Robert John is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

.

Biography

He is best remembered for the 1979 hit

Hit single

A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...

, "Sad Eyes

Sad Eyes

"Sad Eyes" is a song written and recorded by Robert John, and released in 1979.Released in April 1979, "Sad Eyes" debuted May 19 on the Billboard Hot 100...

". This song, which features John's falsetto

Falsetto

Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...

 vocals

Human voice

The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...

, reached Number One on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

. Earlier, in 1963 he recorded

Sound recording and reproduction

Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...

 as the lead singer with Bobby & the Consoles. Recording for Diamond records, they had a small local hit with "My Jelly Bean".

John, then known as Bobby Pedrick, first hit the pop

Pop music

Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

 chart

Record chart

A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....

 in 1958 when he was only 12 years old with "White Bucks and Saddle Shoes", written by Doc Pomus

Doc Pomus

Jerome Solon Felder, better known as Doc Pomus , was a twentieth-century American blues singer and songwriter. He is best known as the lyricist of many rock and roll hits. Pomus was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the category of non-performer in 1992. He was also inducted into...

 and Mort Shuman

Mort Shuman

Mort Shuman was an American singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hits, including "Viva Las Vegas"...

. By 1965 he had changed his name and signed with MGM records for two ill fated singles. In 1967 he signed a contract with Columbia records and released a string of singles with help from writing partner Mike Gately. After a short tenure with Herb Alpert's A&M records (1970–71), 1971 brought his next hit, a cover

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of The Tokens

The Tokens

The Tokens are an American male doo-wop-style vocal group from Brooklyn, New York. They are known best for their chart-scoring 1961 single, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" .-Career:...

' 1961 hit "The Lion Sleeps Tonight

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

"The Lion Sleeps Tonight", also known as "Wimoweh" and originally as "Mbube", is a song recorded by Solomon Linda and his group The Evening Birds for the South African Gallo Record Company in 1939. It was covered internationally by many 1950s pop and folk revival artists, including The Weavers,...

" which climbed to #3 in 1972. This disc

Gramophone record

A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 sold over one million copies, and received a gold disc

Music recording sales certification

Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...

 awarded by the Recording Industry Association of America

Recording Industry Association of America

The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

 on March 15, 1972.

Albums

• 1968: If You Don't Want My Love
• 1971: On the Way Up
• 1979: Robert John US #68
• 1980: Back on the Street
  Back on the Street
  Back on the Street is the final major-label album by American singer-songwriter Robert John.-Track listing:# Since I Felt This Way#Hey There Lonely Girl#Just One More Try#On My Own#Give Up Your Love#Sherry...
  
  US #205

Singles

• 1958: "White Bucks And Saddle Shoes" (billed as Bobby Pedrick, Jr.) US #74
• 1963: "My Jelly Bean" (billed as Bobby & the Consoles) NY area charting
• 1968: "If You Don't Want My Love" US #49, UK
  UK Singles Chart
  The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
  
   #42
• 1968: "Don't Leave Me" US #108
• 1970: "When The Party Is Over" US #71
• 1972: "The Lion Sleeps Tonight
  The Lion Sleeps Tonight
  "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", also known as "Wimoweh" and originally as "Mbube", is a song recorded by Solomon Linda and his group The Evening Birds for the South African Gallo Record Company in 1939. It was covered internationally by many 1950s pop and folk revival artists, including The Weavers,...
  
  " (Gold) US #3, US AC #6
• 1972: "Hushabye" US #99
• 1979: "Sad Eyes
  Sad Eyes
  "Sad Eyes" is a song written and recorded by Robert John, and released in 1979.Released in April 1979, "Sad Eyes" debuted May 19 on the Billboard Hot 100...
  
  " (Gold) US #1 (1wk.) US AC #10, UK #31
• 1979: "Only Time" US #102, US AC #42
• 1980: "Lonely Eyes" US #41, US AC #49
• 1980: "Hey There Lonely Girl" US #31, US AC #10
• 1980: "Sherry" US #70
• 1983: "Bread And Butter" US #68

Source:

External links

• [ Allmusic entry]