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Hi everybody, and welcome back to
Rave Up Music! As always, I am Barius, and according to my calculations, based
off the Hill Valley Clock Tower; it is time for our first edition of Cover Wars – Battle Royale!
Normally with Cover Wars, we compare one song with a
cover version to determine which one is the better version. The same rules
apply to the Battle Royale spin on Cover Wars, but instead we look at
multiple versions of a popular, well-known song to determine the absolute best
version. And for this first edition, we are taking look at that classic,
controversial college anthem, “Louie Louie.”
Throughout the history of rock
‘n’ roll, there has not been one song that has been covered more than “Louie
Louie,” with maybe the exception of The Beatles’ “Something,” but that is a
story for another day. Composed by Richard Berry in 1955, the song tells the
story of a Jamaican solider talking to a bartender named Louie about his
journey to see his girl back home. The ten-note guitar/bass riff over an A-D-
Em-D chord progression has been cemented in guitar history, with every
guitarist n the planet learning how to play it.
It is either this or “Smoke on the
Water”…
In 1963, during a time where a
lot of white musical artists would record versions of songs by black artists,
Portland, Oregon’s The Kingsmen recorded a version of “Louie Louie” that gained
a lot of success, but as well as some controversy. Since it was recorded in one
take, the vocals came across as slurred, and almost unintelligible. Because of
this, rumors began circulating around that the lyrics were profane, containing
a lot of sexual suggestions about the sailor and his lady. It actually got to
the point where an FBI investigation was launched in 1965, but came up empty
handed in proven the lyrics were inappropriate. But then again, they probably
never bothered to ask Richard Berry, the original composer, for the lyrics
sheet…
Even with all the controversy
surrounding it, or possibly because of the controversy, The Kingsmen’s take on
“Louie Louie” became a big hit, and became a part of American pop culture. It
can be heard in television commercials, played by marching bands all over the
country, and in featured in films, most famously in the 1978 comedy classic National Lampoon’s Animal House, giving
the song its association with college partying.
Today, nearly 60 years since it
was released, “Louie Louie” has stood the test of time to become one the
greatest rock songs ever, appearing in several Greatest Rock Song Countdowns,
ranging from Rolling Stone Magazine
to the National Academy of Recording Arts and Science. Every year on April 11th,
Richard Berry’s birthday, is known as “Louie Louie Day,” and for several years,
the city of Tacoma, Washington hosted “LouieFest,” which ended with a
“Celebration of 1000 Guitars” mass performance of the song.
For this first installment of Cover Wars – Battle Royale, I am going
to look at six cover versions of “Louie Louie,” as well as the original version
by Richard Berry. I will examine the improvements to the sound, if it stays to
the original, or if they decided to ignore the original and made the song their
own. By the end, only one version will reign supreme as the best version. So,
sit back and enjoy Cover Wars – Battle Royale: “Louie Louie!”
The
Original Version: Richard Berry (1957)
Believe it or not, Richard Berry
was inspired by the song “El Loco Cha Cha” by Ricky Rillera and the Rhythm
Rockers (which he performed in) to write the tune “Louie Louie.”
This arrangement of “El Loco Cha Cha”
was by Rene Touzet…
Right off the bat, Berry and his
backing band The Pharaohs establish that ostinato riff of “123-12-123-12” that
comes from the original “El Loco Cha Cha.” You can hear the riff in the bass
voice, which I know is trying to imitate the sound of a bass guitar, but using
the syllable of “duh” feels a little weird with the rest of the vocal and
instrumental parts.
I absolutely love the vocal
harmonies supporting Berry as he sings the verses. It gives the sound an early
Motown feel to it. As a saxophonist, I love the saxophone supporting the main
rhythm riff, and blends nicely with the rest of the instruments. Overall, this
original version of “Louie Louie” is a prime example of some of the music from
the early days of Rock ‘n Roll/Rhythm & Blues.
The
Rockin’ Robin Roberts and the Wailers Version (1960)
While many people know about The
Kingsmen version of “Louie Louie,” (which we will get to in a bit here), it was
not the first cover version. That distinction goes to Rockin’ Robin Roberts and
the Wailers (no relations the Wailers of Bob Marley). In fact, their version of
“Louie Louie” is the version that both The Kingsmen and The Raiders based their
versions off of to perform.
