One-Hit Wonders: Cathy Carr And “Ivory Tower”

Cathy Carr - "Ivory Tower" (Fraternity, 1956)

As was often the case during the 1950s, white pop singers remade the songs of black R&B artists into Top-40 hits. Such was the case with Cathy Carr, who made a hit out of the Charms‘ “Ivory Tower.”

A singer and dancer from the age of six, Cathy Carr spent some time in the USO and fronting New York City dance bands during the ’40s and ’50s before stepping ito the spotlight as a solo act in 1953. Under the management of her one-time employer, Larry Fontaine, she signed with Coral Records (with little success) before switching over to Fraternity in 1955.

It was there that she enjoyed her one big hit, “Ivory Tower,” which landed at #2 on the pop chart in 1956. Though she continued to record for Fraternity (as well as Roulette, Laurie and Smash), Carr never found further success on the pop chart were her brand of high school sweetheart balladry.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIwZg6Yky_8

Gone but not forgotten, at least not at WNEW, find more tales of One-Hit Wonders here …