Written and originally recorded by Otis Redding (US #35/R&B #4 1965).
Other hit version by Aretha Franklin (US #1/R&B #1/UK #10/CAN #3/AUS #14 1967).
From the wiki: “Essentially a ballad, ‘Respect’ was written by Otis Redding for Speedo Sims, who intended to record it with his band, the Singing Demons, but was unable to produce a good version. Redding then decided to sing the song himself, which Speedo agreed to. (Redding also promised to credit Speedo on the liner notes, but this never happened.)
First recorded by Sparks of Rhythm (1956, released 1959).
Hit versions by Jimmy Jones (US #2/R&B #3/UK #3 1960), Del Shannon (US #22/UK #36 1964), James Taylor (US #4/MOR #1/UK #54 1977).
From the wiki: “‘Handy Man’ was written by singer Jimmy Jones and songwriter Otis Blackwell, and was first recorded by The Sparks Of Rhythm, a group of which Jones was a member. Signed to Apollo Records, ‘Handy Man’ was one of four songs the group recorded for the label in 1956 but nothing happened with the recordings, and Jones left the group 2-1/2 months after the session. (When ‘Handy Man’ was belatedly released in 1959, the Sparks Of Rhythm single [on Apollo 541] credited Andrew Barksdale and Charles Merenstein, who owned Apollo Records at the time, as writers, entirely omitting both Jones and Blackwell.)
Co-written and first recorded by Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers (R&B #3 1947).
Other popular versions by Chuck Berry (1958); Elvis Presley (1971); Bruce Springsteen (1987); Bonnie Raitt & Charles Brown (1992); Cee Lo Green, Rod Stewart & Trombone Shorty (2012).
From the wiki: “‘Merry Christmas Baby’ is an R&B Christmas standard written by Lou Baxter and Johnny Moore. The original 1947 version by Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers is considered to be the definitive version of this song.
Co-written and originally recorded by Charles Brown (US #76 1960 |XMAS #1 1972).
Other hit versions by Eagles (US #18 1978), Bon Jovi (released 1992 |UK #7/IRE #6/SCOT #8/ITA #10/FIN #20 1994).
From the wiki: “‘Please Come Home for Christmas’ is a Christmas song, released in 1960, by the American blues singer and pianist Charles Brown. Hitting Billboard’s Hot 100 chart in December 1961, the tune Brown co-wrote with Gene Redd peaked at position #76. It appeared on the Billboard Christmas Singles chart for nine seasons, hitting #1 in 1972.
“In 1978, the rock band Eagles covered and released the song as a holiday single. Their version peaked at #18 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, the first Christmas song to reach the Top 20 on the non-seasonal singles chart since Roy Orbison’s ‘Pretty Paper’ in 1963.
“Jon Bon Jovi also covered the song on the 1992 holiday album A Very Special Christmas 2 in the style of the Eagles, featuring former Eagle Don Felder on guitar. In 1994 the same recording was released as a charity single in Europe, but this time instead of being credited as a solo recording by Jon Bon Jovi it was released under the band name Bon Jovi. The 1994 single release reached the top 10 in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Italy.”
Written and first recorded by Yellow Magic Orchestra (1979).
Hit versions by Greg Phillinganes (R&B #77/DANCE #4 1985), Eric Clapton (UK #15 1987).
Also recorded by Michael Jackson (1982, released 2010), Ryuichi Sakamoto & Bernard Fowler (1987), The Human League & Yellow Magic Orchestra (1993).
From the wiki: “‘Behind the Mask’ is a Synth-Pop song by electronic band Yellow Magic Orchestra, written by member Ryuichi Sakamoto and first produced as an instrumental in 1978 for a Seiko watch commercial. It was later released in 1979 as part of the band’s Solid State Survivor album with English lyrics added by Chris Mosdell. Sakamoto already had the melody line when he asked poet and lyricist Mosdell to write lyrics, which Mosdell based on the imagery of a Japanese traditional Noh mask, combined with a poem by Irish poet W.B. Yeats called, ‘The Mask’.
First recorded by Eddie Williams & His Brown Buddies (1949).
Hit version by Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five (US #21/R&B #1 1949).
http://youtu.be/Se9mX60LCrY
From the wiki: “‘Saturday Night Fish Fry’ was written by Ellis Walsh and adapted by Louis Jordan (who received co-writing credit), and first recorded in 1949 by Eddie Williams & His Brown Buddies featuring the talk-singing vocals of Walsh. The act had recently had a hit with ‘Broken Hearted’; ‘Saturday Night Fish Fry’ was intended to be the Williams’ band’s followup. However, the acetate for the William/Walsh recording found its way to Louis Jordan’s agent and, as Williams later recalled, ‘They got theirs out there first.’
