#14: Waltzing Matilda by David Carroll & Orchestra
City: Hull, PQ
Radio Station: CKCH
Peak Month: January-February 1960
Peak Position in Hull ~ #1
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #112
YouTube: “Waltzing Matilda”
Lyrics: “Waltzing Matilda”
David Carroll (given the birth name Rodell Walter Schreier) was born in Taylorville (IL) in October 1913. There is very little to find in a search online about his background. By the time he was an adult, David Carroll was becoming an accomplished musician, able to arrange, direct and conduct music. In 1952, by the age of 28, Carroll conducted the orchestra backing Vic Damone on his #13 hit “Sugar”. Carroll was back in the recording studio the following year with Damone to craft the #10 hit “April In Portugal”. As well, he conducted two Top Ten hits in ’53 for Rusty Draper: “No Help Wanted” and “Gambler’s Guitar”. In 1954, he conducted the number-one hit, “Sh-Boom”, for the Crew Cuts. (The song was a ‘white cover’ of the original by the R&B group The Chords. Carroll was in the studio for the Crew Cuts subsequent mid-50s hits: “Earth Angel”, “Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So)”, “Gum Drop”, “Angels in the Sky”, “A Story Untold”, “Don’t Be Angry” and “Young Love”.