Sunday Morning Vault: The Casinos--Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye (1967)

     Those who listen to a broad range of music from the past century is familiar with the term "The Great American Songbook". It defines music generally from the late 1920's to the mid 1950's. (although purists and historians would date it back much further than that...say the turn of the century) It was defined by music that was heard on Broadway and then adapted to radio and records and has more to do with the songwriters on Tin Pan Alley then it does the performers.
     It has been said that this period ended with the advent of Rock and Roll. Well, I have been working with a theory that suggests that there was (and is) another period that extends the idea of "The Great American Songbook" for decades after that. It's just that the media had changed. One of the songs that I would put in that group we looked at in the vault last week, (Vicki Carr's, "It Must Be Him")..today we look at another one, The Casinos and "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye".
     The group was a nine piece at the time of their hit, although several members had been working together since 1958, the version that record this came together in 1965. It's writer, John Loudermilk was a popular songwriter, mostly in country music, but more than a few pop and rock artists cut his tunes as well. Loudermilk's cousins, Ira and Charlie, were better known as the country duo The Louvin Brothers.
     "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" was a hit in early 1967, reaching #6 on the Billboard 100 chart. Their follow up, "It's All Over Now" was written by Don Everly and reached the charts, but that was about it for the group in the public eye. However, they never stopped touring and still remain a concert draw to this day.