Kathy Young With The Innocents - Songs

ABOUT

Kathy Young (b. October 21, 1945) is a veteran singer and performer who became a teen pop sensation during the early 1960s. With The Innocents, she became famous for the 1960 smash, "A Thousand Stars," released when she was only 15 years old.

Born in Santa Ana, California and raised in the Los Angeles area, Young began singing as a child, later performing in talent shows at her school and writing songs. While attending the taping of a local Wink Martindale TV show with her mother and girlfriends, she approached producer Jim Lee of Indigo Records with several pointed questions relating to how to break into the music business without connections. Impressed by her seriousness and determination, he invited her to audition and soon after, she recorded "A Thousand Stars" with The Innocents, a pop trio from nearby Sun Valley consisting of Al Candelaria (baritone), Darron Stankey (tenor), and lead singer James West (tenor). First recorded in 1954 by The Rivileers, Young's rendition of this doo-wop classic shot to the top of the local charts within several weeks. During the early 1960s at the height of her commercial fame, Young made several appearances on "American Bandstand" and toured with such top acts as Ray Charles, The Everly Brothers, Connie Francis, Brenda Lee, and Roy Orbison.

Kathy Young With The Innocents debuted on the national charts in late 1960 with "A Thousand Stars," which reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and also became a Top 10 R&B hit. The Innocents also had two Top 40 hits that year with "Honest I Do" (1960) and "Gee Whiz" (1960). Young followed up with The Innocents in 1961 with "Happy Birthday Blues," which became a Top 40 hit, and she continued to chart through early 1962 with "Our Parents Talked It Over" (1961), "Magic Is The Night" (1961), and "The Great Pretender" (1962), a cover of The Platters' 1955 doo-wop classic. With Jim Lee, Young moved to Monogram Records and continued to record solo and with rocker Chris Montez. The duo had a minor hit in 1964 with "All You Had To Do (Was Tell Me)" (billed as Chris & Kathy), which was her final charting song.

After raising a family and managing a citrus ranch for over 20 years, Kathy Young made a return to music in the mid 1990s and has since then continued to perform actively to the present day. She was inducted into the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame in 2014.

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Kathy Young With The Innocents

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