Mess Around
Encyclopedia
"Mess Around", written by Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

 president and founder Ahmet Ertegün
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...

 using the pseudonym of "A. Nugetre", or "Nuggy" on record labels, was one of Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...

’ first hits. Ertegün claims his inspiration for writing "Mess Around" was Pete Johnson
Pete Johnson
Pete Johnson was an American boogie-woogie and jazz pianist.Journalist Tony Russell stated in his book The Blues - From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray, that "Johnson shared with the other members of the 'Boogie Woogie Trio' the technical virtuosity and melodic fertility that can make this the most...

.

The lyrics urge listeners to dance ("mess around"), along with a few other key phrases harkening back to "Pinetop's
Pinetop Smith
Clarence Smith, better known as Pinetop Smith or Pine Top Smith was an American boogie-woogie style blues pianist...

 Boogie Woogie", an early boogie woogie classic. "Mess Around" became a big R&B charted hit when released as a single in early 1953.

Covers and Cultural References

  • It was covered by The Animals
    The Animals
    The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...

     in 1965.
  • The song was featured in the film Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, as John Candy
    John Candy
    John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...

     plays along with his air piano and air saxophone.
  • It was featured in the 2004 biopic Ray
    Ray (film)
    Ray is a 2004 biographical film focusing on 30 years of the life of rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles. The independently produced film was directed by Taylor Hackford and starred Jamie Foxx in the title role; Foxx received an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance.Charles was set to...

    .
  • Dr. John
    Dr. John
    Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...

     included it in his collection of New Orleans classics Dr. John's Gumbo
    Dr. John's Gumbo
    Dr. John's Gumbo is the fifth album by New Orleans singer and pianist Dr. John, a tribute to the music of his native city. The album is a collection of covers of New Orleans classics, played by a major figure in the city's music. In 2003, the album was ranked number 402 on Rolling Stone magazine's...

    .
  • It was covered by New York City "psycho swing" and ska band Tri-State Conspiracy in 2008 on their 2nd album Nuisance.
  • A small portion of the song was featured in the 2010 Family Guy
    Family Guy
    Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...

    remake of Return of the Jedi entitled It's a Trap! in an homage to the famous scene from "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles."
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK