IDA RED
Created on 08/03/2003Latest update on 13/03/2024
Artist: Fiddlin' Powers & His Family
Author: traditional
Label: Victor
Year: 1924
Vocal: Carson Robison. Square dance with Civil War-era roots.
Covers:
- 1926:
- 1927:
- 1934:
- 1938:
Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys [in 1950 as Ida Red Likes The Boogie]
- 1939:
- 1944:
- 1952:
- 1955:
Chuck Berry [same structure and solo as Bob Wills in Maybellene; n°1 R&B; the rhythm of a train rather than the rhythm of a car (see footnote); co-credits for DJ Alan Freed and Russ Fratto, the man who printed labels for Chess singles]
- 1955:
Big John Greer [as Come Back Maybellene]
- 1955:
Marty Robbins [as Maybellene, hit C&W]
- 1955:
Fats Domino [his I Can't Go On (Rosalie) was inspired by Chuck Berry's Maybellene]
- 1956:
Elvis Presley [idem; live at the Louisiana Hayride]
- 1956:
Brownie McGhee [his Anna Mae sounds like an answer song to Maybellene]
- 1957:
Buddy Knox [idem]
- 1959:
Gene Vincent [idem]
- 1961:
- 1962:
Johnny Hallyday [in French]
- 1962:
Searchers [as Maybellene]
- 1964:
Johnny Rivers [idem; his Maybellene was a bigger hit than Chuck Berry's]
- 1965:
Jerry Lee Lewis [idem]
- 1965:
Everly Brothers [idem]
- 1978:
Carl Perkins [idem]
- 1998:
Chuck Berry probably knew Bob Wills' Tiffany Transcription best (1946), as witnessed by Texas Playboy guitarist Lester Barnard's solo. Chuck's demo tape mentioned Ida May when he first came to Chess. Leonard & Phil Chess were amazed a black man liked hillbilly, but rejected it for sounding too country. One week later Chuck shopped his modified Maybellene (title inspired by a brand of mascara) at Mercury and Vee-Jay but they rejected it as well. So he went back to Chess and the rest is history. Unfortunately they lost that demo. The Chess brothers had to run a record company and couldn't bother storing junk on the side.
