Richard Berry (born in Extension, Louisiana on 11 April 1935; died 23 Janua… Read Full Bio ↴Richard Berry (born in Extension, Louisiana on 11 April 1935; died 23 January 1997) was an American singer and songwriter, best known as the composer and original performer of the rock standard "Louie Louie" (released in 1957 by Richard Berry & The Pharaohs).
Berry moved with his family to Los Angeles as a baby. He began singing and playing in local doo-wop groups, recording with several of them including The Penguins, The Cadets and The Chimes, before joining The Flairs (who also recorded as The Debonaires and The Flamingoes) in 1953.
The Flairs’ record "She Wants To Rock", on Modern Records, featured Berry’s bass vocals, and was an early production by Leiber and Stoller. When, a few months later, that pair needed a bass voice for their production of The Robins’ "Riot In Cell Block #9" on Spark Records, they recruited Berry to provide the menacing introduction to the song – uncredited, as he was contracted to Modern. Berry’s voice was also used at Modern, again uncredited, as the counterpoint to Etta James on her first record and big hit, "The Wallflower (Roll With Me, Henry)", and several of its less successful follow-ups. Berry also recorded with several other groups on the Modern and Flair labels, including The Crowns, and girl group The Dreamers (who later became The Blossoms).
By the end of 1954, he left the Flairs to form his own group, the Pharaohs (see Richard Berry & The Pharaohs), while also continuing to work with other groups as a singer and songwriter. One of these was a Latin and R&B group, Rick Rillera and The Rhythm Rockers. In 1955, Berry was inspired to write a new calypso-style song, "Louie Louie", based on The Rhythm Rockers version of René Touzet's "El Loco Cha Cha", and also influenced by Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon". Richard Berry & the Pharaohs recorded and released the song on Flip Records in 1957, originally as a B-side. It became a minor regional hit, and, when the group toured the Pacific Northwest, several local R&B bands began to adopt the song and established its popularity. "Louie Louie" finally became a major hit when The Kingsmen's raucous version – with little trace of its calypso-like origins other than in its lyrics - became a national and international hit in 1963. The nearly unintelligible (and innocuous) lyrics were widely misinterpreted as obscene, and the song was banned by radio stations and even investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The song has been recorded over 1,000 times, but, because Berry sold its copyright cheaply in 1959, he received little financial reward for its success for many years.
Berry continued to record in the late 1950s, but with little commercial success, and also continued as a performer. His other songs included "Crazy Lover", recorded on their 1987 debut album by the Rollins Band.
During the 1980s, "Louie Louie" received a number of unprecedented accolades, with hundreds of cover versions being issued on CD compilations and played on radio marathons. In 1986 and again in 1993, Berry finally received substantial financial benefits for writing the song. In February 1996, he performed for the final time, reuniting with The Pharaohs and The Dreamers for a benefit concert in Long Beach. However, his health declined, and he died of heart failure in 1997. He was interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
Berry moved with his family to Los Angeles as a baby. He began singing and playing in local doo-wop groups, recording with several of them including The Penguins, The Cadets and The Chimes, before joining The Flairs (who also recorded as The Debonaires and The Flamingoes) in 1953.
The Flairs’ record "She Wants To Rock", on Modern Records, featured Berry’s bass vocals, and was an early production by Leiber and Stoller. When, a few months later, that pair needed a bass voice for their production of The Robins’ "Riot In Cell Block #9" on Spark Records, they recruited Berry to provide the menacing introduction to the song – uncredited, as he was contracted to Modern. Berry’s voice was also used at Modern, again uncredited, as the counterpoint to Etta James on her first record and big hit, "The Wallflower (Roll With Me, Henry)", and several of its less successful follow-ups. Berry also recorded with several other groups on the Modern and Flair labels, including The Crowns, and girl group The Dreamers (who later became The Blossoms).
