S.O.D. "Walkin' After Midnight" By Patsy Cline

8/2/2015     Categorized under the genre of country pop, there are added elements of traditional pop, jazz and blues. Writers of the song, Alan Block and Donn Hecht wanted pop singer Kay Starr to record it.  She turned them down which may have been a good thing because Cline's vocals as the writers realized were well-suited for the tune.  Also not fond of the song, Cline recorded it only after Four Star Records compromised with her letting her record other songs to her liking.  It sold over 1 million copies and shot to #2 on the Billboard Country Music chart,  becoming Clne's first major hit single.  The session musicians on the original 1957 recording and release would later play with Patsy on her early 60s albums.  

     In 1957 Cline performed the song on the CBS television program Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts.  The amount of applause was so great that it froze the show's applause meter and helped Cline win the contest. This also convinced her label to release the single.  

     Patsy was one of the most influential, successful and acclaimed vocalists of the 20th century and is considered a leader and an icon in the country music genre. She eventually switched to pop music and was considered one of the leading women of rock and roll as well. She is the first female artist ever to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame which was in 1999.