Biography
Donnie Brooks earned lasting recognition through his 1960 pop hit “Mission Bell,” yet rockabilly collectors still prize the earlier cult favorite “Bertha Lou,” which he recorded under the name Johnny Faire. Born John Dee Abohosh in Dallas on February 6, 1936, he took his stepfather’s surname Fairecloth after adoption. While growing up in southern California, he trained with the same vocal coach who had previously instructed Eddie Fisher and, during high school, made his first paid appearance on a classical music program broadcast by Ventura’s KBCC.
After graduation, Fairecloth performed at neighborhood clubs, fairs, and weddings before embracing rock & roll; in 1957 he signed with the local independent Fable Records and cut his debut single “You Gotta Walk the Line” as Johnny Faire. While laying down demos for Surf, he discovered that contractual issues had compelled his friend and mentor Dorsey Burnette to drop a finished track titled “Bertha Lou.” Surf removed Burnette’s vocal and substituted Faire’s, yielding a 1958 single that attracted little notice at the time yet later became a rockabilly classic.
Faire next used the alias Johnny Jordan for “Sweet, Sweet, Sweet” on Jolt, then moved to Era, where he issued the rockabilly number “Hollywood Party” under the playful pseudonym Dick Bush. Although the record failed commercially, Era owners Herb Newman and Lew Bidell kept him under contract but required another name change, this time to Donnie Brooks.
Brooks’s first single under the new name, the wistful ballad “White Orchid,” became his strongest seller to that point, moving roughly 50,000 copies on the West Coast and reaching number one on the Australian charts. Its successor, the Dorsey and Johnny Burnette outtake “Mission Bell,” performed even better, climbing into Billboard’s Top Ten and earning his initial gold record. A second Top 40 entry, “Doll House,” arrived at the close of 1960, and early the next year Brooks registered his final Hot 100 placement with “Memphis.” Follow-up releases such as “Wishbone,” “Boomerang,” and “My Favorite Kind of Face” stalled, and after “Cries My Heart” appeared in late 1962 the label ended the agreement.
Brooks remained inactive for much of the following year before resurfacing on Reprise with “Gone” in early 1964; that same year he appeared in the film Get Yourself a College Girl. Beatlemania curtailed further recording activity, and after one last Reprise single, “Pickin’ Up the Pieces,” his association with the label concluded.
He continued to perform regularly, opening for Roy Orbison, Connie Francis, and the Dave Clark Five, and even shared bills with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. in Lake Tahoe. In 1971 Brooks portrayed Jesus Christ in the rock opera Truth of Truths and soon afterward embraced Christianity. He later produced and promoted oldies revival concerts and kept touring until a severe car accident ended his road work in 2003. Brooks died of congestive heart failure on February 23, 2007, at the age of 71.
After graduation, Fairecloth performed at neighborhood clubs, fairs, and weddings before embracing rock & roll; in 1957 he signed with the local independent Fable Records and cut his debut single “You Gotta Walk the Line” as Johnny Faire. While laying down demos for Surf, he discovered that contractual issues had compelled his friend and mentor Dorsey Burnette to drop a finished track titled “Bertha Lou.” Surf removed Burnette’s vocal and substituted Faire’s, yielding a 1958 single that attracted little notice at the time yet later became a rockabilly classic.
Faire next used the alias Johnny Jordan for “Sweet, Sweet, Sweet” on Jolt, then moved to Era, where he issued the rockabilly number “Hollywood Party” under the playful pseudonym Dick Bush. Although the record failed commercially, Era owners Herb Newman and Lew Bidell kept him under contract but required another name change, this time to Donnie Brooks.
Brooks’s first single under the new name, the wistful ballad “White Orchid,” became his strongest seller to that point, moving roughly 50,000 copies on the West Coast and reaching number one on the Australian charts. Its successor, the Dorsey and Johnny Burnette outtake “Mission Bell,” performed even better, climbing into Billboard’s Top Ten and earning his initial gold record. A second Top 40 entry, “Doll House,” arrived at the close of 1960, and early the next year Brooks registered his final Hot 100 placement with “Memphis.” Follow-up releases such as “Wishbone,” “Boomerang,” and “My Favorite Kind of Face” stalled, and after “Cries My Heart” appeared in late 1962 the label ended the agreement.
Brooks remained inactive for much of the following year before resurfacing on Reprise with “Gone” in early 1964; that same year he appeared in the film Get Yourself a College Girl. Beatlemania curtailed further recording activity, and after one last Reprise single, “Pickin’ Up the Pieces,” his association with the label concluded.
He continued to perform regularly, opening for Roy Orbison, Connie Francis, and the Dave Clark Five, and even shared bills with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. in Lake Tahoe. In 1971 Brooks portrayed Jesus Christ in the rock opera Truth of Truths and soon afterward embraced Christianity. He later produced and promoted oldies revival concerts and kept touring until a severe car accident ended his road work in 2003. Brooks died of congestive heart failure on February 23, 2007, at the age of 71.
Albums
