According to Billboard magazine, he had 38 American Hot 100 chart hits, 10 of which hit the Top 20.
Vee was born in Fargo, North Dakota, to Sydney Ronald Velline and Saima Cecilia Tapanila. His first single, "Suzie Baby," was written by Vee with a nod to Buddy Holly's "Peggy Sue" and recorded for the Minneapolis-based Soma Records in 1959; it drew enough attention and chart action to be purchased by Liberty Records, who signed him later that year. His followup single, a cover of Adam Faith's UK number-one "What Do You Want?", charted in the lower reaches of the Billboard pop chart in early 1960. His fourth release, a revival of the Clovers' doo-wop ballad "Devil or Angel", brought him into the big time with U.S. buyers. His next single, "Rubber Ball", made him an international star.
Vee's 1961 summer release "Take Good Care of My Baby" went to number one on the Billboard U.S. listings and number three in the UK Singles Chart. Known primarily as a performer of Brill Building pop material, he went on to record a string of international hits in the 1960s, including "Devil or Angel" (U.S. number six), "Rubber Ball" (1961, U.S. number six, Australia number one), "More Than I Can Say" (1961, U.K. number four), "Run to Him" (1961, U.S. number two), "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" (1963, U.S. number three), and "Come Back When You Grow Up" (U.S. number three). When Vee recorded "Come Back When You Grow Up" in 1967, he was joined by a band called the Strangers. He also recorded, in 1961, a version of the song "Lollipop", originally by Ronald & Ruby, which also became a success.
Vee was also a pioneer in the music video genre, appearing in several musical films, as well as in the Scopitone series of early film-and-music jukebox recordings.
He received the North Dakota Roughrider Award in 1999.
He is mentioned in the film No Direction Home regarding his brief musical association with Bob Dylan and Dylan's suggestion that he was "Bobby Vee" after Vee's regional hit.
The Very Best of Bobby Vee, released by EMI/UK on May 12, 2008, charted in the UK top five. On January 17, 2011, EMI/UK released Rarities, a double-CD package with 61 tracks, many of which were previously unreleased. Others included were alternate takes and first-time stereo releases as well as tracks from the album Bobby Vee Live on Tour minus the "canned" audience.
On March 28, 2011, he became the 235th inductee into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. In 2014 he was inducted into the Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame.
Vee's career began amid tragedy. On February 3, 1959, "The Day the Music Died", three of the four headline acts in the lineup of the traveling Winter Dance Party—Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper—were killed, along with the 21-year-old pilot, Roger Peterson, in the crash of a V-tailed 1947 Beechcraft Bonanza airplane (Dion, the second headliner, opted not to travel on the plane). It crashed near Clear Lake, Iowa, en route to the next show on the tour itinerary in Moorhead, Minnesota. Velline, then aged 15, and a hastily assembled band of Fargo schoolboys calling themselves the Shadows volunteered for and were given the unenviable job of filling in for Holly and his band at the Moorhead engagement. Their performance there was a success, setting in motion a chain of events that led to Vee's career as a popular singer.
In 1963, Vee released a tribute album on Liberty Records called I Remember Buddy Holly. In the liner notes, Vee recalled Holly's influence on him and the events surrounding Holly's death:
Like so many other people, I became a Buddy Holly fan the very first time I heard him sing. I've been a fan ever since and I guess I always will be. I remember a few years ago when Buddy was scheduled to appear at a dance in my home town of Fargo, North Dakota. It was going to be a big event for the whole town, but even more so for me. I was anxiously looking forward to seeing Buddy in action.
The day he was to arrive disaster struck, taking Buddy's life, along with the lives of two other fine singers, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. The shocking news spread through Fargo very quickly. The local radio station broadcast a plea for local talent to entertain at the scheduled dance. About a week before this, I had just organized a vocal and instrumental group of five guys. Our style was modelled after Buddy's approach and we had been rehearsing with Buddy's hits in mind. When we heard the radio plea for talent, we went in and volunteered. We hadn't even named the group up to that time, so we gave ourselves a name on the spot, calling ourselves The Shadows. We appeared at the dance and were grateful to be enthusiastically accepted. Soon afterwards, I made my first record. It was called "Suzie Baby" and I was pretty lucky with it; it was a fair-sized hit.
For some time now, I have wanted to make an album in tribute to Buddy, but I wasn't sure it was the proper thing to do. However, during the past year, I have received many requests to do such an album. These requests came not only from my fans and from DJs, but also from Buddy's loyal following---still a large group of devoted fans. It.... gave me the confidence to do the album. From "Suzie Baby" to this present album, I have made many records, but I have never forgotten Buddy Holly and his influence on my singing style and my career.
Vee went on to become a bona fide star and regularly performed at the Winter Dance Party memorial concerts in Clear Lake. His sons are all musicians and have performed with him there.
Early in Vee's career, a musician named Elston Gunnn [sic] briefly toured with the band. "Gunnn", whose birth name was Robert Allen Zimmerman, later went on to fame as Bob Dylan.
Dylan's autobiography, Chronicles, Volume One, mentions Vee and provides complimentary details about their friendship, both professional and personal.
