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The True Lyrics to Louie Louie
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 มี.ค. 2012
- Here for the first time ever are the true lyrics to The Kingsmen's version of the song Louie Louie
(transcribed by me...please expand this description to see the edits)
Edit...
@0:36 seconds...change to (me) sail that ship
@0:39 seconds...change to me never think how
@0:54 seconds...change to oh baby said (a) we
@1:04...change to: think of girl, ah, constantly
@2:17 ..change to I('ll) tell her I'll
@2:17...change to "leave again", (no 'you')
@2:37...change to I said me gotta go now
@2:42...change to 'lets hustle on...'
Big thanks to lewgalati for the edits at 0:36,0:39 and 2:37
anUHkins for the 2nd edit at 2:17 and SirGhostly and Jack Ely himself for the edit at 1:04
with all the edits, here are the lyrics...
Louie Louie
___________
a Louie Louie
oh no, said we gotta go
yeah yeah yeah yeah
y'a said a Louie Louie
oh baby
said we gotta go
a fine little girl, she waitin' for me
(me) catch a ship, across the sea
(me) sail that ship ah all alone
me never think how I'll make it home
a Louie Louie
yeah nah nah now
said we gotta go
oh no, said Louie Louie
oh baby said (a) we gotta go
(agh)...(or, possibly, F&^%!)
three nights and days I sailed the sea
(me) think of girl, ah, constantly
ah on that ship I dream she there
I smell the rose ah in her hair
a Louie Louie
woh no, said we gotta go
yeah yeah yeah yeah
y'a said a Louie Louie
oh baby
said we gotta go
ok lets give it to 'em right now!
me see
me see Jamaica a moon above
it won't be long me see me love
(me) take her in my arms again
I('ll) tell her, "I'll never leave again"
a Louie Louie
oh no, said we gotta go
yeah yeah yeah yeah
y'a said a Louie Louie
woh baby
said we gotta go
I said me gotta go now
lets hustle on outta here
lets go!
Hello:
My name is Jack Ely and I sang those lyrics on that recording and you are pretty close but no cigar. I am constantly interchanging the words "we" and "me" as in "me gotta go" and "me see" and I also use "me" as the pronoun to keep it in the Jamaican dialect like, "me find little girl, she waits for me." I also sometimes interchange "ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya" for "nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah" but which are which? I do say "think of little girl, ah, constantly."
Thank you for your amazing iconic gift. Rest in peace.
Wow! I'm just reading this "conversation" in 2019 between a poster and a deceased artist. #goosebumps
My original response was
Let me say what an honor it is for you to personally reply to my video (and for not trying to sue me).
He responded with
luiluiely
10 years ago
I don't think anyone should be able to sue anyone about Louie Louie unless they are making money off my vocal performance, which no youtube user is. After (all) Louie Louie is Americas' song, and I'm just grateful I had the good fortune to be able to show that to the world.
@@ibji That's awesome!
Y r all these replies so new and how is the comment older than the video?
It's amazing when you are seeing the words, now they sound very clear when you hear them.
mikimike, power of persuasion, my man. I have an entirely different set of lyrics (from 1965) that when you read them, while listening to the song, you hear those exact words, also. The lyrics I have are the ones the FBI was trying to discover. They were either totally incompetent, or, just didn't want to find them. And, yes, I cannot put the lyrics in writing. One example though. When he comes in early, which was a real mistake, instead of hearing I think they have as "me see", see if you don't also hear "I stick"(said quickly where it sounds only like stick). And, then, when he comes in after that, if you can't hear, (I hope this doesn't get me in trouble) "I stick my finger in the hole of love". Then, later on when they have, "I tell her I'll never leave you again". See if you don't really hear, " I tell her I'll never lay her again". He slurs lay her, where it sounds as if he's saying, layer. I can't/won't list anymore. The song is about him going to see a young girl (not a minor), and, his plan is to coerce her into sex. He succeeds, but, realizes it had a negative effect on her. His, I tell her I'll never lay her again", is letting her know he really cares for her, and, will continue to see her, but, not for sex. As I said, this info is from 1965, and, I will not say where I got it from. Some will think this is a joke. All I can say is, it is not a joke. Make sure you're not looking at the lyrics on the screen when you replace them with what I provided! Happy listening.
