Interview Spotlight

The spotlight moves slightly, cascading an amber
sheen on the silhouetted singer. For an instant, a
breathless hush falls over the crowd. Momentarily,
time is suspended.

Then the gentle downbeat of the orchestra begins.
The slow syncopation wells.

“Just a dream…just a dream…”

Applause! This is what the audience came to see.
Sixty-year-old men and women—teenagers once
again, if only for a few moments—sing along with
the words that are indelibly imprinted in their
memories.

The song ends. More applause! Suddenly the tempo changes. The crowd
is transfixed back to an era of bobby sox and duck-tail haircuts.

“She’s Venus in blue jeans, Mona Lisa in a ponytail…”

People see him smiling and singing. What they don't know is that the story
is an unusual as it is legendary. What the audiences don't always know is
his upbeat faith and the lifestyle he shares with Roxanne, his wife and still
his biggest fan.

MyBestYears.com caught up with Jimmy recently. From his home in the
Houston area, he answered questions in his trademark sometimes-
humorous, often-serious, and always lively manner that has sustained him
through a roller-coaster career that has spanned a half-century.

MBY: Tell us about the early years that led to your million-selling hits.

JC:    I grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Like so many kids then and now, I
played in a band while in high school, The Rockets. We paid a lot of dues back
then doing local dances, clubs (which often became orchestrated fights), and a
radio show called “Teen-Town Rally.”

MBY: What was the big break that took you from paying dues to hitting the big time?

JC:    In 1958 I went with The Rockets to New Orleans to make our first record at a
studio owned by Cosimo Matassa. He liked me enough to take me to an audition for
his friend, John Vincent, the president of Ace Records. Almost overnight Mr.
Vincent signed me as a solo artist to his label and a management contract.

MBY: Things started happening quickly, right?

JC: Right. By the summer of 1958, “Just a Dream,” a song I wrote and recorded for
Ace Records, literally transformed me from a little-known Louisiana teenager singer
into an overnight national success. In a matter of weeks, that single sold over
1,750,000 copies, and I was standing in the “American Bandstand” studio, receiving
a copy of my first gold record from Dick Clark on national television.

MBY: One can only imagine how drastically your life changed…

JC:    It was a whirlwind that is still hard
for me to believe, even after all these
years. Elvis Presley, after hearing
“Just a Dream,” invited me to
Graceland for a visit.

MBY: That was the start of a long-
term friendship, wasn’t it?

JC:     He was a very special person,
and it was a long-lasting friendship
that endured a lot of ups-and-downs
for both of us.

MBY: Suddenly you were thrust into a glittering world…

JC:    It was quite a change. After “Just a Dream,” I was living a dream, packaged on
rock `n roll shows with the likes of Chuck Berry, Little Richard, The Drifters, Chubby
Checker and Brenda Lee.”

MBY: Rock `n roll history is filled with “one-hit wonders,” so were you concerned
about being another?

JC:   I really didn’t even have time to think about it. Within the next few months, I
had two more hits with “A Letter to an Angel” and “A Part of Me.”

MBY: Then, on February 3, 1959, something happened on a snowy Iowa cornfield
that changed both you and rock `n roll forever…

JC:     It’s still known as “the day the music died.” Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and
J. P. "Big Bopper" Richardson died in an early morning plane crash. I was shell-
shocked when I heard the news, but I didn’t have much time to grieve. I was pulled
off a tour I was on at the time and sent to perform with what remained of the Holly
troupe that included Dion and the Belmonts and what was left of the Crickets.

MYB: That had to be difficult—not only to deal with the deaths of legendary
performers, but literally having to step into their shoes…

JC:   To say the least—we were all pretty broken up over it. Most of the audiences
on the remainder of the tour had purchased tickets to see Buddy, Richie, the Big
Bopper and Dion. They came to the concerts, as much as anything, out of curiosity,
to see how the rest of us would handle things. I played Buddy’s guitar and did
several songs in memory of him. We just all survived, somehow. I don’t even know
how guys like Waylon Jennings and Charles ("Carl") Bunch (Buddy’s bassist and
drummer) kept going.

MYB: It had to be surreal, traveling on the same bus that Holly, Valens and
Richardson had been sitting in.

JC:    Surreal is the word. Their clothes and instruments were still on racks in the
back of the bus. It was unreal. And here we were, just a group of young guys trying
to deal with all these emotions and stardom—all at the same time. It’s a wonder any
of us survived those days.

