Dec. 5: Andy Kim "Rock me Gently, "Baby I Love You," is 58 today (although he could be 64.)

Born Andrew Youakim, and growing up in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He moved to New York at age 16 to pursue a career in music. Eventually, the move turned out well.

Andy Kim is known for a number of hit singles that he released in the late 1960s and early 1970s such as "Rock Me Gently", which topped the U.S. singles charts. In 1968, he co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar" for The Archies. The song was No. 1 for four weeks and in 1969 was certified "Record of the Year" by the RIAA. Kim has also recorded under the stage name Baron Longfellow since the mid-1980s.

The date of his birth has been reported as both December 5, 1952 (as cited by the Allmusic and Billboard Books,) and December 5, 1946 according to VH1, United Press International, and Rolling Stone.

In 1968 Kim released the single "How'd We Ever Get This Way?" He used the different last name to obscure his Lebanese ethnic ancestry. The record just missed the U.S. Top 20. In 1968, with Jeff Barry, Kim co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar" which was a hit single for The Archies, reaching No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and ultimately becoming the RIAA Record of the Year. Kim/Barry wrote more songs for the Archies, and for Changes, by The Monkees in 1970, which Barry produced.

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In 1969, Kim had two hit singles, "Rainbow Ride," which made the U.S. Top 50, and "Baby, I Love You," which got to #9 and was popular enough in Canada to earn him a Gold Leaf (Juno) Award in 1970 as his country's Best Male Vocalist. "Baby, I Love You" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in October 1969.

Over the next few years, Kim recorded a few minor hits (such as "Be My Baby" in late 1970) and toured North America extensively. In the spring of 1974, he released the self-penned "Rock Me Gently", which went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and rose to #2 on the UK Singles Chart. "Rock Me Gently" sold three million copies globally, earning Kim his second gold disc.

By the end of 1976, Kim stopped recording and disappeared from public life. He returned under the stage name Baron Longfellow with a self-titled album Baron Longfellow in 1980 and, also under the same pseudonym, in 1984 released Prisoner by Design. Both of these albums met with moderate success. In 1991, Kim again went by the name 'Longfellow' and recorded the single "Powerdrive," which received radio airplay on several radio stations across Canada.

In 1995, Kim played at the Kumbaya Festival at which the Barenaked Ladies were also performing. Nearly a decade later, the band's Ed Robertson convinced Kim to come out of retirement. Robertson co-wrote the song "I Forgot to Mention" with him and offered to produce the track. The single was released on a 5-track EP in 2004 which included a re-recording of "Powerdrive."

In March 2005, Kim received the annual "Indie Award" for Favorite Solo Artist during Canadian Music Week.

In 2009 Andy Kim was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame. In March 2010, E1 Music Canada released Happen Again, Kim's first album in over 20 years.

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