Watched a video and after their live performance they were interviewed about this 😱 I didn't really pay attention but I remember some of it I didn't think that it was that serious
Back in the day the FBI was on there asses cuz of the lyrics
they did not understand it and investigated lol i am not kidding :)
I heard it from rabbids go home
mikimike Yeah! Just what I was thinking.
The only song you might ever sing correctly while totally drunk on karaoke night.
Raid Man lmao !
That is so totally me!!
Can I buy you a Cervesa?
@@@tmtonymendola ; Only if it's "mas fina".
I was thinking that, too ! These guys totally sound drunk- regardless, it’s a gem! lol
At 0:57, it's the drummer shouting "Fuck!" because he dropped a drumstick. They recorded this song in one take at a cost of $50.00, which the band members split.
Dogheadj 😂oh boi
He didn't drop his stick. He smacked his finger on the rim of his snare.
pretty impressive of him to be able to drop a stick and not stop playing the drums
Too funny!!
I think he said Whore!
Love the fact that the singer comes in too early @ 2:02 and the drummer recognizes it then throws a little riff in there to cover it up.
+jayo503 Careful, you might be on to something...
😂😂 that's great
It makes the song!
That's a fantastic mistake and the drummer had a genius fill. Glad they didn't do another take.
Shit like that was always happening in early R&R, one of the reasons it was so exciting!! Woolly Bully just for an example of another
The FBI spent two years trying to decipher Louie Louie and still didn't do it.
+Ben Johnson underrated comment
+Ben Johnson I blame Snowden.
+Ben Johnson really?
+Alexander Rahl But they actually did!
You know that big giant data snooping center they are building in Utah, it's not actually meant to snoop through all our internet traffic, it's really there to decipher the song
In the 1960s our little group used to play this at almost every 'booking' (now 'gig'). It got everyone onto the dance floor everytime. We loved taking turns at the Jamaican Patois as a tribute to the original recording and nobody complained.
Now in 2023 it is still popular and just hearing it has sent chills down my back and wonderful memories of those FABULOUS times around the many cities and townships we visited over the years flooding into my mind. Memories of the openness and welcomes everywhere and the kindness and generosity of the local people at every location. How lucky we were to be around during such times.
Whatever happened to the world that those post WWII days of youthful dreams, a wonderful future and endless opportunity for everyone.
They have now all been lost in a world of youthful despair, a culture of hate and division and our children's & grandchildren's minds & lives being poisoned and disturbed?
Frankly, I've had enough and don't want much more.
Thanks for the beautiful times and memories if anyone else remembers them.
Did you say the lyrics on the second verse where you can hear one of the singers say f***. You can barely hear it.
Our hopes and dreams lie with the future, our next generation. Sad as it is , my 4 boys are raised proper and respectful. Proud Americans and good members of the community.
"All is not gold that glitters" but there is still hope!
Beautifully said, thank you! 🥰
@@chrismeyers9144 Only in the van! 😂
@@ryanstartare1657 Good for you, we need more families like yours.
Imagine having a smash hit song where nobody can understand half the lyrics; BRILLIANT!
Mick Jagger was good for that
Kurt cobain was pretty good at that as well
ROFL!
Smells like teen spirit
isnt that called modern rap?
