Wooly Bully
Encyclopedia
"Wooly Bully" is a popular song originally recorded by novelty rock 'n' roll band Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs in 1965. Based on a standard 12-bar blues progression, it was written by the band's leader, Domingo "Sam" Samudio. It was released as a single on the Memphis-based Pen label and distributed via MGM.
chart on June 5, 1965, kept off the top by The Beach Boys
's "Help Me, Rhonda
". It was the first American record to sell a million copies during the British Invasion
and was influenced by the British rock sound which was mixed with traditional Mexican-American conjunto
rhythms. It stayed in the Hot 100 for a then-impressive 18 weeks, and was nominated for a Grammy Award
. It was also named Billboard
's "Number One Record of the Year" despite never reaching No. 1; this feat was achieved again by Faith Hill
's "Breathe
" in 2000.
dance. His record label's legal department feared using that title due to the existence of another song with a similar title. The song was given the green light after Sam rewrote the lyrics and replaced "Hully Gully" with "Wooly Bully".
The lyrics of "Wooly Bully" were hard to understand, and some radio stations banned the song. The lyrics describe a conversation between "Hattie" and "Matty" concerning the American Bison
and the desirability of developing dancing skills, although no attempt is made to synthesize
these divergent topics. The warning, "Let's not be L-7's", means "Let's not be square
s", from the shape formed by the fingers making an L on one hand and a 7 on the other. Sam the Sham underscores the Tex-Mex
nature of the song by counting out the rhythm in Spanish
and English, and the characteristic simple organ riffing. According to Sam: "The name of my cat was 'Wooly Bully', so I started from there. The count down part of the song was also not planned. I was just goofing around and counted off in Tex-Mex. It just blew everybody away, and actually, I wanted it taken off the record. We did three takes, all of them different, and they took the first take and released it."
format (itself an extension of the 12 bar blues), where the move to the sub-dominant IV comes after only 7 bars of the tonic I, instead of the expected 8 bars. This device contributes to the energetic drive of the song, effectively starting the chorus before the verse has had time to finish.
Andy Ortiz, Keyboards, Sunny and the Sunglows was a very well noted figure and influence to all Tex-Mex Recording Artist during this period. The Texas Keyboards Master (Andy Ortiz) and his growing popularity with his new sound of Blues, Jazz and raspy Tex-Mex was an influence to Domingo "Sam" Samudio of Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. It was noted that the Song "Wooly Bully" was a mega hit for the Mexican American Community.
in the live version of The Clash
hit "Capital Radio" featured on the live album titled Live: From Here to Eternity. The song is also heard in a number of films: Big Bully
, The Rookie
, Fast Times at Ridgemont High
, Full Metal Jacket
, The Shrimp on the Barbie
, Splash
, Scrooged
, Happy Gilmore
, Monsters vs. Aliens
, Megamind, Religulous
, Monsieur Ibrahim
, Encino Man
, and The Chipmunk Adventure
, in which it is performed by Alvin and the Chipmunks
. It is currently used as an entrance theme by PDC
darts professional Terry Jenkins
due to his darting nickname, the Bull. Gonzo the Great
, Rizzo the Rat
, and Fozzie Bear
covered the song for the 1993 Muppet
album Muppet Beach Party.
The song is also referenced by Bruce Willis as Officer John McClane in Die Hard (1988) when he is trying to convey to Reginald VelJohnson as Sgt. Al Powell that Sam (Alan Rickman as Sam, alias Hans Gruber) is a sham (not to be trusted), as in Sam The Sham and The Pharaohs.
History
"Wooly Bully" was the band's first and biggest hit. It became a worldwide sensation, selling three million copies and reaching No. 2 on the American Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart on June 5, 1965, kept off the top by The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
's "Help Me, Rhonda
Help Me, Rhonda
"Help Me, Rhonda" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love for their American rock band The Beach Boys. The song is the first Beach Boys song to feature a lead vocal by Al Jardine. It was released in March 1965 on the album Today! as "Help Me, Ronda"...
". It was the first American record to sell a million copies during the British Invasion
British Invasion
The British Invasion is a term used to describe the large number of rock and roll, beat, rock, and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States during the time period from 1964 through 1966.- Background :...
and was influenced by the British rock sound which was mixed with traditional Mexican-American conjunto
Conjunto
Conjunto literally translates as "group," and is regionally accepted in Texas as defining a genre of music that was born out of south Texas at the end of the 19th Century, after German settlers introduced the button accordion. The bajo sexto has come to accompany the button accordion and is...
rhythms. It stayed in the Hot 100 for a then-impressive 18 weeks, and was nominated for a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
. It was also named Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
's "Number One Record of the Year" despite never reaching No. 1; this feat was achieved again by Faith Hill
Faith Hill
Faith Hill is an American country singer. She is known both for her commercial success and her marriage to fellow country star Tim McGraw. Hill has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and accumulated eight number-one singles and three number-one albums on the U.S...
