This week's #TuneTuesday theme is #implodeorexplode. The first tune that came into my mind is this classic rockabilly recording:

Wanda Jackson: Fujiyama Mama (1957)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlUFgzsGoqE

The song had been previously recorded by Annisteen Allen and Eileen Barton. Allen's original R&B version, arranged by Howard Biggs, is also quite good:

Annisteen Allen: Fujiyama Mama (1955)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CVPhWFuEJw

The lyrics (by Earl Burrows, who was better-known under his stage name, Jack Hammer) are somewhat questionable, written only a decade after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but this didn't stop Wanda Jackson's version from being a hit in Japan.

#wandajackson #annisteenallen #fujiyamamama #jackhammer #howardbiggs #rockabilly #rhythmandblues #1950s

My choice for #SaturdayOnStage goes way back in history. The Ravens were one of the most influential early rhythm and blues vocal groups. Here's a rare January 2, 1949 appearance on the Talk of the Town TV show, which was hosted by Ed Sullivan:

The Ravens: My Sugar Is So Refined (1949)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f3gm-681LI

The line-up is (from left to right) Richie Cannon (baritone), Maithe Marshall (1st tenor/falsetto), Jimmy Ricks (bass) and Leonard Puzey (2nd tenor). The pianist is Howard Biggs, who also had a profilic career as a band leader, arranger and composer.

#music #ravens #jimmyricks #howardbiggs #rhythmandblues #doowop #edsullivan