Category Archives: 1950s songs

The top 500 best songs and music from the 1950s or earlier. Lyrics, meanings and interpretations from your favorite 50s artists. Valens, Holly, the Everly Brothers, Elvis and more!

1950s songs, new love

#402 Peggie Sue- Buddy Holly

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Peggy Sue, Peggy Sue/
Oh how my heart yearns for you.

Many songs from the 1950s have not aged well, but Buddy Holly still sounds great 70! years later. “Peggy Sue” is a simple love song, with a very common theme for the time–a guy professing his love for a girl (See Donna by Ritchie Valens). What makes this song great is that this is the beginning of rock, electric guitars, and three-piece bands feature the guitar, bass and drums. That wasn’t done before. The melody for this song holds up well. It is very catchy. Very upbeat.

Peggy Sue meaning
Buddy Holly

A couple interesting instrumental notes about the song: notice how the lead guitar comes in prominently compared to the muted tone of the guitar during the verse. This is new stuff. Also, pay attention to the drums. Notice the ‘tom’ (non-snare) sound. That gives this song a lot of its signature style. And of course, Holly is famous for his, I guess you’d call it hicuppy singing style, which is featured prominently in this song. Has anyone else ever pulled this off?

Peggie Sue Lyrics

If you knew Peggy Sue
Then you’d know why I feel blue without Peggy
My Peggy Sue
Oh well, I love you gal, yes, I love you Peggy Sue

Peggy Sue, Peggy Sue
Oh how my heart yearns for you
Oh Peggy, my Peggy Sue
Oh well, I love you gal, yes, I love you Peggy Sue

Peggy Sue, Peggy Sue
Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty Peggy Sue
Oh Peggy, my Peggy Sue
Oh well, I love you gal and I need you Peggy Sue

I love you Peggy Sue
With a love so rare and true
Oh Peggy, my Peggy Sue
Well I love you gal, I want you Peggy Sue

Peggy Sue, Peggy Sue
Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty Peggy Sue
Oh Peggy, my Peggy Sue
Oh well, I love you gal yes I need you Peggy Sue

I love you Peggy Sue
With a love so rare and true
Oh Peggy, my Peggy Sue
Oh well I love you gal, and I want you Peggy Sue
Oh well, I love you gal and I want you Peggy Sue

Songwriters: Buddy Holly / Jerry Allison / Norman Petty

1950s songs, party songs

#326 Come On Let’s Go- Ritchie Valens

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Come on, let’s go, little darlin’/
Let’s go, let’s go again once more.

“Come On Let’s Go” is a great uptempo song by Ritchie Valens. Amazingly, he recorded for one year before his untimely death and this is already his second song on this list. This song was written in the 50s and it still holds up well. There are very few songs that make me bop my head along to the rhythm but this one always gets me. I would imagine someone more agile would probably want to get up and dance. That is about as close as I get, but it is a good feeling.

Come On Let's Go Meaning
Ritchie Valens

Outwardly “Come on Let’s Go” seems to be about dancing, but it does have sexual overtones that are surprising for the time. I wasn’t around then, but I would imagine it would have caused a bit of a stir amongst conservative types at the time. The song is simple, but notice it is a classically structured rock n roll song that accomplishes a lot in two minutes. It has a memorable verse and chorus, a bridge that works well within the song and even a guitar solo. These would all become staples of rock, but at the time, people like Valens and Holly (and others) were creating this genre and its characteristics.

Come On Let’s Go Lyrics

Well, Jessie, doll, darlin’, I love you so
Oh, I will never never never let you go
Come darlin’, let’s go on by by by

Take my by the hand once again, darlin’
Tell me that you love me and you’ll never never leave me
That’s the way I wanna do, ooo-ee, ooo-ee

Let’s go down to the park once again
There we’ll love each other again and again
Tell me that you’ll always love me so

I’ll give you once, kiss you again
And darlin’ I’ll hold your hand
And I’ll never never let you go
Come on baby, won’t you love me so?

Oh, now let’s go by, by again
Come on little baby, go back in
And I’ll never never let your love go, let’s go

Well, now you tell me that you love me so
And you’ll never let me go
I’ll love you, baby, until then
Until death do us part

So come on down, let’s go by back again
Come on little baby, go back in
And I’ll never never let your love go, let’s go

Songwriters: Richard Valenzuela

1950s songs, unrequited love

#285 All I Have To Do is Dream- The Everly Brothers

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I love you so and that is why/
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is dream.

“All I Have to Do is Dream” is a song about unrequited love. The Everly Brothers aren’t just singing about dreaming about their girlfriend while their apart…”Gee Whiz, I’m dreaming my life away”.  (I am not a big fan of the “Gee Whiz” but, I suppose in 60 years or so we should expect that language changes a bit). Like many early 60s pop songs, the lyrics were not incredibly deep, but rock was just starting to get their too. The Beatles were doing “She Loves You”—not exactly Earth-shattering lyrics wise. Only folk and soul really had great lyrics at that time.

All I Have To Do Is Dream Meaning
The Everly Brothers

What “All I Have to Do” did have is a timeless melody that still sounds great sixty years later. Also, the Everly Brothers were the pioneers of the harmonizing duos and bands. It is especially apparent in this song. The Simon & Garfunkels, & Beach Boys, CSNY were influenced heavily by their work.

I don’t value influence that much at all in these rankings. I believe that the song should still sound relevant if it is truly one of the top 500 top pop and rock songs. But it is interesting to see where some of our favorite bands drew inspiration from. This song is one of the classics.

All I Have To Do is Dream Lyrics

Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream,
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.
When I want you in my arms,
When I want you and all your charms,
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.

When I feel blue in the night,
And I need you to hold me tight.
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam.

I can make you mine, taste your lips of wine,
Anytime night or day.
Only trouble is, gee whiz,
I’m dreamin’ my life away.

I need you so that I could die,
I love you so and that is why,
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam.

I can make you mine, taste your lips of wine,
Anytime night or day.
Only trouble is, gee whiz,
I’m dreamin’ my life away.

I need you so that I could die,
I love you so and that is why
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream.

Songwriters: Boudleaux Bryant