In a concert at Midway Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota, on July 10, 2013, Dylan said he had been on the stage with many stars, but that none of them were as meaningful as Vee. He said Vee was in the audience and then played Vee's hit "Suzie Baby" with emotion. Dylan said (in an audio recording of the concert),
Thank you everyone, thank you friends. I left here a while back, and since that time, I've played all over the world, with all kinds of people. And everybody from Mick Jagger to Madonna. And everybody in there in between. I've been on the stage with most of those people. But the most meaningful person I've ever been on the stage with, was a man who is here tonight, who used to sing a song called "Suzie Baby". I want to say that Bobby Vee is actually here tonight. Maybe you can show your appreciation with just a round of applause. So, we're gonna try to do this song, like I've done it with him before once or twice.
Vee and Karen Bergen were engaged July 1, 1963, and married December 28, 1963. They had four children: Jeffery Robert Velline (b. Jan 3, 1965), Thomas Paul Velline (b. October 25, 1966), Robert Bryon Velline (b. August 4, 1967), and Jennifer Joanne Velline (b. May 31, 1972). Karen died of kidney failure on August 3, 2015.
On April 29, 2012, Vee announced on his website that a year prior he had been diagnosed with an early stage of Alzheimer's disease and consequently would withdraw from the music business.
On October 24, 2016, Vee died in Rogers, Minnesota, from complications of early onset Alzheimer's disease.
Blue on Blue
Bobby Vee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blue on blue now that we are through
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
And I find I can't get over losing you
I walk along the street we used to walk
Two by two, lovers pass
And as they're passing by, I could die
Now the trees are bare
There's sadness in the air
And I'm as blue as I can be
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
Blue on blue now that we are through
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
And I find I can't get over losing you
Night after lonely night, we meet in dreams
As I run to your side
You wait with open arms, open arms
That now are closed to me
Through a veil of tears
Your vision disappears
And I'm as blue as I can be
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
Blue on blue now that we are through
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
And I find I can't get over losing you
The lyrics of "Blue on Blue" by Bobby Vee describe the feeling of heartbreak and the difficulties of moving on after a relationship has ended. The phrase "blue on blue" is a metaphor for the layers of sadness, with each layer adding to the other to create a feeling of overwhelming emotion. The repetition of the phrase "heartache on heartache" emphasizes the depth of the singer's pain and the inability to move past the loss of their loved one.
The first verse describes how the singer is reminded of their lost love as they walk down the same street they used to as a couple. They see other happy couples and realize that they are no longer part of that world. The second verse is a dream sequence, where the singer sees their loved one with open arms welcoming them, but wakes up to the harsh reality that they are alone and cannot be with the person they long for. The loneliness and sadness are palpable in the final repetition of the chorus.
Overall, the lyrics of "Blue on Blue" offer a poignant portrayal of the intense emotions that come with the end of a relationship and the difficulties of moving forward.
Line by Line Meaning
Blue on blue, heartache on heartache
Feeling double the pain of heartbreak
Blue on blue now that we are through
Everything feels gloomy and desolate now that our relationship has ended
And I find I can't get over losing you
I can't seem to move on from the loss of our relationship
I walk along the street we used to walk
I revisit places that once brought me joy but now bring me sadness
Two by two, lovers pass
I see happy couples passing by and feel envious of their love
And as they're passing by, I could die
Their happiness only reminds me of what I've lost and makes me feel hopeless
Cause you're not here with me
I miss the person who used to walk these streets with me
Now the trees are bare
Everything around me seems lifeless and barren
There's sadness in the air
The atmosphere feels heavy with grief
And I'm as blue as I can be
The pain and sadness is overwhelming
Night after lonely night, we meet in dreams
I find myself dreaming of the person I once loved
As I run to your side
I desperately want to be with them again
You wait with open arms, open arms
In my dreams, the person I love is still welcoming and loving towards me
That now are closed to me
But in reality, they have moved on and are no longer available to me
Through a veil of tears
I cry for what I've lost
Your vision disappears
The image of the person I once loved fades away
And I'm as blue as I can be
The loss and heartbreak is still too much to bear
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: FRANK WESS, WILLIAM BASIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@eliortegajr9710
Number 3 when released in April of 1963,and peaked #3 0n 07/06/1963. I was 11 years old at the time,and something about the sincerity of the the singer kept me interested on a this sad story. Again, Thanks Denise!
@vShaede
My pleasure! 😊
@kollerbrian
Oh My God YouTube what a feeling. Making all heartache of love something to remember. Great Polish Gentleman Bobby V. BAK
@floritaflores3701
Tamsak done host watching kuwait
@bretstanley9449
Oldies aren't my favorite, but I like some of them. This is one that I like! I also like his Blue Velvet too. Thanks for posting with the lyrics!
@stjojokaras9363
blue on blue is the first song i have ever loved when i was a kid, i.e., when this song was released back in 1960's. at that time, i did not know the music was written by burt bacharach.what a beautiful tune! since then bobby vinton remains to be one of my favourite artists.
@mle7136
'blue on blue' ..heartache on heartache'..'blue on blue'...now that we are through...'blue on blue'...'heartache on heartache' and i find i can't get over losing you'...and that was in '64 and he's still in my heart.... love never dies but it's never forgotten either...after all these years, i still love him and the tears come so easily....
@victorlowry844
Reminds me of my Mom. One of my earliest song memories around 1966. I was 5 in NYC
@ferrerouniverse6244
This song literally made me cry😭
@mooncow5493
Oh my goodness, this was one of the songs played all the time when the tent skating ring came to town. I can still feel myself skating around the rink singing to this tune. ♥️