1) Responsib… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least four bands with the name The Cadets.
1) Responsible for the songs "Pax Cadetia", "Cowford-Promised Prince", etc:
The first thing you should know about the Cadets is that frontman and lyricist Chuck Smyth sings like a throttled cat. Cadets songs, all penned by Smyth with the help of drummer Cash Carter and a rotating cast of their friends and cohorts, draw comparison to the more cheerful, lyrical Polvo compositions, or to the frenzied later work of Man...Or Astroman?, or to a lobotomized, tone-deaf Neil Young on amphetamines, or to a collaboration between Fred Rogers, the Minutemen, and bathing African elephants.
The second thing you should know about the Cadets is that they're from Jacksonville, Florida. Yawn, right? Another obscure band from a boring, blight-stricken sprawl town. Nothing new there. But the Cadets know this and revel in it, sucking up the mundaneness and spitting out something none of them knew they, or anyone stuck in the paralyzing void of a hinterland Jacksonville adolescence, had in them.
Chuck's lyrics channel Walt Whitman, William Faulkner, and the accidental genius behind PBS kids' shows and nature documentaries. In another slightly-different universe, Chuck is a prime contender for Poet Laureate of the Shopping Center South; the subjects of his verse-form contortions masquerading as songs range from morose, creepily Christian-tinged dirges about children dying in boating accidents ("Corpus Christi") to yelping anthems of friendship and determination ("Threat of Winds", "Pax Cadetia.")
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2) London rock band responsible for the songs "Disco Lights" and "Falling", who recently changed their name to Slides.
More information: http://www.myspace.com/slidesmusic.
3)The Cadets are an American doo wop group widely known for their version of Stranded in the Jungle, which was a hit in the 50s.. The group began as a gospel group, the Santa Monica Soul Seekers, in the late 1940s. The members were Lloyd McCraw, Willie Davis, Austin "Ted" Taylor, Aaron Collins, Glendon Kingsby, and Will "Dub" Jones. In 1955, the group auditioned for Modern Records, and were accepted. The group decided to switch to the popular R&B style, with the exception of Kingsby, who left to continue in gospel music.
Modern came up with the name The Cadets, and the group released their first single, "Don't Be Angry"/"I Cry". Collins led the A side while Taylor led the flip side. The group followed with several more singles. One of them was slated to be a cover of The Feathers' "Why Don't You Write Me?" Modern worried that this single may compete with "Don't Be Angry", so it was recorded on their subsidiary label, RPM Records, and was credited to "The Jacks". Davis led "Why Don't You Write Me?", and the flip side, "Smack Dab In The Middle", was led by Jones.
Many more singles followed, with the five recording as The Cadets on Modern, and "The Jacks" on RPM. McCraw left at the end of the year, and was replaced by Pete Fox (spelled Foxx). The group signed up to the Buck Ram management agency in March 1956, and continued churning out singles. A few months later, Taylor left to pursue a solo career.
He was replaced for one session by Prentice Moreland. This particular session was instrumental, however. It was the recording of "Stranded In The Jungle", a cover of an already popular tune by The Jay Hawks. The song was spoken by Dub, with a duet refrain by Davis and Collins. The flip side, "I Want You", was led by Jones. It was Moreland who delivered the line, "Great googly moogly, get me outta here!" in "Stranded In The Jungle". Following that session, Davis, Collins, Jones, and Foxx continued as a quartet.
They continued recording under both names, but toured only as The Cadets. They would, however, perform Jacks songs onstage. Collins was drafted that summer, with his place taken for a short time by the returning Ted Taylor. After only a matter of weeks, Collins was able to return to the group, and Taylor was back out.
1957 saw albums released under both the Jacks and Cadets names, under Modern and RPM, respectively. Confusing to many was the use of Cadets tracks on the Jacks album, and vice-versa. That year the group stopped touring, without any big hits since "Stranded". In May, there was a single release by "Aaron Collins and the Cadets", which was Collins backed by studio singers. In November, the four were back together for one more release.
At the end of the year, the group split. Collins and Davis joined The Flairs. Foxx became a guitar instructor and continues (as of date of post; 30 December 2009) to give lessons out of his studio in Los Angeles, California]]; Jones joined The Coasters. A few recordings were made with the Cadets name in 1960; this was Davis and Collins with the Flairs.
The group reformed in the late 1990s, with Davis, Foxx, Randy Jones, and Tommy Turner. This lineup appeared on the PBS special, Doo Wop 51. In 2001, while rehearsing for a show with the Doo Wop Society of Southern California, Jones had to be rushed to the hospital, requiring the other three to perform as a trio at the performance. Jones had suffered a stroke, and died thirteen months later. The group brought in new bass Ed Carter, and continues to perform.
4) The Cadets are a World Class drum and bugle corps based out of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1934, The Cadets are the second most successful corps in DCI, as 10-time world champions and 19-time national champions. In addition, the Cadets are one of the oldest continually operating drum corps. The Cadets have gone through many name changes, from their foundation as the Holy Name Cadets, to the Garfield Cadets, then to the Cadets of Bergen County, and finally to just The Cadets.
The Cadets are currently under the direction of George Hopkins, who has been corps director since 1982. The Cadets have consistently made it into the top 5 at finals since 1983, winning their first world championship in 1983. They received their 10th world championship title in 2011 with their show "Between Angels and Demons."
Smack Dab in the Middle
The Cadets Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where people like a rockin time
And stay awake both day and night
Till everybody's feelin good an' right
Then throw me (smack dab in the middle)
I wanna be (smack dab in the middle)
Ahhhhh, smack dab in the middle, boys now
Ten Cadillacs, a diamond mill
Ten suits of clothes to dress to kill
A ten room house, some Bar B Q
And fifty chicks not over twenty-two
Then throw me (smack dab in the middle)
Oh, I wanna be (smack dab in the middle)
Ahhhhh, now boys you can see why
I wanna be smack dab in the middle now
So I can rock and roll to satisfy my soul
One hundred beds with chorus girls
A street that's paved with natural pearls
A wagon load of bonds and stocks
Then open up the door at Fort Knox
Then throw me (smack dab in the middle)
I wanna be (smack dab in the middle)
Ahhhhh, now listen boys throw me
Smack dab in the middle right now
So Ray can rock and roll to satisfy his soul
That's all right!
A lot of bread and gangs of meat
Oodles of butter and somethin sweet
Gallons of coffee to wash it down
Bicarbonated soda by the pound
Then throw me (smack dab in the middle)
I picture it (smack dab in the middle)
Ah, throw me now, smack dab in the middle right now
So I can rock and roll to satisfy my soul
Alright!
The Cadets' song, "Smack Dab in the Middle," is an upbeat and optimistic tune about living the high life, with plenty of money, women, and material possessions. The song's narrator asks to be thrown into a town where people like to have a good time and have fun night and day, and where he can have everything he wants, such as ten Cadillacs, a diamond mill, ten suits of clothing, and a ten-room house with Bar B Q. He also wants fifty women under the age of twenty-two, one hundred beds with chorus girls, a street paved with natural pearls, a wagon load of bonds and stocks, and access to Fort Knox.
The chorus repeats the phrase "smack dab in the middle" several times, emphasizing the song's title and the singer's desire to be in the center of everything he wants. He's so eager to get what he wants and achieve the life of his dreams that he tells the person who can make it happen to "throw" him right in the middle of it all.
One interpretation of the song is that it's a commentary on the post-war American Dream, with soldiers returning home and looking for a better life after experiencing the hardships of war. The life that the singer requests is indulgent and extravagant, suggesting that the country was starting to enjoy newfound prosperity and had the resources to indulge in materialism.
Line by Line Meaning
Pick me a town in any clime
Choose a town from anywhere in the world
Where people like a rockin time
Where the locals enjoy a lively atmosphere
And stay awake both day and night
And keep going without sleep
Till everybody's feelin good an' right
Until everyone is feeling happy and satisfied
Then throw me (smack dab in the middle)
Then place me exactly in the middle of it
I wanna be (smack dab in the middle)
I want to be right in the center of the action
Ahhhhh, smack dab in the middle, boys now
Ah, to be in the middle of it all, boys
So I can rock and roll to satisfy my soul
So I can enjoy live music that feeds my soul
Ten Cadillacs, a diamond mill
Ten luxury cars and a diamond-making factory
Ten suits of clothes to dress to kill
Ten fancy outfits to impress
A ten room house, some Bar B Q
A big house and some delicious Barbecue
And fifty chicks not over twenty-two
And fifty young women who are not older than 22
Oh, I wanna be (smack dab in the middle)
Oh, I really want to be right in the center of it all
Ahhhhh, now boys you can see why
Ah, boys, you can understand why
One hundred beds with chorus girls
One hundred beds with musical showgirls
A street that's paved with natural pearls
A street covered in pearls
A wagon load of bonds and stocks
A whole lot of valuable financial bonds and stocks
Then open up the door at Fort Knox
Then gain access to the gold reserves at Fort Knox
I picture it (smack dab in the middle)
I can just imagine myself right in the center of it all
Ah, throw me now, smack dab in the middle right now
Ah, just place me in the center of the action right now
So Ray can rock and roll to satisfy his soul
So Ray can enjoy live music that feeds his soul
A lot of bread and gangs of meat
A huge amount of bread and an ample supply of meat
Oodles of butter and somethin sweet
Lots of butter and something sweet to eat
Gallons of coffee to wash it down
A lot of coffee to drink with the food
Bicarbonated soda by the pound
A large amount of soda by weight
Alright!
Agreement or satisfaction with the situation
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHARLES E CALHOUN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind