Russ Hamilton (born Ronald Hulme, 19 January 1932 – 11 October 2008) was an English singer and songwriter. Hamilton made the Top 10 in the United Kingdom with "We Will Make Love", but in the United States, it was the B-side, "Rainbow", which made the Top 10.

Biography

Early Life

Russ Hamilton was born as Ronald Hulme in Everton, Liverpool, Lancashire in 1932. Prior to his fame, he worked as a cost clerk.

Career

he was one of the first singer-songwriters of pop music to have come out of the city, and he was the first Liverpool artist to hit the United States music scene with his song "

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

", several years before

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

. In 1957, chart success in the U.S. was very unusual for a British performer, and Hamilton commuted from one side of the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

to the other to meet the demands for live performances. A former Redcoat, Hamilton's first

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

in the United Kingdom was "We Will Make Love", which he recorded in 1957 for Oriole Records. However, in the U.S., it was the B-side, "Rainbow", that became the hit; according to Hamilton himself, it was mistakenly thought to be the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of the single. This produced the possibly unique event of a single reaching the Top 10 in the UK, while its flipside achieved the same result across the Atlantic. "We Will Make Love" peaked at No. 2 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and "Rainbow" reached No. 4 on '' Billboard'''s Hot 100. The record sold over one million copies, and reached

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

status. We Will Make Love was written about a girl from Blackpool named Patricia Hitchin, who Hamilton had fallen in love with. Hamilton followed this success later that same year with another self-penned item, "Wedding Ring", which reached the Top 20 in the UK. In 1960, he was invited to Nashville, Tennessee and signed up with MGM Records. In Nashville, he recorded " Gonna Find Me a Bluebird" with

the Jordanaires The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. Over the years, they recorded both sacred and secular music for recording companies such as Capitol Records, RCA Victor, Columbia Records, Decca Records, Vocal ...

and

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music ...

. His success with record releases did not improve, and by the early 1960s he had dropped away from the foreground of the pop music scene. He has written many songs which were popular, especially in Asia. "Little One", a song he wrote for his niece in Canada, was his personal favourite. Other songs such as "I Still Belong to You", "I Had a Dream" and "Reprieve of Tom Dooley" were quite popular. He performed the song "I Had A Dream" on the film spin-off of the TV show ''

Six-Five Special ''Six-Five Special'' is a British television programme launched in February 1957 when both television and rock and roll were in their infancy in Britain. Description ''Six-Five Special'' was the BBC's first attempt at a rock-and-roll programme. ...

''. However, this hit has subsequently received little

airplay Airplay is how frequently a song is being played through broadcasting on radio stations. A song which is being played several times every day (spins) would have a significant amount of airplay. Music which became very popular on jukeboxes, in n ...

Death

Hamilton died on 11 October 2008, at the age of 76, at his home in

Buckley Buckley may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Buckley's, a Canadian pharmaceutical corporation * Buckley Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer * Buckley Broadcasting, an American broadcasting company * Buckley School (California), ...

North Wales North Wales ( cy, Gogledd Cymru) is a region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders Mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdonia N ...

Discography

Albums

Singles

Extended Play's

References

External links

Biography at 45-rpm.org.ukRuss Hamilton Biography, photos, news and hear his musicVideo Newsreel of Russ Hamilton in 1957Russ Hamilton at Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Russ 1932 births 2008 deaths English male singer-songwriters English singer-songwriters Musicians from Liverpool Butlins Redcoats Oriole Records (UK) artists 20th-century English singers 20th-century British male singers 20th-century English male writers