- Included among the Record Descriptions of Favorite Albums (Part 1).
- Pat Boone Sings Irving Berlin collects 14 performances by Boone of songs written by one of the finest American songwriters of the 20th Century.
Pat Boone – Pat Boone Sings Irving Berlin (1957): Though not illustrated by the selections on this album, Pat Boone (one of the original teen idols) is a mostly unsung hero of rock and roll, IMHO. Boone scored a total of 38 Top 40 hit singles on the American charts over the course of his recording career. Pat Boone recorded numerous R&B hits in the early years of rock and roll when what was formerly called “race music” went unheard on white radio stations, thus helping to introduce African American music to white teenagers. Pat Boone’s second single, “Ain’t That a Shame” came out on the heels of the original recording by Fats Domino and went to the top of the record charts in July 1955. For context, that was just two months after Chuck Berry’s first single, “Maybellene” was released; and Elvis Presley wouldn’t hit #1 until early 1956.
Also, Pat Boone was not in competition with the original Fats Domino release; quite the contrary: White teenagers often bought the original single after they heard Pat Boone’s version. Fats Domino himself praised Pat Boone’s recording of his song. Pat Boone Sings Irving Berlin collects 14 performances by Boone of songs written by one of the finest American songwriters of the 20th Century that include “A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody”, “What’ll I Do”, “How Deep Is the Ocean”, and “The Girl that I Marry”. “White Christmas” (not included on this album) is Irving Berlin’s best-known song, with Bing Crosby’s rendition being the best-selling record in history. While many rock musicians have released albums taken from the Great American Songbook over the years, Pat Boone was probably ahead of his time here as well.