Best known for his international No. 1 hit “Running Bear” in 1960, John Preston Courville, professionally known as Johnny Preston, began his musical career singing in high-school choral contests throughout Texas. Born in Port Arthur in 1939, he came from Cajun and German heritage and formed a rock-and-roll band called The Shades, which performed in local clubs and leaned heavily toward R&B rather than teen-pop or country. J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson heard about the young singer and went to see him perform—an encounter that changed Preston’s life.

​

Richardson offered Preston the chance to record a song he had written, “Running Bear,” which they cut at Gold Star Studios in Houston in 1958. The “Indian” chants on the record were performed by Richardson, George Jones, and producer Bill Hall. The single was released after the Big Bopper’s tragic death in 1959. It entered the Billboard Hot 100 that October, hit No. 1 in January 1960, topped the UK charts two months later, and ultimately sold more than a million copies, earning Preston his first gold record. He later joked that the song “bought him his first ranch.”

​

Preston quickly followed with another major hit, “Cradle of Love” (U.S. No. 7, U.K. No. 2), and released several more singles throughout the early 1960s, including “I’m Starting to Go Steady” on the flip side of “Feel So Fine” (Billboard No. 14). He appeared on American Bandstand, The Milt Grant Show, and The Buddy Deane Show, gaining a national teen following. However, the British Invasion soon dominated American radio, and Preston later noted, “They wouldn’t put you on the radio if you weren’t English,” which contributed to his declining U.S. chart presence.

​

Despite fewer hits, Preston enjoyed steady popularity overseas and on the oldies circuit. Through the 1980s and 1990s, he toured widely across the United States, Europe, and the U.K., where he remained a frequent favorite on Golden Oldies package tours. Until his death, he continued living in Southeast Texas, staying close to his roots and performing for devoted fans around the world.

​

Johnny Preston died on March 4, 2011, in Beaumont, Texas, from complications following heart-bypass surgery. He was 71.