The song, “Twist And Shout”, was originally recorded by The Top Notes in 1961

Much covered and long lived standard bearer “Twist And Shout” was written by Bert Berns (1929-1967) and Phil Medley (1916-1997) and recorded by American group The Top Notes. The song, produced by Phil Spector, was their fourth single released in August 1961, although it failed to chart and the group disbanded soon after.

It was picked up by The Isley Brothers, Ronald (b.1941), O’Kelly (1937-1986) and Rudolph (b.1939), and recorded in early 1962 being released as a single in May that year. Their version made No.17 on the US singles chart and No.42 in the UK.

The Beatles came next and in 1963 they recorded the song for their debut album, “Please Please Me”. It was released as a single throughout 1963 and 1964 and made No.2 in America as well as being a top ten hit across much of Europe and in Australia. the song was re-released Stateside in 1986 and made No.23 on this occasion. It was not commercially released as a single in the UK until 2010, when thanks to digital downloading, it reached No.48 there.

1963 was a busy year for “Twist And Shout” and not only with two versions charting, Brian Poole (b.1941) and the Tremeloes recorded the song and called their album by the same name. Their version hit No.2 in the UK and was also a top ten hit in parts of mainland Europe. It was not released in America.

“Twist And Shout” had to wait until the 1980’s before it got an airing and it was American rappers Salt’N’Pepa that revived the song in their own ‘inimitable’ style. They took the song to No.4 in the UK in October 1988 and No.5 in The Netherlands. It was a minor hit on the US R&B chart.

1993 saw Jamaican duo Chaka Demus (b.1963) and Pliers (Everton Bonner, b.1963) record the song for their debut album, “Tease Me”. With the title track already having been a global smash, their version came out in December that year and topped the UK singles chart. It was a top ten success across Europe and peaked at No.13 in Australia. Once again, it was not released in America.

But which version is the best? THE TOP NOTES original, THE ISLEY BROTHERS version, THE BEATLES version, BRIAN and THE TREMELOES version, SALT’N’PEPA’s version or CHAKA DEMUS and PLIERS version?

Take a look at some of the other posts in this series and don’t forget to follow the playlist.