MORGAN Jaye P 1959

This one is for the opening. I hope that's how it's gonna be.
SLOW & EASY

Jaye P MORGAN 1959 Slow and Easy

Orchestra conducted by Ray ELLIS


Richard, just to be sure you're awake...

Jaye P. Morgan (born Mary Margaret Morgan, December 3, 1931) is a retired popular American singer and game show panelist.
Morgan was born in Mancos, Colorado, but her family moved to California by the time she was in high school. In the late 1940s, at Verdugo Hills High School in Tujunga, Los Angeles, California, she served as class treasurer (and got the nickname "Jaye P." after the banker J. P. Morgan) and sang at school assemblies, accompanied by her brother on guitar.
In 1951, a year after graduation from Verdugo Hills, she made a recording of the song "Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries" which made it to the Top Ten. Soon after, she received an RCA Victor recording contract and she had five hits in one year, including "That's All I Want from You," her biggest hit, which reached #3 on the charts. Other notable hits included "The Longest Walk" and "Pepper Hot Baby".
From 1954 to 1955, she was a vocalist on the television show "Stop the Music." In 1956 she had her own television show, named for her. She did a number of other variety shows as well.
After a period in the 1960s when she did very little in the entertainment field, confining herself to a small number of night club appearances, she returned to the public eye in the 1970s, mainly as an actress. She played herself on a 1973 episode (The Songwriter) of the sitcom The Odd Couple (TV series). Morgan also guest starred on The Muppet Show (episode 218) in which she and Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem sang "That Old Black Magic".
It was during the 1970s when she gained a new generation of fans as a foul-mouthed but entertaining regular panelist on the game/variety shows The Gong Show and Rhyme or Reason in the late 1970s, and in the 1980 "behind-the-scenes" movie version of The Gong Show.
It has been widely reported that Jaye P. Morgan was fired during the The Gong Show's last season for ripping her top off (with no bra underneath) while "Gene Gene The Dancing Machine" was onstage. The firing came down from NBC network programming officials and not from either Chuck Barris or the show's other producers, and according to most reports this came at the demand of the network's Standards and Practices department; the "censors" were reportedly having to censor Morgan's comments and gestures as much as ten times per episode, and as the show progressed the obscenties increased in severity and duration to the point that it would actually interfere with the flow of the show. Morgan as of the time of this entry refuses to discuss the firing other than to acknowledge it happened. The film clip of her exposing herself was saved, and later used in The Gong Show Movie.


To be continued...

9 comments:

BillD said...

This is a fine record. I remember Ms. Morgan from her early 50's singles which were to be honest not very good. This is one of the best things about this blog. A chance to discover fine music by somewhat forgotten performers.

Bill

Unknown said...

I think most New Yorkers think of the Gong Show when they think of Jaye--so her image to this day is of a kooky personality. It's nice to hear her sophisticated stylings on this album. I particularly like the intro to For All We Know and I also like the Martini song which is new to me and I enjoyed it. That's one of the best parts about this blog----the discovery of songs and singers.--Tom

soilworker said...

I like the swinging mood of the album. Jaye may be not the best singer (in a classical sense), yet still her voice is very interesting. And there's also the gorgeous cover shot. So, great share!

soulbrotha said...

Is this the same Jaye P Morgan that sang "Happy and Peppy and Bursting With Love" on The Odd Couple tv series?? Holy crow, she looks beautiful on that album cover! I would have NEVER guessed that was her.
I too was not thrilled by her voice when I first heard her sing (again on the Odd Couple), but she doesn't sound bad here. At least NOW I understand why she had any popularity at all.

JUST ME said...

I DON'T KNOW IF YOU ARE RICHARD V. OR RICHARD W.... BUT I'M SURE JAYE P MORGAN IS THE ONE YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT... THE WHOLE STORY IS HERE NOW. BEST. DANIEL

soulbrotha said...

Thanks Daniel.
Wow, I forgot about the Gong Show controversy. Has she retired from singing or is she still doing gigs?

Richard W.

JUST ME said...

RICHARD, I FOUND HER IN THE CAST OF "CONFESSION OF A DANGEROUS MIND" WHERE SHE PLAYS HER OWN ROLE. IT'S A CRIME MOVIE FROM 2003 WITH DREW BARRIMORE, GEORGE CLOONEY... I MAIL YOU THE DETAILS. DANIEL

David Bruce-Casares said...

Jaye's early albums were very different from her singles of the day. All three of these are artistic achievements for her (and, thanks for SLOW & EASY -- I'd only had that on well worn vinyl). YAY!

lowgroove said...

I hadn't heard Jaye for years, and this album not at all. Thanks for the memories!
Pete