“Jordan reconfigured the song, taking the song’s ‘hook’ and signing it twice after every other verse. The arrangement was also more propulsive, too; Williams’ shuffle was replaced by a raucous, rowdy jump Boogie-woogie. ‘Saturday Night Fish Fry’ has been called one of the first Rock ‘n roll records. No less than Chuck Berry has said ‘Louis Jordan was the first one that I hear play rock and roll.'”
Written and first recorded by Chris Kenner (1961).
Hit version by Alvin Robinson (US #54/R&B #6 1964).
Also recorded by Moody Blues (1965), Wilson Pickett (1966), Herman Hitson (1966), Bruce Springsteen (1974).
From the wiki: “‘Something You Got’ was written by New Orleans R&B singer and songwriter Chris Kenner (‘Land of 1000 Dances‘, ‘I Like It Like That‘) who released it in 1961 as a single, with ‘Come and See About Me’ on the B-side, and as an album track on the 1966 album Land of 1000 Dances. Covered later with some acclaim by Wilson Pickett (who also covered Kenner’s ‘Land of 1000 Dances’), ‘Something You Got’ charted only with the 1964 version recorded by Alvin Robinson.”
First recorded by LaVern Baker (US #14/R&B #4 1954).
Other hit versions by Georgia Gibbs (US #2/UK #20 1955), Frankie Vaughn (UK #17 1955), Little Jimmy Osmond (US #59/UK #4 1973).
From the wiki: “‘Tweedlee Dee’ (also ‘Tweedly Dee’ or ‘Tweedle Dee’) is a R&B novelty song with a Latin-influenced riff written by Winfield Scott for LaVern Baker and recorded by her at Atlantic Records’ studio in New York City in 1954. It was her first hit, reaching #4 on Billboard’s R&B chart and #14 on its Pop chart. Although Baker had closely approached a Pop style in this recording, a cover of the song was quickly recorded by Georgia Gibbs on the Mercury Records label. Because a major label like Mercury had a superior distribution system, Atlantic’s independent label could not compete.
“The white cover version used not only the lyrics but closely imitated the style and arrangement of the original and became a Gold Record for Gibbs, thus ruining any chance of Baker’s recording becoming a Top 10 Pop hit. According to Atlantic’s engineer, Tom Dowd, Mercury hired the same arranger, the same musicians and tried to hire the same engineer. Baker attempted to get her congressman to introduce legislation to prevent the copying of arrangements but was unsuccessful.”
First recorded by Lloyd Price (R&B #1 1952).
Other hit versions by Elvis Presley (UK #15 1957), Gary Stites (US #47 1960), The Buckinghams (US #41 1967), Mickey Gilley (C&W #3 1976).
From the wiki: “‘Lawdy Miss Clawdy’ was an R&B song written by New Orleans singer/songwriter Lloyd Price (‘Personality’) that ‘grandly introduced The New Orleans Sound’ to the world according to music writer Rick Coleman. It was first recorded by Price in 1952, along with Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino backing Price for his first session with Specialty Records.
“In 1952, Art Rupe, founder of Specialty Records in Los Angeles, had come to New Orleans in search of new talent. Local recording studio owner Cosimo Matassa introduced him to Bartholomew, who had co-written and produced many of Fats Domino’s early hit records. Bartholomew invited nineteen year-old Lloyd Price to audition for Rupe at Matassa’s J&M Studio. The accounts differ on what happened next.
“According to Rupe, Price spent too much time rehearsing and Rupe threatened to leave if he did not get it together; Rupe then relented and Price turned out an emotional performance of ‘Lawdy Miss Clawdy’, prompting Rupe to cancel his return flight and to arrange for a full recording session.
Written and first recorded (as “A Little Word”) by Shirley & Lee (1956).
Hit version by Lloyd Price (US #29/R&B #3 1956).
Also recorded by John Lennon (1973/1974).
From the wiki: “‘A Little Word’ was written by Leonard Lee, and released as the B-side to Shirley & Lee’s ‘That’s What I’ll Do’ non-charting single released in February 1956 (ahead of their chart-topping ‘Let the Good Times Roll’).