MYB: You kept going, though, and by the end of 1959 had become a headliner
with another chart hit, “My Own True Love,” with your photos plastered on all the
teen idol magazines. Then came the lead role of Johnny Melody in Go Johnny Go,
a blockbuster United Artists movie. What was that like?

JC:     It was amazing. Chuck Berry was in the movie.

MYB: “Go Jimmy Go” was the next record hit that sold a million and a half copies,
then another United Artists’ flick, Teenage Millionaire. Did you sometimes pinch
yourself and wonder if it was real?

A CALL FROM UNCLE SAM
JC:    The next year was awesome with more tours with name stars and more hits,
including “Another Sleepless Night,” “Come Back” and “What Am I Gonna Do?”
Uncle Sam, though, brought me back to reality, and I was drafted into the Army.

MYB: You served two years, but it had to feel as if your career was over, didn’t it?

JC:   I really did figure it was the end. Strangely enough, a song that was released
while I was in the service, “Venus in Blue Jeans,” became one of my biggest hits,
with over a million and a half copies of the record sold.

MYB: When you were discharged from the Army in 1962, you had to wonder what
you could do to get the career going again…

JC:    I remember being booked on a Dick Clark package tour. The opening date
was in New Jersey. There were 10,000 screaming teenagers in the audience. Six
acts were ahead of me, and by the time I was supposed to go on stage, I was
literally sick. I honestly didn’t think any of the fans would even remember who I was.

MYB: What happened?

JC:    I finally heard my name announced, and as I walked out on stage, the kids
began screaming and singing, “Go Jimmy Go!” There were “Welcome Back”
banners in the audience. I almost lost it. What a night!

CHANGES
MYB: It would have been a perfect comeback, except on the other side of the
Atlantic was a growing phenomenon called “Beatlemania.” How did that change
things?

JC:    It changed everything. I had another hit during 1963, “Darkest Street in
Town,” but rock `n roll was moving on, and another generation of artists were
coming to the front. “Good ole boy” acts like me were quickly swept away and
replaced by the English wave. It’s the nature of the biz. Things are always changing.

MYB: You were also going through some changes in your life, too…

JC:     I got married to Roxanne in 1962. Between 1962 and 1969, I kept busy with
our growing family of three girls, and I was still traveling all over, including a Hawaii
tour with the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. In 1969 I had another chart hit, “Curly.”

MYB:   The end of the Sixties also brought about a resurgent interest in rock ` roll,
as a new generation rediscovered the “oldies but goodies” through the movie
American Grafitti and TV’s “Happy Days.” How was your career affected?

JC:     It was good. Dick Clark and Richard Nader put together some tours, and I
was suddenly appearing in major auditoriums, including Madison Square Garden,
on the same bill with old friends. That led to a number of bookings on most of the
major television shows—“The Merv Griffin Show,” Wolfman Jack’s “Midnight
Special,” and “Dick Clark’s 23rd Anniversary of Rock `n Roll.”

MYB: How did you go from that to a Las Vegas-type act?

JC:     During the early- and mid-1970s, more and more opportunities came to do
the big glitzy shows in hotels and resorts, the time seemed right.

MYB:   Our research reveals some wonderful reviews at the time. The Hollywood
Reporter called you “truly a star in any era.” Italy’s D’Informanzione raved that you
were an “extraordinary artist…completely amazing…magnificent by comparison
with…the younger singers today.” Variety gushed, “This ageless entertainer sings
as if he were a universe of music…he demonstrates wonderful insight, intensity, a
sweeping command of his audience, and extraordinary communication—all to an
overwhelming degree.”

JC: It was fun doing those shows. It was also strange, at times. One time I was fired
from a really big job because the club owner didn’t like it that one of my band
members was African-American. During the time off from that gig, I happened to be
home and watched a Christian television program. It was a real miracle, because
where we lived at the time in Pennsylvania, our home was in a valley, and there was
no cable or anything. We didn’t have a satellite dish or anything. Television with the
“rabbit ears” was spotty, at best. Anyway, the person on the TV really spoke to me.
My wife Roxanne and my girls had been praying for me for some time, and their
prayers were definitely answered. Before the television program was over, I prayed
to accept Jesus Christ into my life. It was the beginning of so many new directions.

A NEW LIFE
MBY: How did your life change?

JC: I continued doing shows. I still do some. As long as performing is as much fun
as it still is, and as long as people want me to sing and play, I'll keep doing it. But
mostly my lifestyle began changing. I looked around and saw so many of my rock `n
roll friends getting sick and dying, and it was a wake-up call.

