Paul & Paula

Paul & Paula (Ray Hildebrand, born December 21, 1940, and Jill Jackson, born May 20, 1942) were an American pop singing duo, best known for their 1963 million selling No. 1 hit record, "Hey Paula".

Biography

Hildebrand was born in Joshua, Texas, and Jackson in McCamey, Texas. Both were attending Howard Payne College in Brownwood, Texas in 1962 when a local disc jockey, Riney Jordan, asked listeners to come to the studio and sing their songs to help the American Cancer Society. The duo sang a song called "Hey Paula," which Hildebrand wrote, and were encouraged to make a record of it.

Shelby Singleton of Mercury Records eventually signed them, but not before changing their professional name (Singleton reasoned that a pair named Ray and Jill singing about "Hey, hey Paula" and "Hey, hey Paul" did not make sense). "Hey Paula" sold over two million copies globally, and was awarded a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America (R.I.A.A.) in 1963. The pairing of Paul & Paula was credited with inspiring other famous male/female pairings down the line, mostly from record companies that had originally turned the duo down in 1962. In November 1963 Nino Tempo & April Stevens and Dale and Grace had back-to-back Hot 100 #1s. Jerry Butler was quickly paired with Betty Everett, and Marvin Gaye was paired with a number of female partners before Motown finally settled on Tammi Terrell.

The duo released two regular albums and a Christmas-themed album after the success of "Hey Paula", which charted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the entire month of February 1963. Their follow-up, "Young Lovers", reached #6 on the Billboard chart later in the same year.

In 1965, Hildebrand left the act to complete his college education, having decided that a future in show business was not for him. He made this decision in the middle of a Dick Clark Caravan of Stars road trip, and Clark had to fill in at the last minute. Hildebrand recorded a Christian music album in 1967 called He's Everything to Me.

Jackson went on with a solo career and Hildebrand returned to singing in the 1980s in the Christian duo Land & Hildebrand. Today, the twosome get together from time to time to sing as Paul & Paula for special events.

In 2002, Hildebrand and Jackson returned to Howard Payne University to be the homecoming guests of honor and Grand Marshalls.

Discography

Albums

• (1963) We Go Together
• (1963) Holiday for Teens
• (1964) Paul & Paula Sing for Young Lovers
• (1976) Welcome Warrior
• (1978) National Lampoon's Animal House
• (1995) The Best of Paul & Paula
• (2000) Greatest Hits

Singles

• "Hey Paula" (1963)
• "Young Lovers" (1963)
• "Flipped Over You" (1963)
• "Something Old, Something New" (1963)
• "A Perfect Pair" (1963)
• "First Day Back At School" (1963)
• "First Quarrel" (1963)
• "We'll Never Break Up For Good" (1964)

See also

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1963