“Lloyd Price would adapt ‘A Little Word’ into “Just Because’. Price had already recorded one of the biggest-selling songs of the early Rock ‘n roll era, ‘Lawdy Miss Clawdy’, in 1952, but his career momentum was cut short when he was drafted into the Army in 1954. Upon his discharge, Price found he had been replaced at Specialty Records by Little Richard. Price then decided to start his own label – The Kent Recording Company (KRC). Kent Records began in late 1956 with Price as its only artist. The label’s first release was ‘Just Because’, on which Price played piano and produced the session.
Co-written and first recorded by Brook Benton (1958).
Hit versions by Clyde McPhatter (US #6/R&B #1 1958), Del Reeves (C&W #14 1970), Jacky Ward (C&W #3 1978).
Also recorded by Loggins & Messina (1975).
From the wiki: “‘A Lover’s Question’ was written by Brook Benton (‘Rainy Night in Georgia‘) and Jimmy T. Williams, and first recorded by Benton in 1958. That same year, it was covered by Clyde McPhatter (formerly of The Dominoes and founder of The Drifters) and became his most successful solo pop or R&B release. Only 39 at the time of his death in 1972, McPhatter struggled for years with alcoholism and depression and was, according to Jay Warner’s On This Day in Music History, ‘broke and despondent over a mismanaged career that made him a legend but hardly a success.’
“McPhatter was the first artist in music history to become a double inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame … first as a member of The Drifters and, later, as a solo artist and, as a result, all subsequent double and/or triple inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are said to be members of ‘The Clyde McPhatter Club’.
Based on “He’s the Greatest Dancer” by Sister Sledge (1979).
Hit version by Will Smith (US #1/R&B #6/UK #3 1998).
From the wiki: “The song samples the Sister Sledge song ‘He’s the Greatest Dancer’ and ‘Movin’ On Up’ by Ja’net Dubois. The ‘mama-uh, mama-uh, mama come closer’ line is a reference to the song ‘Soul Makossa’ by Manu Dibango, specifically the version adapted by Michael Jackson in ‘Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin”’s final bridge.”
Based on “Pump Up the Party” by Hassan (1987).
First recorded (as “Who Let the Dogs Out”) by Miami Boom Productions (1992).
Hit versions by Anslem Douglas (1998), Baha Men (US #21/UK #2/AUS #1/NZ #1/IRE #2 2000).
From the wiki: “‘Who Let the Dogs Out’ was based on Stevie B’s ‘Pump Up the Party’, recorded by Hassan in 1987. ‘Party’ opens with the lyric ‘Who’s running this doghouse? Who? Who? Who? Who?’
“The song was then recorded in 1992 – now titled ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’ – by Miami Boom Productions.
“The 1998 calypsoca recording by Anslem Douglas (it was used for the 1998 Trinidad and Tobago Carnival season), titled ‘Doggie’, came to the attention of producer Steve Greenberg who would then have his group, Baha Men, cover the song for the Rugrats in Paris: The Movie movie and soundtrack album. The Baha Men recording was released it as a single in 2000, and would go on to become the band’s first hit in the US and the UK.”
Written and first recorded by Floyd Dixon (1954).
Popular versions by Laurel Aitken (1961), The Blues Brothers (1978), Johnny Lee (C&W #2 1983).
From the wiki: “‘Hey Bartender’ was written and first recorded in 1954 by West Coast R&B pianist Floyd Dixon. The self-dubbed ‘Mr. Magnificent’, Dixon signed a recording contract with Modern Records in 1949, specializing in jump blues and sexualized songs like ‘Red Cherries’, ‘Too Much Jelly Roll’ and ‘Baby Let’s Go Down to the Woods’. Both “Dallas Blues” and “Mississippi Blues”, credited to the Floyd Dixon Trio, reached the Billboard R&B chart in 1949.
First recorded (as “Hey There, Lonely Boy”) by Ruby & the Romantics (US #5 1963).
Other hit versions by Eddie Holman (US #2/R&B #4/CAN #1/UK #4 1969), Shaun Cassidy (AUS #5 1977), Robert John (US #31 1980).
From the wiki: “‘Hey There, Lonely Boy’ was written by Leon Carr and Earl Shuman and was first recorded in 1963 by Ruby & The Romantics (‘Our Day Will Come’, ‘Hurting Each Other‘), becoming the group’s second Top-5 single following their #1 hit, ‘Our Day Will Come’. Eddie Holman’s cover was recorded and released in 1969, becoming his highest-charting single.
“Additional charting singles covers were recorded by Shaun Cassidy (1977), and Robert John (1980).”
