Limbo Rock
| "Limbo Rock" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| SinglebyChubby Checker | ||||
| from the albumLimbo Party | ||||
| B-side | "Popeye the Hitchhiker" | |||
| Released | October 1962 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:22 | |||
| Label | Parkway | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Kal Mann(asJan Sheldon),Billy Strange | |||
| Chubby Checkersingles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Limbo Rock"is a popular song aboutlimbo dancingwritten byKal Mann(under the pseudonymJan Sheldon) andBilly Strange.An instrumental version was first recorded byThe Champsin 1961. The first vocal version was recorded in 1962 byChubby Checker(onParkway Records): it peaked at number two on theBillboardHot 100for two weeks (held out by "Telstar"byThe Tornados) and at number one on theCash Boxcharts. The Chubby Checker recording also made it to number three on the R&B charts.[1]InCanadait reached number 7 for 2 weeks co-charting with the B-side.[2]
Checker then released a sequel, "Let's Limbo Some More",in 1963, which peaked at #20 in theBillboardchart and #16 inCanada.[3][4]
Background and composition
[edit]In 1960, session guitaristBilly Strangeand a friend were listening to a song on the radio. Strange sneered that he could write a better song in five minutes. His friend produced a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet and bet him he could not. Strange pulled out a notepad and came up with the tune in under five minutes, with the only lyrics being "What a monotonous melody" for every line, and pocketed the money. Whilst later doing a recording session forRicky Nelson,Strange was asked if he had a song for recording. As a joke he sang the "What a monotonous melody" song. A few months later Chubby Checker's manager Kal Mann asked Strange if he could record the song with different lyrics that became "Limbo Rock".[5][6]Some months later, Strange was amazed to receive a royalty check fromBroadcast Music, Inc.(BMI) for $63,000. Thinking it was a mistake, he telephoned BMI to ask about it and was told that the check was indeed his money, earned from the Champs' and Chubby Checker's renditions of "Monotonous Melody" under the title "Limbo Rock".[7]
The song is noted for Checker's high-pitched witchy laugh, which is heard between most of the choruses of the song. Checker does a couple of monologues between the first and second verses, as well as the third verse and the final whistling chorus. They are: "Limbo lower now (2x) / How low can you go", and "Don't move that limbo bar / You'll be a limbo star / How low can you go." A male chorus sings the "La la" chorus between the second and third verses. There is also a drum riff between some of the verses and choruses, including the one that ends the song, too. Checker's witchy laugh is heard a few times in the sequel "Let's Limbo Some More,"the nursery rhyme" Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack jumped over the candlestick, "is altered with the line:" Jack go under Limbo stick. "
In a performance onThe Ed Sullivan Show,Checker danced the Limbo on stage.[8]
Chart performance
[edit]All-time charts
[edit]| Chart (1958–2018) | Position |
|---|---|
| USBillboardHot 100[9] | 347 |
2003 remix
[edit]Chubby Checker released a remix of the song in 2003, titled "Limbo Rock (Remixes)", produced by Mike Rogers andGary Lefkowithand featuringInner Circle.Phil Sweetland, writing for theNew York Timesstated that at "age 62 and 43 years after 'The Twist,' Chubby Checker has once again comes up with a top-five single: a hip-hop-flavored version of another of his 1960's hits, 'Limbo Rock.'" Sweetland also states that "the Dec. 20 issue of Billboard listed the song at No. 3 on its hot dance singles sales chart, making it Mr. Checker's first top-five hit since the original 'Limbo Rock' in 1962."[10]
Soundtrack
[edit]- The 1962 Chubby Checker recording was featured in the 1988 filmHairspray.
- This song also appeared on the soundtrack for the ABC television seriesMoonlighting,released in 1987. It was featured in the episode "My Fair David" with the David Addison character instigating a limbo contest in the office of Blue Moon Investigations in an attempt to boost employee morale.
Cover versions
[edit]- In 1962,Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brassincluded it onThe Lonely Bullalbum.[11]
- In 1991,Joanie Bartelscovered the song, releasing it as a single from the albumDancin' Magic.It also appeared on the compilation albumThe Stars of Discovery Musicand in the 1993 videoThe Rainy Day Adventure.
- In 1995, the song was covered by the cast ofMickey's Fun Songsin the episodeBeach Party at Walt Disney World.
- Aparody covercalledLindows Rockwas released by Lindows, Inc. (later known asLinspire, Inc.), to promote theiroperating systemof the same name.[12]
References
[edit]- ^Whitburn, Joel(2004).Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004.Record Research. p. 114.
- ^"CHUM Hit Parade - October 22, 1962".
- ^Pat Browne (2001),The guide to United States popular culture,p. 154,ISBN978-0-87972-821-2
- ^"CHUM Hit Parade - March 4, 1963".
- ^Derrer, Jan (January 22, 2008)."The Billy Strange Story of Chubby Checker Hit Song 'Limbo Rock'".Lost & Sound.RetrievedAugust 19,2018.
- ^Leigh, Spencer (March 3, 2012)."Billy Strange: Guitarist with the Wrecking Crew".The Independent.Archivedfrom the original on June 14, 2022.RetrievedAugust 19,2018.
- ^Hartman, Kent (2012).The Wrecking Crew: The Inside Story of Rock and Roll's Best-Kept Secret.New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 33.ISBN9780312619749.RetrievedSeptember 4,2020.
- ^The Ed Sullivan Show,retrievedJune 16,2021
- ^"Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart".Billboard.RetrievedDecember 10,2018.
- ^Sweetland, Phil (December 25, 2003)."Arts Briefing: Highlights; Chubby redux via remix".The New York Times.RetrievedAugust 19,2018.
- ^"allmusic".allmusic.RetrievedJuly 4,2023.
- ^"Lindows Rock".Internet Archive.RetrievedMarch 3,2024.
