Lee Jensen
At Rockaeology.com, Lee Jensen unearths the secrets behind the writing, production and recording of the great hits of rock, soul, doo wop, rhythm and blues and the British Invasion.
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Displaying Results 1 - 25 (of 25) for All Content
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The Drifters: The Best "White Christmas"More than a hundred cover versions of Irving Berlin's "White Christmas” have been recorded. The Drifters’ 1954 version remains the gold standard.
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"California Sun": The West Coast Sound from South Bend, IndianaWhile most identify 1964’s “California Sun” with the Rivieras (from sun-drenched South Bend, Indiana), the song originated with New Orleans R&B singer Joe Jones, who is known for his Top Ten hit, “You Talk Too Much.”
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The Long, Strange Trip of Arlo Guthrie's "The City of New Orleans"Arlo Guthrie’s biggest hit, “The City of New Orleans,” was written and first recorded by singer-songwriter Steve Goodman, who said that all of the song’s lyrics happened to him on a train trip to Illinois with his wife.
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Now This is Wild: Before the Troggs, the Original "Wild Thing"While the Troggs pioneered Neanderthal rock with 1966’s “Wild Thing,” the song was first written by Chip Taylor for the Wild Ones, the house band of Sybil Burton’s NYC discotheque Arthur. The result: a flop.
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Even If You Hate the Post Office, You Love This SongIn 1967, the Box Tops blasted onto the scene with “The Letter,” a number one hit for the blue-eyed soul band. Fronted by 16-year-old lead singer Alex Chilton, the band was produced by Dan Penn, who added the jet plane sound effect to the track’s close.
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Lynyrd Skynyrd and Charlie Daniels: Southern Rockers Who AVOID Barroom BrawlsInstead of brawling in bars, Southern rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd ("Gimme Three Steps") and the Charlie Daniels Band ("Uneasy Rider") told how they avoided fights in their debut singles.
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The Rascals' "Good Lovin'": The Best of Blue-Eyed Soul“Good Lovin’,” originally recorded by the West Coast R&B group the Olympics, hit number one for the Rascals after they added their “one-two-three” count-in at the top and the full-stop false ending.
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The Lost Lyrics of Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale"Procol Harum’s 1967 monster hit "A Whiter Shade of Pale" originally had two additional verses that never made it onto the record; they offer clues to the meaning of the seafaring tune.
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"Knock on Wood": Its Intro is What Song Played Backwards?When Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper wrote and recorded a demo of "Knock on Wood" in 1966, Cropper contributed the song's signature intro using a classic R&B riff he'd written.
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Rock and Roll Heaven: How a Priest Helped Write "Hello, Mary Lou"Ricky Nelson’s “Hello Mary Lou” was a 1961 hit penned by singer Gene Pitney, whose co-writer was less well known: Cayet Mangiaracina, a Dominican priest.
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Psychedelic Rock at Its Most InsaneCount Five’s 1966 hit “Psychotic Reaction” has been called a ripoff of the Yardbirds, but it is a classic example of psychedelic rock and a forerunner of punk and garage rock.
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The Weirdest Bob Dylan Cover Song EverThe most unique cover of a Bob Dylan song has to be 1965’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” by the Wonder Who?, a thinly-veiled pseudonym for the Four Seasons. Frankie Valli’s high-pitched falsetto was copied from 1940s jazz singer Rose Murphy.
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Who Were the Real "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" and "Big Jim Walker"?The characters in Jim Croce's songs like “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim” and “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” were based on people Croce had met. Meet the real Leroy Brown and Big Jim Walker, that pool shootin’ son of a gun.
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The Humble Beginnings of the Byrds' "The Ballad of Easy Rider"Roger McGuinn's “The Ballad of Easy Rider” was the theme song of the 1969 classic film. Later recorded by the Byrds, the song began as a few lines scrawled on a napkin by Bob Dylan and given to the film’s stars, Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper.
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Who was the Original Twister?Though many associate “The Twist” with Chubby Checker, it was written and first recorded by R&B star Hank Ballard. Checker says that he, not Ballard, created the iconic dance moves that made the Twist an international sensation in 1960.
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The Best Protest Song Ever?1967’s “I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-To-Die Rag” by Country Joe and the Fish was one of the most controversial and memorable anti-war protest songs of the Vietnam era. Written by Country Joe McDonald, many know the song from the 1970 "Woodstock" documentary.
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Rockabilly is "Red Hot"Billy Lee Riley was a pioneer of rockabilly; his 1957 “Red Hot” was covered by Robert Gordon in 1977 and sparked a rockabilly revival led by Dave Edmunds and Brian Setzer.
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Bachman-Turner Overdrive's "Takin' Care of Business"Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s 1973 anthem “Takin’ Care of Business” was written by Randy Bachman years before while a member of the Guess Who. Bachman has told an apocryphal story about a mystery pizza delivery man who played piano on the track.
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The Mistake that Immortalized Cannibal & the HeadhuntersCannibal & the Headhunters' "Land of 1000 Dances" was a hit in 1965. The famous “naa na na na naa” chant so identified with the song was not heard in the Chris Kenner original. Cannibal came up with the hook on stage when he forgot the litany of dances.
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"Love is Strange": The Long Strange Trip of Mickey & SylviaMickey & Sylvia’s 1957 hit “Love Is Strange” featured innovative techniques like multi-tracking and single-string solos that would influence artists like Jimi Hendrix. Sylvia Robinson would go on to found rap label Sugar Hill Records.
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In the Fifties, This Song Meant "Last Dance"Nothing signaled the end of a dance like the Spaniels’ 1954 hit “Goodnite Sweetheart, Goodnite.” Lead vocalist Pookie Hudson pioneered the doo wop style as he performed his solos at his own microphone, apart from the rest of the group.
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"Stand by Me": The Classic Rejected as "Not a Bad Song"Remarkably, a classic like Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me was originally rejected as a song for the Drifters. King’s “moaning and groaning and making little sounds” became his trademark with the encouragement of producers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.
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The Song VP Spiro Agnew Said "Threatens to Sap Our National Strength"Brewer and Shipley’s “One Toke Over the Line” was an uncharacteristic 1970 hit for a duo that preferred to sing ballads. The song was singled out by VP Spiro Agnew as “blatant drug-culture propaganda” for its pot references.
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"Go Now": The Moody Blues' Rhythm and Blues RootsThe Moody Blues' first hit, 1964's “Go Now” was a cover of a little-known R&B track by Bessie Banks. Its producers, Leiber and Stoller, called Banks' version “the most over-looked soul performance of the sixties.”
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"Got My Mind Set on You": Before George Harrison, Its Singer's Tragic DeathGeorge Harrison's "Got My Mind Set On You" was not his own composition; written by Rudy Clark, it was rhythm and blues singer James Ray who first recorded the song in 1962. But Ray, in his early 20s, would die of a drug overdose soon after its release.