I don’t think Richard Berry had any idea what he had unleashed on the world when he released a little R&B track called Louie Louie in 1956. Berry has been a member of a number of bands in the 50s, and contributed the deep bass lead vocals to The Robins’ Riot in Cell Block 9. But Berry could adapt his voice to sing in different ranges and he used a cool baritone for his version of Louie Louie.
It’s a stylish calypso track with a touch of R&B. It’s also the greatest song ever released.
I have a minor obsession with it, having around 100 different recordings of it Here I’d like to talk about some of my favourites and some of the most important versions.
Richard Berry and the Pharaohs [1956]
A cool, grooving R&B track with a touch of doo-wop in the verses, it’s a jolt hearing this if you are used to the more famous versions, but it’s a fantastic version. Berry “borrowed” the opening groove to El Loca Cha Cha [below] and updated it with lyrics about a sailor dreaming and thinking of his girl as he sails for “three nights and days”.
Rockin' Robin Roberts and the Wailers [1961]
At some point in the late 50s and the early 60s the song became THE SONG to perform by the bar bands of the Pacific Northwest. If you’ve only ever heard one version it won’t be this one, but The Wailers’ version became the template for the bar and garage bands of the 60s. The saxophone blurts out the main riff, and Roberts yells and sings the words with energy. He improvises the “Okay, let's give it to 'em right now” shout before the guitar solo.
Louie Louie became the bar band song of the Northwest USA, and from Washington the songs drifted to Portland, Oregon.
Paul Revere and the Raiders [1963]
One week in April 1963 bass player Paul Revere & his Raiders went into Northwestern Inc. Motion Pictures & Recording Studios to record their version of Louie Louie Following the Rockin’ Robin Roberts template, it opened with another swooping sax riff and becomes a bit of a party track, with shouts and yells echoing around before the song starts in earnest. It’s a snaking R&B style groove, with that lovely blend of garage and soul that so many great 60s garage bands managed. Steve West’s long (for an early 60s rock single) guitar solo is superb. It could well have been a huge hit and the definitive version except…
The Kingsmen [1963]
A few days before The Raiders entered the studio in Portland, The Kingsmen went into the same studio to record their version. By accident or design, they bottled electric magic on this day, releasing one of the greatest singles of all time and unleashing the sloppiest form of perfection possible.
Like many people, this was the first version I ever heard. It is stunning. It opens not with a sax but keyboards, and they transform the track. It’s got more of the groove of Berry’s original than some of the other rock versions of the time, but it still borrows aspects of The Wailers track too, including a close version of the guitar solo and vocalist Jack Ely' screaming “Okay, let's give it to 'em right now!” just before it.
Legend has it that Ely was having to use a microphone suspended from the ceiling, and so was stretching and craning to get to it. This adds to the song, as it means the lyrics become harder to comprehend, harder to pick up. And this led to parents and listeners complaining about the shockingly “filthy” lyrics, leading to the FBI opening a two and a half year investigation into the song, at the end of which they concluded that they could not confirm if the lyrics were obscene.
It’s a ramshackle version and this makes all the difference. Even the moment after the solo where Ely comes in early and then stops, and so drummer Lynn Easton improvises a cool drum fill adds a touch of brilliance to the song.
This is the version that all other versions must be measured against.
The Sonics [1965]
And this is a version that measures up without a doubt.
I didn’t really know what to expect when I bought The Sonics’ second album, Boom. Other than hearing their nascent punk sounds on Nuggets I didn’t know much about them. I certainly wasn’t expecting to be floored by the crunching power chords from Larry Parypa’s guitar. This is exciting. This is loud. Another band from the Northwest, you can hear the sound of early 70s punk here: the MC5, The Stooges, The Cramps, they all owe a debt to The Sonics. This version screams - because Gerry Roslie screams. It bristles with energy and is the only version I consider close to knocking The Kingsmen off the top. The moment when the band cut out leaving just the guitar circling through the riff is incredible.
Otis Redding [1965]
I have written about Otis before. For him a song was built around the groove, and this version is all groove. He makes up the lyrics, changing the song to a Stax soul swing. The words are totally different: “I walk down the street, Saturday night…” he starts. To Otis it doesn’t matter, because he’s popping on a great soul track, with a fantastic sax solo and an infectious beat. This just adds to the delightful selection of versions of this wonderful song.
