"Witch Doctor" | ||||
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Single by Ross Bagdasarian | ||||
from the album The Alvin Show | ||||
B-side | "Don't Whistle at Me, Baby" | |||
Released | April 1958 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 2:15 | |||
Label | Liberty | |||
Songwriter(s) | Ross Bagdasarian | |||
Producer(s) | Ross Bagdasarian | |||
Ross Bagdasarian singles chronology | ||||
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"Witch Doctor" is a 1958 American novelty song written and performed by Ross Bagdasarian, under his stage name David Seville. It became a number one hit and rescued Liberty Records from near-bankruptcy. [1]
In the song, the singer asks a witch doctor for romantic advice; the witch doctor responds in a high-pitched squeaky voice with a nonsense incantation which creates an earworm. The technique developed in this song for the voice of the witch doctor was later used for the creation of the voices of the Alvin and the Chipmunks.
David Seville wrote the song, inspired by a book titled Duel with the Witch Doctor on his bookshelf. In the song, the narrator asks a witch doctor for advice on what to do because he has fallen in love with a girl, and the witch doctor replies with a gibberish line: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla bing-bang, oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla bang-bang". [2]
Seville had spent 200 dollars, a significant sum at that time, on a tape recorder, [3] and he borrowed an idea that Les Paul had introduced (to create impossibly high-pitched guitar parts): He recorded his voice at a different speed to create a dialogue between him and the witch doctor. He sang in his own voice as normal, and then overdubbed the song with the voice of the "witch doctor", which is in fact Seville's own voice sung slowly but recorded at half speed on the tape recorder, then played back at normal speed (the voice was therefore sped up to become a high pitched squeaky one). [2] [4] Seville recorded the music first, and then experimented with the process for creating the singing voice for two months before recording it in the studio. [2] [5] It was said that when Si Waronker from the financially-troubled Liberty label heard the resulting song, they released it to reach the shops within 24 hours. [6]
The same technique used for creating the voice of the witch doctor was used in Seville's next song "The Bird on My Head", and then more significantly the highly successful Chipmunks (also known as Alvin and the Chipmunks) beginning with "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" released for the Christmas of 1958. [4] Initially released under David Seville alone, "Witch Doctor" was also released under the name of David Seville and the Chipmunks, and re-recorded under the name Alvin and the Chipmunks. The technique was also imitated by other recording artist such as Sheb Wooley in "The Purple People Eater", [5] and The Big Bopper, who parodied both songs on "The Purple People Eater Meets The Witch Doctor", which was originally released as a single, but it was its flip-side "Chantilly Lace" that became the hit. [7]
The song peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 100, the predecessor to the Billboard Hot 100. The single was considered a major surprise hit on the chart, where it became Seville and Liberty Records' first No. 1 single, and stayed in the position for three weeks. The single also peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart even though it is not a R&B song – this is due to the R&B chart being a trade category at the time, reflecting the popularity of the song with African-American radio stations and customers. [8] The single had sold 1.4 million copies in the United States by December 1958. [9] Billboard ranked it as the No. 4 song for 1958. [10]
Chart (1958) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canada (CHUM Hit Parade) [11] | 1 |
UK Singles (OCC) [12] | 11 |
US Top 100 Sides (Billboard) [13] | 1 |
US Billboard Rhythm & Blues Records [14] | 1 |
US Cash Box Top 100 [15] | 1 |
The song has gained further popularity due to multiple covers performed by Alvin and the Chipmunks, another David Seville creation. The first was for their 1960 album Sing Again with The Chipmunks , which would later be adapted into a musical segment on The Alvin Show . In 1983, they would perform this song on the Alvin and the Chipmunks episode "The Chipmunk Story" and the soundtrack Songs From Our TV Shows. The Chipmunk Adventure (1987) featured the song when sung by Mrs. Miller. The song was used for the opening of the 1990 TV special Rockin' Through the Decades in the style of various artists.
