It's been nine years since Hatfield died, and we're remembering the higher-voiced Brother by listening to a few of the group's greatest hits. Their earliest chart-topper was "You've Lost that Loving Feeling." Released at the height of the British Invasion in 1964, the song was a surprise hit – producers weren't sure the soulful number could compete with the upbeat pop from across the pond, and it was almost a full minute longer than the snappy singles DJs liked to play on the radio. But audiences loved the interplay between Hatfield and bandmate Bill Medley, and the song reached No. 1.
Hatfield and Medley repeated the No. 1 feat two years later with "You're My Soul and Inspiration." Hatfield delivered the classic spoken-word bridge.
And then there was the Righteous Brothers song that transcended trends to become a favorite across the decades. A showcase for Hatfield's falsetto range, "Unchained Melody" hit No. 4 when it was first released in 1965… but it made it to No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary charts 25 years later thanks to its use in an iconic scene in the Patrick Swayze-Demi Moore film Ghost.
Lonely rivers sigh Wait for me, wait for me Bobby Hatfield is gone, but we have a feeling that his angelic voice is waiting for us.
