Songs with Earlier Histories Than the Hit Version

Help support this site! Consider clicking an ad from time to time. Thanks!

 
« Go Back to Previous Page «  

Tagged: The Nylons

Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye

First recorded by Steam (US #1/R&B #20 1969).
Also recorded by The Supremes (1970).
Other hit versions by Bananarama (US #101/UK #5 1983), The Nylons (US #12 1987).

From the wiki: “‘Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye’ was written and recorded by Paul Leka, Gary DeCarlo and Dale Frashuer, attributed to a then-fictitious band they named ‘Steam’ as a throw-away B-side. When the song began to get airplay on the radio and became a hit, the writers hired stand-in musicians to tour as Steam. (So, ‘Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye’ may be the biggest selling (over 6.5 million copies) B-side recorded by a non existent band in music history.) Leka, et al. wrote a primitive version of the song in the early 1960s when they were members of a band from Bridgeport, Connecticut, The Chateaus, who disbanded after several failed recordings.

Uncle John’s Fifth Bathroom Reader states that DeCarlo was recording a throwaway ‘flip side – something so bad, no disc jockey would accidentally play it as the ‘A’ side.’ ‘Na Na Hey Hey’ was described by DeCarlo as ‘an embarrassing record … an insult.’ But, Mercury Records decided it was great and released it as an A-side single. Nobody wanted to be identified with the record, however, so it was credited to ‘Steam’.

Stranded in the Jungle

First recorded by The Jayhawks (US #18 released May 1956).
Other hit versions by The Cadets (US #15/R&B #4 released June 1956), The Gadabouts (US #39 released July 1956), The Vibrations (US #117 1961), The New York Dolls (1974).
Also recorded by The Nylons (1996).

From the wiki: “‘Stranded in the Jungle’ is a song first recorded by doo-wop group the Jayhawks. It peaked at #18 on the U.S. pop chart. A cover version of the song recorded by another doo-wop group, the Cadets, in 1956 peaked at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at #3 on the R&B chart the same week, with yet another cover version, by the Gadabouts, peaking at #34 on the Hot 100 one week later. All three groups would prove to be one-hit wonders, with ‘Stranded in the Jungle’ being the only Top 40 hit for any of them.

By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. more information

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.

Close