In 2007, a DeeTown remix cover featuring Chris Classic was recorded for the live-action/CGI Alvin and the Chipmunks film. [16] This version reached No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 2008. [17]
"Witch Doctor" | ||||
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Single by Cartoons | ||||
from the album Toonage | ||||
Released | October 26, 1998 | |||
Recorded | 1998 | |||
Genre | Eurodance | |||
Length | 3:06 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Ross Bagdasarian | |||
Producer(s) |
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Cartoons singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Witch Doctor" on YouTube |
Danish band Cartoons covered "Witch Doctor" for their 1998 debut album, Toonage . Released on October 26, 1998, their version charted well in Europe, reaching the Top 40 in several countries, and peaking at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart in March 1999. [18]
An accompanying music video was produced, featuring both live-action and 2D animation, depicting the band members visiting a witch doctor. Lead singer Toonie urges the rest to see him, but they are all reluctant. After the witch doctor gives them the famous nonsense lyric, the group enter the house and follow the witch doctor into a TV and out the back where they all fall off a cliff, but miraculously land unharmed on the ground. The band follow the witch doctor into a ship shaped like a giant microphone and fly through the sky, underwater, and in space. At this point the video starts showing sexual themes, contrasting the cartoon theme. The rod-shaped spaceship flies into a hole, and then bumps into a sphere, appearing to imitate a sperm fertilizing an egg. The witch doctor transforms into Elvis Presley, drops them off atop a building with a sign that reads "Toonie-Wood", declares his love for the band and says goodbye before leaving the place. [19]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Witch Doctor" (Radio Mix) | 3:06 |
2. | "Witch Doctor" (Extended Mix) | 4:14 |
3. | "Witch Doctor" (Out of Africa Remix) | 5:09 |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
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Denmark | October 26, 1998 | CD | [20] | |
United Kingdom | March 22, 1999 |
| [21] |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [37] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.
Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks and billed for their first two decades as the Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore.
David "Dave" Seville is a fictional character, the adoptive father and producer and manager of the fictional singing group Alvin and the Chipmunks. The character was created by Ross Bagdasarian, who had used the name "David Seville" as his stage name prior to the creation of the Chipmunks, while writing and recording novelty records in the 1950s. One of the records, recorded in 1958 under the David Seville stage name, was "Witch Doctor", featuring a sped-up high-pitched vocal technique. Bagdasarian would later use that technique in "The Chipmunk Song ", which would introduce both Alvin and the Chipmunks as a singing group and Bagdasarian's music producer "Dave". Bagdasarian would go on to create The Alvin Show, based on the Alvin and the Chipmunks group, where he voiced the semi-fictional character David Seville, based largely on himself, with Alvin based on Ross's sometimes rebellious son Adam.
Ross S. Bagdasarian, known professionally by his stage name David "Dave" Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor of Armenian descent best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmunks. Initially a stage and film actor, he rose to prominence in 1958 with the songs "Witch Doctor" and "The Chipmunk Song ", which both became Billboard number-one singles. He produced and directed The Alvin Show, which aired on CBS in 1961–62.
The Chipmunk Adventure is a 1987 American animated musical-adventure comedy film based on the Saturday-morning cartoon series Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Alvin and the Chipmunks virtual brand and media franchise created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr.. The film was directed by Janice Karman and written by Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr.. The plot follows the Chipmunks and the Chipettes as they go on a hot air balloon race around the world while their guardian David is out on a trip, not knowing that it is a cover for a diamond smuggling ring. The chipmunks travel through a series of adventures in different countries while being hunted down by the diamond smugglers, Claudia and Klaus Furschtein.
"Chantilly Lace" is a 1958 rock and roll song by The Big Bopper. It was produced by Jerry Kennedy, and reached No. 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Bruce Channel covered the song on his 1962 album, Hey! Baby. The song was also covered by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1972.
"Come On-a My House" is a song written by Ross Bagdasarian and William Saroyan and originally released by Rosemary Clooney in 1951. Cousins Bagdasarian, a songwriter, and Saroyan, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, wrote the song while driving across New Mexico in the summer of 1939. The melody is based on an Armenian folk song, and the lyrics reference traditional Armenian customs of hospitality.
"This Diamond Ring" is a 1965 song written by Al Kooper, Bob Brass and Irwin Levine. The original demo was sung by Jimmy Radcliffe. It was first released as a single by Sammy Ambrose on Musicor #1061, then by Gary Lewis & the Playboys on Liberty #55756. Lewis' version charted first, number 101 on the January 2, 1965, Billboard "Bubbling Under" chart. Both versions charted on January 9, Lewis still at number 101 and Ambrose at number 117. Ambrose dropped off the chart at that point, but Lewis made number 65 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the next week and his version continued to climb until it reached number 1 on February 20, 1965.
