Carson Parks
| C. Carson Parks | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Clarence Carson Parks II |
| Born |
April 26, 1936 Philadelphia, U.S. |
| Died | June 22, 2005 (aged 69) |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, etc. |
| Years active | 1959 – c.1969 |
| Associated acts | The Steeltown Two / Three The Easy Riders The Greenwood County Singers Carson and Gaile |
| Website | http://www.ccarsonparks.com |
Clarence Carson Parks II (26 April 1936 – 22 June 2005), often known as C. Carson Parks, was an American songwriter, music publisher, musician and singer, best known for writing the hit song "Somethin' Stupid". His younger brother is the composer Van Dyke Parks.
Parks was born in Philadelphia, the son of a psychiatrist. Carson's early musical training began as a student at the internationally acclaimed American Boychoir School (formerly known as The Columbus Boychoir School). After attending Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, the University of Miami and then Carnegie Mellon University, he began working in Los Angeles. In 1959, with college friend Bernie Armstrong, he formed the Steeltown Two and first recorded for the small Gini label. The duo also worked as one half of a reformed version of Terry Gilkyson's band, The Easy Riders, and in 1960 they performed on the soundtrack of the John Wayne film The Alamo. The pair also worked as The Kinsmen with singer Bud Dashiell, before Parks left in 1962. He then formed a new version of the Steeltown Two, with his younger brother, Van Dyke Parks, occasionally adding singer Pat Peyton as the Steeltown Three and the Southcoasters.
Following the success of The New Christy Minstrels, Gilkyson and the Parks brothers then formed a choral group, The Greenwood County Singers, featuring five boys and two girls. They released four albums on Kapp Records between 1963 and 1965, later becoming known as The Greenwood Singers and finally The Greenwoods. The group had two minor hits, "Please Don't Sell My Daddy No More Wine" reaching #64 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966, and included singer Gaile Foote, whom Carson Parks married.
...
Wikipedia