's "Breathe
Breathe (Faith Hill song)
"Breathe" is a country song by American recording artist Faith Hill, released as the first single from her 1999 album of the same name. The song was written by Stephanie Bentley and Holly Lamar. "Breathe" became Hill's 7th number one on the country music charts in the US. The song spent four weeks...
" in 2000.
Title and lyrics
As the Pharaohs prepared to write their debut album, lead singer "Sam the Sham" (Domingo Samudio) wanted to write a tribute to the Hully GullyHully Gully
The Hully Gully is a type of unstructured line dance often considered to have originated in the sixties, but is also mentioned some forty years earlier as a dance common in the black juke joints in the first part of the twentieth century. In its modern form it consisted of a series of "steps" that...
dance. His record label's legal department feared using that title due to the existence of another song with a similar title. The song was given the green light after Sam rewrote the lyrics and replaced "Hully Gully" with "Wooly Bully".
The lyrics of "Wooly Bully" were hard to understand, and some radio stations banned the song. The lyrics describe a conversation between "Hattie" and "Matty" concerning the American Bison
American Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
and the desirability of developing dancing skills, although no attempt is made to synthesize
Synthesis
In general, the noun synthesis refers to a combination of two or more entities that together form something new; alternately, it refers to the creating of something by artificial means...
these divergent topics. The warning, "Let's not be L-7's", means "Let's not be square
Square (slang)
Square used as slang may mean many things when referring to a person or in common language.In referring to a person, the word originally meant someone who was honest, traditional and loyal. An agreement that is equitable on all sides is a "square deal"...
s", from the shape formed by the fingers making an L on one hand and a 7 on the other. Sam the Sham underscores the Tex-Mex
Tex-Mex
Tex-Mex is a regional American cuisine that blends food products available in the United States and the culinary creations of Mexican-Americans influenced by the cuisines of Mexico.Tex Mex may also refer to:...
nature of the song by counting out the rhythm in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and English, and the characteristic simple organ riffing. According to Sam: "The name of my cat was 'Wooly Bully', so I started from there. The count down part of the song was also not planned. I was just goofing around and counted off in Tex-Mex. It just blew everybody away, and actually, I wanted it taken off the record. We did three takes, all of them different, and they took the first take and released it."
Structure
The chord progression found in "Wooly Bully" has an unusual 15 bar structure. It is based on an abbreviated 16 bar blues16 bar blues
The sixteen-bar blues can be a variation on the standard twelve-bar blues or on the less common eight-bar blues.-Adaptation from twelve-bar progression:Most sixteen bar blues are adapted from a standard twelve-bar progression, i.e.,...
format (itself an extension of the 12 bar blues), where the move to the sub-dominant IV comes after only 7 bars of the tonic I, instead of the expected 8 bars. This device contributes to the energetic drive of the song, effectively starting the chorus before the verse has had time to finish.
Andy Ortiz, Keyboards, Sunny and the Sunglows was a very well noted figure and influence to all Tex-Mex Recording Artist during this period. The Texas Keyboards Master (Andy Ortiz) and his growing popularity with his new sound of Blues, Jazz and raspy Tex-Mex was an influence to Domingo "Sam" Samudio of Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. It was noted that the Song "Wooly Bully" was a mega hit for the Mexican American Community.
Legacy
The song is referenced by Joe StrummerJoe Strummer
John Graham Mellor , best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership in The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in...
in the live version of The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
hit "Capital Radio" featured on the live album titled Live: From Here to Eternity. The song is also heard in a number of films: Big Bully
Big Bully (film)
Big Bully is a 1996 comedy-drama film starring Rick Moranis and Tom Arnold. The film was directed by Steve Miner.-Plot:Growing up in Hastings, Minnesota, young David Leary was constantly bullied by Roscoe Bigger , nicknamed "Fang" because of a pointed tooth. David is ecstatic when his parents...
, The Rookie
The Rookie (2002 film)
The Rookie is a 2002 drama sports film directed by John Lee Hancock. It is based on the true story of Jim Morris, who had a brief, but famous Major League Baseball career in 1999. The film stars Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, and Brian Cox....
, Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name...
, Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket is a 1987 war film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. It is an adaptation of the 1979 novel The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford and stars Matthew Modine, Vincent D'Onofrio, R. Lee Ermey, Arliss Howard and Adam Baldwin. The film follows a platoon of U.S...
, The Shrimp on the Barbie
The Shrimp on the Barbie
The Shrimp on the Barbie is a 1990 comedy film directed by Michael Gottlieb and starring Cheech Marin. In Australia this movie was released as The Boyfriend From Hell...
, Splash
Splash (film)
Splash is a 1984 American fantasy romantic comedy film directed by Ron Howard and written by Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The original music score was composed by Lee Holdridge...
, Scrooged
Scrooged
Scrooged is a 1988 American comedy film, a modernization of Charles Dickens' novella, A Christmas Carol. The film was produced and directed by Richard Donner, and the cinematography was by Michael Chapman. The screenplay was written by Mitch Glazer and Michael O'Donoghue...
, Happy Gilmore
Happy Gilmore
Happy Gilmore is a 1996 sports comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan and produced by Robert Simonds for Universal Studios. It stars Adam Sandler as the title character, an unsuccessful ice hockey player who discovers a talent for golf. The screenplay was written by Sandler and Tim Herlihy...
, Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens is a 2009 American computer-animated 3-D science fiction film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures...
, Megamind, Religulous
Religulous
Religulous is a 2008 American comic documentary film written by and starring comedian Bill Maher and directed by Larry Charles. The title of the film is a portmanteau derived from the words "religion" and "ridiculous"; the documentary examines and mocks organized religion and religious...
, Monsieur Ibrahim
Monsieur Ibrahim
Monsieur Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran , also known as Monsieur Ibrahim in English, is a 2003 French movie starring Omar Sharif, and directed by François Dupeyron. The movie is based on a book and a play by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt.-Plot:...
, Encino Man
Encino Man
Encino Man, released in Europe as California Man, is a 1992 comedy film directed by Les Mayfield and starring Brendan Fraser, Sean Astin and Pauly Shore. The plot revolves around two geeky teenagers from Encino, Los Angeles, California played by Astin and Shore, who discover a caveman in their...
, and The Chipmunk Adventure
The Chipmunk Adventure
The Chipmunk Adventure is a 1987 American animated film featuring the characters from NBC's Saturday morning cartoon Alvin and the Chipmunks. The Chipmunk Adventure was directed by Janice Karman from a screenplay by Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr....
, in which it is performed by Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
. It is currently used as an entrance theme by PDC
Professional Darts Corporation
The Professional Darts Corporation is a professional darts organization, established in the United Kingdom during 1992, when a group of leading professional players split from the British Darts Organisation to form what was initially called the World Darts Council...
darts professional Terry Jenkins
Terry Jenkins
Terry Jenkins is an English professional darts player who is nicknamed The Bull, having previously used the nickname "Tucker" for his matches...
due to his darting nickname, the Bull. Gonzo the Great
Gonzo the Great
Gonzo the Great is a puppet character, one of Jim Henson's Muppets. He was developed and performed by Dave Goelz. The character made his first appearance in a 1970 Christmas special entitled "The Great Santa Claus Switch". Known as a "Whatever" , he is considered one of The Frackles...
, Rizzo the Rat
Rizzo the Rat
Rizzo the Rat is a Muppet, performed by Steve Whitmire. Rizzo first appeared in episode 418 of The Muppet Show, as one of a group of rats following Christopher Reeve around backstage. He can be seen mugging and reacting to practically every line of dialogue. He remained a scene-stealing background...
, and Fozzie Bear
Fozzie Bear
Fozzie Bear is a Muppet, created by Jim Henson. He is an orange, particularly fuzzy bear who works as a stand-up comic and has a catchphrase, "Wocka Wocka Wocka". Shortly after telling the joke, he is usually the target of rotten tomatoes and ridicule, especially from hecklers Statler and Waldorf...
covered the song for the 1993 Muppet
The Muppets
The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson starting in 1954–55. Although the term is often used to refer to any puppet that resembles the distinctive style of The Muppet Show, the term is both an informal name and legal trademark owned by the Walt Disney Company in reference...
album Muppet Beach Party.
The song is also referenced by Bruce Willis as Officer John McClane in Die Hard (1988) when he is trying to convey to Reginald VelJohnson as Sgt. Al Powell that Sam (Alan Rickman as Sam, alias Hans Gruber) is a sham (not to be trusted), as in Sam The Sham and The Pharaohs.
External links
- classicbands.com - Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
- [ allmusic]