Photo: General Artist Corporation-management/photographer-James Kriegsmann, New York., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
On November 8, 1927, in Oklahoma, Clara Ann Fowler was born into a family of eleven children that featured three brothers and eight sisters. As a family enduring the era of the Great Depression, the father spent time working for the MKT Railroad while the mother and the children picked cotton. The family lived without electricity, which served as a hindrance in the evening, becoming too dark to even read a book. When Fowler graduated from high school in 1945, she became a featured performer for a Tulsa radio station, KTUL, singing music with Al Clauser and his Oklahoma Outlaws. While this was occurring, Fowler adopted the stage name of Patti Page.
Later, in 1946, a saxophone player named Jack Rael, who was also the manager of the Jimmy Joy Band, happened to be in Tulsa and heard Page on the radio. This prompted him to ask her to join him and the band, which she agreed to do. In 1947, she met and sang with a small orchestra group that was led by Benny Goodman. This resulted in Page’s first recording contract as she signed up with Mercury Records. In 1946 and 1947, Patti Page recorded many songs with Al Clauser and his Oklahoma Outlaws, then with his Eddie Getz Orchestra, and the George Barnes trio.
Big Breakthrough
When Patti Page covered the hit single, “Tennessee Waltz” in 1950, this served as the big breakthrough that made her a superstar in the eyes of the music industry. From 1951 onward, it was hit after hit that saw the songstress dominate the music charts, seemingly without blemish. She was able to do what most other pop singers could not, which was maintaining her popularity and success levels during the rock-and-roll era. She continued to have one big hit after another, clean into the 1960s.
It also helped during the 1950s to appear on television as much as she did. She frequently appeared on programs such as The Ed Sullivan Show, The Bob Hope Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Dean Martin Show. This wound up seeing Patti Page having television programs and specials of her own. Many of them only lasted one season, namely Scott Music Hall in 1952, Oldsmobile and The Patti Page Show, both in 1955, and The Big Record in 1957. There was also The Patti Page Olds Show, which was sponsored by Oldsmobile in 1958.
It would be during this time she recorded, in 1959, the title song for the hit musical, The Sound of Music, on the same day the musical hit Broadway. It was also featured on her own show as a means to promote the musical.
During the early 1960s, however, Patti Page’s popularity began to decline, which saw her align with Columbia Records, a label she remained loyal to until the end of the decade. Through its label, she continued to record and release hits that now found a new category it was charting into, namely the US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks. As a fan of country music, Patti Page also recorded a number of songs from its genre that showed up in the Adult Contemporary charts. In 1970, she briefly returned to Mercury Records, releasing country music, before signing up with Epic Records, an affiliate of Columbia Records, in 1973. She continued to perform, record, and tour until health issues related to her heart and lung disease gave her reason to retire in 2012. On January 1, 2013, Patti Page passed away at the age of eighty-five years old.
Legacy
Patti Page recorded a total of fifty-nine studio albums, nineteen compilation albums, four live albums, and out of her 110 charted hits, four of them became number-one singles on the US Billboard Hot 100. There are also three tribute albums to her credit.
#10 – Confess
In 1947, due to a strike that saw no backup singers available to provide harmonic vocals for “Confess,” Patti Page and her label at the time, Mercury Records, overdubbed where it was needed. The label’s engineer was able to overdub Page’s voice, using what was the latest recording technology at the time. This actually put Patti Page into the record books as the first artist to harmonize one’s own personal vocals for a recording. This technique later found its way into the biggest singles Page realized during the 1950s.
When Confess was released, it became a number twelve hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 1948. “Confess” was first recorded by Doris Day in 1947 as she began to embark on a solo career. As for Patti Page, who was also in need of a hit to transition her career as a successful solo artist, released her single shortly after Doris Day’s version. What set Page apart from Doris Day was the overdubbing technique, which inspired other artists to do the same. For Page, the multi-tracking technique became her trademark style.
#9 – A Poor Man’s Roses (Or a Rich Man’s Gold)
Also recorded in the same year by Patsy Cline, 1957’s “A Poor Man’s Roses (Or a Rich Man’s Gold)” became a major hit for Patti Page at a time frame where she was among the few that could still hold high-hitting chart success on the US Billboard Hot 100. During an era that saw rock-and-roll overtake the pop music genre, the ability to keep up with the ever changing demands of the audience goes to show just how talented Patti Page was, along with the recording studio she worked with at the time. While Patsy Cline made “A Poor Man’s Roses” a country classic, Patti Page turned into a pop favorite.
#9 – I Don’t Care if the Sun Don’t Shine
In 1950, “I Don’t Care if the Sun Don’t Shine” was the first of Patti Page’s hit singles to break into the top ten of the US Billboard Hot 100, which charted at number eight. This song was originally meant for the Disney animation film, Cinderella, but was not used in the final print. This song was recorded again in 1959 for her third studio album, I’ll Remember April. This beautifully uplifting song, which is usually a Disney specialty, developed a whole new meaning thanks to the angelic lyrical talent that made Page one of the biggest stars that have ever graced her way into the music industry.
