Mercy mercy me! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it, baby. This here's your old pal Wolfman Jack sittin' in for my good friend Shady Del Knight right here at the greatest little station in the nation, S-P-M-M... Shady's Place Music & Memories. I'm your doctor
of love, baby, and I got the cure
you're looking for... the best
oldies you ever heard plus
the best oldies you
never heard!
Darkness falls across the land.
The midnight hour is close at hand.
Cuddle your cutie while I strike up the band. You're tuned to S-P-M-M and the Wolfman!
Now, you pay close attention to
these songs, baby, or
the Wolfman's gonna GETCHA!
Oh my my - I've got a trick or treat that's
hard to beat. Every other song on today's show
is a cherry by the merry Mr. Chuck Berry!
We gonna rock & roll ourselves to death,
baby - hee-hee-heee!!!
COLD OPEN:
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
"Johnny B. Goode" - Chuck Berry
(May 1958, highest chart pos. #2 R&B/#8 Hot 100,
#11 Cash Box, scenes from Aug. 1973 film American Graffiti)
Yessiree, you listen to me, there's nothing like cruisin' the strip
with my friend Curt and the gang on American Graffiti.
And the super sound coming thru their car radios was Chuck Berry's
1958 crossover hit "Johnny B. Goode," named one of the most
recognizable songs in pop music history and the first
rock & roll hit about rock & roll stardom.
Awwwww land sakes, the Wolfman's takin' you back to old school
and teachin' you a lesson. In late 50s Nashville, Connie Sue Landers
and two of her high school classmates formed a trio calling them-
selves The Teen-Notes. The girls landed a recording contract
and became Connie & The Cones. In 1960 they waxed their
best side, the pretty teen pop ballad-- "Lonely Girl's Prayer!"
"Lonely Girl's Prayer" - Connie And The Cones
(Jan. 1960, uncharted)
AHHHOOOOO!!! Good golly, miss Molly,
that songbird sure has a sweet tweet!
That was Connie Sue Landers, lead voice of Connie And The Cones,
singing "Lonely Girl's Prayer." Using the stage names Connie Dee
and Connie Landers, Connie released solo records. She signed
with the Nashville label Hit Records and became known as
"The 39 cent singer" releasing cover versions of hits by
other artists. "Hit Records" were sold in five & dimes
and supermarkets for 39 cents, less than half
the price of the originals.
The merry mister Berry is back in the spot-
light and on my turntable. Released in
the summer of 1955, this was Chuck's
first big hit and one of his greatest.
Inducted into the Grammy Hall of
Fame as one of the pioneering songs
that shaped rock & roll, Chuck's
record is ranked in the top 20 on
Rolling Stone's list of The500
Greatest Songs of All Time.
Adapted in part from the
Western swing fiddle tune
"Ida Red," the song tells the
tale of a high speed hot rod
race and a busted romance
with a girl named--
"Maybellene."
"Maybellene" - Chuck Berry
(Aug./Sept./Oct. 1955, highest chart pos.
#1 R&B/#5 Hot 100 & Cash Box)
Oh "Maybellene," baby... why can't you be true?
That was Chuck Berry's pioneering rock & roll single,
a major crossover hit in the summer and fall of 1955.
You've got The Wolfman your radio, and this is S-P-M-M...
the #1 station for a rock & roll nation! Earlier in the show,
you heard from Conne Landers who found success
waxing soundalike cover versions of major hits.
Speaking of covers and sound-alikes, here is
a Los Angeles based girl group quartet best remembered for their answer song to the Gene Chandler smash "Duke Of Earl." Here they are, The Pearlettes, with-- "Duchess Of Earl!"
"Duchess Of Earl" - The Pearlettes
(Mar. 1962, highest chart pos. #96 Hot 100)
Yes, gracious, those were The Pearlettes with their only charting record,
"Duchess Of Earl," an answer to Gene Chandler's #1 hit "Duke Of Earl"
released in March 1962 while Gene's record was red hot on the radio.
Now you listen here to the Wolfman, because I'm gonna tell you
about another Chuck Berry biggie. It's "Little Queenie," the song
released in the spring of 1959 as a double-A side along with the
top 3 charting R&B hit "Almost Grown." "Little Queenie" has
the same melody as "Run Rudolph Run," a song Chuck
released on the B side of "Merry Christmas Baby"
during the holidays in 1958. Here's Chuck in
the 1959 rock & roll movie Go, Johnny, Go!
performing a song that went on to become
a fan favorite recorded by many other
artists -- "Little Queenie!"
"Little Queenie" - Chuck Berry
(Apr./May 1959, highest chart pos. #80 Hot 100/double-A side
of "Almost Grown," scene from June 1959 film Go, Johnny, Go!)
From the summer of '59, that was Chuck Berry doing
"Little Queenie" in the Alan Freed - Jimmy Clanton
rock & roll feature Go, Johnny, Go!
Now, baby, I want you to get
real close to the radio and touch
the whiskers on the old Wolfman's
chin while I introduce the next
record. Everybody talkin' 'bout
the Wolfman's pompatus of love,
and this Carolina gospel singer-
turned secular soul siren likes
to sing about that subject. It's
the fabulous Maxine Brown
with one of her biggest hits--
"Oh No, Not My Baby!"
"Oh No, Not My Baby" - Maxine Brown (Dec. 1964, Jan. 1965, highest chart pos.
#22 Cash Box/#24 Hot 100 & R&B)
From Christmas 1964 and the early weeks of '65, that was
Miss Maxine Brown making a determined run at the top 20
on the soul and the pop chart with "Oh, No, Not My Baby."
You're tuned to Wolfman Jack on S-P-M-M Retro Radio.
I'm your cool canine with fangs for the memories.
Let's wrap up today's show with one more rock McNugget by
the one and only Chuck Berry. Seems like Chuck's had his
share of girl problems over the years and here's another
example. In this 1964 ditty, Chuck chases his future
bride all over town shouting "Nadine (Is It You?)."
