Del Shannon Runaway Song by David Jacob (6) with Lyrics

Runaway by David Jacob Sumod 2019

Runaway by Del Shannon

Runaway by Del Shannon is one of my favourite songs ever. It was also the theme song for the 1980s TV series Crime Story starring Dennis Farina. My kids love this song and do some fun running while they sing it. Here is Little David (6) singing the song in 2019. He recently played the music on his keyboard so it can be used as bgm for this video. Here is the Runaway Song Video:

 

Del Shannon Runaway Song 1961

Runaway Song

The Rock and Roll single ‘Runaway’ from the album ‘Runaway With Del Shannon’ by Del Shannon in 1961, is a No.1 Billboard Hot 100 and a big international hit song co written by Max Crook. The song was recorded in Bell Sound Studios, New York under the Label BigTop and produced by Harry Balk. Shannon, born as Charles Weedon Westover was a Singer, Musician and Songwriter. Along with keyboardist Max Crook, who invented his own version of an electric keyboard based on the Clavioline called a Musitron, performed together for the band Charlie Johnson and the Big Little Show Band, with Westover adopting the Charlie stage name. After winning a recording contract with BigTop in 1960 Westover and Creek took new stage names as ‘Del Shannon’ and ‘Maximilian’ respectively.

Ollie McLaughlin, their Manager, persuaded them to rewrite and re-record one of their earlier original songs, "Little Runaway", and in February 1961, it was released as ‘Runaway’ and enjoyed a runaway success. In 1969, Elvis Presley covered the song while performing at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. At one Midnight Show, Presley introduced Shannon to the audience after performing "Runaway", which is released on Collector's Gold.

In 1986, Del Shannon re-recorded the song with different lyrics as the theme for the NBC television series Crime Story starring Dennis Farina, which was set in the early 1960s. The song is sung from the point of view of a man whose girlfriend has left him. She is mostly referred to in the third person, but she is briefly addressed in the second person in the lyric ‘Wishing you were here by Me’.

Del Shannon

Del Shannon Runaway

Born as Charles Weedon Westover on December 30, 1934 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Del Shannon was a popular American Singer, Musician and Songwriter of Country and Rock and Roll genres. He could play both the ukulele and the guitar. The Lables he worked with are Network, Bigtop, Twirl, Amy, London, Berlee Records, Liberty, Silvertone, United Artists, Island, Elektra, and Dunhill. His earlier interests were other artists who sang Country and Western songs like Hank Snow, Hank Williams and Lefty Frizzell. He was a Guitarist for a band called The Cool Flames while in the Army in Germany in 1954. Later in Michigan, he joined singer Doug DeMott’s group, The Moonlight Ramblers as part time Rhythm Guitarist at the H-Lo Club. The band was renamed to Big Little Show Band when Westover took over as leader and singer and he named himself Charlie Johnson.

Along with keyboardist Max Crook, in 1960, Westover signed with Bigtop Records as recording artists and music composers. Crook played an instrument called a Musitron (an early synthesizer of Crook's own invention that was designed like the Clavioline). Ann Arbor Disc Jockey Ollie McLaughlin presented the group's demo songs to Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik of Talent Artists in Detroit. Balk suggested a new name "Del Shannon". The name was a combination of ‘Mark Shannon’—a wrestling pseudonym used by a regular at the Hi-Lo Club and ‘Del’, derived from the Cadillac Coupe de Ville, his favorite car. 

On McLaughlin’s persuasion, Del Shannon and Crook rewrote one of their earlier original songs ‘Little Runaway’ and re recorded it using the Musitron as the lead instrument. The modified song single ‘Runaway’ was then released in February 1961 and reached No 1 on the Billboard Chart in April. He released ‘Hats Off To Larry’ in 1961 which became No 5 on the Billboard Chart and No 2 on the Cashbox Chart. In 1962, he released ‘So Long Baby’ and ‘Little Town Flirt’ (with Bob Babbitt) along with the album of the same name. He was the first American ever to record a cover version of a Beatles song ‘From Me To You’, in 1963. Del Shannon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 1999 and into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall Of Fame in 2005.

Musicians for Runaway Song

The main musicians included Crook playing the Musitron, Moe Wechsler on the Piano, Al Caiola on the Guitar, and Fred Weinberg as both a Session Musician and an Audo Engineer. The other musicians were Milt Hinton on Bass, Al Casamenti and Bucky Pizzarelli on Guitar, Joe Marshall on Drums and Bill Ramall on the Baritone Sax and Session Arranger as well.

Runaway Song by Shannon

Runaway Song Top Positions

It was No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 4 weeks and 3 weeks on the UK Record Retailer Chart and also enjoyed the top position in Australia Music Maker and Canada CHUM Hit Parade. It was No 2 in Ireland (Dublin Herald and Mail) and in Netherlands (Platennleuws). It was No 3 on Billboard's Hot R&B Sides and No. 5 on Billboard's end of year "Hot 100 for 1961 – Top Sides of the Year". It was No. 9 on Cash Box's "Top 100 Chart Hits of 1961" and is at position 364 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In the 2010 compilation It is No. 472 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.