what Frank is listening to #28 – SAM THE SHAM AND THE PHARAOHS – Wooly Bully – (MGM)- 1965
Any album that starts off with "uno, dos ,one, two, tres, quatro" …. can't be all bad … of course we are talking about the garage stomp classic song "Wooly Bully"
I've always been partial to Latin music … probably from all the Latin I heard as a kid (for those who don't know my Mum, and the aunts and uncles, lived in South America in the 50s before coming to Australia (and some married Hispanics)) … so discussion in family gatherings was as much in Spanish as it was in Croatian … accordingly I grew to love the rhythm of the language … and as the song goes, "Spanish is the Loving Tongue".
And, similarly, I am partial to Mexican rhythms probably as a result of the overdose of western films and TV shows I watched as a kid (ahhh The Cisco Kid).
OK, this isn't a Latin language album. It is, though, garage from Texas with a lot of Mexican influence. Sam (real name Domingo Samudio) probably introduced Tex-Mex rhythms to rock, even before the legendary Sir Douglas Quintet (I saw them live also at the Fillmore West in 1994).
Every track (to my ears) is listenable at the very least and some are great … once you get into the Tex-Mex groove the music is infectious. I'm off to get a Bacardi …….( no tequila around at the moment)
Best tracks:
- Wooly Bully – a classic of the genre – a must to cover for every garage or frat band. It was also a mega hit in 1965 – otherwise a year of suffering under the British Invasion.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wooly_Bully
- Go-Go Girls – a shameless rip off of the Bo Diddley beat …. and a hoot.
- Every Woman I Know (crazy 'bout an auto) – insane lyrics
- Haunted House – more shock frat rock
- Juimoinos – a trad Mexican sounding instrumental with some chanting and cow bells (and inane dialogue) …. pass more Bacardi please
- Shotgun – more stompin and drinking would / should accompany this track
- Gangster of Love – the classic Johnny Guitar Watson track.
- Long Tall Sally – The Little Richard classic … though here it sounds (in tempo and phrasing) more like the Elvis cover … either way a great track and an acknowledgement to Sam's 50s roots and southern rock … by the time of this album the band was living in Memphis …
sounds:
and attached
website:
a keeper …
and better still I have some other Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs albums in the "pile"
(originally posted: 17/05/2009)