It's been 8 yrs since I posted this video (march 11, 2007), the above published date is wrong. I used Microsoft Movie Maker, and used the default setting for color, font. It was more important to sync the music to the words, rather than make it more visually appealing, was meant to be an intellectual exercise. Initially, I thought I got it right but it became apparent as more and more people saw it, that there were some errors, 8 to be exact, and, in fact, one of those errors was pointed out by Jack Ely himself. Though he never endorsed my video, he didn't all out trash it either. Soon it became the most viewed version of the kingsmen's Louie Louie. It also became probably the most copied video on all of youtube. Nearly every song that shows the lyrics followed the example of this. Also, I know for certain that Jack wanted his version to be free for all. I had to fight on numerous occasions to keep this video alive, because it is educational, it cannot and should not ever be taken down. And since all other videos that show lyrics also claim to be educational, therefore free, Louie Louie and Jack Ely are responsible for all music on youtube to be free. I have never monetized this video and never will out of honor for the man and the song.
ibji Thanks for posting this! You said there were 8 errors, one of which Jack Ely pointed out. Will you tell us what they are? Thanks!
Never mind -- I see you put them in -- thanks again.
ibji Louie, Louie, my Winnebago.
ibji Thanks, the +LbjI, or BJ man. That's EXACTLY what Jack Ely, and the Kingsmen, were after!
*****
AND, so are you. See you next time we (all of us) get to hear Peggy Lee, or Louie Louie untouched, as it was once intended.
You're very welcome, was my pleasure, thanks for the comment
Omg. A lifetime I’ve waited to finally know the words. Thank you so very much!!!!
We always got lead sheets at the music store in '65 and '66 to make sure we had the chords right , if we weren't sure. They had the music for piano, guitar chords and lyrics. Anyone could get them, even the FBI, but , in ' 65 they refused to believe us. We wondered if they ever took our advice and went to a music store to see for themselves, but, what can ya do?
One less thing on my bucket list of things to do. After nearly 55 years I now know the words of Louie, Louie.
Berry, who spoke on the subject a while back to a Los Angeles interviewer named Bill Reed, explains the song as the lament of a seafaring man, spoken to a sympathetic bartender named Louie. Here, without further ado, are the "official" published lyrics: "Louie Louie, me gotta go. Louie Louie, me gotta go. A fine little girl, she wait for me. Me catch the ship across the sea. I sailed the ship all alone. I never think I'll make it home. Louie Louie, me gotta go . Three nights and days we sailed the sea. Me think of girl constantly. On the ship, I dream she there. I smell the rose in her hair. Louie Louie, me gotta go. Me see Jamaican moon above. It won't be long me see me love. Me take her in my arms and then I tell her I never leave again. Louie Louie, me gotta go." (By Richard Berry. Copyright 1957-1963 by Limax Music Inc.)
Note the subtle shifts of temporal perspective, and the refreshingly arbitrary substitution of the objective case for the nominative and possessive in pronominal situations. As a rock lyricist, Mr. Berry was clearly far ahead of his time.
I'm feeling so stupid not understanding any of what you said in the second paragraph.
@@heaven7360 I had to laugh because I'm right behind you on that.
And you must be ahead of your time too because I can understand the song, but not a damn bit of what you said in the last paragraph.
speak the lyrics in my head with a Jamaican accent the song now makes total sense. Thanks for clearing it up. I also totally understand the second paragraph.
@@heaven7360 If you're still here; the second paragraph is not meant for the average person to understand. It is a pretentious piece of grammar elitism bullshit designed to leave the proletarians dumbfounded at the authors brilliance! LOL. (This coming from a self-avowed grammar Nazi!)
Jack Ely R.I.P.
This makes PERFECT SENSE NOW! I see Ely's explanation about the Jamaican patois, which fits nicely. Those hysterical parents who were just positive that this was OBSCENE (and the FBI!), were idiots. I danced to this banger at every dance I went to, as a teen.
Many of the cover bands sang "Louie Lou-EYE", which made no sense. Now that I hear and understand it this clearly, he's NOT singing "lou-EYE" he's just singing it with an accent. PERFECT!
The British broke the Nazi's enigma code but never could understand Louie,Louie.
Yeah, but the Brits needed a machine to do it.
Actually, the Poles did most of the work. And the British lucked into an enigma machine and codebooks when the germans attempt to scuttle their U boat failed.
@@rickyjoejohnson4886 Not before Tommy Flowers built Colossus....most of which was down to lazy German Signallers not changing their daily encryption codes.
