"Shout"
Single by The Isley Brothers
from the album Shout!
A-side	Shout - part 1
B-side	Shout - part 2
Released	September 21, 1959
Format	7" single
Recorded	August 5, 1959, RCA Victor's Music Center Of The World, New York, 1959
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	2:15 (part 1) 2:10 (part 2)
Label	RCA 7588
Writer(s)	Rudolph Isley Ronald Isley O'Kelly Isley, Jr.
Producer	Hugo & Luigi
The Isley Brothers singles chronology
"I'm Gonna Knock on Your Door" (1959) "Shout!" (1959) "Respectable" (1960)

"Shout" is an influential popular song, originally recorded by The Isley Brothers. Released in 1959, it was written by the brothers themselves as a call-and-response answer to Jackie Wilson's seminal "Lonely Teardrops" which they interpreted after performing that song during a club date^{[citation needed]}.

History [edit]

While the song did not reach higher than #47 on the Billboard Hot 100, it became their first gold single on the basis of its longevity and became a much-covered tune, with many U.S. and international artists recording the song. Just one month after the initial release Johnny O'Keefe covered it in his Australian TV show Six O'Clock Rock reaching #3 in Australia. He re-recorded the song in 1964, but it was only a minor hit. ^[1] Joey Dee and the Starlighters reached #6 with their recording of the song in 1962, while the Isley Brothers' version re-charted that same year at #94. Scottish pop singer Lulu had a #7 UK hit with the song in 1964 (attributed to Lulu and the Luvvers),^[2][3] and a #8 UK hit with a re-recorded version in 1986.^[3] The Shangri-Las included a version of the song in their debut LP Leader of the Pack in 1965.^[4] Tommy James and the Shondells recorded a version of the song on their 1967 album, I Think We're Alone Now.^[5] The song, as performed by Otis Day and the Knights, was also prominently featured in the 1978 comedy film National Lampoon's Animal House. To this day, the song is regularly performed at Dartmouth College, the Ivy League institution in Hanover, New Hampshire upon which the Animal House story was based. The 1959 original by the Isley Brothers appeared in the 1982 comedy film Diner. Alvin and the Chipmunks covered the song for their 1996 album Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes with Simon providing the lead vocals. The Beatles included a live version of the song on their 1996 rarites compliation, Anthology 1. American pop rock group Bon Jovi has also covered this song live preceded by "Bad Medicine".

The song was inducted to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. It ranked #118 on Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

In popular culture [edit]

"Shout" has woven itself into many iconic American mediums such as a wedding dance song in which people progressively crouch down to the dance floor as the song gets quieter. It has been used in commercials for the S.C. Johnson & Son Shout brand of laundry spray. A parody of the song has been adapted to victory music and an ongoing promotional theme of the NFL's Buffalo Bills.^[6] The song was also used in several Elmo toys, one of which was pulled off the market due to many people hearing "beat up Elmo and shout, rip his fur out and shout" when it was supposed to be "be like Elmo and shout, shake your fur out and shout".^[7] The song was featured heavily in the 1978 fraternity house film Animal House as performed by "Otis Day & the Knights," fronted by character actor Dewayne Jessie as Otis. Because the film was filmed at the University of Oregon and Autzen Stadium, the song is frequently played in the 3rd quarter of Oregon Ducks football games.^[8]

Personnel [edit]

• Ronald Isley – lead vocals
• O'Kelly Isley, Jr. – background vocals
• Rudolph Isley – background vocals

References [edit]

External links [edit]

• Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics