Ricky Riccardi Popular Books
Ricky Riccardi Biography & Facts
"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele (as "George Douglas") and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released in 1967 as a single. In April 1968, it topped the pop chart in the United Kingdom, but performed poorly in the United States because Larry Newton, the president of ABC Records, disliked the song and refused to promote it. After it was heard in the film Good Morning, Vietnam, it was reissued as a single in 1988, and rose to number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100. Armstrong's recording was inducted to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. Composition and production Thiele produced the track under his own name, but as a co-composer was initially credited under the pseudonym George Douglas. His real name has appeared on it from its 1988 issue onward. One source claims the song was first offered to Tony Bennett, who turned it down, although Louis Armstrong biographer Ricky Riccardi disputes this. In Graham Nash's book Off the Record: Songwriters on Songwriting, George Weiss says he wrote the song specifically for Louis Armstrong, as he was inspired by Armstrong's ability to bring together people of different races. Armstrong was gigging at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas, so he chose to record the song nearby at Bill Porter’s United Recording studio. The session was scheduled to follow Armstrong's midnight show, and by 2 am the musicians were settled and tape was rolling. Arranger Artie Butler was there with songwriters Weiss and Thiele, and Armstrong was in the studio singing with the orchestra. Armstrong had recently signed to ABC Records, and ABC president Larry Newton showed up to photograph Armstrong. Newton wanted a swingy pop song like "Hello, Dolly!", a big hit for Armstrong when he was with Kapp Records, so when Newton heard the slow pace of "What a Wonderful World", he tried to stop the session. Newton was physically removed and locked out of the studio for his disruption, which resulted in Newton later refusing to promote the song. A second problem arose with the taping session: nearby freight train whistles interrupted the music twice, forcing the orchestra to start over. Armstrong shook his head and laughed off the distractions, keeping his composure. The session ended around 6 am, going longer than expected. To be sure the orchestra members were paid extra for their overtime, Armstrong accepted only $250 musicians' union scale for his work. Release and reception Because Newton refused to promote the song, it initially sold fewer than 1,000 copies in the US. It was a major success in the United Kingdom, however, reaching number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. In the US, it eventually reached number 116 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Chart. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK, where it was among the last pop singles issued by HMV before it became an exclusively classical music label. The song made Armstrong the oldest male to top the UK Singles Chart. (His record was broken in 2009 when a remake of "Islands in the Stream" recorded for Comic Relief—which included the 68-year-old Tom Jones—reached number 1.) ABC Records' European distributor EMI forced ABC to issue a What a Wonderful World album in 1968 (catalogue number ABCS-650). It did not chart in the United States, due to ABC not promoting it, but charted in the UK where it was issued by Stateside Records with catalogue number SSL 10247 and peaked on the British chart at number 37. Enduring success The song gradually became something of a pop standard. An episode of The Muppet Show produced in 1977 and broadcast early in 1978 featured Rowlf the Dog singing the song to a puppy. In 1978, it was featured in the closing scenes of BBC radio's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and was repeated for BBC's 1981 TV adaptation of the series. In 1988, Armstrong's recording was used in the film Good Morning, Vietnam (despite its setting in 1965, two years before the song was recorded) and was re-released as a single, reaching number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1988. It charted at number 1 for the fortnight ending June 27, 1988 on the Australian chart. When the ABC television sitcom Family Matters premiered in 1989, Armstrong's version of "What a Wonderful World" was used as the show's theme song. However, after the fifth episode, it was replaced by the original song "As Days Go By". In 2001, rappers Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, and the Alchemist released "The Forest," a song that begins with three lines of lyric adapted from "What a Wonderful World", altered to become "an invitation to get high" on marijuana. The rappers and their record company, Sony Music Entertainment, were sued by Abilene Music, the owners of "What a Wonderful World". The suit was thrown out after Judge Gerard E. Lynch determined that the altered lyric was a parody, transforming the uplifting original message to a new one with a darker nature. After it was released digitally, Armstrong's 1967 recording had sold over 2,173,000 downloads in the United States as of April, 2004. In 2021, it was ranked at No. 171 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time". Charts and certifications Weekly charts Certifications Eva Cassidy and Katie Melua version In 2007, Georgian-British singer-songwriter Katie Melua recorded a version of "What a Wonderful World" with American singer and guitarist Eva Cassidy, who had died in 1996. Recorded by Melua singing over the original Cassidy track, the duet was released in late 2007 as a charity single for the British Red Cross. Melua, who considers Cassidy one of her musical idols, had previously sung with Cassidy in this manner on Christmas Eve 2006, when she performed "Over the Rainbow" on the BBC One television program Duets Impossible with a videotape of Cassidy singing the song. This version of "What a Wonderful World" was available for purchase only at Tesco stores and on the Tesco Direct website. Upon its release, the single debuted at number 45 on the Scottish Singles Chart on the week of December 9, 2007. The next week, the song rose 44 positions to number one while also debuting at number one on the UK Singles Chart, giving both Cassidy and Melua their first number-one single in the United Kingdom. It became the first UK number-one single to be available through only one retailer, with 97 percent of its weekly 56,114 sales coming from the physical CD format sold at Tesco. The song quickly descended the UK chart after peaking, spending five weeks in the UK top 100. The cover was also successful in Sweden, reaching number 19 in November 2008, and became a minor hit in the Wallonia region of Belgium. When the song reached number one in the UK, Melua thanked everyone who bought the single, saying, "Thank you to everyone who has shown such festive goodwill." The duet was later included on her 2008 compilation album The Katie Melua Collection. Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts Other notable versions 1988: Willie Ne.... Discover the Ricky Riccardi popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Ricky Riccardi books.
Best Seller Ricky Riccardi Books of 2024
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Silver Santa
Lacey SilksTrapped together on Christmas, their unintended onenight stand becomes a lifechanging encounter amidst the snow. Laura Young's professional role as a security guard at the Sil...
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Finding Cinderella
Colleen Hoover#1 New York Times bestselling author of It Starts with Us and It Ends With Us writes a free novella about the search for happily ever after. A chance encounter in the dark leads ei...
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Inception of Gold
Lexy TimmsThings are not as bad as they seem. They are worse. Being the personal assistant to a narcissistic actress who just happens to own the key to my family's undoing isn't ex...
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The Art of War
Sun TzuAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s believed that Sun Tzu wrote this Chinese military primer during the 5th century BChundreds of years before the Bible. The book’s 13 chapters ex...
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Saltwater Cove
Amelia AddlerSecond chances...and the secrets that sabotage them. At 48 years old, Margie Clifton never expected to be starting her life all over again. But when her brother gifts her a propert...
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Escape, A New Life
David J AntocciTo save herself, she had to lose everything. Trapped in a tropical paradise with no memory of how she got there, Abby is thrust into a fight for her life. Hunted by a madman, and c...
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The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Arthur Conan DoyleAn Apple Books Classic You get not one, not two, but 25 gripping mysteries in Arthur Conan Doyle’s first of five collections of Sherlock Holmes short stories. Follow the brilliant ...
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Dracula
Bram StokerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Few characters have seized readers’ imaginations quite like Count Dracula of Transylvania, the hero of Bram Stoker’s classic. The 1897 novel put vam...
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The Great Gatsby
F. Scott FitzgeraldAn Apple Books Classics edition. The Roaring Twenties are in full effect in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s riveting classic. Manabouttown Jay Gatsby seems to have it all, including loads of...
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The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel HawthorneAn Apple Books Classic edition. Hester Prynne lives in infamy. After committing adultery and bearing a child with a man whose name she refuses to divulge, the heroine of Nathaniel ...
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The Four Loves
C. S. LewisThe Four Loves summarizes four kinds of human loveaffection, friendship, erotic love, and the love of God. Masterful without being magisterial, this book's wise, gentle, candi...
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Christmas in Sweetbriar Cove
Melody GraceCelebrate the holidays in Sweetbriar Cove with this festive romance collection, containing two sizzling smalltown holiday stories perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Sophie Kinsella...
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Teased by Fire
Molly O'HareFrom USA Today bestselling author Molly O’Hare comes an enemiestolovers, older brother’s best friend, romantic comedy with a curvy, antisocial, supernaturalobsessed, allyearround h...
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Hot Off the Press
Lexy Timms"This is what really happened… reported by a free press, for a free people…" Wes Shaw leads a secret double life. As the secret owner of a billion dollar newspap...
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Awaken Me
Jenna JacobHe was more than a ghost haunting my dreams…he was real. By day, I’m Julianna Garrett …a prim, proper accountant. By night, I’m tormented by dreams of an alpha, ambereyed Adonis wh...
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The Three Little Pigs
Mark LeskyClassic fairy tales, legends and folk stories in short version without violence retold with lovely illustrations in simple language. Perfect for reading aloud to small chi...
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His Girl Next Door
Khardine GrayFrom USA Today Bestselling author Khardine Gray comes a sizzling hot single dad romance you won't want to miss. No strings attached fun with the ubergorgeous single d...
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Eternal
W.J. MayShe will fight for what is hers. When the king is murdered, Katerina, his only daughter, must flee for her life. She finds herself on a strange and dangerous path. Alone for the fi...
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Salvation
Meghan O'FlynnIf you like mouthy detectives, serial killers, and suspenseful mysteries that don't quit, this chilling and actionpacked hardboiled detective series has you covered! Try this ...
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His Own Heaven
Jennie KewWinner of the 2021 Passionate Plume Award for BDSM Romance Finalist in the 2021 Stiletto Contest for Contemporary Romance He taught her to trust, she taught him to love. Lucy Bar...
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Hard Love
Peyton BanksHe was football royalty. Legendary quarterback. A champion.  Reiner Strickland had led his team to three national championships and playing a knight in shining armor was a...
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Become A Better Version of Yourself
Ben LeightonThis ebook contains golden nuggets on how to motivate, inspire and improve your current situation. It encompasses the holistic view of self improvement from mental& emotion...