Good job on the translation. I heard, many years ago, that there was a court case on this song, some parents claiming the lyrics were pornographic. Some judge ruled that he had listened to it a dozen times and could not understand hardly a word of it, so he ruled it OK for kids to listen to it. Well, that is the story I heard.
No, the FBI thought they were Soviet spies communicating
why pornographeic
😂😂😂😂😂
You are correct. I was 10 I think. The nimrods were trying to claim Louie Louie was an obscene song about some guy having sex with every girl he could. For instance, "I think of girl constantly" was "I f@#k those girls all kinds of ways" or something like that. All that court action did was make young folks was buy that 45 rpm before the stores sold out. I very well may be wrong with some of this. Give me a break and correct me if my facts are off. I was only 10 and it was about 58 years ago.✌️
Heard this on the car radio today and had to come to YT and listen to it a few more times! Brings back wonderful memories of yesteryear, 59 years later (2022).
So the FBI really investigated the lyrics of this song? Amazing.
Beats the Louie out of anything on the radio today. Sail on, Jack. You were a true King!
First heard this in 1963 whenI was 18,still love it!
Me too! It just makes me want to jump up , dance and sing. I haven't heard it for years and played it twice tonight.
I was 17, but they were still playing it in clubs where they sold 3.2 beer. when I turned 18.
I was 14 when this came out. Loved it then. Love it now.
My mom kept the lyrics to this song in one of her favorite cook books. She would have turned 88 this past April 6th. God bless you my cool mama Violet Celestine.
Loved your story. ♡♡
LindaBkrWms I'll bet your mom probably never knew that the Kingsmen recorded Louie Louie in Portland, Oregon on April 6, 1963.
LindaBkrWms
And where pray tell did she find said lyrics if the CIA couldn't????
We share a birthday. I bet she was a character...the cookbook!
Rest in peace, Linda's Mommy.
@@grasshopper1286 Name = amazing parents
The sailor's anthem
I love this song so much when our band director tells us that we’re playing this song we all start screaming happily
Man this song bring me back to early childhood I remember singing this with my dad on the way to school from preschool to 9th grade. This song brought me and my dad a lot closer I love you dad!
In 1964 I put together a monster sound system. I played this tune often along with Twist and Shout at our every Saturday night college party. Campus police would ask us to lower the volume. They did not bust us for being underage and drinking. Loved the Univ. of Arizona.
The good old days. When you were allowed to have fun
I'll never forget "Louie, Louie". It was huge in '62, my first year as an airman in the USAF. Great memories!
Jim McAllister from January,1964
Oops! I meant 1964 I guess. Time slips by unnoticed sometimes. Thanks, Mystic.
Mike Mitchell, the original lead guitarist for the Kingsmen, passed away on April 16th, 2021. He was 77 years old...
He was best known for playing the iconic solo on the 1963 hit song “Louie Louie”*...
Between 1963 and 1966 the Portland, Oregon quintet had nine records on the Top 100 chart, two made the Top 10, the above "Louie Louie" and "The Jolly Green Giant", it reached #4 for one week in February of 1965...
They had one Top 20 record, "Money", which peaked at #16 for one week in April of 1964...
May he R.I.P.
* "Louie Louie" peaked at #2 for six non-consecutive weeks, its first two weeks at #2, the #1 record was "Dominique" by The Singing Nun, and for its last four weeks, "There!, I've Said It Again" by Bobby Vinton was in the top spot...
The rhythm pattern: 1-2-3 1-2 1-2-3 1-2 gave it that irresistible kick. The muddled vocal and stinger lead solo made it take off. If not for Beatlemania this one likely would have been the top track of 1964 (as well as 1963), and their album hung around for 2 and 1/2 years on Billboard's chart. You can hear every punk rock riff right here - this started it all.
I was in high school (suburban Baltimore) when this song was released and it hit #1 in November of 1963.
Love playing this in marching band... my favorite stand tune!