This version stays pretty true to
the original version, but adds a few unique ideas to the music, such as making
the saxophone more percussive in sound, and it really gives the song a more
rock ‘n roll edge. Roberts takes a lot of liberties with the melody, adding a
lot of ad-libbed ornamentations to the vocals, including the line “Okay, let’s
give it to them right now!” that is heard in many other versions. This is the
version that introduced the guitar solo between the second and third version,
and it feels like a natural fit into the structure of the song.
Overall, The Wailers did a great
job of improving the original ideas of Richard Berry, and served as a good
basis for the version we all known and love.
The
Kingsmen Version (1963)
And here is the version that made
the song a household name. There are a lot of things that makes this version of
“Louie Louie” stand out compared to the rest of them. First off, this song is a
lot faster and very upbeat. Also, the sound production is really unpolished
compared to the other versions, mostly due to the song being recorded in only
one take (in the take you can hear the drummer curse at the 54 second mark when
he drops a drumstick). The song also has a lot of “mistakes” in it, such as the
guitar solo going over the set number of measures, and singer Jack Ely coming
in early before the third verse. Furthermore, Ely’s singing sounds slurred and
incomprehensible, which led to the FBI investigation mentioned earlier in this
review.
With all of these issues, one
would think the song would not be a success. However, it is because of the
rowdy, rockin’ sound of the song that The Kingsmen’s take on “Louie Louie” became
a big hit. The Kingsmen represented the
music known as garage rock, a very raw sounding form of rock music that sounds
like a bunch of teenagers playing in their parents’ garage. The garage rock
sound was appealing to the youth of the time, who were emerging as more
rebellious and free-spirited, and was sort of a precursor to the psychedelic
and hard rock genre in the later part of the 1960s and early 1970s. The legacy
of The Kingsmen’s version “Louie Louie” continues to this day, with many new
guitar players learning to play the song, as well as influence some of the
other artists we will hear on Cover Wars
– Battle Royale!
The
Paul Revere and the Raiders Version (1963)
At the same time that The
Kingsmen recorded their take on “Louie Louie,” Paul Revere and the Raiders
recorded their own twist on the Richard Berry tune, and in the same recording
studio as The Kingsmen. Revere’s version is a lot cleaner in production than
the Kingsmen’s version, and a lot of the instrumentation of the Wailers
version. However, then ending takes a lot more liberties than the other
versions, giving it that Paul Revere style of music.
While this version was a lot more
polished in production, it was not as successful as The Kingsmen’s version. Besides
not being as appealing to the youth of the time, the A&R guy at Columbia
Records pulled the plug on promoting the single. And, for my own opinion, the
Raiders version is a bit goofier in sound, and sort of misses the point of the
song. It is a love story, and Revere’s performance takes away from that story.
It is not a terrible version of “Louie Louie,” but for the casual music
listener, it is one that does get lost in the mix of different versions out
there.
The
Motorhead Version (1978)
This is one my favorite takes on
“Louie Louie,” and not just because it is Motorhead and Lemmy is awesome. I
find the Motorhead version to be a good mix of the versions by The Wailers and
The Kingsmen. It has the raw energy of The Kingsmen version, but is well
structured/produced like The Wailers version. The guitar solo featured in the
song fits well with the metal style of Motorhead, and Lemmy’s vocals does not
ad-lib as much as the previously mentioned covered versions. If the there one
thing that might turn people away from this version, it would be the vocals of
Lemmy. As a longtime metalhead, the vocal style of Lemmy is an acquired taste,
and the casual music listener might be turned off by the roughness of his
singing. Even with this slight issue, this is a solid cover of “Louie Louie,”
and I recommend the Motorhead version for any metalhead or Motorhead fan out
there.
The
Black Flag Version (1981)
Though I think Black Flag is one
of the most influential bands in the hardcore punk scene, their cover of “Louie
Louie” is really not that great. The sound is unfocused, the song is really,
short, and the lyrics do not line up with the main riff. The biggest problem
with their version is the improvised lyrics by then singer Dez Cadena. The only
verse in the song is as followed:
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?
