B-side: "There's a Place" nReleased: March 2 1964 (US) nFormat: vinyl record 7" nRecorded: Abbey Road: February 11, 1963 nGenre: Rock and ro...
B-side: "There's a Place" nReleased: March 2 1964 (US) nFormat: vinyl record 7" nRecorded: Abbey Road: February 11, 1963 nGenre: Rock and roll nLength: 2:23 nLabel: Tollie 9001 (US single, 1964)nCapitol 5624 (US-1986) nProducer: George Martin nJohn Lennon: rhythm guitar, lead vocalsnPaul McCartney: bass guitar, backing vocalsnGeorge Harrison: lead guitar, backing vocalsnRingo Starr: drumsnn"Twist and Shout" is a song written by Phil Medley and Bert Russell. It was originally recorded by the Top Notes and then covered by The Isley Brothers. It was covered by The Beatles with John Lennon on the lead vocals and originally released on their first album Please Please Me. The song was covered by The Mamas & the Papas (in the style of a ballad) in 1967 on their album Deliver, and on a film soundtrack by Cliff Richard. It was also covered by The Tremeloes. Most recently Chaka Demus and Pliers (featuring Jack Radics and Taxi Gang) reached #1 on the UK charts with their version in January 1994. The Who performed it throughout their career, most notably on Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 and 1982's Who's Last.nnTHE BEATLES VERSIONnThe Beatles released the song on their first UK album, Please Please Me. The recording session for that album was their first album session, and is notable for eleven songs having been recorded in a mere 10 hours (the remaining four songs had previously been released as singles and one song was not released). "Twist and Shout" was the last song recorded; producer George Martin knew John Lennon's voice would suffer from the performance, so he left it until last, with only 15 minutes of scheduled recording time remaining for the album.nLennon was suffering from a cold, and was drinking milk and sucking on cough drops to soothe his throat. His coughing is audible on the album, and the cold's effect on his voice is audible in this recording. Even so, he produced a memorable vocal performance, a raucous, dynamic rocker. He later said his voice was not the same for a long time afterward, and that "every time [he] swallowed, it felt like sandpaper."nThey tried for a second take, but Lennon had nothing left and it was abandoned. George Martin said, "I did try a second take ... but John's voice had gone."nThe Beatles' cover was released on 2 March 1964 in the U.S. as a single, with "There's a Place" as its B-side, by Vee-Jay Records on the Tollie label. It reached #2 on 4 April 1964, during the week that the top five places on the chart were all Beatles singles. (In the Cashbox singles chart for the same week, "Twist and Shout" was #1.) In the United States, "Twist and Shout" was the only million-selling Beatles single that was a cover record, and the only Beatles cover single to reach the Top 10 on a national record chart.nIn the UK, "Twist and Shout" was released on an EP with three other tracks, "Do You Want to Know a Secret", "A Taste of Honey", and "There's a Place", from the Please Please Me album. Both the EP and Album reached #1 (see Twist and Shout (EP)). In Canada, it became the title track to the second album of Beatles material to be issued by Capitol Records of Canada on February 3, 1964.nIt is regarded as one of the finest examples of British rock and roll for its vocal performance. The song was used as a rousing closing number on Sunday Night at the London Palladium in October 1963 and at The Royal Variety Show in November 1963, the former signalling the start of "Beatlemania". They performed it on their Ed Sullivan Show appearance in February 1964.nThe Beatles continued to play the song live until the end of their August 1965 tour of North America. Additionally, they recorded "Twist and Shout" on nine occasions for BBC television and radio broadcasts, the earliest of which was for the Talent Spot radio show on 27 November 1962.nn1986 RECHARTINGnThe Beatles' version of the song enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in 1986 after Matthew Broderick lip synced it in the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Coincidentally, the Rodney Dangerfield film Back to School (released two days after Ferris) also featured the song, this one sung by Dangerfield himself and patterned after the Beatles' arrangement. The use in the two films help propel the single up the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at #23 late that summer, giving the group their second chart single of the 1980s (the other being "The Beatles Movie Medley" in 1982). The song's seven week run in the U.S. Top 40 in 1986, combined with its original 16-week run in 1964, makes Twist And Shout the longest running Top 40 hit for the Beatles at 23 weeks. Less