By the end of 1954, he left the Flairs to form his own group, the Pharaohs (see Richard Berry & The Pharaohs), while also continuing to work with other groups as a singer and songwriter. One of these was a Latin and R&B group, Rick Rillera and The Rhythm Rockers. In 1955, Berry was inspired to write a new calypso-style song, "Louie Louie", based on The Rhythm Rockers version of René Touzet's "El Loco Cha Cha", and also influenced by Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon". Richard Berry & the Pharaohs recorded and released the song on Flip Records in 1957, originally as a B-side. It became a minor regional hit, and, when the group toured the Pacific Northwest, several local R&B bands began to adopt the song and established its popularity. "Louie Louie" finally became a major hit when The Kingsmen's raucous version – with little trace of its calypso-like origins other than in its lyrics - became a national and international hit in 1963. The nearly unintelligible (and innocuous) lyrics were widely misinterpreted as obscene, and the song was banned by radio stations and even investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The song has been recorded over 1,000 times, but, because Berry sold its copyright cheaply in 1959, he received little financial reward for its success for many years.
Berry continued to record in the late 1950s, but with little commercial success, and also continued as a performer. His other songs included "Crazy Lover", recorded on their 1987 debut album by the Rollins Band.
During the 1980s, "Louie Louie" received a number of unprecedented accolades, with hundreds of cover versions being issued on CD compilations and played on radio marathons. In 1986 and again in 1993, Berry finally received substantial financial benefits for writing the song. In February 1996, he performed for the final time, reuniting with The Pharaohs and The Dreamers for a benefit concert in Long Beach. However, his health declined, and he died of heart failure in 1997. He was interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
Stagger Lee
Richard Berry Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Stagger Lee' by these artists:
Bill Haley The night was clear and the moon was yellow And…
Bill Wyman's Bootleg Kings When he night was clear and the moon was yellow And…
Bobby Rydell The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
Dion The night was clear, and the moon was yellow And the…
Dirty Three and Nick Cave It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
Eric Clapton/Wynton Marsalis The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves…
Fats And His Cats I was standin' on the corner When I heard my bull…
Good Golly! It's Mr. Nick! It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
Grateful Dead 1948, Xmas eve, with a full moon over town Stagger Lee…
James Brown The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
Jamie Oldaker The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves…
Johnny Rivers The night was clear and the moon was yellow And…
Lloyd Price The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves…
Marvin & Johnny The night was clear and the moon was yellow And…
Mel & Tim It was over a hundred years ago in eighteen sixty-one It…
Modern Life Is War My name is Stagger Lee. And I'm walking through the ice…
Molly O'Brien; Tim O'Brien It was over a hundred years ago in eighteen sixty-one It…
Neil Diamond The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
Neil Sedaka The night was clear and the moon was yellow And…
Nick Cave It was back in thirty-two, when times were hard He had…
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
Nick Cave and The Bad SeedsNick Cave & The Bad Seeds It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
P J Proby I was standin on the corner When I heard my bull…
P.J. Proby I was standin on the corner When I heard my bull…
Phil Lesh Ft. John Scofield 1948, Xmas eve, with a full moon over town Stagger Lee…
Price Lloyd The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves…
Professor Longhair (intro) The night was clear, and the moon was yellow …
Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes (L. Price/H. Logan) The night was clear and the moon was…
Taj Mahal The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
Taj Mahal & the Hula Blues The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves C…
The Bad Seeds Nick Cave & It was back in '32 when times were hard He had…
The Blue Aeroplanes Stagger Lee was a bad man and everybody know He toted…
The Fabulous Thunderbirds I was standin' on the corner When I heard my bull…
The V.I.P.'s I was standin on the corner When I heard my bull…
The Youngbloods The night was dark and the moon was yellow And the…
Tim & Mollie O'Brien It was over a hundred years ago in eighteen sixty-one It…
Tommy Roe The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
V.I.P.'s The I was standin on the corner When I heard my bull…
Wilson Pickett The night was clear and the moon was yellow And the…
Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Feat. Taj Mahal The night was clear And the moon was yellow And the leaves C…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Richard Berry:
A Love People making lists, buying special gifts Taking time to be …
At Last At last, my love has come along my lonely days are…
Have Love Will Travel Wow, Have love Whoa baby will travel Uh huh, uh huh, have…
Hey Henry You couldn't dance at all But now you're over ball The way…
Louie Louie Louie, Louie, oh, oh, me gotta go Louie, Louie, me gotta…
Louie, Louie Louie, Louie, oh, oh, me gotta go Louie, Louie, oh, oh,…
The Wallflower (Hey Baby, What do I have to do,) (To make you…
Visiteur La première fois d'sa vie qu'un homme a le bonheur D'entrer…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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