The Kingsmen: The Kingsmen Story

 

The Kingsmen are a 1960s garage rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States. They were the most successful and influential rock and roll band Oregon has produced. The band’s recording of "Louie Louie" was a nationwide hit in 1964, and it has remained one of the most popular rock songs of all time. 

The band got its start in Portland in 1959 when two teenaged friends, drummer Lynn Easton and guitarist Jack Ely, started playing popular music together. By 1960, Mike Mitchell, on lead guitar, and Bob Nordby, on bass, had joined the band. Ken Chase, a local Top 40 radio personality and the owner of the Chase, a teen dance club in Milwaukie, OR, took the group under his wing, and the Kingsmen became the club’s house band in 1961. Don Gallucci joined the group on keyboards in 1962.
                                        

"Louie Louie," an R&B calypso tune about a homesick sailor, was written and recorded by Los

Angeles singer Richard Berry in 1956 and became a short-lived regional hit in California. Composer Berry sold the rights to his famous song for $750 in 1959. The song was rediscovered a few years later by bands in the Seattle area. Rockin' Robin Roberts and the Wailers recorded it, and it became a regional hit in the Northwest in 1961. It was that version that became one of the most popular tunes in the Kingsmen's repertoire.
                                        

On April 6, 1963, Ken Chase met the band at a Portland recording studio to cut "Louie Louie" as its first single record. He called the recording good after the second take. The song featured vocalist

Jack Ely shouting into a boom microphone suspended above his head. A thousand copies were released on the Jerden label out of Seattle. While the tune got some airplay in the Northwest, it did not become a hit until October, when an influential Boston disc jockey, Arnie "Woo Woo" Ginsberg, featured it as his "Worst Record of the Week". Many listeners loved the record, and when it was released again on the Wand label, the record began to climb the Billboard charts, primarily because of sales in the Northeast.
                                          

Meanwhile, in August 1963, the Kingsmen disbanded. Ely and Nordby quit the group over differences

with Easton, who had to reconstitute the band when "Louie Louie" began gaining popularity. After several changes of personnel, the new band included Dick Peterson on drums, Norm Sundholm on bass, and Barry Curtis on keyboards. Easton replaced Ely as lead vocalist. The William Morris Agency took over management, and the Kingsmen recorded their first album and began extensive touring.
                                         

By December 14, "Louie Louie" had reached number two on the Billboard charts, where it

stayed for six weeks, but the obscurity [and unintelligible lyrics] of Ely's vocal performance was causing controversy. In January, a constituent complained to Indiana Governor Matthew Welsh that an obscene record was getting radio airplay in the state. Welsh and his staff agreed that the lyrics were "pornographic," and he asked the Indiana Broadcasters Association to ban the record.
                                     

The FBI launched an investigation to determine if "Louie Louie" violated the federal law prohibiting interstate transportation of obscene materials. After two and a half years, the FBI

concluded that it could not determine if the lyrics were obscene because they were unintelligible. In the meantime, versions of the imaginary lyrics were circulating in high schools and college campuses all over the United States, helping to push the popularity of the Kingsmen to new heights.
                                      

The Kingsmen continued to tour and make national television appearances. They had another top-ten

hit with "The Jolly Green Giant" in 1965, but their popularity had faded by the end of 1967 as musical tastes changed. The group once again disbanded. Since the 1970s, original member Mike Mitchell along with Dick Peterson and Barry Curtis have continued to perform as the Kingsmen with other musicians. Jack Ely died in 2015.
                                     

"Louie Louie" experienced a revival when it was featured in the movie Animal House in 1978. The

song has been recorded by hundreds of performers and is widely acknowledged as one of the most important records in rock and roll history. "Louie Louie" was recorded in one take [some say two takes] for a one hour session that cost $36.
                                         

SUNDAZED RECORDS (INFO. HERE)

                                          

Sundazed Music is an American independent record label based in Coxsackie, New York. It specializes in obscure and rare recordings from the 1950s to the 1970s. In 2000, Sundazed had a staff of 15 and two mixing studios, including a vintage audio equipment collection. Label founders Bob Irwin and his wife Mary started the label in 1989. Irwin's skill at restoring old vinyl records for the (then new) CD format, attracted the attention of major labels, who increasingly solicited him to help them re-issue material from their back catalogs. He helped Sony Music release their archival Legacy Records label. Later, his restoration work included early material by the likes of Bob Dylan, Nancy Sinatra, and the Byrds. Irwin also worked at Arista for a time.  

THE KINGSMEN STUDIO ALBUMSS
Listed in chronological order with peak chart position (Billboard) noted.

