By R&B (138.238.41.118) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 01:23 pm:

HEHEHE,OK GANG,LET'S TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE,WHAT WAS THE VERY AND I MEAN VERY FIRST SOUL OR R&B SONG THAT YOU EVER HEARD?FOR ME IT WAS..TUTTI FRUTTI,I REMEMBER BEING WITH MY FATHER AND HEARING IT PLAYING AT THE RECORD STORES THAT WE PASSED,I DIDN'T KNOW WHO WAS SINGING IT THEN,BUT I KNOW I LIKED IT!

By Kegtapper (64.24.81.151) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 02:56 pm:

What year was that R&B???

hmmm- thats hard to call off. When I was staying with uncle and aunt in GARY, IN in 1958 - they'd call up to the BBQ joint and make an order, while they played TUNK, and/or Pity-Pat and send me to pick it up (yes at age 4 it was only 1/2 blk away). While waiting for the the food I heard the likes of Bo Diddly coming out the Juke box, and other titles I cannot even begin to name.

But I do distinctly remember throwing a 'FIT' for my 5th birthday - I finally got my wish for 'Do Lang Do Lang -He's So Fine' I think it was the Chiffons. Summer 1959 I was the proud owner of my first 45.

By R&B (138.238.41.118) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 02:59 pm:

I THINK IT WAS 56!!!

By Sly fan (67.115.72.52) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 03:02 pm:

74 to be exact...the very first soul song I can recall hearing is..ist kind of a toss up between "The Payback"-James Brown or "Could It Be Im Falling In Love"-The Spinners.

By Kegtapper (64.24.81.151) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 03:03 pm:

DANG....!!!

You Old Too??? Just kidding

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 04:43 pm:

You guys are just pups. How about Earth Angel circa 1956?

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 04:45 pm:

Or Annie Had A Baby maybe 54 or 55.

By Dick Gamble (216.93.11.3) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 05:13 pm:

Work With Me Annie...Hank Ballard and the Midnighters in 1954 blew my mind. Along with Shake Rattle and Roll by Big Joe Turner also 1954

Thanks to WLAC Nashville

While the Detroit stations were playing Patti Page records.

By Lynn Bruce (65.60.202.214) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 05:28 pm:

Gee,by the Crows. My friend and I must have played it 20 times a day! I'm not kidding. We were hooked bad! What was that,54 or 55?

By SisDetroit (68.42.209.170) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 05:31 pm:

Lavern Baker - Jim Dandy

By Soul Sister (65.43.153.219) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 05:41 pm:

1954 a record my brother had by The Cords the A-side was "Sha-boom"and the B-side was "Little Maiden", on the Cat label. I was 7 or 8 years old.

By Dick Gamble (216.93.11.42) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 06:04 pm:

Lynn, Gee by the Crows was recorded in the spring of 1953 and released in June of 53 on the RAMA Label. Still have your copy?? It's rare!!!

Dick

By Ritchie (62.254.0.9) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 06:09 pm:

Shucks... we young'uns can't compete. When Annie Had A Baby, I was in just the process of being born.

Hey... maybe Annie was my Mama?

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 06:22 pm:

That makes you famous Ritchie.

By Ritchie (62.254.0.9) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 06:29 pm:

Er - maybe not. But in the fifties, my Dad had a unique Elvis connection.... :o)

By Sly fan (67.119.52.83) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 06:31 pm:

Kegtapper:LOL!!! I am a baby..LOL!!

By medusa9e (66.73.11.110) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 07:58 pm:

Let see now, I can remember Shirley & Lee singing
"Feel so good" and i can remember the following songs: something by the McGuire sisters (He).
Stagger Lee&Billy, "How much is that Doggie in the window" Ruth Brown singing "Mama he treats your daughter mean" and my mother used to sing a lot of Dinah Washington songs (Blue Skies)...
and i don't know the groups or singers, but they sang "Just the way you Look tonight", Loyd Price- You're too Young and I do remember hearing Nat King Coles voice.

By fayette (64.12.97.7) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 08:02 pm:

i lost someone by james brown. i was a lil
bitty fayette then

By Lynn Bruce (65.60.202.214) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 08:56 pm:

Dick Gamble,got any family from West Virginia,or southern Ohio? My mothers maiden name is Gamble,so we might be related.

We wore out that record of Gee way before it's time.It got so bad we went from putting pennies on the arm,working up to nickels.

Don't cringe all you record purists,that's how we got more plays out of worn out records so they wouldn't skip.

By Dick Gamble (216.93.11.161) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 09:09 pm:

Lynn Bruce,Nobody in West Virgina or Ohio as my Dad was the only child(that we know of) as for the pennies on the arm to weight down the needle is sure true. Of course the girls had to use bubble gum..
Have you ever used WD-40 on a disc to smooth out the grooves and reduce static? Works great!!!