I remember playing a dumbed down version in pep band in 6th grade... it was great!
I have it as a stand tune too! Right at 0:23 us Baritone and Trombones have a solo.
The FBI investigated the song for vulgarity and incompetently missed "FUCK" at :57. Your tax dollars at work folks.
Yep my dad works at FBI, he told me that
When I was a kid this song was really controversial because everyone said the lyrics were "each night at 10, I lay her again!"
So good to read the lyrics of this song after all these years! When I was a kid, there were all sorts of rumour about what the llyrics were. My brother and I bought the record, and used to try to listen real close to hear them, but never could make them out. Thanks for posting :)
:)
Claudette Preisinger Just read his obit, he had just had his braces removed the day they did this recording, and could not enunciate at all, the other band members did not know the song and he alone knew the lyrics...
Tom Seim His braces were still on when he sang this song..
Tom Seim Jack Ely said braces didn't have anything to do with it. When they were recording the mic was on the ceiling and Ely had to tilt his head back to scream at the mic. That's the reason the enunciation didn't come out right.
TheObnoxiousDuck, he did, huh? He didn't mention anything about the dental work he had, not too long before they went into the studio? Interesting.
This song is one of the very few that if I'm even in a bad mood and I hear it, it will get me on my feet dancing.
After all these years, I still love this song as much as `i did in the early 1960's when I danced to it all over Soho in the clubs and coffeebars.. RIP Jack Ely thankyou for the great song !
In the early 60s this was a popular dance song--so popular the band would play it for 30-40 minutes at a time. During the many verses (made up by the band) there were plenty of rough nasty words, but usually garbled badly so most dancers had no idea what they were. NO ONE sat through this tune even if you danced alone!
this was one of the songs that influenced so many punk bands. hell, bands like joy division and even motorhead covered it. the song just has such a fuck everything vibe to it. it's beautiful. right up there with woolly bully and everybody knows (about the bird) punk wouldn't exist without these songs. long live 60's rock.
Wholly Bully another classic song!!!
I've always heard it as "Oh no. I've had a wake-up call." Nothing will make me change my mind!
Now THIS is the BOMB! I am 61 and I too listened to this over and over and over trying to catch the lyrics. I'm sure we all know the most famous lyric we THOUGHT was in there ( F*** those girls all kind of ways) LOL It became legend. Thank you for the true lyrics. These lyrics were as much a mystery as who Carly was talking about in " You're so Vain". lol
Super great comments! Thanks for the memories.. Thanks for the post!!!!!
This song is credited to Richard Berry an American black song writer. I used to have his recorded version. This is credited with being one of the great rock songs of all time, however Berry's version is more like a sea shanty and does not have any apparent reggae influence. Or rock influence. I have probably listened to the Kingsmen version a thousand times. and played it briefly in a high school rock band. I use to have the two Rhino comps of this which included marching bands. I think the Kingsmen did the only desirable version, but just on the recording. This is not the kind of song that works outside the recording. 96 Tears is another song that only works on the recording. I had a long and very nice talk with ? of the Mysterions when he played a very small venue in Cleveland a few years ago. I asked him why he did not have the full rights to the song (a woman's name shares the rights) but he politely refused to talk about it. I believe his high school girl friend actually wrote the song/letter/poem, but we will never know. WE will never know if Fred Rose cleaned up a lot of Hank Williams songs. Or if Stoller and Leiber did a little work on Chuck Berry material. "The phone boy took the message and wrote it on the wall" and Johnny B. Goode had to be a promo song for a movie. But we will never know. Abner Specter's "Sally Go Round the Roses" only works as a dense and great recording. Grace Slick could not do it. We are all lucky we have heard these recordings in or lifetime.