Inspired by “Cadillac Boogie” by Jimmy Liggins & His Drops of Joy (1947).
Hit version by Jackie Brenston & His Delta Cats (R&B #1 1951).
Also recorded by Bill Haley & His Saddlemen (1951).
From the wiki: “If ‘Rocket 88’ is to be considered the first ‘Rock ‘n Roll’ song (as musicologists do), then ‘Cadillac Boogie’ must be the seed from which sprang the tree. Jackie Brenston admits he modeled his song on the Jimmy Liggins’ ‘Cadillac Boogie’, trading in the Caddy for a 1951 Oldsmobile Rocket Hydramatic 88. And it was about time they did. On their way from Clarksdale, MS, to Sun Studios in Memphis, TN, to record with Sam Phillips, the Delta Cats’ 1940 Ford Town Car was soaked in a downpour, damaging some band equipment including the band’s guitar amplifier.
“As luck would have it, Phillips liked the distortion coming now from the damaged amplifier and kept it in the recording. (Note: Even though ‘The Delta Cats’ were listed on the label, the group did not legally exist per se. Instead, the band was a derivative of then-19-year-old Ike Turner & His Kings of Rhythm band. Brenston was Turner’s saxophone player.)
First recorded by The Shirelles (1964, released 1994).
Hit versions by Maxine Brown (US #24 1964), Manfred Mann (UK# 11 1964), Merry Clayton (US #71/R&B #30 1972), Rod Stewart (UK #6 1973).
Also recorded by Carole King (1980).
From the wiki: “‘Oh No Not My Baby’ was written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. The first recorded version of the song was by The Shirelles, with the group’s members alternating leads – an approach that ultimately rendered the song unreleasable because it was a great departure from the Shirelle’s ‘standard’ sound. It would not be released until appearing on the compilation Shirelles: Lost and Found in 1994.
“Maxine Brown recalls, then, that Stan Greenberg, Scepter Records executive, gave her the song with the advisement that she had to ‘find the original melody’ from the recording by The Shirelles: ‘They [had gone] so far off by each [group member] taking their own lead, no one knew any more where the real melody stood.’
Written and first recorded by Solomon Burke (US #58/R&B #4 1964).
Also recorded by The Rolling Stones (1965).
Other hit versions by Wilson Pickett (US #29/R&B #19 1967), The Blues Brothers (1980 |UK #12 1990).
From the wiki: “‘Everybody Needs Somebody to Love’ was written by Solomon Burke but also credited to Bert Berns and Atlantic Records co-owner and producer Jerry Wexler. Many years later, Burke recalled, ‘When I did it for Jerry Wexler and Bert Burns (sic), they told me that song would never make it. I said, ‘Well, I tell ya what—I’ll give you a piece of it.’ They said, ‘That’s the way we’ll get the record played, so we’ll take a piece of it.’ In those days, they took a piece of your songs—a piece of the publishing—but in the end, you didn’t have any pieces left. Even now, I’m still struggling to get the publishing, the royalties, and that’ll never happen.’
“On May 28, 1964, Burke recorded ‘Everybody Needs Somebody to Love’. Released by Atlantic, it peaked at #4 on the R&B chart but missing the US Top 40 – peaking at #58 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“The Rolling Stones almost immediately in January 1965 covered ‘Everybody Needs Somebody to Love’, for their 1965 album The Rolling Stones No. 2. The version on the US The Rolling Stones, Now! album was an earlier version of the song and apparently issued by mistake.
“Wilson Pickett covered the song in 1966, and his recording did make it to #29 on the Top 40 and #19 R&B in early 1967. A re-release of The Blues Brothers’ 1978 recording nudged the UK Top 10 in 1990.
“‘Everybody Needs Somebody to Love’ is ranked #429 on the Rolling Stone magazine’s 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and ranked #447 in Dave Marsh’s book, In The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.”
Co-written (by Bobby Darin) and first recorded by The Ding Dongs (1958).
Hit version by The Rinky Dinks (US #24/R&B #8 1958), Buddy Holly (US #32/UK #17 1958).
From the wiki: “‘Early in the Morning’ was written by Bobby Darin and Woody Harris. Darin, a member at the time of the Brill Building gang of struggling songwriters, approached Brunswick Records with the song; Brunswick was impressed, but as Darin was still under contract to Atlantic Records’ subsidiary, Atco, the song was released as by ‘The Ding Dongs’ (in reality, Bobby Darin and backing vocalists).