#8 – All My Love (Bolero)
Patti Page realized her first number one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 with “All My Love (Bolero),” which spent five weeks at the top of its chart in 1950. It also served as her first international hit as it also peaked at number one in Australia, and was a number twenty-six hit on the Brazilian singles chart. The best video footage of Patti Page performing this beautiful love ballad was on a 1958 episode of her show, The Big Record, which aired for one season on the CBS network.
#7 – With My Eyes Wide Open, I’m Dreaming
“With My Eyes Wide Open, I’m Dreaming,” served as Patti Page’s first million-copy-selling single. It was yet another one of her hit songs that had her own lyrics harmonized by her own voice. 1934 original, performed by Leo Reisman, was a number three hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, followed by Isham Jones’s version, which reached number eleven. Ruth Etting also recorded this song in 1934. When Patti Page reached number eleven with her version in 1950, she used the voice overdubbing technique that made her sound like a quartet.
#6 – Would I Love You (Love You, Love You)
The single, “Would I Love You (Love You, Love You),” became a million-single seller when it was released in 1951. On the US Billboard Hot 100, it peaked at number four and remained on the charts for nineteen weeks. The blare of the trumpets at the start starts with a deceptive swing before Patti Page lulls into a soulful ballad that made this song an easy favorite. Throughout the course of history, as long-term fans familiar with Page’s work reminisce, new listeners who discover this song for the first time find themselves discovering a new, inspirational favorite.
#5 – Mockin’ Bird Hill
“Mockin’ Bird Hill” was a song first recorded by Les Paul and Mary Ford, then Donna Fargo, then Patti Page, who each produced this in 1951. For Page, it joined the ranks of her million-single-sellers as the fourth of her singles to do so. The music score behind “Mockin’ Bird Hill” was based on a Swedish Waltz. On the US Billboard Hot 100, her version of this hit single peaked as high as number twenty-two and remained on the chart for twenty-two weeks. The beauty behind Patti Page’s tender voice added a natural flow of innocence that helped make this a special song among her most devout fans.
#4 – Detour
Originally as “Detour (There’s a Muddy Road Ahead),” this western swing ballad was performed by Jimmy Walker, along with Paul Westmoreland and His Pecos River Boys in 1945. It was recorded by Spade Cooley, Foy Willing, and Elton Britt before Patti Page rendered her version, “Detour” in 1951. It peaked at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and it was a single release from her album, Romance on the Range. This song, along with the rest of the tracks on her eleventh studio recording, was inspired by her studio album, Folk Song Favorites.
#3 – I Went to Your Wedding
“I Went to Your Wedding” was originally recorded by Jo Stafford, which was already a success on the US Billboard Hot 100. However, Patti Page’s 1952 version displaced Stafford’s version at the top of that music chart and held its position for two months. This single served as Page’s eighth RIAA-certified platinum single. The melody of this song is noted for its similarities to an old Russian folk song that focused on the narrator’s attendance at a former love interest’s wedding.
The best versions of this song have been covered by female singers, most notably Patti Page. It was also a number one hit for her on the Australian singles chart. “I Went to Your Wedding” is also featured on her album, Page 4 – A Collection of Her Favorite Songs, which was released in 1957.
#2 – (How Much Is That) Doggie in the Window?
For Patti Page, the playful novelty tune, “How Much Is That) Doggie in the Window?” had a special feature in her hit single that made it become a crowd-pleasing favorite, especially among the younger audience. In addition to her lyrical performance, the sound of a dog barking catapulted this 1953 chart-topper straight to number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, as well as number one in Australia and even Luxembourg.
Despite the poor distribution in the UK, the single still peaked at number nine on its official singles chart. It also sold over two million copies and remained on the chart for an impressive five months. To this day, it remains one of her best-loved songs, as well as one of her signature hits. This song was written and recorded specifically for the children’s album Page recorded, titled Arfie Goes to School.
#1 – Tennessee Waltz
Before 1950 was over, “Tennessee Waltz” became her second number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 and on Australia’s official singles chart, as well as her biggest-selling single of all time. It also peaked at number two on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The original was recorded by Pee Wee King and His Golden West Cowboys in 1947, which made it to the country music charts in 1948. The Cowboy Copas also covered this song, which also saw them realize a hit at the same time.
When Patti Page was introduced to the song, it was requested she do an R&B version of it that was previously performed by the Erskine Hawkins Orchestra. Also liking the song “Tennessee Waltz” a great deal, she agreed to record it and release it as a single. When her version of this song peaked at number one on the music chart, it stayed there for thirteen weeks. This also served as the second occasion in Page’s singing career she realized a hit on the country charts. It was actually her biggest hit on the US Billboard Country Songs chart as it peaked as high as number two.
“Tennessee Waltz” joined the ranks of the best-selling records of its era as it sold over seven million copies. To this day, the single remains as the biggest commercial success that utilized the overdubbing technique that allowed Page to harmonize her own voice. “Tennessee Waltz” became one of Patti Page’s signature songs.
