Ricky Nelson
Ricky Nelson was son of big band leader Ozzie Nelson and Harriet Hilliard Nelson, the band's singer. Along with brother David Nelson, the family starred in the long-running radio and television series The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet from 1944 to 1966 on radio and then television.
Nelson began his rock and roll career in 1957 recording his debut single, the Fats Domino song I'm Walkin'. Each episode of the TV show ended with a musical performance by Ricky who was kept from appearing on other TV shows that arguably would have enhanced his public profile.
Nelson knew and loved music, and was a credible performer before he became a teen idol, largely due to his parents' musical background, and demonstrated his personal taste in working with strong musicians, including James Burton, Joe Maphis, The Jordanaires, and Johnny and Dorsey Burnette.
In 1972, Nelson reached the top 40 one last time with Garden Party, a song he wrote in disgust after a Madison Square Garden audience booed him when he tried playing new songs. He never regained his career momentum, and died in a plane crash in De Kalb, Texas in 1985.
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