Born John Henry Kendricks in Detroit, Michigan, Ballard along with his brother, Dove Ballard, grew up and attended school in Bessemer, Alabama after the death of their father. He lived with his paternal aunt and her husband, and began singing in church. His major vocal inspiration during his formative years was the "Singing Cowboy", Gene Autry, and in particular, his signature song, "Back in the Saddle Again". Ballard returned to Detroit in his teens and later worked on the assembly line for Ford.
In 1953, Ballard joined doo-wop group The Royals, which had previously been discovered by Johnny Otis and signed to Federal Records, (a division of King Records), in Cincinnati. Ballard joined Henry Booth, Charles Sutton, Sonny Woods and Alonzo Tucker in the group, replacing previous singer Lawson Smith.
The Royals released "Get It" (1953), an R&B song with possibly sexually oriented lyrics, which some radio stations refused to play, although it still made it to number 6 on the Billboard R&B chart.
The group then changed its name to The Midnighters to avoid confusion with The "5" Royales. In 1954, Ballard wrote a song called "Work with Me, Annie" that was drawn from "Get It". It became The Midnighters' first major R&B hit, spending seven weeks at number 1 on the R&B charts and also selling well in mainstream markets, along with the answer songs "Annie Had a Baby" and "Annie's Aunt Fannie"; all were banned by the FCC from radio air play. Their third major hit was "Sexy Ways", a song that cemented the band's reputation as one of the most risqué groups of the time.
They had four other R&B chart hits in 1954–55, but no others until 1959, by which time the group was billed as "Hank Ballard and The Midnighters" with their label changed from Federal to King, the parent label. Between 1959 and 1961 they had several more both on the R&B and Pop charts, starting with "Teardrops on Your Letter", a number 4 R&B hit in 1960 that had as its B-side the Ballard-written song "The Twist". A few months later, Chubby Checker's cover version of the song went to number 1 on the pop charts. It would return to the top of the charts again in 1962–the only song in the rock'n'roll era to reach number 1 in two different years.
Ballard & the Midnighters had several other hit singles through 1961, including the Grammy-nominated "Finger Poppin' Time" and "Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go" which hit number 7 and number 6, respectively, on the Billboard pop charts. They did not reach the charts again after 1962 and dissolved in 1965.
After the Midnighters disbanded, Ballard launched a solo career. His 1968 single, "How You Gonna Get Respect (When You Haven't Cut Your Process Yet)", was his biggest post-Midnighters hit, peaking at number 15 on the R&B chart. James Brown produced Ballard's 1969 album You Can't Keep a Good Man Down. A 1972 single, "From the Love Side", credited to Hank Ballard and the Midnight Lighters, went to number 43 on the R&B chart. Ballard also appeared on Brown's 1972 album Get on the Good Foot, in a track ("Recitation By Hank Ballard") that features Ballard describing Brown and the album.
During the 1960s, Ballard's cousin, Florence Ballard, was a member of the Detroit girl group The Supremes.
In the mid-1980s, Ballard re-formed The Midnighters and the group performed till 2002.
In 1990, Ballard was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; the other Midnighters were inducted in 2012.
On March 2, 2003, he died at age 66 of throat cancer in his Los Angeles home. He was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia.
Ballard was the great uncle of NFL player Christian Ballard.
The Twist
Hank Ballard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come on baby let's do the twist
Take me by my little hand and go like this
Ee-oh twist baby baby twist
Oooh-yeah just like this
Come on little miss and do the twist
My daddy is sleepin' and mama ain't around
We're gonna twisty twisty twisty
'Til we turn the house down
Come on and twist yeah baby twist
Oooh-yeah just like this
Come on little miss and do the twist
Yeah you should see my little Sis
You should see my my little Sis
She really knows how to rock
She knows how to twist
Ee-oh twist baby baby twist
Oooh-yeah just like this
Come on little miss and do the twist
Yeah, that's alright
Yeah twist all night
Twist
The Twist by Hank Ballard is a classic rock and roll song that features the dance move of the same name. The song is beguilingly simple, but it does contain a few subtle layers of meaning. The lyrics describe the excitement and energy of the Twist dance, which was a popular social dance in the early 1960s. The opening lines of "Come on baby let's do the twist" are an invitation to dance, while the lines "take me by my little hand and go like this" provides instructions for the dance move.
There's also an element of rebellion in the lyrics, as the singer describes how his parents are absent, implying he's up to no good. He suggests that he and his partner are going to "twisty twisty twisty til we turn the house down," which could be interpreted as a metaphor for raising some hell or causing a commotion. The line "twist all night" reinforces the idea that they're going to keep going until they're exhausted.
Overall, The Twist is a classic rock and roll song that celebrates the joy and energy of dance, but also incorporates an element of youthful rebellion.
