Top40db

I was sniffing around looking for the original (1957) 45 for the Fats Domino classic 'Blueberry Hill', and was surprised to learn it was originally done by Gene Autry for the 1940 Western movie, The Singing Hill....I'll bio

Something that caught my eye was the fact that it was co-written by Al Lewis. Name sound familiar? Lewis was the actor who portrayed Grandpa on the TV comedy, The Munsters ...go figure :)

Fats recorded this in LA, at a session in which he ran out of material to tape. Domino insisted on recording the song over the vehement objections of producer-arranger Dave Bartholomew, and then forgot the lyrics while he was recording the song. The engineer pieced together the final version from many fragmentary takes.

I think the Al Lewis/Blueberry Hill connection is nothing more than another urban legend created on the internet.  My guess is someone saw the name Al Lewis and mentioned that the guy on the Munsters was the same guy who co-wrote Blueberry Hill and that assumption just snowballed on the internet.   His obituary in the LA Times says nothing about him as a songwriter.  The only thing it said was that he initially was listed as being born in 1910 but his son said his real date of birth was April 30, 1923 which would have made him 82 when he died not 95.   Even IMDb lists the songwriter Al Lewis as a different Al Lewis....Al Lewis (V). imdb.com/name/nm0506893/

Here's a link to his full obituary in the LA Times including a "for the record" update about his age.
articles.latimes.com/2006/feb/0...lewis5

Your right of course, a further look reveals that it was another Al Lewis

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Lewi...icist%29

Hides head in shame

I prefer the Grandpa Munster wrote "Blueberry Hill" story so I've decided to make it true and pass it along to others.  
;-)

how about the
"100 greatest of Youtube"

nothing by either Al Lewis, but funny as hell

youtube.com/watch?v=BudhFVnN2o0

Isn't rock and roll more about feelings, strange ideas and wild rumors than anything else? I love the stats and we all know what they are but it's those weird stories that make rock and roll what it is. Weird music for strange folks. I agree. Let's make it Grandpa Munster and the facts be dammed this time!!! Don we still love ya!!!

I guess if Eddie Haskell can grow up to be Alice Cooper. Kevin Arnold's friend on the Wonder Years is now Marilyn Manson, and Mr. Greenjeans was the father of Frank Zappa, then it wouldn't hurt anything to give grandpa Munster a writing credit on Blueberry Hill. :)

Next you'll be telling me that David Crosby is not Svends real father!!!

I'm not stopping until Al's estate gets royalties for the song!!

I agree. There needs to be a little leeway when there is a good story to be told and Paul is dead right????

Hey I just saw Elvis shopping at the mall.