On this day in 1957, Columbia Records recording star Guy Mitchell‘s single “Singing the Blues” is number 1 on the CKWX Top Fifty!

I was still at competitor CJOR and I wouldn’t move to ‘WX for a couple of months, but I managed to spend some time with Guy. He was in Vancouver for a two-week appearance at the Cave Theatre Restaurant and I told him about my plan for a remote broadcast.

I decided to host my “Theme For Teens” show from Vancouver’s Sunset Community Centre, and area high schools bussed students to the centre each day for the show. It was my first big show with a name artist. Guy appeared on stage for five straight days. We played records, Guy talked to the teenagers and autographed pictures. He loved being there and was most cordial. Needless to say the girls were thrilled to pose with him.

As rock’n’roll took over the charts, Guy Mitchell’s moment seemed to be over. He switched to country songs, and scored with his second and final #1 hit, “Heartaches by the Number”, in 1959.

Guy was a frequent visitor to Vancouver. Did you know he married the hat check girl at the Cave? He was a down-to-earth guy, and in this interview we talked about his life away from the entertainment spotlight. He sold 44 million records, including six million-selling singles. Guy Mitchell died in Las Vegas in 1999.

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