Talk:Shake, Rattle and Roll

Explanation of " provocative sexual simile" for the square
The article states that the song was bowdlerized by Haley, but still retained its most " provocative sexual simile". Just in case anyone ever questions it, the line sung by Haley and Turner and everyone else who has ever sung the song,


 * "I'm like a one-eyed cat peeping in a sea-food store"

refers to, on the one hand, the cyclopean nature of the male penis, and on the other hand, the frequently alleged "fishy" odor of the vagina. This later is also the source of the frequently heard blues cry, "I want some seafood, mama". Yours sincerely, Ortolan88 23:24, 14 November 2006 (UTC)


 * Interestingly, Haley's use of the "one-eyed cat" line is also considered unusual in that he was, himself, one-eyed (his left eye was blinded during childhood) and was quite self-conscious of that fact. 23skidoo 19:55, 15 November 2006 (UTC)

Super kudos to whoever coded this: Both Turner's and Haley's versions contain the double entendre "I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store."Both Turner's and Haley's versions contain the double entendre "I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store." Ortolan88 (talk) 22:53, 15 October 2012 (UTC)

Rock n' roll?
Big Joe's original version is not rock and roll. It certainly contains elements that are considered "rock n' roll" (though the whole "rock n' roll" thing was a shame and no such genre ever was created), but it is not by any means rock n' roll. It's jump blues. Any objections to me changing it? --Bentonia School 09:26, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

Joe Turner's version on the pop charts
The book by Dawson and Propes, now cited, states that Turner's version reached #22 on the pop charts. However, other sources don't seem to support this. Dave Marsh says that it "never made the pop charts", and Joel Whitburn, in Top R&B Singles 1942-1995, doesn't give a pop chart position for it either. So, we have conflicting - but in all cases usually reliable - sources. The definitive answer is presumably in Whitburn's Pop Hits 1940-1954 - which I don't have - or can be found by someone checking through all the online copies of Billboard for the second half of 1954. Can anyone shed any light on this? Ghmyrtle (talk) 20:48, 25 April 2011 (UTC)

2. I own Whitburn's Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 1989 fourth revised & enlarged edition but the author states his book starts (begins) only from January 1, 1955. So Joe Turner has no entry in this book and, inside Haley's one, "Shake Rattle and Roll" is not included/quoted
 * 1. Within a few days, I should receive a copy of Billboard Book of Top 40 R&B and Hip-hop Hits, 2005 p'back edition (784 p. covering 1942-2004 !).

Here is full quotation of Dawson in his 2005 Backbeat book, Rock Around the Clock..., on p. 95 : (...) ''"Shake, Rattle, and Roll" entered the charts on August 21, shot to N°7, and spent a total of twenty-seven weeks - half a year - in the Top 40. Even Turner's original version, caught up in the maelstrom of the Comets' success, sold enough copies to shimmy over from the R&B charts and reach N°22 pop.''

As u say, we (now) have (3) conflicting - but in all cases usually reliable - sources, 2 of which... by the same author, stating, 13 years apart, a pop position for both versions. One possible answer would come when we know which chart was researched/used by Dawson for his two books : prior to definitive Hot 100 (August 1958), there were a number of separate charts published by Billboard,i.e. more than one each week, such as, regarding pop, "Most Played in Juke Boxes", "Most Played by Jockeys", "Top 100", "Best Sellers in Stores" (these four researched by Whitburn, but only last one used by Fred Bronson for his Number One Hits book) etc... As u know, this situation was the same for R&B charts for the period 1942-1963 (w/ other names) and was even more tricky as each one of them started and ended at different dates.

I also want to thank u deeply for the quality and the precision (in both research and writing) for your contributions, especially for Origins of rock and roll feature.

Please forgive my poor English ;-) --Bibliorock (talk) 12:27, 26 April 2011 (UTC)

--Bibliorock (talk) 13:15, 26 April 2011 (UTC)

Clue
I deleted a factual error - a Bill Haley recording of the song was not used in the film clue. It is an impersonator recording in a similar style; I believe the singer is credited in the closing credits; there are no Bill Haley recordings used in that movie. It is possible an alternate recording of the song (not from 1954 as no alternate takes survive) appears in the sitcom Happy Days, but this has not been confirmed. 70.72.215.252 (talk) 15:39, 7 July 2012 (UTC)
 * But IMDB credits Bill Haley and the Comets http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088930/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd (FYI: the song appears once in the film itself--played at a faster tempo--and then at the correct speed for the credits).TH1980 (talk) 03:38, 24 August 2015 (UTC)

Possible copyright problem
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