The Poor People of Paris / April in Portugal

Originally released on Capitol 3336. It was early 1956. Elvis Presley was still an unknown southern white singer. This snappy, smaltzy instrumental sat at the top of the Bilozoard Hot 100 Singles chart for 6 weeks after beginning its chart run in February. And then, on May 5, 2 months after entering the chart on March 3, a single called "Heartbreak Hotel" by this newcomer Elvis Presley, possessed of a musical spirit and intensity heretofore unheard of on mainstream Pop radio, replaced "Poor People" and stayed there for 8 weeks! That May 5, 1956 transition from "Poor People of Paris" to "Heartbreak Hotel" was a defining moment in the history of Rock'n'Roll, which of course went on to render tunes like "Poor People" novelty numbers rather than being part of the mainstream Pop sound, as they had been until May 5, 1956. Just unearthed this story by looking through old Bilozoard magazine issues (via Google Books) and thought you might find it interesting, too! This is a new copy of the light blue Capitol Starline reissue, in its original factory sleeve.