Chipmunk Punk is an album by the Chipmunks, as well as being the first album released by Ross Bagdasarian Jr., after he took over the voices of the Chipmunks after the death of his father in 1972. Despite the title of the album, none of the songs listed are considered to be in the style of real punk rock music. It was released in June 1980. The album peaked at No. 34 on the Billboard 200. It was certified gold by the RIAA on October 14, 1980, becoming the Chipmunks' first gold record. In 2005, it was re-released on CD, although the CD was only available through the official Chipmunks website. In Canada, the album reached No. 59.
"The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" is a novelty Christmas song written by Ross Bagdasarian (under the stage name of David Seville) in 1958. Bagdasarian sang and recorded the song, varying the tape speeds to produce high-pitched "chipmunk" voices, with the vocals credited to Alvin and the Chipmunks, Seville's cartoon virtual band. The song won three Grammy Awards in 1958, for Best Comedy Performance, Best Children's Recording, and Best Engineered Record (non-classical); it was also nominated for Record of the Year.
Sing Again with The Chipmunks is Alvin and the Chipmunks' second album, released by Liberty Records in January 1960. The album follows the same format as their first album, and contains the group's fifth and sixth singles—"Alvin's Orchestra" and "Comin' 'Round the Mountain". Since its initial release, Sing Again with The Chipmunks has appeared twice on CD; both releases utilized the revised 1961 cover artwork, minus the song lyrics printed on the original back cover.
The Alvin Show is a music album by Alvin and the Chipmunks. It is the soundtrack album to the Chipmunks' first animated television series The Alvin Show. Upon the release of the album, the Chipmunks' first three albums were reissued with revised album cover art that utilized the cartoon redesigns of the characters.
Cartoons, also known as Cartoons DK, are a Danish Eurodance band, best known for their song "DooDah" and their cover of the 1958 novelty song "Witch Doctor", both hits released in 1998.
"C'est la Vie" is a song by Irish girl group B*Witched. It served as their debut single and the lead single from their self-titled debut studio album (1998). Written by band members Edele Lynch, Keavy Lynch, Lindsay Armaou, and Sinéad O'Carroll, Ray "Madman" Hedges, Martin Brannigan and Tracy Ackerman, it was released by Epic and Glowworm Records on 25 May 1998.
"I'm Sorry" is a 1960 hit song by 15-year-old American singer Brenda Lee. The song was written by Dub Allbritten and Ronnie Self. It peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in July 1960. On the UK Singles Chart, the song peaked at No.12. AllMusic guide wrote that it is the pop star's "definitive song", and one of the "finest teen pop songs of its era". In 1999, the 1960 recording by Lee on Decca Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
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Alvin and the Chipmunks is a 2007 American live-action/animated jukebox musical comedy film directed by Tim Hill from a screenplay by Jon Vitti and the writing team of Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi, based on the characters of the same name created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr., and the film was dedicated in his memory. The film stars Jason Lee, David Cross and Cameron Richardson, while Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney voice the titular Chipmunks. The film follows the Chipmunks, who move in with struggling songwriter Dave Seville after they lose their home. When Dave discovers they have rare singing talent, he has them perform in front of JETT Records executive Ian Hawke, who then plans to trick them into living with him to profit off their success with a world tour.
This is the complete discography of the fictional music group Alvin and the Chipmunks.
"The Bird on My Head" is a 1958 novelty song by Ross Bagdasarian.
Alvin and the Chipmunks (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2007 jukebox musical comedy film Alvin and the Chipmunks based on the characters of the same name created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr. Released on November 20, 2007, through Rhino Records, Razor & Tie and Chipmunk Records, the album featured original songs as well as existing musical numbers from the Chipmunks' discography. Ali Dee Theodore served as an executive producer on the soundtrack. An album, consisting of an original score composed by Christopher Lennertz, released as Alvin and the Chipmunks (Original Motion Picture Score) as a limited edition album on September 19, 2008 through La-La Land Records.