“New York deejays liked the record but Atco soon discovered the deception. Brunswick was forced to turn over its masters to Atco, who then re-released the record in 1958 under the name ‘The Rinky Dinks’. It was the Atco-labeled release which charted in the U.S. and the U.K.
“A version of ‘Early in the Morning’ by Buddy Holly competed in the UK with Darin’s single, which had been released there under Darin’s own name.”
Written and first recorded by Ivory Joe Hunter (US #12/R&B #1 1956).
Other hit versions by Mindy Carson (US #34 1956), Bobby Vee (B-side US #81 1960), Sonny James (C&W #1 1969).
Also recorded (as “Desde que conozco”) by Freddy Fender (US #45/C&W #10 1975).
http://youtu.be/2FWpshhkHU0
From the wiki: “‘Since I Met You Baby’ was written and first recorded by pianist Ivory Joe Hunter. The song, which Hunter recorded and charted with in 1956, has since become an American R&B standard, and saw renewed popularity in 1969 when Country music artist Sonny James released his #1 version. Hunter had already tasted major success with Pop and R&B audiences with songs such as ‘I Almost Lost My Mind‘. He moved to Atlantic Records by 1954, and around that time wrote ‘Since I Met You Baby’. Hunter’s recording topped the Billboard R&B chart for three weeks in 1956 and became his sole Billboard Hot 100 entry, peaking at #12.
First recorded (as “Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand”) by Hoagy Lands (1964).
Inspired by “Baby Let Me Follow You Down” by Bob Dylan (1962).
Also recorded (as “Baby Let Me Take You Home”) by The Mustangs (1964).
Hit version by The Animals (UK #21 1964).
From the wiki: “‘Baby Let Me Take You Home’ is credited to Bert Russell (a.k.a. Bert Berns) and Wes Farrell, as an arrangement of Eric Von Schmidt’s rendering of ‘Baby, Let Me Follow You Down’, as covered by Bob Dylan on Dylan’s first, self-titled, album. ‘Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand’ was first recorded by Hoagy Lands in 1964. A cover version, re-titled, was recorded in a more Folk-Rock-Blues-style by The Mustangs, also in 1964, using much of the same backing track as Lands’ original which was also produced by co-writer Berns.
“‘Baby Let Me Take You Home” would become The Animals’ debut single release, peaking near the Top 20 in the UK in 1964 but going uncharted in the US.”
First recorded by The Moonglows (US#20/R&B #1 1955).
Other hit versions by The McGuire Sisters (US #1/UK #14 1955), The Forrester Sisters (C&W #8 1989).
https://youtu.be/lZv3atM2arc
From the wiki: “Among the most seminal R&B and doo-wop groups of all time, The Moonglows’ lineup featured some of the genre’s greatest pure singers. The group were originally called ‘The Crazy Sounds’, but were renamed by radio disc-jockey Alan Freed as ‘The Moonglows’. (The group also cut some recordings as The Moonlighters.) Their first major hit was the #1 R&B gem ‘Sincerely’, for Chess Records, penned by group member Harvey Fuqua and recorded by them in late 1954.
First recorded by Willie Mabon (1955).
Hit versions by Johnny Rivers (US #7/CAN #1 1965), Georgie Fame (UK #25 1969).
Also recorded by Mose Allison (1959), Willie Dixon, writer (1969).
From the wiki: “‘The Seventh Son’, also recorded as ‘Seventh Son’, was written by Willie Dixon and first released as a single by Willie Mabon on Chess Records in 1955 (with Dixon on bass). Dixon recalled (via Songfacts.com), ‘The seventh son is part of the scriptures of the Bible. ‘The seventh son of the seventh son born on the seventh hour of the seventh day of the seventh month.’ I was born in the seventh month and I was the seventh child of my family.’ In the same interview, Mose Allison, who covered the song in 1959, remembered, ‘I thought that was a great song of that type. One of the common things is to feel that you are supernatural sometimes. And most people have felt that at one time or another.’
First recorded by Lee Dorsey (1970).
Hit album versions by Robert Palmer (1974), Ringo Starr (1977).
From the wiki: “‘Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley’ was written by Allen Toussaint (‘Java‘, ‘Working in a Coal Mine’, ‘Lipstick Traces (on a Cigarette)‘) and was first recorded by Lee Dorsey (‘Yes We Can Can‘) in 1970 for his album Yes, We Can.
“The song would later be covered by Robert Palmer (as the title track to his 1974 album Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley), and by Ringo Starr on his 1977 album Ringo the 4th.”