While Cadena was probably going
off the idea that the lyrics were unknown in The Kingsmen version, I feel that
the lyrics change hurts their version, for Black Flag missed the point of the
song. While many groups do tweak the lyrics here and there, the basic message
of the song is there: a sailor telling the story of how he will be with his
love in Jamaica soon. Though the band was probably trying to follow the
do-it-yourself attitude of punk, I felt they should not have DIY “Louie Louie”
and have given the song a proper cover.
The
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Version (1981)
For our final cover of “Louie
Louie,” I picked a version that gives a fresh perspective on the song, and what
better way than a female perspective? Joan Jett, one of the queens of rock
music, gives us a 1980s woman’s look at the song. Instead of a male soldier
singing about his love far away in Jamaica, we have lady singing about her man,
and how she feels whenever she sees him. While the lyrics are rewritten, it was
done in a way that the love story is still there, unlike the Black Flag
version. The song is well-produced and very upbeat, with that vintage 80s rock
sound that Jett is known for. The cover has that party music feel to it, and
could have easily been played during parties in the 1980s. While the song did
not make waves like a lot of the other singles from Joan Jett’s 1981 album I Love Rock ‘n Roll, it is still another
strong cover of the classic rock anthem.
The
Winner:
Deciding which version of such a
well-known song like “Louie Louie” is a bit of a daunting task. Each version is
unique in their approach to the song, and has their own musical
characteristics. Some of the versions are pretty clean in their sound
production, while other ones are a bit gritty, dirty and raw. While I would
love to pick all of the versions of “Louie Louie” (minus Black Flag’s version)
as the best, like the Highlander
series, there can be only one.
Even though the Black Flag cover
is very true to the ideals of the band, it misses the point of the song, and
the change of the lyrics almost makes the song unbearable to listen to. At the
same time, Paul Revere and The Raiders is a well-produced take on “Louie
Louie,” it takes a little bit more liberties near the end, and I feel lacks the
passion of some of the other versions of the song. I also feel that while the
Wailers take was the basis for many of the covers, the song does feel a bit
slower tempo-wise when compared to the other versions, and I feel the vocals
are a bit out of tune for what the song is trying to say.
This brings us to the four versions
of “Louie Louie” that feel are the strongest on this list: the original version
by Richard Berry, the well-known version by The Kingsmen, the metal take by
Motorhead, and the 80s rock cover by Joan Jett and The Blackhearts. The Joan
Jet version is upbeat, slightly altered lyrics, and really has that feel good
party atmosphere to it. The Motorhead version has a good edge to it, but is
very low key at the same time. The original version by Richard Berry
establishes a great riff, a melody that is comfortable to sing, and is filled
with rich harmonies and chords.
However, there can only be one
winner here, and for me, the best version of “Louie Louie” is The Kingsmen
version. The song has a great tempo, the best take on the 123-12-123-12 riff, a
great raw sound, and a melody that while the lyrics may be slurred, it is very
memorable. For many people, including myself, this is one of the songs that
introduced us to rock ‘n’ roll music, and it was this version that influenced
many of the artists who recorded the song over the many decades of rock music.
While “Louie Louie” would not have existed without Richard Berry composing it
nearly 60 years ago, it took a band like The Kingsmen to make it the juggernaut
rock song it is today. Thus, the winner of this first Battle Royale take of Cover
Wars is The Kingsmen famous version of “Louie Louie.”
WINNER:
THE KINGSMEN
If you have a few hours of time, I
strongly suggest checking out the many other versions of “Louie Louie” out
there that I did not get a chance to discuss in this review. There is a wide
array of rock versions out there, including covers by Robert Plant, The Beach
Boys, Blondie, and John Lennon. There are swing versions like the one by The
Three Amigos, and rap versions, like the one by Young MC. Some even change the
lyrics a bit, like the 1990s version by Iggy Pop, and if you are at a local
football game, you can find a marching band playing “Louie Louie” in the stand
to get the crowd rockin’ and supporting their team. While I find the version by
The Kingsmen to be the best, go out there and find the version you feel is the
best take on “Louie Louie.”
Well, this brings us to the end
of another Rave Up Music blog post. We will be back next time with more rock
music for you. Until then, I am Barius, and I am command you to keep on
rockin’.
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