielte er ihm seine Demo-Bänder vor und er erklärte sich bereit zu versuchen, sie zu verwerten. Er nahm mit dem in Cincinnati ansässigen Label FRATERNITY Kontakt auf und erreichte die Veröffentlichung von Dobkins erster Single, die aber kein Erfolg wurde. Weitere Versuche wurden bei KING, ebenfalls in Cincinnati daheim, gestartet. Als er jedoch Verbindung mit DECCA in Nashville aufnehmen konnte erhoffte er sich, aufgrund der Größe dieser Firma, weit bessere Vermarktungsmöglichkeiten für Carl's Songs, was dann auch zutraf. Vier Titel kamen in die Hot 100 und einer erreichte sogar den Platz 3. Nach 1960 klappte es nicht mehr so und Carl zog sich langsam aus dem Musikgeschäft zurück.
Seine Singles:
FRATERNITY
01 58....F-794....CARL DOBKINS, JR. With LEW DOUGLAS his Orch. & Chorus..Take Hold Of My Hand (HO8W 1541)/That's Why I'm Asking (HO8W 1542)
DECCA
05 58....9-30656....CARL DOBKINS, JR. With THE SENIORS..If You Don't Want My Lovin' (104,827)/Love Is Everything (104,828)
02 59....9-30803....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..My Heart Is An Open Book (106,076)/My Pledge To You (106,077)
11 59....9-31020....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..Lucky Devil (107,948)/(There's A Little Song A-Singing) In My Heart (107,523)
04 60....31088....CARL DOBKINS, JR. Vocal With Chorus And Instrumental Accompaniment..One Little Girl (107,953)/Exclusively Yours (107,950)
08 60....31143....CARL DOBKINS, JR. Vocal With THE ANITA KERR SINGERS And Orchestra..Genie (109,437)/A Different Kind Of Love (109,438)
11 60....31182....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..Take Time Out (109,439)/Love Light (107,949)
05 61....31260....CARL DOBKINS, JR. Vocal With Chorus And Orchestra..That's What I Call True Love (110,472)/Pretty Little Girl In The Yellow Dress (110,473)
09 61....31301....CARL DOBKINS, JR. Vocal With Chorus And Orchestra..Sawdust Dolly (110,790)/A Chance To Belong (110,788)
01 62....31353....CARL DOBKINS, JR. Vocal With Chorus And Instrumental Accompaniment..Ask Me No Questions (110,789)/Promise Me (110,471)
ATCO
01 64....45-6283....CARL DOBKINS JR. Arr. & Cond by Alan Lorber..If Teardrops Were Diamonds (63C-7385)/I'm So Sorry Little Girl (63C-7386)
COLPIX
02 65....CP 762....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..A Little Bit Later On Down The Line (10232)/His Loss Is My Gain (10233)
CHALET
05 69....CHR 1053....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..The Days Of Sand And Shovels (CHM 106)/Linda The Motel Maid (CHM 107)
?? 69....CHR 1056....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..My Heart Is An Open Book (CHM-111)/Pictures (CHM-112)
So gab es Carl Dobkins, Jr. bei uns:
BRUNSWICK (D)
08 58....12 134 A....CARL DOBKINS JR. With The Seniors..If You Don't Want My Lovin'/ B....Love Is Everything (DECCA 30656)
07 59....12 178 A....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..My Heart Is An Open Book/ B....If You Don't Want My Lovin' (----/12134) (DECCA 30803/30656)
01 60....12 198 A....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..True Love/ B....Three Little Peggies (DECCA LP 8938)
02 60....12 211 A (STERO: 250 211)....CARL DOBKINS, JR. ..Lucky Devil/ B....In My Heart (DECCA 31020)

Keep Searchin'
Gerd




Die Postings beginnen mit dem Inhalt der obigen EP-Hülle:

xxxx

xx

Hallo Billy!
Besten Dank für deinen LP-Scan DECCA DL 78938 (Mono: DL 8938), nämlich jener LP, von der die DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON die zwei Titel für ihre Single BRUNSWICK 12198 nahm, die es in den USA so als Single nicht gab.

Selbst zum Protzen bin ich schon zu lahm, denn mein Single-Posting blieb ohne Text. Dabei wollte ich ganz stolz darauf hinweisen, dass ich die eher uninteressante, da sehr gängige, BRUNSWICK-Hülle nur gepostet habe, da es sich um die Ur-Originalhülle handelt, wie man am Stempel rechts oben sehen kann.