MBY: Elvis?

JC: That was a wake-up call to everyone, wasn't it? Not only was it sad because he
was a very special friend who encouraged me a lot, especially during the early
years, but because it reminded all of us that we were human and definitely not
immortal.

MBY: How did this new direction in your spiritual life affect the other areas?

JC: I went through a lot of changes. Roxanne had been making so many positive
changes in her life. The actor Bob Cummings was very influential to us eating and
living healthier. Spiritually, we became part of Pastor John Osteen's Lakewood
Church in Houston (now pastored by his son Joel). He and Dodie really took
Roxanne and me under their wing and mentored us from knowing very little about
the Bible, to walking in more and more faith. I kept thinking I should preach or teach
in a more traditional sense, but he encouraged me to shine where God placed me.

MBY: Tell us about the very special word John Osteen gave you.

JC: It is very special. We were in a service, June 28, 1981, and he told me to stand,
that God had a word for me. Every word spoke directly to my soul, and it was so
powerful that I had to go back and get a recording of the service to fathom it all.
Mainly he said that I wasn't being called to preach, but that I was a minister, and
that God would give me gifts that would bless people abundantly wherever I went.

MBY: How does that fit in with what has happened to you health-wise?

JC: The rock `n roll success has always been a door-opener, but there is obviously
more that I have been given to do. I went through a lot during all the changes. I
went from a very destructive lifestyle that included alcohol abuse, very wide mood
swings, tobacco abuse, and just about everything bad that a person could do to
himself. Thankfully God, Roxanne and my family were very patient. It took a lot of
time to get cleaned up, and I'm still a pilgrim on the path, so to speak, but God has
sure done a lot for me.

HARDCORE HEALTH
MBY: For a rock `n roller who lived that kind of life, you look healthy, vibrant, and
excited about the future.

JC: I am. Roxanne and I are truly excited about what is happening with HARDCORE
HEALTH, the name for both our forthcoming book and our eColumn on
MyBestYears.com.

MBY: Not to steal any thunder from either the book or the eColumn, what is
HARDCORE HEALTH, and what should people expect to read?

JC: In a phrase, HARDCORE HEALTH is any healthy lifestyle that is harder, more
demanding, or tougher than what you are doing right now. If you are out of shape,
chain-smoking and drinking excessively, as I was when I started going through the
changes, almost anything was HARDCORE HEALTH. When I started exercising,
eating better, and making some positive changes, the bar kept going up. Now
Roxanne and I are both vegan.

MBY: Vegan, as in no meat?

JC: As in plant-based protein, rather than animal-based protein.

MBY: That is hardcore!

JC: Roxanne is even more hardcore than I am. She is raw vegan.

MBY: It's obvious that you are living proof that the vegan lifestyle works amazingly
well. You both look and act decades younger than you are. But what about the
people that aren't ready for something as extreme as becoming a vegan?

JC: We don't beat people over the head with it. Mainly, people need to start from
wherever they are to make better decisions about developing a better lifestyle.
That's why we say over and over that HARDCORE HEALTH is a lifelong journey,
not a destination. It isn't some milepost that you reach, but it's learning to set goals,
to reach those goals, and then to keep setting higher and higher goals.

MBY: To some the HARDCORE HEALTH concept would seem very restrictive and
dreary. How do you respond?

JC: That one is easy! Self-discipline and setting goals can be the most liberating
way to live. I haven't been sick for decades. I feel like I'm in my twenties, only my
twenties were never this good, health-wise. I can run, jump, not get tired, and I'm in
my sixties. How many other people my age can say that? To me, whatever the cost
has been is worth it every day of my life because of the way I feel. That's real
freedom!

MBY: Wow! You've given us something to look forward to. What all will you be
sharing through your MyBestYears.com eColumn?

JC: Lots of surprises! (laughs) You'll have to check back regularly to see what
we've got in store for you. Thankfully Roxanne and I have several decades of
working with people who walk up to us at church or concerts or the mall and ask,
"What do you do to look so young?" What we teach is very simple, uncomplicated,
practical, doesn't cost money,
and can be done by anyone.

MBY: Anyone?

JC: Anyone who wants to feel better, look younger and live longer!

MBY: Sounds like the perfect reasons to check out HARDCORE HEALTH, Jimmy
and Roxanne's regular MyBestYears.com eColumn!