Bobby Helms
| Bobby Helms | |
|---|---|
Bobby Helms in 1968
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Robert Lee Helms |
| Born |
August 15, 1933 Helmsburg, Indiana, United States |
| Died | June 19, 1997 (aged 63) Martinsville, Indiana, United States |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instruments | |
| Years active | 1955–1997 |
| Labels | Decca, Columbia, Vocalion |
Robert Lee Helms (August 15, 1933 – June 19, 1997), known professionally as Bobby Helms, was an American country music singer who enjoyed his peak success in 1957 with the seasonal hit "Jingle Bell Rock". His other hits include "Fraulein" and "My Special Angel".
Helms was born in Helmsburg, Indiana, the son of Hildreth Esther (née Abram) and Fred Robert Helms. His family was musical. Helms began performing as a duo with his brother, Freddie, before going on to a successful solo career in country music. In 1956, Helms made his way to Nashville, Tennessee, where he signed a recording contract with Decca Records. The following year was filled with successes. Helms' first single in 1957, titled "Fraulein", went to No. 1 on the country music chart and made it into the Top 40 on the Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart. Later that same year, he released "My Special Angel", which also hit No. 1 on the country charts and entered the Top 10 on Billboard's pop music chart, peaking at No. 7.
Released in the very late fall of 1957, his song "Jingle Bell Rock" was a big hit and was being played and danced to on Dick Clark's teen dance show "American Bandstand" by mid-December of that year. It also re-emerged in four out of the next five years, and sold so well that it repeated each time as a top hit, becoming a Christmas classic still played to this day. (In 2016, it was rated radio's third most played Christmas song, according to StationIntel.)
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