Janice Brooks
From:
Pleasant Gap Pa
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Posted 26 Jan 2005 5:54 pm |
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Ray Peterson, singer of Tell Laura I Love Her dies in his Smyrna home
By PETER COOPER
Staff Writer
Ray Peterson, whose resonant voice propelled his Tell Laura I Love Her
single to Top 10 status on the pop charts in 1960, died Tuesday morning
at his home in Smyrna. Billed as ''The Golden Voice of Rock 'n' Roll,''
he was 65 and had been suffering from cancer.
A native of Denton, Texas, Mr. Peterson began singing as a child. His
youth was marked by a prolonged struggle with polio, and he began
singing to entertain his fellow patients in a Texas hospital. His
interest in music lasted beyond his hospitalization, and at age 18 he
moved to Los Angeles and was signed to RCA Records.
''I was a high school freshman when I first heard Ray's version of the
Little Willie John Classic, Fever, in 1959,'' said Fred Vail, who would
go on to become the Beach Boys' concert promoter. ''I could tell right
away that he was no ordinary singer.''
Mr. Peterson's instantly identifiable vocals gave rise to his billing
as ''The Golden Voice of Rock 'n' Roll.'' In 1959, his version of The
Wonder of You reached the Top 30, and Elvis Presley would later hit the
pop charts with a cover version.
It was Tell Laura I Love Her that became Mr. Peterson's signature hit,
though: The song is among the prime examples of the ''teenage tragedy''
sub-genre that included Teen Angel and Leader of the Pack.
Tell Laura allowed Mr. Peterson to work bigger concert halls, and he
began performing quite often at the Dunes hotel in Las Vegas. When his
deal with RCA Records ended, Mr. Peterson formed Dunes Records and
worked with a then-little-known producer named Phil Spector on a
charting version of traditional folk song Corrina, Corrina.
Corrina, Corrina was Mr. Peterson's final major commercial success, but
even as the hits dried up, he remained a viable touring act. He opened
for the Beach Boys in several foreign countries, and was a supporting
act on the Boys' ''Summer Safari'' tour of 1964.
In the 1960s, Mr. Peterson also recorded for the MGM, Reprise and Uni
labels, and his move to the Nashville area brought with it a foray into
Music City styles called Peterson Country in 1971.
Survivors include wife, Claudia; children Sara Sorrell, Adam Peterson,
Timothy Lee Peterson, Leah Peterson, Melodia Peterson, Shawn Ordonez
and Timothy Ray Ordonez; brother David Peterson; sister Mari Jane
Beyer; and nine grandchildren.
A viewing will be from 4 to 8:30 this evening at Woodfin Funeral
Chapel, 1309 Woodfin Ct. in Murfreesboro. Funeral services will be at
10 a.m. tomorrow at Smyrna Assembly of God, 14119 Old Nashville
Highway.
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