The Sandpipers [1966]
In 1966 easy listening band The Sandpipers had a massive top ten worldwide hit with their version of the Cuban song of patriotism, Guantanamera. On the subsequent album the band recorded a Spanish language version of Louie Louie, slowing it down to a cafe jazz, easy listening version that washes over you. A lovely, precise, picked guitar solo adds to the pleasure of this version, another left turn in the story of this song.
Toots and the Maytals [1972]
Just when I thought I’d heard ever kind of version, I came across this brilliant reggae version from the incomparable Toots and the Maytals. It’s so well done; a perfect example of how the band works, and how Toots could add little yelps and cries of “No, no, no,” to propel a song forwards. The song had become more than the sum of its parts by now - and this is another version that is built around the chord progression, but that diverges from the original song.
Barry White [1981]
The “Walrus of Love” adds a disco sheen and a deeper calypso beat to his version from 1981. It works well, with him repeating “I’m coming home, Jamaica” over and over as the horns swirl around. The song is a revamped version of Berry’s original, steeped in R&B and making great use of doo-wop style backing vocals and a wonderful horn section. It’s long too - over 7 minutes - but it has a metronomic beat that adds powerfully to the track.
Black Flag [1981]
Barry White had successfully reclaimed the song for Richard Berry, claiming that “I'm gonna sing just like Richard Berry. I'm gonna do this song that this black guy wrote. Everybody thinks that these white guys recorded it, but a black guy did this.” Hardcore punk band Black Flag released a version at around the same time that just ripped it apart. It’s screams harder than any other version, and once again changes the lyrics completely:
You know the pain that's in my heart
It just shows I'm not very smart
Who needs love when you've got a gun?
Who needs love to have any fun?
And reminds everyone that this is a song for everyone: the soul fans, the funkateers, and, with this, the garage punks. In sharp contrast to Barry White’s 7+ minute version, this is over before you know it, crunching to an end after a little more than a minute. It’s another vital version.
Joan Jett [1981]
It seems like 1981 was the year of the Louie Louie revival, although Joan Jett’s version was not released until 1992. With her band The Blackhearts it’s a more polished rock version, with that touch of glam rock you’d expect from someone who had been in The Runaways, but the polish doesn’t take anything away from another great version. It’s a straight copy of The Kingsmen, complete with “let's give it to 'em right now” but driven by loud, crunching guitars.
The Fat Boys [1988]
I shouldn’t really enjoy this version. I always saw The Fat Boys as a bit of a novelty rap band, but I love it. It’s classic late 80s rap and it reinvents the song to make it about Louie Louie. The boys tell the story of how The Kingsmen version was considered dirty:
Like the singer was trying
To cover up the lyrics
They pulled it off of the air
Caused the people with hysterics
It’s a clever way to revive the song. In his amazing book Louie Louie: The History and Mythology of the World's Most Famous Rock'n'Roll song; Including the Full Details of Its Torture and Persecution at the Hands of the Kingsmen, J. Edgar Hoover's F.B.I., and a Cast of Millions; and Introducing, for the First Time Anywhere, the Actual Dirty Lyrics writer Dave Marsh calls this the “last great 'Louie Louie' to date”.
The Auburn Marching Band
I have a collection of marching band versions too, including at least one version by a prison band. I thought I’d finish with one example of this, as it’s become one of the great songs for school and university marching bands to do. We don’t have this tradition in the UK, but I love the idea of marching bands. This version is a perfect example of the genre, and you can’t help but smile with joy when you hear it.
So, there we have it: a sample of 13 versions of my favorite song of all time (possibly). The Kingsmen version is the definite one for me, no matter what Barry White says, but I love that dangerous and deep version by The Sonics. Well, I love every version I have shared here, and I hope you can join me in enjoying it too.
What versions have I missed that you love? Tell me more in the comments section - open to everyone.
Long before Elliott Smith, The Dandy Warhols, The Decemberists, The Shins, Portugal The Man, and Esperanza Spalding - Portland had The Wipers, Poison Idea, Fred & Toody Cole (Dead Moon and various other bands), Paul Revere & the Raiders, and The Kingsmen.
Led Zeppelin does a live version available on bootleg (think it’s on YouTube) that’s pretty good. Sound is barely acceptable but Page nails the solo. I’m also partial to Iggy Pop’s (not the Stooges one from Metallic KO) version from 2004 or so.