Line by Line Meaning
Come on baby let's do the twist
Let's dance the Twist together
Take me by my little hand and go like this
Hold my hand and show me how to dance the Twist
Ee-oh twist baby baby twist
Make the Twist move with me
Oooh-yeah just like this
Just like that, keep up the rhythm
Come on little miss and do the twist
Come and join us, let's all dance the Twist
My daddy is sleepin' and mama ain't around
My parents are not home right now
We're gonna twisty twisty twisty
We're going to dance the Twist many times
'Til we turn the house down
Dance so much that we shake the house
Yeah you should see my little Sis
You should watch my sister dance the Twist
She really knows how to rock
She is really good at dancing the Twist
Yeah, that's alright
It's all good, let's keep going
Yeah twist all night
Let's dance the Twist all night long
Twist
Repeating the message to keep dancing the Twist
Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Hank Ballard
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@RichZFishes
Clark asked the Midnighters to perform the Twist on Bandstand. They had a scheduling conflict, and declined. Clark had previously had Ernest, "Chubby" Evans, who had a unique talent imitating other singers, do a novelty record for him, that was him imitating a bunch of other artists singing Mary Had a Little Lamb. It was released by Cameo/Parkway as "The Class".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKLhfnyvmVY
It was Clark's wife who named Evans "Checker" as a play on his nickname (Chubby) and Fats Domino. He hired the Dreamlovers to sing background, and had them do a test run of the Twist at a southern NJ club before putting him on Bandstand. Bandstand pushed the Checker version of the Twist hard, having him on the show numerous times in the first few months of it's release. Miffed at being turned down, Clark wanted to bury the Ballard's version.
And Ballard didn't actually write it either. IT was written by a gospel group (Sensational Nightingales) who couldn't have their name associated with it. They sent it to Vee Jay to see if they could find a home for it. Later, they offered it to the Midnighters. Here's what Marv Goldberg wrote about that...
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Finally, in Miami, they found the perfect vehicle: the Midnighters. According to guitarist Cal Green, Hank Ballard liked it and the group made a demo which they sent off to, coincidentally, Vee-Jay (along with a tune called "I'll Pray For You"). Hank was sure that their King/Federal contract was about to expire and decided to give the Chicago company a try. Vee-Jay probably would have released it, but Syd Nathan informed the Brackens [owners of Vee-Jay] that he had picked up the Midnighters' option and they were still recording for him. Therefore, the original (and very different) recording of "The Twist" was kept hidden away until it appeared on a 1993 Vee-Jay CD.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plZSvK_Zz3A
FWIW, the demo was recorded without the Sax break in the bridge. That was dubbed in for the album.
Since gospel group didn't want to be identified with the risqué (by '50s standards) material, they apparently had no issue with Ballard claiming writer's credit.
@jimm6386
I saw Hank at a small club in Minneapolis called the Cabooze. His band was thumping like a gang of congos, timing was impeccable - as witnessed by his version of The Twist. Listening to Chubby Checker’s version it is almost listless.
@ronaldlwhitaker3458
I have been to the Cabooze many times, and have seen James Brown, Sam and Dave, BB King, Albert King, Bobby Blue Bland, Hank Ballard and many others. That joint used to rock with serious talent! I feel yeah!
@42NORRIS
@!jimm6496 "The Twist" is an American pop song written and originally released in 1958 by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters as a B-side to "Teardrops on Your Letter". It was inspired by the twist dance craze.
@ujimajame4601
:: Hank Ballard wanted it to be the "a" side. It was the company's decision to bury it omn the "b" sound. Fortunately, Cameo/Parkway heard it and chose Chubby Checker, who did imitations on his first single, to redo it as an "A" side, it hit #1 twice and started a whole new dance craze!@@42NORRIS
@dra.leonorhuerta4423
WOOOWWWWW. Greetings from Mexico I love the rude voice and energy
@mikekentertainment8769
Small world. I played the Cabooze with Freddie King in 1974. It was a rockin’ club and the people were very enthusiastic. There’s a live recording of that gig somewhere out in internet land.
@MrBillbies
Saw Hank Ballard and the Midnighters once live and was astounded by a move they made. They were on the Auditorium's floor and I was pretty close and a little above them. They were all bald and would spin their bodies around in synch with their singing while revolving around the Mic at the same time. They must have made about 8 revolutions and I was sold right there!
@DouglasUrantia
The backing beat is off the charts.....love it.!!!!!!
@joseramone9802
Simply the best original tune by the original artist.
@cynthia6637
One of the best songs to dance to in 1959.. Yes Hank Ballard did write this song and did a great job on both songs on this record..The flip side was awesome..
Do The Twist was one of the best dances out there.. Then if you wanted too slow dance.. Flip the song over .. Awesome