From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Sun Dec 29, 2002  7:24 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Bobby Comstock

BOBBY COMSTOCK

Born 29 December 1941, Ithaca, New York

Bobby Comstock had a lot more going for him than his four minor hits
would suggest. In 1958, after leaving school, he formed The Counts and
signed with producer Herb Abramson who had recently left Atlantic and
ploughed his capital into several grandly named labels such as Blaze,
Triumph and Festival. Comstock's first single, "Jealous Fool" appeared
on Triumph the same year. A rocked up version of "Tennessee Waltz"
on Blaze had the makings of a smash hit but stalled at # 52 due to stiff
competition from a cover version by Jerry Fuller. Subsequent releases on
Atlantic ("Jambalaya", # 90 in 1960), Festival and Jubilee met with little
success and Comstock seemed to be an artist permanently on the verge
of a breakthrough.
In the autumn of 1962 he met the songwriting team of Bob Feldman, Jerry
Goldstein and Richie Gottehrer (the later Strangeloves, of "I Want Candy"
fame), who had taken over from Frank Slay and Bob Crewe the task of
producing Freddy Cannon for Swan Records. Comstock and the Counts
began working for the trio as a cut-price session unit and appeared on
Cannon's "If You Were A Rock'n'Roll Record" and "Patty Baby" and also
laid down the backing track for the Angels' # 1 smash "My Boyfriend's
Back". With the F.G.G. team producing, Comstock cut "Let's Stomp"
and the equally raucous flip, "I Want To Do It", at a December 1962
session. Only Comstock and his bass player Chuck Ciaschi played on
the date, the other musicians were Herb Lovelle on drums, Buddy Lucas
on sax and Horace Silver on the organ. Freddy Cannon had been present
as an observer and persuaded Swan's owners to release "Let's Stomp" on
their Lawn subsidiary. The banal lyrics aside, "Let's Stomp" was as tough
a record as they came in 1963 and peaked at # 57 in March. Comstock's
final chart entry (# 98) was an answer song to "My Boyfriend's Back",
called "Your Boyfriend's Back". He continued to record prolifically (albeit
unsuccesfully) until 1972, then dropped out of sight.

See also Terry Gordon's website:
http://rcs.law.emory.edu/rcs/artists/c/coms1000.htm
CD: Tennessee Waltz (South Bay CD 5392).