The [original] “Honeycomb” entry is so full of errors it’s hard to figure out where to begin.
James Frederick Rodgers was born in Camas, WA on 9-18-33. After forming his own group in the Air Force, Jimmie auditioned for Roulette Records in New York but left before giving them his name (!).
Once located and signed, his version of “Honeycomb” (first cut unsuccessfully by Georgie Shaw in 1954) soared to #1 in 1957.
Two dozen more hits followed over the next decade for this folk-rock pioneer who debuted eight years before Bob Dylan scored his first hit.
Among Rodgers’ biggest: Kisses Sweeter Than Wine, Oh Oh I’m Fallin’ In Love Again, Secretly and The Wreck Of The John B (later revived by The Beach Boys as Sloop John B).
Rodgers starred on his own NBC TV series in 1959, appeared in films and later recorded more hits for Dot and A&M.
Three months after the release of what became his final hit, the message song Child Of Clay, Jimmie was assaulted on the San Diego Freeway on 12-1-67 (the cop involvement is a myth). The tragedy was a major news story, covered in depth on Joey Bishop’s talk-variety series, which had booked Jimmie as an upcoming guest. (Joey’s sidekick on that show was Regis Philbin.)
Rodgers never fully recovered from the skull fracture he received that day and later releases on the Scrimshaw label went nowhere. Eventually he was unable to sing at all and gave up any hope of a career revival.
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