Helen Ettline - Every Dell Rat's Mom: He's Gone to Cha Cha Cha Up On The Roof

 Shady Dell owner Helen Ettline 

 didn't have any children of her own. 

 In a way, we were all her kids 

 and she was our mom. 

Clearly Helen & John

loved kids. Why else

would they have

put up with the

aggravation all

those years?

The Ettlines

believed in kids.

They enjoyed

counseling and

helping kids.

The pictures above and below remind me ever so much of Helen's snack bar

and the jukebox in the adjoining room where rows of diner booths were located.

To remember and honor

Helen on Mother's Day,

I picked four songs that

I think she would enjoy.

Helen, these are for you.

 LITTLE ANTHONY 

 AND THE IMPERIALS 

Over the years, on Helen's special days, I have often played

"Two People In The World," by Little Anthony And The Imperials.

I refer to the ballad as "Helen's Song" because I remember it

being played so many times on the snack bar jukebox. 

Today, as we honor Helen on Mother's Day, I'd like to spin another

Little Anthony classic. From the fall of 1964, here is the group's

top 20 comeback hit, a song written by Teddy Randazzo and

Bobby Weinstein. Little Anthony And The Imperials sing--

"I'm On The Outside (Looking In)."

"I'm On The Outside (Looking In)" - Little Anthony And The Imperials

(Sept./Oct. 1964, highest chart pos. #15 Hot 100 & R&B/#20 Cash Box) 

 THE DRIFTERS 

"The Second Drifters" is the name given in 1958 to the new lineup

of the veteran doo-wop/R&B/Soul group. In 1961, The Drifters

got another makeover when Rudy Lewis joined as lead singer.

Lewis led the group on a string of polished, sophisticated, orchestrated hits

of the pre-Beatles early 60s. I think Helen would enjoy this song, one of the

group's biggest successes of the period. Written by the Brill Building team

of Gerry Goffin and Carole King, the song reminds city dwellers that

they can escape the hustle and bustle of life on the street and

shed their cares and woes  -- "Up On The Roof."

"Up On The Roof" - The Drifters

(Dec. 1962/Jan. 1963, highest chart pos.

#4 R&B/#5 Hot 100/#6 Cash Box)

 THE CHANTELS 

Up next, the angelic harmonies of The Chantels, the pioneering Bronx-

based African-American R&B girl group of the 50s led by Arlene Smith. 

The Chantels gained their first charting record in the fall of 1957 with

 a song written by Arlene. The single made a dent in the pop chart

but, oddly, didn't show up on the R&B survey. Listen now to

this glorious ballad, one of The Chantels' best recordings

and a classic of the genre -- "He's Gone." 

"He's Gone" - The Chantels

(Oct. 1957, highest chart pos. #71 Hot 100)

 SAM COOKE 

To complete this year's Mother's Day song serenade for Helen,

here's singer/songwriter Sam Cooke with one of his biggest R&B hits. 

It's a song Sam wrote about the cha-cha-cha, a Cuban dance that gained
widespread popularity in America in the late 50s. Released at the start
of 1959, Sam's single reached #2 on the R&B chart and made a run
at the top 30 on the pop side. The young folks in the audience were
chewing up a storm as Sam appeared on Dick Clark's Saturday Night
Beechnut Show and declared-- "Everybody Likes to Cha Cha Cha!"

"Everybody Likes To Cha Cha Cha" - Sam Cooke

(Mar. thru May 1959, highest chart pos. #2 R&B,

#31 Hot 100, performance on Mar. 14, 1959, ep.

of Dick Cark's Saturday Night Beechnut Show) 

 Happy Mother's Day, Helen! 

 We love you and miss you!