Bruce Channel

Singer Bruce McMeans, known professionally as Bruce Channel, was born on November 28, 1940, in the United States. He started his career performing for the radio program Louisiana Hayride, collaborating with harmonica player Delbert McClinton to sing country music. In 1959, Bruce Channel co-wrote "Hey! Baby" with Margaret Cobb and performed it live for two years before recording it under Fort Worth record producer Bill Smith. The song was initially released on Smith's LeCam label but was later distributed by Smash Records, a subsidiary of Mercury. "Hey! Baby" reached Number 1 on the U.S. popular music charts in March 1962 and held that position for three weeks, also peaking at number 2 in the United Kingdom. It sold over one million copies and earned a gold disc. Bruce Channel had four more singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including "Number One Man" (1962), "Come On Baby" (1962), "Going Back to Louisiana" (1964), and "Mr. Bus Driver" (1967). His only other top 40 recording in the UK Singles Chart was "Keep On" (June 1968). Channel disliked touring, so he settled as a songwriter in Nashville, scoring several Broadcast Music Incorporated award-winning songs during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1987, "Hey! Baby" experienced a resurgence in popularity after it was featured in the popular movie Dirty Dancing. Channel was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2008.