"Popeye the Hitchhiker" | ||||
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Single by Chubby Checker | ||||
from the album All the Hits (For Your Dancin' Party) | ||||
A-side | "Limbo Rock" | |||
Released | October 1962 | |||
Genre | Rock and roll | |||
Length | 2:25 | |||
Label | Parkway 849 | |||
Songwriter(s) | Kal Mann, Dave Appell | |||
Chubby Checker singles chronology | ||||
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"Popeye the Hitchhiker" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell and performed by Chubby Checker. [1] In 1962, the track reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 13 on the U.S. R&B. [2] In Canada it reached number 7 for 2 weeks co-charting with the A-side. [3]
It was featured on his 1962 compilation album, All the Hits (For Your Dancin' Party). [4]
Chubby Checker is an American singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song "The Twist", and the pony dance style with the 1961 cover of the song "Pony Time". His biggest UK hit, "Let's Twist Again", was released one year later ; that year, he also popularized the song "Limbo Rock", originally a previous-year instrumental hit by the Champs to which he added lyrics, and its trademark Limbo dance, as well as other dance styles such as The Fly. In September 2008, "The Twist" topped Billboard's list of the most popular singles to have appeared in the Hot 100 since its debut in 1960, an honor it maintained for an August 2013 update of the list.
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1962.
Hank Ballard was an American singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of the Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. He played an integral part in the development of the genre, releasing the hit singles "Work with Me, Annie" and answer songs "Annie Had a Baby" and "Annie's Aunt Fannie" with his Midnighters. He later wrote and originally recorded "The Twist" which was notably covered a year later by Chubby Checker, this second version spreading the popularity of the dance. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
Duane Eddy was an American rock and roll guitarist. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had a string of hit records produced by Lee Hazlewood which were noted for their characteristically "twangy" guitar sound, including "Rebel-'Rouser", "Peter Gunn", and "Because They're Young". He had sold 12 million records by 1963. His guitar style influenced the Shadows, the Beatles and Bruce Springsteen.
The twist is a dance that was inspired by rock and roll music. From 1959 to the early sixties it became a worldwide dance craze, enjoying immense popularity while drawing controversies from critics who felt it was too provocative. It inspired dances such as the Jerk, the Pony, the Watusi, the Mashed Potato, the Monkey, and the Funky Chicken, but none were as popular.
Cameo-Parkway Records was the parent company of Cameo Records and Parkway Records, which were major American Philadelphia-based record labels from 1956 and 1958 to 1967. Among the types of music released were doo-wop, dance hits, popular/rock, rockabilly, big band, garage rock, soul and novelty records.
Kal Mann was an American lyricist. He is best known for penning the words to Elvis Presley's "Teddy Bear", plus "Butterfly", a hit for both Charlie Gracie and Andy Williams, and "Let's Twist Again", sung by Chubby Checker, which won the 1962 Grammy Award for Best Rock & Roll Recording.
"The Twist" is an American pop song written and originally released in 1958 by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters as a B-side to "Teardrops on Your Letter". It was inspired by the twist dance craze. Ballard's version was a moderate hit, peaking at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. On the US Billboard Hot R&B Sides chart, the original version of "The Twist" first peaked at number 16 in 1959 and at number six in 1960. By 1962, the record sold in excess of one million copies, becoming Ballard's fourth million seller.
"Let's Twist Again" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell, and released as a single by Chubby Checker. One of the biggest hit singles of 1961, it reached No.8 on the U.S. Billboard pop chart in August of that year and subsequently reached No.2 in the UK in the spring of 1962. The song refers to the Twist dance craze and Checker's 1960 single "The Twist", a two-time U.S. No.1 single.
"Limbo Rock" is a popular song about limbo dancing written by Kal Mann and Billy Strange. An instrumental version was first recorded by The Champs in 1961. The first vocal version was recorded in 1962 by Chubby Checker : it peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and at number one on the Cash Box charts. The Chubby Checker recording also made it to number three on the R&B charts. In Canada it reached number 7 for 2 weeks co-charting with the B-side.
"Loving You" is a song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and performed by Elvis Presley with backup vocals provided by The Jordanaires. It reached No. 15 on the U.S. country chart, #20 on the U.S. pop chart, and #24 on the UK Singles Chart in 1957. It was featured on his 1957 album Loving You. It was featured in Presley's 1957 movie Loving You. The single's A-side, "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear" reached No. 1 on the U.S. pop, country, and R&B charts and #3 on the UK Singles Chart in 1957.
"Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')", initially titled "Slow Dancing", is a song written by Jack Tempchin. Under the title "Slow Dancing", the song originally was a minor US hit in 1976 for the band Funky Kings (of which Tempchin was a member). The song became much better known as "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')" in a 1977 cover version by Johnny Rivers, which became a top ten US hit. It was Rivers' last Top 40 hit in the United States, and became his second Gold record.
"Pepe" is a 1960 song written by Hans Wittstatt and Dory Previn for the musical comedy film Pepe, featuring Mario Moreno ("Cantinflas") in the lead role. It was first recorded by Shirley Jones for the movie. Duane Eddy covered the song the same year. There have also been several other cover versions of this song.
"Cannonball" is a song written by Duane Eddy and Lee Hazlewood and performed by Eddy. It reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100, #22 on the R&B chart, #2 on the UK Singles Chart, #7 in Canada in 1958, and appeared on his 1958 album, Have 'Twangy' Guitar Will Travel.
"(Dance with the) Guitar Man" is a song written by Duane Eddy and Lee Hazlewood and performed by Eddy, featuring vocals by The Blossoms. The song was produced by Lee Hazlewood. It was arranged by Anita Kerr. The song appeared on his 1963 album, Dance with the Guitar Man . It was recorded at the RCA Nashville Sound Studio in Nashville, Tennessee.
"Dear Lady Twist" is a song written and produced by Frank Guida, and performed by Gary U.S. Bonds. It reached #5 on the U.S. R&B chart and #9 on the U.S. pop chart in 1962. It was featured on his 1962 album Twist Up Calypso.
"Dancin' Party" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell and performed by Chubby Checker. In 1962, the track reached No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 19 on the Canadian and UK Singles Charts.
"Hooka Tooka" is a song written by Chubby Checker and Elliot Mazer and performed by Chubby Checker. In 1963, the track reached No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 20 on the U.S. R&B.