I have extensive history with Louie Louie. I first played Richard Berry in 1958 while being disc jockey aboard USS KOINER out of Seattle. Nobody else was playing it then. In 1963 both Kingsmen and Paul Revere and the Raiders recorded the same song one week apart in the same studio, in Portland, Oregon. Paul Revere and the Raiders was managed by Roger Hart, our morning man on KGON. I was Paul Anthony 7pm to midnight KGON. The Kingsmen were managed by Ken Chase, morning man for KISN. So in Portland it was hot competition between the two rock stations. In Portland Paul Revere did better, but the Kingsmen got the national hit out of it. On KGON we played the shit out of Paul Revere and hardly, if ever, played the Kingsmen. Even more interesting for me is that Jerry Dennen co produced the Kingsmen with Ken Chase. He used to co own KUIK in Hillsboro, Oregon along with John Gillis who hired me for my first paying disc jockey job. Jerry left for Seattle to start JerDen records and bragged about the desire to make a million dollars before age 30. That was 1958. He probably succeeded, producing the Kingsmen plus others.
Ken Chase became my boss at KGON December 1963 and fired me among a whole lot of controversy. He ruined KGON, but it was already sinking like the Titanic. That's a whole nother story. Wow, memories. And yes, RIP Jack Ely. It's been a hoot!!!
One of the most recognizable solos of all time!
Wow, I had forgotten this song. When I was young my brother who is 8 years older then I used to play it and laugh what I asked what they were singing, he said I wasn't old enough. Then I forgot about this great old song till I saw it posted and looked at the lyrics. All this time, well back then, I thought it was dirty...it's not! He was just teasing me like he always did. Thank you.
He may very well have believed it. Many teenagers believed it was extremely graphic. It was investigated by the FBI and banned in some places.
I saw you fixed the we to me. The original from the 50's said "Me gotta go". Great work. Thank you for the video.
Alexander S 50s nope!
This song was banned on a lot of radio stations but I've been in professional music since the 1960's when I wasn't in the army, and everyplace you played you had to know this. I've heard it ad lbed a lot too. A month ago my 15 year old granddaughter asked me had I heard this cool song yet,,,, you guessed it, Louie Louie
It was said that even J. Edgar Hoover wanted the song investigated. I think a lot of the uproar is what helped make it such a big hit. Nothing helps a song more then the government or the church trying to ban it.
I recall reading about Hoover's investigation. I gotta wonder if it seemed as ridiculous then as it does now?
My understanding is the fact that the governor of Indiana banned the song and since I never knew what exactly the lyrics were, it left me wondering why, and this is 20-some years later when I first heard the song for the very first time.
Aging myself here, but the first time I heard this song was about 1963. It was just a fun song to play and dance too. Half the fun was trying to make out the lyrics I think
I'm playing this song in band, it's everyone's favorite because it's easy and has a good beat
Funny story. I am 65 and I remember when this song came out. A bunch of us kids would go to my best friends house after school and listen to this song. We or I thought it was dirty and about f**king. With really dirty lyrics. Having found this today, 4-11-2018 and reading the lyrics, I am so disappointed to find out how wrong I was.... LOL. I mean it is nothing like I remember. So, I choose to go with memory... The ever lovin'... Ghost!!!
Over the years, I have had people insist that there exists a second 'dirty' version of the song, the version that they fondly remember from their youth. But I guarantee you if you listen to the song without following along with the lyrics, all will be right with the world and your memories won't fail you.
I prefer the dirty lyrics
@@rhpositive2002 The FBI too :)
This song: *exists*
School bands: _I’LL TAKE YOUR ENTIRE STOCK_
what a great f&@kin tune!
It's amazing how this is incomprehensible if you're just listening to it, but put the words to it and suddenly you're wondering how you didn't understand it.
"Ironically, however, drummer Lynn Easton later admitted that he yelled "Fuck" after fumbling a drumstick at 0:54 on the record." From Wikipedia.
First Choice it is 57 Peng tan
When I was a teen back in the 60s, there were so many rumors about the Kingsmen slurring over the words so that the listeners wouldn't decipher the supposed "expletive deleted" words in the lyrics. There were also so many guesses about what the unclear words were. It's good I finally know the real words.