By Larry (12.141.160.25) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 09:19 pm:

Dick,

Yet another use for WD40!!!

From WD40.com's FAQ section:
WD-40 stands for "Water Displacement, 40th attempt". It was Developed by Chemist Norm Larsen in 1953.

My earliest soul recollection: 1963, Mary Wells'
"You Beat Me To The Punch".

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 10:10 pm:

Ritchie...Are you going to explain this unique Elvis connection your father had?

By Larry (12.141.160.25) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 10:17 pm:

Yeah Ritchie, that didn't get past my eyes.
Thanks Ralph. By the way Ralph, I will be seeing you in a few days! Lookin fwd to meeting you.

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Saturday, April 19, 2003 - 10:28 pm:

Larry,
That's GREAT. I was going to e-mail you to see if you would be at the concert. Looking forward to seeing you pal. This is going to be great!

By john dixon (64.12.97.7) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 12:43 am:

Here are my first three:
Ray Charles' "What'd I Say" was the first, probably around '59 or '60; the music was wild, with that call and response bit something I had never heard before and it really hooked me. I vaguely remember trying to dance at a birthday party with some girl for the first time, all of 5 or 6 years old, and not knowing what to do. Then came Chubby Checker's "The Twist" and, of course, everyone was dancing to that as there was a zero degree of difficulty involved. Then there was Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang". Growing up in the rural South, we actually drove by the road gangs quite a bit. My Dad would go through the deal, "there's what happens to you when..."cautionary tale and I was fascinated. When "Chain Gang" came out I just drank it in thinking here was the true story of all of these wayward men in stripes.

By Larry (12.141.160.25) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 03:05 am:

That's a great post John.

I have a picture in my head of you and your Dad and the chain gang from Cool Hand Luke: Paul Newman, George Kennedy, Harry Dean Stanton and Strother Martin on the side of the road. Of course "Lucille" stole that movie for about 5 heavenly minutes.

By Ritchie (62.254.0.9) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 04:47 am:

OK - the Elvis connection....

Back in 1956, my father was a young struggling actor, and his first break in television was with one of the new Indedendent Television companies (ITV) who were at last challenging the 20-year monopoly of the BBC. The series was called, "Bring A Record", and the format sounds pretty weak today, but it was a ground-breaking show back then. The premise was a "teenage" record party, (though all the "teens" were around my Dad's age - 26!) The "kids" would each be given a record, which they handed to the presenter - Dougie Squires. Each "kid" would then introduce the record on screen. As it played - they danced to the music. Exciting stuff - eh?

One week, my Dad - as "Billy" - had to introduce a record by an unknown American singer - "Heartbreak Hotel". As the BBC frowned on the vulgar, noisy Rock'n'Roll music, this was the first airing of the record on British TV, and means that my father was the first person here to introduce Elvis on television.

Years later, I asked what he thought of the record. "Bloody awful!" he replied. "You know me..." he smiled, "I've always been a Jazz lover!"

By BankHouseDave (195.93.50.9) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 06:18 am:

That brought back some memories, Ritchie.

I remember:

Holy Mackerel by Little Richard
Let's Twist Again - Chubby Checker
Mockingbird Hill - Fats Domino
Chain Gang - Sam Cooke
Hit the road, Jack - Ray Charles

Back in the fifties in the UK, vocal groups like the Keynotes were doing covers of BG songs originally written for the likes of Jackie Wilson.

By Ralph (209.240.198.62) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 09:15 am:

Great story Ritchie. The UK owes your dad on that one. Or maybe RCA records.

By STUBASS (205.188.209.16) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 11:20 am:

ONE DAY...STUBASS...ON ONE OF HIS "HAMILTON" BUS LINE TREKS TO DOWNTOWN DETROIT TO BLOW SOME SORT OF HOLIDAY MONEY HE HAD AQUIRED...AFTER VISITING THE OLD "ARCADE" ON WOODWARD AVENUE...STOPPED IN WOOLWORTHS (I BELIEVE) AND CAME UPON...IN THE PROUDEST RUSS TERRANA TRADITION...AN EARLY VERSION COMPACT REEL TO REEL TAPE RECORDER!!!...AS STUBASS WAS EXAMINING THIS POTENTIAL PURCHASE...THE VANDELLAS JUST RELEASED RECORDING OF "QUICKSAND" WAS BEING PLAYED ON A NEARBY PHONOGRAPH!!!...STUBASS ASKED THE CLERK IF HE COULD TRY OUT THE RECORDER...BY TAPING "QUICKSAND" ON THE SMALL RECORDING DEVICE!!!...THE CLERK ALLOWED STUBASS TO DO JUST THAT!!!...THAT "MUDDY" REPRODUCTION OF "QUICKSAND" ON *MY* NEW TAPE RECORDER...SEALED THE DEAL!!!...I PROUDLY RETURNED HOME...NEW RECORDER IN TOW...WHEN BROTHER BRUCE AND I DECIDED TO HIDE THE RECORDER UNDER THE MILLER FAMILY DINNER TABLE...AND RECORD THE HAPPENINGS OF A TYPICAL MILLER FAMILY DINNER!!!...NEEDLESS TO SAY...WHEN WE REVEALED THE FINAL MIXDOWN TO THE REST OF THE FAMILY...MOM MILLER WAS HORRIFIED OVER HOW SHE SOUNDED ON TAPE...AND IT TOOL SEVERAL WEEKS OF COAXING TO GET MOM MILLER TO SPEAK AGAIN DURING THE DINNER HOUR!!!...YOU ALL WOULD BE HAPPY TO KNOW...THAT ONCE OVER HER INITIAL TREPIDATION...MOM MILLER HAS BEEN TALKING EVER SINCE...ALL THE WAY UP TO HER PRESENT 84 YEARS...AND" DAD" MILLER...NOW 86...HAS BEEN SEEKING A REPLACEMENT DEVICE FOR THAT RECORDER FOR THE PAST 40 SOME YEARS!!!...STU(COULDA BEEN A MIXER)BASS

By fayette (64.12.97.7) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 06:14 pm:

stubass you lil sneak

By Soulpuss (24.102.217.36) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 06:22 pm:

Hey Stubass: are you related to novelty singer Mrs. Miller. I'm sure you remember her. She did versions of "Downtown" and "Lovers concerto" in the mid sixties.I believe she came from California.

By STUBASS (152.163.188.68) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 06:55 pm:

YEAH FAYETTE: WHAT KIND OF KID WOULD "SHOCK" HIS OWN DEAR MOTHER INTO THAT TYPE OF REALITY???...SOULPUSS: NOT THE SAME MRS. MILLER(THANK GOD)...BUT MY MOM...MRS. MILLER... *DID*...AS A TEENAGER...SING ON A RADIO SHOW WITH A YOUNG MAN NAMED AMOS JACOBS!!!...AMOS JACOBS WENT ON TO A LONG AND SUCCESSFUL ENTERTAINMENT CAREER...LATER CHANGING HIS NAME TO... DANNY THOMAS!!!...AND NOW YOU HAVE...THE *REST* OF THE STORY!!!...STU(MOM COULDA BEEN A CONDTENDAH)BASS

By KevGo (64.115.26.80) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 07:52 pm:

First R&B song I ever REMEMBER hearing was the Lost Generation's "Sly Slick & the Wicked" from 1970 - it was one of three 45s my brother bought for me when I was younger.

Kevin Goins - KevGo

By BassLand (64.169.107.151) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 08:08 pm:

Joe Liggins and the Honey Drippers (circa 1948)
Wild Bill Moore (from Detroit? circa 1945)

By Kegtapper (64.24.90.142) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 08:47 pm:

Dick Gamble-

man you brought back a rush of memories- I was raised in No. Indiana and we used to fiddle with the radio at night trying to get WLAC 1510-AM Nashville. And them telling about Randy's Record Shop. In a kid's mind it sounded like an emporium of all the Soul Music of the day.

I guess I was just being primed for the future. Also remembering Doctor Daddy-O out of Chicago on 1450 AM (forget the call letters but it wasn't WGRT 950 AM), and a young skinny Don Cornelius was actually found out about the Soul Train TV Show in B&W on Ch26, fiddling around with the new knob that was on this portable 55 pound TV.

My memories were a dark dance show, in what looked like a basement. Could hardly see the faces or hear the music. The early years of Music TV Shows- better than nothing.

By Eli (152.163.188.68) on Sunday, April 20, 2003 - 09:09 pm:

The Great Pretender by the Platers.
The first one I ever bougfht was Come go with me by the Del Vikings.

By Kdubya (206.126.224.7) on Monday, April 21, 2003 - 08:44 am:

1. Tutti Fruti
2. Sweet Sixteen
The first single I ever bought was I'll Love You forever by the Holidays.(Edwin Starr)
3. I only have eyes for you
4. Rip It Up
5. Papa's got a brand new bag

Geez I'm feelin older by the minute.
Yeah Don Cornelius and his sidekick Clinton Ghent were the rage of the youth dance movement in Chicago. A cardboard cut out of the famous train was attached to the studio curtain and Don and Clinton would alternate being the MC(with one microphone ). But that was the game and the Soul Train Dance line was born. It was easy to get on the show,(Just show up) hell channel 26 was one of the original ultra high frequency TV stations in Chicago and Soul train was presented in glorius black and white.

By Michael/cleoharvey (160.79.83.208) on Monday, April 21, 2003 - 11:48 am:

R&B

I think my first would have to be Gene Chandler's Duke of Earl. I still smile when I hear that record on the radio. I had heard other records before that one, but it was the one record that made an indelible impression upon me in my growing years.