Ernie Freeman

What this episode covers

Ernie Freeman came to Vancouver in 1956 as bandleader and arranger with the first "Show Of Stars". I chatted with Ernie backstage, we talked about rock'n'roll and I learned the meaning of the word "zeitgeist"! Ernie released "Jivin' Around" in 1956 and he appeared in Columbia Pictures' classic teen flick "Rock Around The Clock" Ernie's cover version of Bill Justis' "Raunchy", his biggest solo success, reached #4 on the pop chart and #1 on the R&B chart in 1957. Ernie played piano on a couple of classic early Sixties instrumentals: B. Bumble and the Stingers' first hit, "Bumble Boogie" and "Percolator (Twist)" by Billy Joe & the Checkmates. He also performed with and arranged for the Routers ("Let's Go") and the Marketts ("Out Of Limits"). As a staff arranger for Liberty Records, Ernie worked with Liberty stars Bobby Vee, Johnny Burnette, and Gene McDaniels. Ernie Freeman went on to work with Jimmy Bowen, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Connie Francis, Johnny Mathis and Petula Clark. He won Grammy awards for his arrangements of Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night" (1966) and Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (1970). Ernie Freeman died in 1981 in Los Angeles but he left an indelible mark on pop music.

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