Chances are that sometime, somewhere, out of the corner of one ear, at least, you've heard the iconic (yet all-but-forgotten) "Willie and the Hand Jive". Set to a Bo Diddley beat, it was an infectious little number that made quite a splash back in its day. Here's a fun
live version of the bouncy tune, complete with the three largest dancing girls you're ever likely to see, and here's the
original 1958 recording. The composer of the tune, the son of Greek immigrants who decided that the world of black music was where he wanted to be, was one
Johnny Otis, who has just
died at the grand old age of 90. Shortly after its release, "Willie and the Hand Jive" was covered by early rock icons like
Bo Diddley and, across the pond in England,
Cliff Richard. But apart from his most famous tune, Johnny did a LOT of recording and performing throughout his lengthy career, so there's...
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posted by flapjax at midnite
on Jan 19, 2012 -
42 comments
Troy Tate and The Smiths: The Not Poor Recordings . The Smiths were first produced by Troy Tate and the bootlegs have been rather bootleggy as it were. These are one step removed from the master recordings and don't sound quite so hollow... Includes an apparently unheard version of Accept Yourself as a bonus.
posted by juiceCake
on May 4, 2011 -
19 comments
"For Dirk McLauren, Wedesnday January 19 2381 has
begun very poorly." The
Zybourne Clock was to be a hundred-hour long electro-punk-themed RPG made by members of the
SA subforum BYOB. After only a few weeks, the project collapsed in drama and failure, leaving only hilarious snippets of text, original "artwork," and level designs. More
effort and skill went into
parodying The Zybourne Clock than into
creating it.
posted by Optimus Chyme
on Nov 19, 2009 -
35 comments
Tod Browning's 1932 cinematic masterpiece
Freaks tells the story of a close-knit group of circus sideshow workers who are wronged and take revenge. The film's use of
real-life freaks so disturbed audiences that some ran screaming from theaters, distributors refused to handle the film, and it was banned in Britain for over 30 years.
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posted by flug
on Jul 8, 2008 -
22 comments
I was taking a shower and thinking about all of the music videos that include
water/
liquid in them. It is an overused theme according to
this site, and I agree. I have included some
painful ones to make my point. But wait, I stumbled upon
this and was mildy turned-on in some strange way. God help me.
Then my mind moved to a friend of mine who was obsessed with
Johnny songs. There are quite a few of those too as you may well imagine...
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posted by haunted by Leonard Cohen
on Sep 6, 2007 -
23 comments
"The right man for the job will be aged between 18 and 21 and will presumably need to demonstrate an abundance of energy and the ability to withstand repeated showers of saliva, the traditional punk rock crowd's sign of respect for performers."
But who is the right man?
posted by oh posey
on Jun 27, 2002 -
5 comments
