Bobby Vee (born Robert Thomas Velline, April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016) w… Read Full Bio ↴Bobby Vee (born Robert Thomas Velline, April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016) was an American pop singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s.
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.

Venus in Blue Jeans
Bobby Vee Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She's Venus in blue jeans
Mona Lisa with a ponytail
She's walkin' talkin' work of art
She's the girl who stole my heart

My Venus in blue jeans
Is the Cinderella I adore
She's my very special angel too

A fairy tale come true

They say there's seven wonders in the world
But what they say is out of date
There's no more seven wonders in the world
I just met number eight

My Venus in blue jeans
Is ev'rything I hoped she'd be
A teenage goddess from above
And she belongs to me

My Venus in blue jeans
Is ev'rything I hoped she'd be

A teenage goddess from above
And she belongs to me

Overall Meaning

The lyrical content of Venus in Blue Jeans by Bobby Vee is a representation of classic 1960s love songs. The singer describes his love interest, who he lovingly refers to as Venus in blue jeans, as an extraordinary being, an artistic masterpiece. The songs lines, 'Mona Lisa with a ponytail,' and 'she's walking, talking work of art,' suggests that she's exceptionally beautiful and artistically crafted like a Renaissance portrait. He's enamored with her beauty and is infatuated by her very presence. The singer has fallen deeply in love with her, and he finds her to be his fairy tale come true, his very special angel.

Furthermore, the description of the singer's beloved as Venus in blue jeans is an allusion to the Roman goddess of love and beauty. It's a symbolic representation, and it's suggesting that the girl in question is the epitome of love and beauty. The song's protagonist believes that his love interest is better than the Seven Wonders of the World, elevating her beauty and character even higher. The song's message is clear; he's head over heels in love with her.

Overall, Venus in Blue Jeans by Bobby Vee is a classic love song that oozes with sentimentality and teenage romanticism. The song's lyrics highlight the innocence of first love and the potential for a romantic fairy tale to come true.

Line by Line Meaning

She's Venus in blue jeans
The girl he loves is beautiful and captivating in her simple, everyday attire.

Mona Lisa with a ponytail
She has a timeless and captivating beauty, just like the famous painting, and her ponytail adds a youthful touch.

She's walkin' talkin' work of art
Her every move and word is graceful and charming, just like a masterpiece of art.

She's the girl who stole my heart
He fell deeply in love with her and she captured his heart completely.

My Venus in blue jeans
He is claiming her as his own and cherishes her deeply.

Is the Cinderella I adore
She is the fairy tale princess he admires and loves with all his heart.

She's my very special angel too
To him, she is an angel in every sense of the word, special and perfect in every way.

A fairy tale come true
His love for her is so strong that it feels like a magical dream come to life.

They say there's seven wonders in the world
The popular belief is that there are only seven amazing things on this planet.

But what they say is out of date
He disagrees with this belief and thinks that there are more amazing things to be discovered.

There's no more seven wonders in the world
He believes that there are more wonders out there waiting to be discovered.

I just met number eight
Having met his love, he feels like he has found the eighth wonder of the world.

A teenage goddess from above
He views her as a heavenly and divine being, radiating youthful beauty and grace.

And she belongs to me
He is proud to have her by his side and loves her deeply.

Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Howard Greenfield, Jack Keller

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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