Fractured (Bill Haley song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Fractured"
Single by Bill Haley with Haley's Comets
Released1953
Recorded1953
GenreRock and roll
Length2:12
LabelEssex Records
Songwriter(s)Bill Haley, Marshall Lytle
Producer(s)Dave Miller
Bill Haley with Haley's Comets singles chronology
"Crazy Man, Crazy"
(1953)
"Fractured"
(1953)
"Live It Up"
(1953)

"Fractured" was the title of an early rock and roll song written by Bill Haley and Marshall Lytle and first recorded by Bill Haley & His Comets, then going by the name Bill Haley with Haley's Comets, in 1953. The song was released as an Essex Records 78 single in 1953, peaking at #24 on the Billboard singles chart.

History[edit]

The music and the lyrics were written by Bill Haley and Marshall Lytle.[1]

The song was recorded at Redo Art Studios, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was released by Essex Records as a B side single in July, 1953. The personnel on the recording included Haley's core Comets members Marshall Lytle (bass), Billy Williamson (steel guitar), and Johnny Grande (piano), plus session musicians Art Ryerson (lead guitar) and Billy Gussak (drums).[2][3]

The recording was released on Essex Records as Essex 327B backed with "Pat-a-Cake".[4]

The term "fractured" was a popular slang expression of that time, which like the earlier "crazy, man, crazy", was chosen as the title of the song to appeal to teenage record buyers.

Charts[edit]

"Fractured" was a Top 40 hit on the Billboard pop singles chart, reaching #24 in August, 1953.[5]

Sources[edit]

  • Jim Dawson, Rock Around the Clock: The Record That Started the Rock Revolution! (Backbeat Books, 2005), pp. 50–55.
  • John W. Haley and John von Hoelle, Sound and Glory (Dyne-American, 1990).
  • John Swenson, Bill Haley: The Daddy of Rock and Roll (Stein & Day, 1985).

References[edit]

  1. ^ Rock the Joint! The Original Essex Recordings, 1951–1954. SKR 1529. Roller Coaster Records, UK, 1989. See the liner notes by Chris Gardner, Bill Haley Holiday/Essex Session File.
  2. ^ Bill Haley Essex and Decca Discography Archived 2012-03-26 at the Wayback Machine at This is Vintage Now
  3. ^ "Bill Haley 1951-1954 discography (Holiday and Essex Records)". thegardnerfamily.org. Retrieved 2015-02-11.
  4. ^ "Bill Haley Recordings". thegardnerfamily.org. Archived from the original on 2012-02-05. Retrieved 2015-02-11.
  5. ^ "Song artist 88 - Bill Haley & his Comets". tsort.info. Retrieved 2015-02-11.