So, nun bin ich's losgeworden
Keep Searchin'
Gerd

auch Carl Dobkins hat seit knapp zwei Jahren bereits zwei Daten:

Carl Edward Dobkins Jr. (January 13, 1941 – April 8, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter,and one of those rockabilly legends who wouldn’t quit, even decades after his last chart entry. From a number three hit in 1959 with "My Heart Is an Open Book," he maintained a decades-long career that delighted audiences for generations on both sides of the Atlantic.

Dobkins was born into an Appalachian family that had transplanted themselves to Cincinnati in search of a better life. The family was filled with amateur musicians -- both of his parents sang, and his mother played guitar -- and at age nine Dobkins was given a ukulele by his parents. He quickly learned the instrument and moved on to the guitar, learning first the country and hillbilly songs that his family favoured. While Dobkins was in high school, he started writing songs of his own and singing at local events with his backup group The Seniors.

The Seniors first met with a common interest in singing at Nast Memorial Methodist Church in Cincinnati. The group sang together for approximately eight years. Dobkins and the Seniors were promoted by Gil Sheppard, a local Cincinnati radio disc jockey, who noted the young singer's early high school compositions and a two-song demo record. This led to a recording contract with Fraternity Records, who released their first record. Rock & roll was breaking nationally and Sheppard saw Carl Dobkins Jr. as a potential star. Thus, he became "the Teenage Rage," and began singing at dance parties and record hops.

Every record label was looking for the next Elvis Presley or Carl Perkins, and Dobkins was signed to the Cincinnati-based Fraternity Records, which released "Take Hold of My Hand" b/w "That's Why I'm Asking." It failed to chart, and he next moved to the much larger King Records for a recording session, but Sheppard sold the master to the still larger Decca Records label. Issued on Decca, "If You Don't Want My Lovin'" became a regional hit on its initial release, and did well enough to justify Decca investing more time in Dobkins. He cut his first sessions for Decca in Nashville under the aegis of Owen Bradley. The result was "My Heart Is an Open Book," which was Dobkins' lasting claim to immortality in the field of rockabilly. One of the better crossover records, it rocked hard with a solid guitar sound and a great beat, and featured the artist backed by two of the Anita Kerr Singers.

Ironically, the record took six months to take off, requiring two rounds of promotion by the label. When the smoke cleared, Dobkins was making appearances on national television behind "My Heart Is an Open Book," including Dick Clark's American Bandstand the day after his graduation from high school. He toured nationally and worked in six months of army reserve service in the infantry as well, as "My Heart Is an Open Book" soared to number three nationally in the spring of 1959, earning a gold record in its 24-week chart run. A follow-up, "Lucky Devil," reached number 25 in a 17-week run late in the year, and even "If You Don't Want My Lovin'" made it to number 67 when it was reissued nationally around the same time. Carl also appeared in June of 1959 with the first R & R show to play the Surf Ballroom after the plane crash that took Buddy Holly, Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens.

By 1960 Dobkins married Janice Cox and also got to number 62 with "Exclusively Yours." Carl Dobkins Jr. made all of the usual moves that a young rock & roller did in those days. He was featured frequently at Castle Farms, and on television for the Bob Braun Show (WLW-T, Cincinnati) and appeared fourteen times as a guest on Dick Clark's American Bandstand. He touredng with Bobby Freeman, Bobby Rydell, Bobby Vee, Buddy Knox, Frankie Avalon, Jan & Dean, Frankie Ford, Freddie Cannon, and Jimmy Clanton, the Drifters, and the Crickets.

He started to go into more lyrical, romantic sounds as the public's taste for rock & roll seemed to retreat in the early '60s -- by 1961, he was even cutting versions of movie themes, such as "Pretty Little Girl in the Yellow Dress" from the western The Last Sunset, starring Kirk Douglas and Rock Hudson.

It was 1964 before he made another record, "If Teardrops Were Diamonds," a pop ballad on Atco with a Vic Dana vibe. "His Loss is My Gain" came out on Colpix in '65 and had a little more bite but didn't get far. During a long hiatus he was a part-time radio announcer at WCNW, then a dispatcher in a Greyhound Bus Terminal. He reappeared with two singles for the Chalet label in 1969: the sentimental "The Days of Sand and Shovels" (Bobby Vinton's version ended up being the hit) and a rerecording of "My Heart is an Open Book." In all, he cut 18 singles, 2 LP’s and a CD in 2008. His last job was working as a procurement specialist until he retired in April of this 2001.

More recently in 2012 Carl played in Vienna Austria at the largest outdoor festival in Europe, along with Ray Campi, Buddy Knox and Frankie Ford. He was inducted into the Cincinnati Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Carl died in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 8, 2020 at the age of 79.

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