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Picture Credits:
LOUIE LOUIE'S BEST-KEPT SECRET (besides the lyrics, that is)
Don't we all have a song, not necessarily our favorite, the lyrics to which we've never understood even when sung in our native tongue? For many of us it's LOUIE, LOUIE, purportedly written by a man named Richard Berry in 1955 or 1956. He performed a calypso version; many people are familiar with The Kingsmen's version (president of their fan club, please raise your hand!), and I discovered recently that Frank Zappa had a morbid fascination with the song. I've yet to hear an elevator version of LOUIE LOUIE, but if you've never seen the tuba section of a marching band boogie to the marching band version, you simply must make the effort. The opening chords give me chills when gusted out by tubas: Da-da-da, DA-DA; da-da-da, DA-DA (Huah!)… But I digress.
I say "purportedly" written by Mr. Berry because, as I sat here staring into space dreaming of book signings and fawning fans (laugh and the world laughs with you… ), I noticed Willy sitting on my desk. He's hard to miss, being furry and cute and all, but don't tell *him* I said that. He's a cat, he's already skilled in the art of self-aggrandizement. Willy wasn't simply sitting and blinking at me, though. He was basking under the desk lamp, sitting up straight, his nose aimed toward the sun -- I mean light bulb -- his eyes closed in lamp-worshipper's bliss. He looked serene, content, bulb-tanned.
I wondered what he was up to.
Wondering what he was up to led me to recall how he once embarrassed me by editing a comment I made on another writer's work, insisting I insert a cat word, something like, "oiiiiiiiiiuuuuu". When I refused, he stepped on the keys anyway.
That's when it hit me. A CAT COMPOSED LOUIE LOUIE.
Look at it: the title is 80 percent vowels, not to mention so are the lyrics as sung by the Kingsmen. And see, the L is right under the O, I, and U on the keyboard. Richard Berry's song, if you take a look (link to web site provided below), is actually quite romantic. I am certain: "Louiee Louaiiiiy oooooooh babeeeeenahweeeegahddagaw aiaiaiaiaiayayayayaaaaaiiiiiiii" is the work of a cat. And anyone who has a cat and a piano in the same house will believe, now that we're on the subject, that those spine shivering da-da-da-DA-DA opening chords must also be the midnight work of a cat.
What I want to know is, what happened to the cat's royalties? (Willy and Jessie made me write that last question - hold on a minute, they're trying to get my attention…
No, I am NOT going to go back and capitalize the word "cat" each time it appears. Now go away and leeeeeeeeeeeaveeeeee meeeeeeeeeeeea aaaaaaaaaaaaloooooooooooneeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. SHOO!oooooo geeeeeeeeeez.)
I suppose it's time to feed them … as usual.
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Web sites for further research in the event your cat calls her lawyer:
Take a side trip to a site about Richard Berry. Find out by example why it's important to retain as many of the rights to your work as possible.
http://www.louielouie.net/R_Berry.html
Cut and paste on over to this site to see the reeeeeeaaaaaaaadfghjkll (stop that right now, Willy) ahem, *real* LOUIE LOUIE lyrics, possibly for the first time in your life (it was for me!).
http://www.wanderers.com/wanderer/louie.html
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