Yeah And I don't see really any"" real problem here unless someone makes the argument regarding supposedly saying we gotta go f*CK" which is actually very hard to make out
Thank you for uploading
This i never knew what
They were singing
For years
March 2020 marks the 13th anniversary of me uploading this video, it's amazing to me that I still get thanks for this as if I did it just recently.
My friends and I wrote down what we thought they were saying, which wasn’t even close. For very young kids we had the dirtiest lyrics and loved the Kingsmen cuz we thought they got away with singing such lyrics. Still love this song and this is the first time I’ve heard the real lyrics. Thanks so much for this
This was THE ultimate party dance song after the Cameo-Parkway stuff faded. Think it was probably in the category for several years. The British Invasion, while it had some upbeat stuff, somehow or another ended up in a different genre for sure. I remember dancing to this at a party in late 1966.
Yes you're right. At 57 seconds in this song the drummer dropped his drum stick and he said the f bomb
I literally sung this song in 5th grade. My choir teacher was scary
Wow! Interesting facts and fun! I always wanted to know the lyrics to this song. We all used to make up the words - I still have the original 45 record! Thanks for your post.
@Leigh Jarley Yes, 45s!
"Perfect, we just chased down a boat load full of
drunken fishermen"
I came upon this lyric video after hearing Todd Snider's Ballad of the Kingsmen. (Live recording tells more story). Then I read some comments. Amazing to see the artist replied. Truly awesome, it IS America's song. Right on. RIP
I've been in radio for 34 years now and have worked my share of "Oldies" radio but this is the first time I've ever understood the lyrics! Thank you!
Lol, following you around from comment to comment!
HaHa!! I really did have no idea what the lyrics were on this!
This song is SO bad that it creates a new category unto itself of greatness (like an Ed Wood movie) that others could never duplicate again. One of the most infectious, joyful songs ever produced that refuses to leave your head after just one listen.
The most mysterious lyrics of all time, but once you know them (This TH-cam video above shows them accurately for the first time) they can knock your socks off as one of the most original set of words ever put to music.
And yes, it's "easy to dance to"!!
Bravo, Jack Ely. Thanks for this 'one take' gem!
So true.
Bad??
The lyrics were a mystery when this song first came out. Honest, I was there, it was a big deal.
Thank you for posting. I was 8 yrs., when my older brother introduced me to this song. I learned how to dance with "Soul", none of the, American Bandstand dancing!
Great song and memories!
Great rock song from 1963 that has aged quite well. Thanks for posting this old classic!
Animal House is on again.... so here I am....
lol man of the house with Chevy chase is on!
Oley Oley Never seen that movie... is this song in it?
LACES OUT!
Have a brew, don't cost nothing
I heard this song when it first came out on the radio and all I understood was Lou-I, Lou-I.
One of the most intriguing tunes in rock history love it😎✌️🇱🇷👍
You nailed it!!!
The dislikes are from the FBI
The true reason why it sounded so bad was this wasn't intended to be the final result. They were in a barn, crowded around a single microphone. They did this track as a rehearsal tape, and when they were done, the sound guys just used that tape, even though it was not The Kingsmen's intended tape.
A happy accident!!
my dad me these people were wasted during this and that’s why it’s not very good song but idk
This is one of my 50 all time fave songs. Makes me want to dance and sing! Knowing the lyrics makes it even better!.
Makes complete sense to me now! Well done!
Pure inspiration , to make one wonder what he was saying -but it didn't matter , the song intoxicates with its incessant beat
Super !!!!
I was a teen when this song came out, and, like all the kids back then, thought it was cool and listened to it play on AM Radio hundreds of times. I could swear that there was one line: "Every night, at 10, we'll do it again" ... We all knew back then that there was supposedly some 'dirty' lyrics in the song, which led to much speculation & interpretation. Listening to it now, it's quite mundane ...
It was a whole thing. The teenagers when it came out came up with some interesting lyrics. Like really graphic. It was investigated AT LENGTH by the FBI and banned in some places.
