Jan Peerce - May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You (1951)

This single was a Billboard Pick in March 1951. It charted at #9 on the "Disk Jockeys Pick" chart, and #4 on the "Retailers Pick" chart in March 1951. These charts predicted what Disk Jockeys and Retailers thought the next big hits would be. Versions by Bing Crosby and Frankie Laine were also released and competed for airplay. In the early 1950's, "Be My Love" by Mario Lanza became a huge hit. The popularity of the record sparked an interest in songs by operatic tenors. Beginning in 1951, Jan Peerce released a series of singles designed to compete for play in the pop market. Although seldom heard today, these singles were all fantastic and quite worthy of attention. Peerce had earlier great success in the market with "Bluebird of Happiness" which was a hit in the 1940's, so it was natural that he try for more hits in the field at the start of the then current new trend. Some of the singles, such as this one, featured a recitation during the song, as this technique had proven to be successful with "Bluebird". The follow-up single to this one, "Because of You" backed with "What Is A Boy", was quite successful as both sides became hits. You will find "Because of You" on this channel. Written by Meredith Willson. Tallulah Bankhead used this song as the theme for her radio show, "The Big Show". It was also used as the closing song sung by Kate Smith on her TV show in the early 1950's. Eddy Arnold also recorded a version which was a hit on the country charts in 1951. B-side is "Sing Everyone Sing", which I have also posted.