SPOTLIGHT = John Parr (1 song) & Carl Perkins (1 song)

An England native & a Ridgely TN native….

#1
John Parr was born in Worksop, England, & entered the music scene at age 12 when he formed a band (The Silence) with 2 schoolmates. This song, arguably his signature tune, was released June 1985 as the main theme from the soundtrack of the movie of the same name; it was written by Parr & David Foster for Canadian athlete Rick Hansen, who was going around the world in his wheelchair to raise awareness for spinal cord injuries. This single claimed #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 & reached #4 on the Adult Contemporary charts; it was also heard in the TV shows “The Facts Of Life” & “The Goldbergs”.

#2
Carl Perkins is a Ridgely TN-native singer-songwriter-guitarist. This song, his debut single, hit the airwaves 02/18/1956 & spent 24 weeks on the country charts, 3 of those at #1; it crossed over & spent 4 weeks at its peak position of #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It won the Hall Of Fame Grammy & R&R Hal Of Fame awards. After notching 2 more solo Top 10s in 1956 (“Boppin’ The Blues”, #7, & “Dixie Fried”, #10), Perkins joined Johnny Cash’s touring band (1965-1975). Perkins died of a stroke 01/19/1998.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhuYCVqHTt0