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Tutti Frutti

Words & Music by Dorothy LaBostrie, Richard Penniman

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Tutti Frutti

Words & Music by Dorothy LaBostrie, Richard Penniman

Lyrics:

Wop-bop-a-loom-a-boom-bam-boom tutti frutti
Au rutti tutti frutti au rutti tutti frutti
Au rutti tutti frutti au rutti tutti frutti
Au rutti wop-bop-a-loom-bop-a-boom-bam-boom

Got a gal named Sue
She knows just what to do
She rocks to the east
She rocks to the west
She's the gal I love best

I got a gal named Daisy
She almost drives me crazy
She knows how to love me
Yes indeed, boy you don't know
What she does to me

First album:

LPM-1254, 1956, Elvis Presley

First recorded:

Studio New York, January 31, 1956

More info:

In the mid-50s, Little Richard was singing a song he called Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop in clubs. The song had suggestive lyrics. During a break in a recording session in New Orleans in late 1955, Little Richard and Bumps Blackwell of Specialty Records went to a nightclub called the Dew Drop Inn. After a while, Little Richard began to sing in an attempt to impress the club's patrons. One of the songs he sang was his Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop. Blackwell flipped over the song. He knew it had the makings of a hit. But first he had to rewrite the risque lyrics.

Songwriter Dorothy LaBostrie happened to be in the studio watching Little Richard record her song I'm Just a Lonely Guy, when Blackwell asked her to rewrite the lyrics to Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop. After hearing Little Richard sing the song, she left the studio. Some time after, she came back to the studio with Tutti Frutti.

It should be mentioned that LaBostrie denies the scenario given by Bumps Blackwell. She says she simply wrote the song after being inspired by a new falour of ice cream she had eaten, Tutti Frutti. She claims never to have heard Little Richard's Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop.

Little Richard's recording (he played piano) was a #2 rhythm & blues hit in late 1955. Tutti Frutti (Specialty 561) reached #17 on the Top 100 chart in early 1956 and sold over three million copies. Pat Boone's cover version (Dot 15443) was actually more successful, reaching #12.

Elvis recorded Tutti Frutti on January 31, 1956, at RCA's New York City studios. He sang the tune on Stage Show twice (February 4 and 18, 1956). Elvis's September 1956 single release failed to chart.


Lyrics:	Wop-bop-a-loom-a-boom-bam-boom tutti frutti Au rutti tutti frutti au rutti tutti frutti Au rutti tutti frutti au rutti tutti frutti Au rutti wop-bop-a-loom-bop-a-boom-bam-boom Got a gal named Sue She knows just what to do She rocks to the east She rocks to the west She's the gal I love best I got a gal named Daisy She almost drives me crazy She knows how to love me Yes indeed, boy you don't know What she does to me

First album:	LPM-1254, 1956, Elvis Presley

First recorded:	Studio New York, January 31, 1956

More info:		In the mid-50s, Little Richard was singing a song he called Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop in clubs. The song had suggestive lyrics. During a break in a recording session in New Orleans in late 1955, Little Richard and Bumps Blackwell of Specialty Records went to a nightclub called the Dew Drop Inn. After a while, Little Richard began to sing in an attempt to impress the club's patrons. One of the songs he sang was his Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop. Blackwell flipped over the song. He knew it had the makings of a hit. But first he had to rewrite the risque lyrics. Songwriter Dorothy LaBostrie happened to be in the studio watching Little Richard record her song I'm Just a Lonely Guy, when Blackwell asked her to rewrite the lyrics to Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop. After hearing Little Richard sing the song, she left the studio. Some time after, she came back to the studio with Tutti Frutti. It should be mentioned that LaBostrie denies the scenario given by Bumps Blackwell. She says she simply wrote the song after being inspired by a new falour of ice cream she had eaten, Tutti Frutti. She claims never to have heard Little Richard's Wop-Bop-a-Loo-Bop. Little Richard's recording (he played piano) was a #2 rhythm & blues hit in late 1955. Tutti Frutti (Specialty 561) reached #17 on the Top 100 chart in early 1956 and sold over three million copies. Pat Boone's cover version (Dot 15443) was actually more successful, reaching #12. Elvis recorded Tutti Frutti on January 31, 1956, at RCA's New York City studios. He sang the tune on Stage Show twice (February 4 and 18, 1956). Elvis's September 1956 single release failed to chart.