Technical difficulties are part of the reason for the late appearance of this slaylist. I had ripped and carefully edited eight or nine vinyl tracks before realizing I'd left the preamp in the 78-curve setting. Oops. So, I had to re-rip everything--a day's blogging lost. While this was happening, a local graveyard was overrun by zombies, putting the township on Undead Alert. So, of course, we're all stressed to the gills. If that wasn't enough, not only have the yard raccoons suddenly acquired power tools but they've figured out how to use them. This started last night in the a.m. First target: porch door. Distraction City, U.S.A.
Just kidding, of course. I didn't leave the 78 curve switched on.
So, when was Haunted House Polka recorded, you ask? I have no idea. You see, early on, RCA Victor used different prefixes for different styles of 45 rpm--in this case, "53" for international. Which would be no problem if the catalog numbers were constant, despite the prefixes. And you just know they weren't. You're right. The label looks 1955-ish, but that's just a stab in the park. (Cue demonic scream.) Get it? Stab in the park?
A very lively haunting, anyway. Then we have our annual rerun of the late, great Merv Griffin's marvelous House of Horrors, from 1962. Other baddies: a cheap-label knock-off of Surfin' Bird (which ripped off the Rivingtons' Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow and The Bird's the Word in the first place), a much worse knock-off of the Fleetwoods' Tragedy by a group not operating at Fleetwoods level,* and two paeans to romantic love--I've Got a Wife (another polka and cheap knock-off), and Jump When I Say Frog. The latter was written and performed by Bob (Doggie in the Window, Honeycomb) Merrill. Plus four more.
*Oops. Correction courtesy of Buster--this is not a knock-off of the 1961 Fleetwoods version, but rather a knock-off of the 1959 Thomas Wayne original (given that the other fake titles on the Tops EP are 1959 hits, including Venus and Hawaiian Wedding Song--the latter credited to "Andy Baker"!). Thanks, Buster!
Halloween is happening at MY(P)WHAE.
Slaylist No. 3, 2010
HAUNTED HOUSE POLKA--The Cavaliers.
HOUSE OF HORRORS--Merv Griffin, Charles Grean O., 1962.
SWINGING ON A CHANDELIER--Bobby Beck, 1960.
SURFIN' BIRD (Hit Parader 27)
TRAGEDY--Bud Nelson and the Toppers (Tops S17)
I'VE GOT A WIFE--Bob Mitchell (Promenade A-55-5)
JUMP WHEN I SAY FROG (Merrill)--Bob Merrill, 1958.
THE SORCERER'S APPRENTICE AND DANSE MACABRE--Dick Jacobs O., 1958.
A HUNT IN THE BLACK FOREST--Al Goodman and His O.
CRIME DOESN'T PAY!--Durward Kirby w. the Patriots (Davis 999).
Lee
