BOBBY FREEMAN 78 BIG FAT WOMAN / DO YOU WANT TO DANCE UK LONDON HLJ 8644 V+
£
24
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32
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Description
TWO GREAT SIDES ON THIS HARDER TO FIND ROCK & ROLL 78 ISSUED ON UK LONDON BY BOBBY FREEMAN
the rocking
BIG FAT WOMAN
and the much covered classic
b/w DO YOU WANT TO DANCE
TWO GREAT SIDES !
BOBBY FREEMAN
Born Robert Thomas Freeman, 13 June 1940, San Francisco, California
Died 28 January 2017, Anson, Texas.
Singer, songwriter, pianist, producer.
Bobby Freeman was only seventeen years old when he wrote and recorded his first hit, "Do You Want To Dance", by far his best known number. But he was more than a one-hit wonder.
Born and raised in San Francisco, Freeman started singing in a doowop group called the Romancers when he was fourteen. In 1956 the quintet managed to get onto Dootone Records and had two singles released on the label, including the rocker "House Cat", which has been reissued on several CD compilations. A third single appeared on the small Baytone label, after which the group fell apart. Bobby then decided to go solo and formed his own group, the Vocaleers, a.k.a. the West Coast Vocaleers to avoid confusion with another group who had scored a # 4 R&B hit in 1953 with "Is It A Dream".
However, Bobby was on his own when he visited a deejay who encouraged him to cut some demos. Accompanying himself on piano while a drum playing friend beat out the rhythm on congas, Bobby taped four songs. The deejay played the tapes for the vice-president of Jubilee Records of New York who happened to be honeymooning in San Francisco. Mortimer Palitz liked what he heard and within three weeks Bobby Freeman was signed to Jubilee. Two of the original demos were overdubbed in New York by professional session musicians, including Billy Mure on guitar, and "Do You Want To Dance"/"Big Fat Woman" was released on Jubilee's Josie subsidiary in March 1958. The disc was an immediate success, peaking at # 5 on the pop charts and # 2 on the R&B charts. "Do You Want To Dance" had a distinctive Latin chord sequence, which has been imitated quite frequently since.
Undoubtedly a rock n roll classic, it has been recorded with success by a variety of artists. Cliff Richard took it into the UK charts in 1962 (a # 1 in Holland), Del Shannon made # 43 in 1964 in the US and a year later the Beach Boys had a # 12 hit with the song. The Mamas and the Papas had a minor hit with it in 1968 (# 76), Bette Midler a # 17 hit in 1973 and the Ramones went to # 86 with their version in 1978. While the original Josie version was titled "Do You Want To Dance", all subsequent releases were dubbed "Do You Wanna Dance". Bobby says the song was always "Do You Wanna Dance" and that Josie made a mistake.
DISC DETAILS
BIG FAT WOMAN
DO YOU WANT TO DANCE
UK LONDON HLJ 8644 10" 78rpm SHELLAC
CONDITION - V+
TATTY LABELS AND SCUFFS AND MARKS BUT PLAYS GREAT!
POSTAGE STUFF
10" 78 RPM RECORDS NEED CAREFULLY PACKING, AND I CLAIM TO HAVE THE BEST PACKAGING IN THE WORLD FOR DISPATCHING THEM!!
THE GREG'S GREAT'S SYSTEM CONSISTS OF A SPECIALLY DESIGNED INNER BOX MADE OUT OF 1" THICK POLYSTYRENE, WHICH THEN GOES INSIDE A DOUBLE CORRUGATED STIFF OUTER CARDBOARD CARTON. THE BOXES CAN TAKE UP TO 21 RECORDS,
I SEND OUT ON AVERAGE ABOUT 30 PARCELS A WEEK AND DISPATCH IS NORMALLY DONE ONCE A WEEK
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