The Vinyl Grotto Radio Show
on February 1, 2022
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Canadian-American Rock & Roll singer Jack Scott, born Giovanni Domenico Scafone, Jr., has died. He was born January 24, 1936. He was referred to as "undeniably the greatest Canadian Rock and Roll singer of all time."
He had spent his early childhood in Windsor, Ontario, across the river from Detroit Michigan. When he was ten years of age, his family had moved to the Detroit suburb of Hazel Park. Growing up, Scott listened to Hillbilly music, possibly from WSM Nashville.
His Mother, Laura, had given him a guitar and had taught him to play it. Changing his name to Jack Scott when in his teen years, he had began to pursue a singing career. Forming The Southern Drifters at age18, and leading that band for three years, he'd then signed with ABC-Paramount Records as a solo artist in 1957.
There, he had recorded his first single, “Baby She’s Gone”. The single, though received well locally, had failed to chart nationally, along with his follow up single, “Two Timin’ Woman”. He'd had then moved over to the Carlton label, and in 1958, had a national, double-sided hit with "Leroy", reaching the #11 position, b/w "My True Love", reaching #3, which had brought him to national prominence.
The record had sold over one million copies. This had earned Scott his first gold record. Later that same year, he had recorded and released, "With Your Love", which reached the # 28 position. In fact, six of the twelve songs on his first album, became hit singles! In 1959, while serving in the U.S. Army, he had recorded, "Goodbye Baby", which had reached #7. Also that year, he had recorded, "The Way I Walk", which had reached #35.
In later years, most of his master tapes were believed to have been lost or destroyed, until Roller Coaster Records, an England based label, had released a vinyl EP, "Jack Scott Rocks", which were taken from the original master tapes. Now, how Roller Coaster had acquired the tapes, I don't know. They had all been presumed lost or destroyed for years. Previous reissues had been mastered by dubbing originals records and using those as masters.
In 1960, he had again changed labels, this time signing with Top Rank, where he had recorded four Billboard Hot 100 hit records. "What In The World's Come Over You", reaching #5, "Burning Bridges":, #3, the flip side of that record, "Oh Little One", reaching #34, and, "It Only Happened Yesterday", which had reached #38. In fact, "What In The World's Come Over You", was his second gold record.
Scott had continued to record and perform throughout the 60's and 70's. In 1974, he had recorded, "You're Just Gettin' Better" b/w "As You Take A Walk Through My Mind" which had appeared on the Country chart. With the exception of Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Connie Francis and Fats Domino, Jack Scott had recorded more U.S. singles in a short period of time, forty-one months, than any other artist.
In 2007, Jack Scott was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame. In 2011, as stated above, he was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. Scott was later nominated for the Hit Parade Hall of Fame. He had continued to sing and tour, while living in a suburb of Detroit. Jack Scott had passed away December 12, 2019, of congestive heart failure.
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