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All Fired Up
Kathryn ShayCaptain Jarek Zenko, a war veteran and firefighter, meets Lacey Roth at a bar one night. They don’t share their real identities, even when they retreat to a hotel. When they meet t...
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Good Guy
Kate MeaderHe's a Special Forces veteran making his pro hockey debut. She's a dogged sports reporter determined to get a scoop. She's also his best friend's widow . . . Fa...
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The Honeymoon Homicide
J. R. Mathis & Susan MathisEnjoy this SmallTown Murder Mystery Featuring A Unique Sleuthing Couple I'm Father Tom Greer, a Catholic Priest in a smalltown parish who never expected this . . . When I came...
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Silenced Girls
Roger Stelljes“ Wow wow wow!  Grips you in a choke hold and  does not let go … Oozes suspense and  bonechilling twists and turns .  Astonishing … One of those...
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The Target
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Pretty Little Lies
Ivy ThornFour years ago, Nicolo Marchetti took my innocence. But he left me with something else Nicolo almost took everything from me. My virginity, my reputation, and very nearly my future...
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The Cupcake Cottage
Jean OramNHL player Maverick Blades could fall in love with anyone... But he had to fall for a woman who falls under the Bro Code as untouchablehis best friend’s beautiful ex, DaisyMae Ray....
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A Bookshop to Die For
M.P. BlackDitching her fiancé at the altar, Alice Hartford bolts to her childhood hometown to reconnect with the last, happy remnant of her past: her mom's old bookstore. But the bookst...
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Alpha
Sybil BartelBillionaire. Mercenary. Navy SEAL. The Teams trained me to be a killer. War taught me to be ruthless. Then an illfated mission proved I was human. Combat wounded, cut loose by the ...
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Death at Hazel House
Betty Rowlands‘Riveting, can't put it down! I love this story… a wonderfully twisted tale of a crime that has more twists than I thought possible... fantastic.’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars ...
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Enemies With Benefits
Roxie NoirI don’t love him. I don’t even like him. I just want him. Eli Loveless was my nemesis from the first day of kindergarten until we graduated high school. Everything I did, he had to...
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Always Yours
Claire RayeSome things are just meant to be... Ellen Somerville and Will McIntyre met by accident and under unusual circumstances. Getting sprayed by a skunk in a parking lot wouldn’t normall...
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Get Lucky
Lila MonroeFall for the hot and hilarious romcom spin on 'The Hangover', perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Ali Hazelwood, and Emily Henry! What happens when you wake up in a hotel s...
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The Odyssey
HomerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Homer’s eighthcentury epic poem is a companion to The Iliad . It tells the story of Odysseus, who journeys by ship for 10 years after the Trojan War...
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Assisting the Bosshole
Kristin MacQueenNo hot water? Check Missed the train? Check Broke my heel? Check Dropped my coffee? Check My first day of my new job can’t possibly go worse, right? Wrong. When I meet Parker Scott...
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Nothing to Hide
Scarlett FinnPrize of a lifetime: travel the world with a celebrity billionaire. Come to LA with us, Roxie… It will be so much fun! We have tickets for a latenight talk show! What could possibl...
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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
L. Frank BaumAn Apple Books Classic edition. You’ve seen the iconic 1939 movie, but do you know about the talking field mice, the Winkies, and the Witch of the North that appear in the original...
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You Are Kind
Michael GordonA little kindness goes a long way. How can you help encourage your kids to be kind from a young age? Teach kindness to preschoolers Acts of kindness can be fun, easy, and make a ...
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Noxious
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The Next Girl
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Teach Me
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Masters of Restraint
Ines JohnsonMy new boss is good at giving orders. But his latest demand is NSFW. Especially when his two business partners want in on our deal. My new boss My boss’s boss Their investor &#...
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Rogue Alpha
Kimber WhiteOne touch made her crave him. But the pull of fate could be the path to ruin. College student Laura Prince lands a plum internship deep in the Michigan wilderness. When she discove...
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Tempting the King
Jessa YorkAn escaped Mafia Queen, hiding from her past. A Mafia King who wants to claim her… Giselle They think I'm lostbut I know better. I can never be found. The path I've creat...
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The Stoic Mind
Addy Osmani & GoLimitlesssDiscover the timeless wisdom of Stoicism in a modern context with "The Stoic Mind," an enlightening visual guide by Addy Osmani and GoLimitlesss. This rich exploration co...
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The Icing on the Cake
Linda SeedShe’s a baker without a kitchen. He’s got a double oven to spare. It’s a recipe for success, until his mother starts stirring up trouble … Cassie Jordan has a sweet dream to open a...
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Law of Attraction
Jordan HollisHow to Finally Overcome the Hurdles of Manifesting Proven, effective and enjoyable ways to help you manifest faster… Right now, think of something that makes you successful. If you...
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Little Women
Louisa May AlcottAn Apple Books Classic edition. Meet the Marches! Louisa May Alcott’s classic introduces us to four unforgettable sisters: beautiful Meg, tomboyish Jo, delicate Beth, and Amy, the ...