@@crayonkilla1729 still is by clear channel- the monopoly that took over all the radio stations
Thank you for this wonderful post. I'm still playing it years later. I think Jack Ely plays bass as well as singing on this wonderful recording. Sex Pistols' bassist Glen Matlock has described this as the first punk recording.
Spot on! Thanks for posting
What's not to like?!? This recording supercedes explanation elucidation and just IS...
RIP, Jack; you may have been a one-hit wonder, but that hit has stood the test of time. Godspeed.
This was played at the end of the night - the Brooklyn basement party - we didn't care about the lyrics that didn't make sense. We cared about the guitar solo - everyone was dancing - a sea of humanity jammed in a basement - what fun, what hilarious fun, what memories. Thanks for posting.
Recuerdos que valen oro 📀
I Always Loved This Song Danced To This Song When I Was 13 Now I Am 70 Years Old.
How you figured out these lyrics is beyond me, but brilliantly done.
The four P's. Pen, Paper, the Pause button and lastly...People. Hundreds of thousands of ears listening to the video and telling me where I got it wrong, including the guy who sang the tune himself. Expand the description to see who I credited with the corrections.
one of the gratest songs ever
one of the best rock songs ever
Per: www.oldiesmusic.com/news.htm
Jack Ely, founder and guitarist with the Kingsmen and lead singer on their #2 hit, "Louie Louie" (1963), died Monday (April 27th, 2015) at his home in Redmond, Oregon after what as termed a "long illness." He was 71. Born in Portland, Jack started out as a jazz pianist but switched to guitar after seeing Elvis Presley perform on television. While attending Portland State University, he helped form the Kingsmen, who became the house band for a club owned by a local DJ. They went in to a local studio and, for $50, cut a version of "Louie"-- their crowd-pleasing favorite with mystifying lyrics-- in one take. Before the record had peaked though, Jack got into an argument with drummer Lynn Easton over who would front the band. Since Lynn owned the name, Jack quit and formed his own Kingsmen group. The ensuing legal battle ended with Jack receiving vocal credit and $6,000 in royalties but he was forced to change the name of his own group to the Courtmen. His career essentially ended when he was drafted in 1967. He later became a horse trainer...
May he R.I.P.
1:29 best part
Thanks I’ve been listening to this song over the years never knew what they were singing about
I thought he was singing”way on top”
Thx again
The video has been hit with a copyright strike, it's being taken down within the next week, you comment here might be its last.
@@ibji That's stupid! The singer himself replied to you and said "After (all) Louie Louie is Americas' song, and I'm just grateful I had the good fortune to be able to show that to the world." years ago! It's surprising to see that you're still replying to comments after so long, as well.
@@garge7676 I was told on 1/28/20 it's being taken down, I have one last chance to appeal, if I lose, the video and all the comments will be lost.
@@ibji That's a shame..
Perfection!! Thanks for the lyrics!! After all these years . . . I finally know what they were singing about!
R.I.P. Jack Ely. :(
RIP Jack Ely
Great Job and Gift ibji - Thanks so much!!!!
loving it!
at 0:57 the drummer apparently dropped a drum stick and yelled "fuck!"
I named my cat after this song. Got him at the humane society and wanted to get the poor little guy out of there fast. We had to go! Was singing this on the way out the door and to the cat all the way home. Seemed appropriate to name him Louie after that.
My cat was also named Louie Louie
Awesome tune, thank you so much!
Jackie Jackie oh baby you gotta go. Thanks for the memories Jack, God bless you & your family.
In all honesty, the guitar solo was absolute fire
yes, it sure was
Ironic that The Music Business back then controlled everything and yet it was those decades that yielded so many life changing hits and bands.Now that the Music Business today is all but a mere former shell of it's former self,we have nothing to be proud of,really,huh??
Sammy Lane Spoken like a true businessman
Love it. Thanks :)
This is one of THE mod classics from 1964/5 and I can see everyone on every dance floor in Manchester clubs moving in a kind of zigzag, trying desperately to figure out the words. So many versions, most of them good. I still love it 50+ years on.