I was listening to and appreciating the art of the "teenage death song" (or, thank you, Wikipedia, the "splatter platter"). I broadcast a couple on Blip.FM just a few minutes ago in fact and might go back and play more again later. I guess because once October rolls around I start thinking Hallowe'en and I think more macabre thoughts. Haha!
You know the songs. They were very popular in the 1950s and 1960s. There were even a few after that time. The bliss of young love, cut short by the spectre of Death. The mourning lead singer and the angelic sounding choruses. Why teens? Probably because at that age, you feel invincible. And what's more tragic than dying young?
You had motorcycle crashes!
"Leader of the Pack" by the Shangri-Las
"Terry" by Twinkle
You had car crashes!
"Last Kiss" by The Cavaliers (covered later by Pearl Jam)
Deaths involving the water!
"Endless Sleep" by Jody Reynolds
There was murder!
"Run, Joey, Run" by David Geddes
There was suicide!
"Patches" by Dickie Lee
"Ode to Billy Joe" by Bobbie Gentry
Teens and rings didn't always seem to end well did it?
"Tell Laura I Love Her" by Ray Peterson. Also car death. He entered a race to win money to buy his girlfriend a ring and it ended very badly.
These got so prevalent that the inevitable parodies came out:
"Leader of the Laundromat" by The Detergents
"I Want My Baby Back" by Jimmy Cross
And various and sundry others. There are of course also "death songs" in general not necessarily involving teens, but that's a whole 'nother thing.
If anyone is interested, let me know and I can put together a "Teen Death Songs!" playlist and possibly try and help you if you want any downloads. Just leave a comment.
Just sweet sixteen, and now you're gone,
they've taken you away.
I'll never kiss your lips again,
they buried you today.
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