1958 Kalin Twins – Forget Me Not
The twins, Harold and Herbert Kalin, were born in 1934 in a small town northwest of Manhattan. After they moved to Washington, D.C., in 1957, they began pursuing a career in music.
Clint Ballard was an aspiring songwriter who had worked at the Brill Building in the mid-fifties. He met the Kalin brothers when he visited Washington and became their manager and got them signed with Decca Records as the Kalin Twins. They had their first recording session in late 1957. Clint co-wrote their single Jumpin’ Jack, but little happened with the record.
Paul Evans and Jack Reardon had written When, and their record label used it as the b-side of their single Three O’Clock Thrill. When the a-side failed to perform well, their record label re-released When as the a-side of a new single.
When became a monster hit. It peaked at #5 on the Hot 100 in the US, but reached the top of the UK chart and spent 15 weeks at number one in France. The brothers toured to support the single and even got to open for Cliff Richard on their tour of the UK.
While on the road, the pair quickly recorded a new single. Larry Kolber wrote the lyrics and Larry Martin composed the music for Forget Me Not, and their single came out a few months after When began to fade. The new single peaked at #11 on the Hot 100 in 1958.
The Kalin brothers were unable to capitalize on their two hit records. Their manager left them to pursue a songwriting career, and they moved to Nashville and began working with Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, songwriters who had been successful with the Everly Brothers. They continued recording for a few more years, then left the music industry and returned to college in 1962.
In 1977, one of their friends booked them to perform in his nightclub. They appeared a few times, even teaming up with their younger brother (Jack) as the Kalin Brothers. In 1989, Cliff Richard recruited the pair to perform in his Wembley Stadium appearances.
The twins reappeared on the oldies circuit from time to time. Harold died in 2005 and Herbert died the next year.
Larry Kolber went on to co-write songs with Barry Mann, including I Love How You Love Me and Patches.
Clint went on the have a successful career as a songwriter. He wrote Ginger Bread, You’re No Good, The Game Of Love, and many more hit records.
Paul Evans reached the top ten in 1959 with Seven Little Girls Sitting In The Backseat and also recorded the most successful version of Midnight Special.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-kalin-twins-mn0000354398/biography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalin_Twins
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