# Bobby Helms

Robert Lee Helms (August 15, 1933 – June 19, 1997) was an American country singer. In 1957, he had a perennial Christmas hit with "Jingle Bell Rock", and two other hits that same year: "Fraulein" and "My Special Angel".

## Life and career

Robert Lee Helms was born on August 15, 1933, in Bloomington, Indiana (some sources say nearby Helmsburg), the son of Hildreth Esther (née Abram) and Fred Robert Helms. His family was musical. Helms began performing as a duo with his brother, Freddie, before going on to a successful solo career in country music. In 1956, Helms made his way to Nashville, Tennessee, where he signed a recording contract with Decca Records, and achieved multiple successes the following year. His first single in 1957, titled "Fraulein", went to No. 1 on the country music chart and made it into the Top 40 on the Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart. Later that same year, he released "My Special Angel", which also hit No. 1 on the country charts and entered the Top 10 on Billboard's pop music chart, peaking at No. 7. It sold over one million copies, earning a gold disc.
His song "Jingle Bell Rock", which was released in the late fall of 1957, produced by Paul Cohen was a big hit and was being played and danced to on Dick Clark's teen dance show American Bandstand by mid-December of that year. It also re-emerged in four out of the next five years, and sold so well that it repeated each time as a top hit, becoming a Christmas classic still played today. (In 2016, it was rated radio's third most-played Christmas song, according to StationIntel). It took five years for the song to become a second million-seller for Helms. It reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 21 weeks on the chart. The record gained gold disc status. At the end of a television performance of the song toward the end of his life, Helms said, "I didn't want to do the song when they first brought it to me, but now I'm sure glad I did." ASCAP and AllMusic list the writers of the song as Joseph Beal, Joseph Carlton, James Ross, and James Boothe.
Another record by Helms was "Schoolboy Crush", which was a hit in the UK. It was released in the United States on June 23, 1958, on Decca. The same song was then covered by UK teen star Cliff Richard about the same time as the UK release.
Helms continued touring and recording for the next three decades. His pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.
Helms suffered from emphysema, asthma, diabetes, and stomach problems. He began wearing an eye patch after losing sight in his right eye. He was a longtime resident of Martinsville, Indiana, until his death from complications from emphysema at the age of 63 on June 19, 1997.
He was portrayed by Brad Hawkins in the 2007 film Crazy.

## Discography
### Selected albums

* Sings to My Special Angel (Decca, 1957)
* I'm the Man (Kapp, 1966)
* Sorry My Name Isn't Fred (Kapp, 1966)
* All New Just for You (Little Darlin', 1968)
* Pop-a-Billy (MCA, 1983)
* A Bobby Helms Christmas [EP] (Geffen, 2024)

### Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions :
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Year | Single | US Country | US | US AC | UK | Album |
| 1955 | "Yesterday's Lovin'" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1955 | "Freedom Lovin' Guy" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1956 | "Tennessee Rock and Roll" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1957 | "Fraulein" | 1 | 36 | | | non-album track |
| 1957 | "My Special Angel" | 1 | 7 | | 22 | My Special Angel |
| 1957 | "Jingle Bell Rock" | 13 | 3 | | 5 | single only |
| 1958 | "Just a Little Lonesome" | 10 | | | | My Special Angel |
| 1958 | "Jacqueline" | 5 | 63 | | 20 | non-album track |
| 1958 | "Borrowed Dreams" | | 60 | | | non-album track |
| 1958 | "Jingle Bell Rock" | | 6 | | | non-album track |
| 1958 | "The Fool and the Angel" | | 75 | | | non-album track |
| 1959 | "New River Train" | 26 | | | | non-album track |
| 1959 | "I Guess I'll Miss the Prom" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1959 | "No Other Baby" | | | | 30 | non-album track |
| 1959 | "Hurry Baby" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1960 | "Someone Was Already There" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1960 | "I Want to Be with You" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1960 | "Lonely River Rhine" | 16 | | | | non-album track |
| 1960 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-entry) | | 36 | | | non-album track |
| 1961 | "Sad Eyed Baby" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1961 | "How Can You Divide a Little Child" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1961 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-entry) | | 41 | | | non-album track |
| 1962 | "One Deep Love" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1962 | "Then Came You" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1962 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-entry) | | 56 | | | non-album track |
| 1964 | "It's a Girl" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1967 | "He Thought He'd Die Laughing" | 46 | | | | All New Just for You |
| 1968 | "The Day You Stop Loving Me" | 60 | | | | All New Just for You |
| 1968 | "I Feel You, I Love You" | 53 | | | | single only |
| 1968 | "Touch My Heart" | | | | | All New Just for You |
| 1969 | "My Special Angel" | | | | | Before Your Heartaches Begin |
| 1969 | "So Long" | 43 | | | | Before Your Heartaches Begin |
| 1969 | "Echoes and Shadows" | | | | | Before Your Heartaches Begin |
| 1970 | "Mary Goes 'Round" | 41 | | | | Greatest Performance |
| 1970 | "Magnificent Sanctuary Band" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1970 | "Just Hold My Hand and Sing" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1971 | "He Gives Us His Love" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1971 | "Hand in Hand with Love" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1972 | "It's the Little Things" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1972 | "It's Starting to Rain Again" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1974 | "That Heart Belongs to Me" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1974 | "Work Things Out with Annie" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1975 | "Baby If I Could Make It Better" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1976 | "Every Man Must Have a Dream" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1976 | "You" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1977 | "Before My Heartaches Came" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1978 | "I'm Gonna Love the Devil Out of You" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1978 | "I'm Not Sorry" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1979 | "One More Dollar for the Band" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1983 | "Tears Ago" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1983 | "I'm Drinking It Over (With My Friend Jim Beam)" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1985 | "I Wish I Could Say I Find" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1986 | "I'm the Man" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1987 | "Dance with Me" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1987 | "Somebody Wrong Is Lookin' Right" | | | | | non-album track |
| 1996 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-release) | 60 | | 18 | | Jingle All the Way (soundtrack) |
| 2018/ 2019 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-entry) | | 3 | | 30 | |
| 2020/ 2021 | "Jingle Bell Rock" (re-entry) | | | | 26 | |