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Songs with Soul and Inspiration

The Story of the Righteous Brothers

By Rasma RaistersPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Back in the mid-1960s, a popular duo on the music scene was The Righteous Brothers. What was interesting about them was that they were not really brothers they were Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield both born in 1941. They had a great singing style and one of their well-known songs was “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration”from 1966.

However, they did not come together as The Righteous Brothers but started performing in Los Angeles, California as part of a five-member group known as The Paramours. They took on the name that would bring them to fame when they became a duo. Their singing style became referred to as pop or blue-eyed soul. In 1964 they went on their first US tour and opened for the Fab Four—The Beatles and this same year also opened for The Rolling Stones.

They achieved their greatest success recording under producer Phil Spector. In the very beginning, they had a doo-wop/R&B act. Among their most memorable hits was “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling.” Medley and Hatfield came together in 1962 and took the name The Righteous Brothers. Medley has a smoky baritone that complimented Hatfield’s high tenor and falsetto. They began to record on the Moonglow label R&B tunes. At this time their greatest success was “Little Latin Lupe Lu.”

Medley acted as producer and the principal songwriter. However, the duo did not get national recognition until they accepted the services of PhilSpector. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” skyrocketed them to stardom. This was followed by three more big hits in 1965 “Just Once in My Life,” “Unchained Melody,” and “Ebb Tide.” In 1966 the duo moved over to Verve Records and enjoyed the popularity that their number one hit “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration” brought them.

Afterward, The Righteous Brothers only scored two more songs on the Top 40—“He” and “Go Ahead and Cry” in 1966. Then in 1968 Medley began a solo career and Hatfield tried to keep The Righteous Brothers duo going with Jimmy Walker. They recorded an album in 1970 rebirth and it included the song “My Babe.” Unfortunately neither Medley nor Hatfield had much success after they decided to go their separate ways.

However, The Righteous Brothers had left their influence on the music world and “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” was included on the soundtrack for the movie “Top Gun.” In 1990 “Unchained Melody” became a big hit once again when it was included in the popular movie “Ghost.”

Realizing their continuing popularity The Righteous Brothers got together one more time in 1998 and the result was the album “Reunion.” It included their biggest hits and a special extended version of “Unchained Melody.”

They were thrilled by their newfound success and the gathering of old and new fans. It was a sad day indeed on November 5, 2003, when the duo was ready to perform at Miller Auditorium on the Western Michigan University campus and Bobby Hatfield was found dead in his hotel bed at the age of 63. It was the end of a 42-year partnership for one of the most popular rock duos of their time.

In 2016 Medley strived to revive The Righteous Brothers and replaced Hatfield with singer Bucky Heard at the Harrah’s Showroom in Las Vegas, Nevada playing over 40 shows with some of the best-known melodies from years past.

Medley continues to tour as a solo act all across the US and Canada and is a popular act at Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theater in Branson, Missouri.

60s music
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About the Creator

Rasma Raisters

My passions are writing and creating poetry. I write for several sites online and have four themed blogs on Wordpress. Please follow me on Twitter.

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