(Otis Redding)
Australia
Melbourne band led by Joe Camilleri with Camilleri and Wilbur Wilde on saxes and Gary Young (ex-Daddy Cool) on drums. Later incarnations included Jane Clifton, vocals, and James Valentine, brass.
This recording, the band’s first single, echoes the 1966 Thane Russal and Three arrangement.
(Otis Redding)
USA
#35 USA
On Cadet album Mama Says February 1968 and on Chess single April 1968 by critically acclaimed R&B singer (Jamesetta Hawkins, 1938-2012).
Etta James was in vocal group The Creolettes who as Etta James And “The Peaches” released her composition Wallflower (1955 #1 R&B), produced by and co-credited to Johnny Otis. This answer song to Hank Ballard’s Work With Me Annie also became a pop hit when covered by Georgia Gibbs as Dance With Me Henry (Wallflower) (1955 #1 USA), a bowdlerisation of the original song’s line Roll with me Henry.
In 1960 James was signed to Chess records where she built her reputation as a major R&B-rock’n’roll artist and the winner of two Grammy awards late in her career.
She had a couple of dozen songs on both the R&B and the pop charts (Billboard).
Her two highest charting records on pop’s Hot 100 were Pushover (1963) at #25 and Tell Mama (1967) at #23. By contrast, she had eight Top 10 R&B hits including five in the Top 5. Two of those peaked at #2 R&B: All I Could Do Was Cry (1960) and At Last (1961, duet with Harvey Fuqua).
Further reading: Etta James biography by Mark Deming at All Music.
Suggestion de Philippe, merci.
(Otis Redding)
UK
Influential version
#7 Sydney #24 Melbourne #4 Brisbane #8 Perth
Single on CBS. Produced by Paul Raven – better known later as Gary Glitter – and Jeremy Banks (also Russal’s manager).
A driving, garage style arrangement of the Otis Redding song, this was popular in Australia but sank without trace in its country of origin. (For that reason, Glenn A. Baker included it on Volume 1 of his Hard To Get Hits anthologies.)
The identity of Thane Russal was a matter of speculation in Australia (some thought he might’ve been Mick Jagger) but Glenn A. Baker finally revealed that he was British singer Doug Gibbons (liner notes to Hard To Get Hits, Volume 1, 1991).
Gibbons, an associate of the Rolling Stones, was also connected with guitarist Jimmy Page. Doug Gibbons recorded the Jimmy Page-Jackie DeShannon song I Got My Tears To Remind Me for Decca in 1965 YouTube, and in the same year Gibbons’s band The Outsiders recorded two Page compositions for Decca, apparently with the participation of Page (see the Jimmy Page sessionography at The Best Of British Rock).
Lead guitar on Security was by Bob Johnson (later with Steeleye Span), with longtime Thane Russal-Doug Gibbons associate Mick Brill on bass. (Jimmy Page wasn’t there: that’s just a rumour.)
Doug Gibbons died in 2010 in Paris where he had lived for some time.
Listen: Thane Russal & Three – Security.mp3
Thanks to Mick Brill for personnel details, and to Dave Overett for additional detail.
Further reading: 1. Bruce Eder’s biography of Thane Russal at All Music which gives a good summary of his career. 2. Dave Thomson’s biography of Gary Glitter at All Music, which includes the Thane Russal sessions.
Image: New Musical Express, 4 March 1966, p.5. For detail of the small print see The Blog.
(Otis Redding)
USA
Original version
Single on Volt by revered and influential gospel-influenced singer and songwriter Otis Redding (1941-1967). His greatest hit was the posthumously-released (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay (1968, #1 USA), and his composition Respect became widely known through Aretha Franklin’s classic version (1967, #1 USA).
Further reading: Otis Redding biography by Mark Deming at All Music.
(Otis Redding)
UK
Later version
Single from the album Prehistoric Sounds, recorded in London by a band who did their own special thing back home in Brisbane then found they fitted in nicely to the emerging punk scene in England. Their breakthrough track was the astounding single Stranded (1977): ♫ View the original clip at YouTube.
This follows the Otis Redding original rather than the rearranged Thane Russal version.
Further reading: Saints history from Howlspace [archived page].
(Otis Redding)
Australia
Performance of the Thane Russal arrangement on The Go!! Show, 11 July 1966 YouTube.
Tony Shepp (Anthony Shipp, 1946-1988) was a singer, saxophonist, actor and songwriter from Adelaide who played in a number of bands including the early Clefs, and performed many times on TV’s Go!! Show. As a TV actor in the late 60s-early 70s he appeared in popular police dramas Homicide (6 episodes) and Division 4 (21 episodes as Const. Tony Grice). He released two singles, Come To Your Window on Kommotion and Come On Over To My Place on Sunshine, both in 1966.
References: 1. Tony Shepp biography and filmography at IMDb. 2. Tony Shepp biography at Music Finder.
Version alert from Andrew at Antipodean Beat.
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Website by Lyn Nuttall. © Lyn Nuttall 2004-2024. Chart positions courtesy of Gavin Ryan’s Australian Chart Books and Dean Scapolo’s Complete NZ Music Charts. Special thanks to Terry Stacey for information, corrections and suggestions. Thanks also to Tony Watson, Philippe Edouard, Dave Overett.., More…