Little Willie John - Sleep

[sauquoit13456]

UNLUCKY 13 or LUCKY 13???: "Sleep" peaked at No. 13 and spent a total of 16 weeks on Billboard's Top 100 in 1960...

{Was it bad luck to have stopped at #13 or good luck that it spent 16 weeks on the charts???}

Passed away while in prison on May 26th 1968; R.I.P. Mr. John...

[missjoshemmett]

happy birthday little willie john!

[frankthomas9000live]

ONE OF MY FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIMES IN THE 1960'

[larrynealwaxmuseum]

One of my all time favorites by LWJ. Here in OKC back in 1959 his recording of LEAVE MY KITTEN ALONE was a top ten hit. Good Post.

Larry N. Boyington, aka Larry Neal, former curator of the Wax Museum on the big 1520 KOMA

[kjohn0258]

Please check out the LWJ biography out this month (JUNE) on Titan Books! For more info go the Face Book page, Fever: Little Willie John's Fast Life and Mysterious Death or check the Titan Books web site or Amazon on-line! :)

[spadge321]

James Brown went to visit him a lot and noticed he was in a wheel chair at one point and he said to James, i aint gonna get out of here alive man ,,, the screws kicked him to death while he was ill - my old band used to do a number about him,, GOD REST HIS SWEET SOUL,,,xx

[MasterofCrude]

I have always thought this was a GREAT recording.

[kokolanza]

Very nice! This song has been removed for copyright reasons or something before, so glad it's back up for now.

[Tigermoon1950]

Love this song....always -----yawn-------have. Think I'm gonna-----yawn yawn----take a little nap now.....Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz­zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[steelbeard1]

@GJNCA If you read the message, Little Willie John died in prison in the state of Washington in the Pacific Northwest.

[steelbeard1]

Some amazing music came out of that old warehouse on Brewster Avenue in Cincinnati. This is certainly one of those tracks.

[arizonaghost1]

He was sentenced to 10 years for stabbing a man in a bar fight in Tacoma

[stanich054]

Fantastic vocals from a memorable artist. He could bring it!

[CheckMate657879]

I was in the sixth grade when this song was out. My mom had a clock radio alarm - station set to KYA - SF, CA. This song played each morning during my "sleep" - one of my all favs.

[Nordoki]

Despite counter claims, the official cause of death was listed in his death certificate as a heart attack.

[arizonaghost1]

willie died of pneumonia in prision in washing state....so sad

[nomiclas]

@arizonaghost1 what was he doing in prison?

[bongohymns]

What a sound. His voice sounds naturally multi tracked and processed for radio speakers.

[Neptunesque]

If you could mambo on the beat, you can dance to anything, this from someone with no natural grace. However, it's easier to discern how pure and able a vocal job this is. I think at the time this was recorded, there must have been a strict standard in force: if your record was not melodic or for posterity (50 years later we're still discussing this), it was not marketed. Today, it's about inanimate rhythm, no trick at all.

Thank you for posting this.

[CrimsonJim65]

@Neptunesque

Boy, you said a mouth full there, and I agree with y ou.

[Neptunesque]

@CrimsonJim65

Thanks a lot for your assenting viewpoint.

My next observation, however, might be more arugable: I always preferred Peggy Lee's rendition of "Fever", the quintessential version, in fact.; just my opinion of course. In its own right, though, I think Little Willie John's recording is fine.

Thanks again and be well.

[CrimsonJim65]

This song is one of my favorites. It reminds me of my o13th birthday because i got my first transistor radio as a gift.. This was the first song I ever heard on it.

[nomiclas]

@CrimsonJim65 13 was a musical year for many.my 13th had me in a state of rebellion.i was bound to show my parents that i was grown up and was going to get some of that rock and roll.i bought my first 45"hello mary lou".they never got their record player back after that and the common theme was"turn that down!".i still own the record.

[AnthonysDen]

One of his best songs since his smash hit 'Fever' in 1956.His songs will live forever!R.I.P. Little Willie John.You'll never be forgotten.

[kb3eza]

Thank you, thank you, thank you for bringing this back.

[three185]

When you returned from exile with

your new channel, I honestly hoped

you would swing through with plenty

of OLD KING GOLD as you did on

your previous channel. Well, you did

not disappoint! Thank you!