The Kingsmen in Person (Wand WDM/WDS-657) 1963 (#20)
The Kingsmen Volume II (Wand WDM/WDS-659) 1964 (#15)
The Kingsmen Volume III (Wand WDM/WDS-662) 1965 (#22)
The Kingsmen on Campus (Wand WDM/WDS-670) 1965 (#68)
15 Great Hits (Wand WDM/WDS-674) 1966 (#87)
Up and Away (Wand WDM/WDS-675) 1966

THE KINGSMEN - IN PERSON 1963

                                                              

The Kingsmen – The Kingsmen In Person
Label: Sundazed Music – SC 6004
Series:    Yesterdazed Series
Format:    CD, Album, Reissue 1993
Country: US
Released: 1963
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock, Rock & Roll

TRACKS

01. Louie Louie  2:44
02. The Waiting  3:08
03. Mojo Workout  2:28
04. Fever  3:07
05. Money  2:24
06. Bent Scepter  2:59
07. Long Tall Texan  2:44
08. You Can't Sit Down  2:59
09. Twist & Shout  4:55
10. J.A.J.  2:20
11. Night Train  2:18
12. Mashed Potatoes  2:33
13. Haunted Castle  2:47
14. The Krunch  2:18
15. (You Got The) Gamma Goochee  2:09

Drums – Gary Abbot
Guitar, Bass – Norm Sundholm
Layout – Jeff Smith (17)
Lead Guitar – Mike Mitchell (3)
Organ – Don Gallucci
Producer – Hermie Dressel (tracks: 14), Jerry Dennon (tracks: 1 to 13, 15)
Vocals, Saxophone – Lynn Easton

MP3 @ 320 Size: 99 MB
Flac  Size: 240 MB

THE KINGSMEN - VOLUME II 1964

                                                    

The Kingsmen – Volume II
Label: Sundazed Music – SC 6005
Series: Yesterdazed Series
Format:    CD, Album, Reissue, Stereo 1993
Country: US
Released: 1964
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock, Rock & Roll

TRACKS

01. Kingsmen Introduction    2:11
02. Little Latin Lupe Lu    2:36
03. Long Green    2:38
04. Do You Love Me    2:37
05. New Orleans    2:24
06. Walking The Dog    2:09
07. David's Mood    2:07
08. Something's Got A Hold On Me    3:10
09. Come On Baby, Let The Good Times Roll    1:53
10. Ooh Poo Pah Doo    3:02
11. Great Balls Of Fire    1:48
12. Linda Lou    2:33
13. Death Of An Angel    2:33

BONUS TRACKS       
    
14. And You Believed Him    2:31
15. Give Her Lovin'    1:47

MP3 @ 320 Size: 85 MB
Flac  Size: 220 MB

THE KINGSMEN - VOLUME III  1965

                                                       

The Kingsmen – The Kingsmen, Volume 3
Label: Sundazed Music – SC 6006
Series:    Yesterdazed Series – SC 6006
Format:    CD, Stereo, Mono 1993
Country: US
Released: 1965   
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock, Rock & Roll

TRACKS

01. Over You  2:04
02. That's Cool, That's Trash  2:13
03. Jolly Green Giant  1:56
04. Don't You Just Know It  2:57
05. I Go Crazy  1:51
06. La-Do-Dada  2:40
07. Long Green  2:37
08. Mother In Law  2:31
09. Shout  2:25
10. Searching For Love  2:08
11. Tall Cool One  2:35
12. Comin' Home Baby 2:25

BONUS TRACKS

13. Since You Been Gone  03:10
14. Its Only The Dog  02:15
15. The Wolf Of Manhattan  02:33

MP3 @ 320 Size: 86 MB
Flac  Size: 204 MB

THE KINGSMEN - ON CAMPUS 1965

                                                 

The Kingsmen – On Campus
Label: Sundazed Music – SC 6014
Series:    Yesterdazed Series
Format:    CD, Album, Stereo, Mono, Reissue  1994
Country: US
Released: 1965   
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: Garage Rock, Rock & Roll

TRACKS

01. Annie Fanny    2:05
02. Rosalie    3:09
03. A Hard Day's Night    2:21
04. Stand By Me    3:47
05. Little Green Thing    1:59
06. The Climb    2:31
07. Sticks And Stones    1:52
08. Peter Gunn    4:45
09. Sometimes    2:46
10. Shotgun    2:37
11. I Like It Like That    1:56
12. Genevieve    2:30

BONUS TRACKS           

13. Get Out Of My Life Woman     2:47
14. Don't Say No     1:58
15. My Wife Can't Cook     2:12

MP3 @ 320 Size: 93 MB
Flac  Size: 233 MB

THE KINGSMEN - UP AND AWAY 1966

                                                

The Kingsmen – Up And Away
Label:    Sundazed Music – SC 6015
Series:    Yesterdazed Series
Format:    CD, Album, Stereo, Mono, Reissue 1994
Country: US
Released: 1966   
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock, Rock & Roll

TRACKS

01. Trouble    2:21
02. If I Needed Someone    2:44
03. Grass Is Green    2:15
04. Tossin' And Turnin'    2:42
05. Under My Thumb    3:02
06. Wild Thing    2:41
07. (I Have Found) Another Girl    2:20
08. Daytime Shadows    2:15
09. Shake A Tail Feather    2:13
10. Children's Caretaker    1:33
11. Land Of 1,000 Dances    2:48
12. Mustang Sally    2:27
13. Little Sally Tease    2:55
14. Hush-A-Bye    3:18

BONUS TRACK       
    
15. Killer Joe    2:18

MP3 @ 320 Size: 90 MB
Flac  Size: 233 MB