Twist and Shout
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"Twist and Shout" is a song originally by Phil Medley and Bert Russell. It was originally recorded by the Topnotes and the Isley Brothers and was later covered by The Beatles, with John Lennon on the lead vocals, and originally released on their first album Please Please Me. This version was recorded in a single take, a rarity in rock and roll. It was covered again by Chaka Demus and Pliers, reaching #1 in the UK charts on 1 August 1994.
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History
Isley Brothers version
The Isley Brothers' version was the first major hit recording of the song, peaking at #17 on the US pop charts, and #2 on the US R&B charts. The song, with Ronald Isley on lead vocals, quickly became a frequently covered soul music tune in the early 1960s.
Brian Poole and the Tremeloes
The growing "Beat group" boom in British rock surfaced with the signing of Liverpool rock groups. In 1962 Decca signed Brian Poole and the Tremeloes (apparently in preference to The Beatles) and they went on to have a major hit single in Britain with their version of "Twist and Shout". This was followed by their cover of "Do You Love Me" . While the relative merits of their version and that of The Beatles was a matter of debate at the time, in retrospect the Brian Poole and the Tremeloes version sounds pallid in comparison.
The Beatles version
The session in which The Beatles recorded their version of the track (in Studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios in London) is one of the most famous in the history of popular music. By the late evening of 11 February 1963 The Beatles had recorded nearly all of the material which would become their first album, Please Please Me. The session had already lasted eleven hours, but the album still needed a big track to finish on and their long-standing live favourite "Twist and Shout" fit the bill perfectly. John Lennon was suffering from a cold and had been fighting a sore throat all day, and by this time his voice was cracking despite regular doses of cigarettes, milk, tea and cough sweets. Producer George Martin knew that they would only be able to get one take in, or two at the most, before Lennon would have no voice left at all. He had deliberately kept the song for last, knowing the demands it made on the lead vocalist's voice.
Fortunately, The Beatles rose to the occasion - everything went right on take one with Lennon's shredded voice, half singing and half screaming the lead vocal, providing a memorably harsh, energetic quality which made the recording an instant classic and a turning point in the band's career as well as in British rock and roll in general. This raw first take appears without overdubs on Please Please Me. While a second take was also recorded, the first take proved to be superior and is easily the standout track on the album. John Lennon said later that his voice was not the same for a long time afterwards, and that "every time I swallowed, it felt like sandpaper".
The Beatles' cover was released in the US as a single by V-J on the Tollie label. (It reached #2 on April 4th 1964 - the week when the first five places on the chart were all Beatles singles.) In the UK, it was released on an EP with three other tracks from the Please Please Me album.
Image:Shakeitupferris.jpg The Beatles version of the song enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in 1986 after Matthew Broderick lip synced it in the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off and introduced it to a new generation of listeners.
External links
| The Beatles |
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| John Lennon | Paul McCartney | George Harrison | Ringo Starr Pete Best | Stuart Sutcliffe |
| Management |
| Brian Epstein | Allen Klein | Apple Records |
| Production |
| George Martin | Geoff Emerick | Norman Smith | Abbey Road Studios |
| Official Studio Albums |
| Please Please Me (1963) | With the Beatles (1963) | A Hard Day's Night (1964) | Beatles for Sale (1964) | Help! (1965) | Rubber Soul (1965) Revolver (1966) | Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) | Magical Mystery Tour (1967) | The Beatles (1968) | Yellow Submarine (1969) | Abbey Road (1969) | Let It Be (1970) |
| Films |
| A Hard Day's Night (1964) | Help! (1965) | Magical Mystery Tour (1967) | Yellow Submarine (1968) | Let it Be (1970) |
| Related Articles |
| History | Discography | Bootlegs | Long-term influence | Beatlemania | Beatlesque | Fifth Beatle | Paul Is Dead | British Invasion | Yoko Ono | 1960s | Apple Corps |