Twist and Shout
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"Twist and Shout" is a song originally by Phil Medley and Bert Russell. It was originally recorded by the Topnotes and the Isley Brothers and was later covered by The Beatles, with John Lennon on the lead vocals, and originally released on their first album Please Please Me. This version was recorded in a single take, a rarity in rock and roll.
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History
Isley Brothers version
The Isley Brothers' version was the first major hit recording of the song, peaking at #17 on the US pop charts, and #2 on the US R&B charts. The song, with Ronald Isley on lead vocals, quickly became a frequently covered soul music tune in the early 1960s.
Beatles version
The session in which The Beatles recorded their version of the track (in Studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios in London) is one of the most famous in the history of popular music. By the late evening of 11 February 1963 the Beatles had recorded nearly all of the material which would become their first album, Please Please Me. The session had already lasted eleven hours, but the album still needed a big track to finish on and their long-standing live favourite "Twist and Shout" fitted the bill perfectly. John Lennon was suffering from a cold and had been fighting a sore throat all day, and by this time his voice was cracking despite regular doses of cigarettes, milk, tea and cough sweets. Producer George Martin knew that they would only be able to get one take in, or two at the most, before Lennon would have no voice left at all. He had deliberately kept the song for last, knowing the demands it made on the lead vocalist's voice.
Fortunately, the Beatles rose to the occasion - everything went right on take one with Lennon's shredded voice, half singing and half screaming the lead vocal, providing a memorably harsh, energetic quality which made the recording an instant classic and a turning point in the band's career as well as in British rock and roll in general. This raw first take appears without overdubs on Please Please Me. While a second take was also recorded, the first take proved to be superior and is easily the standout track on the album. John Lennon said later that his voice was not the same for a long time afterwards, and that "every time I swallowed, it felt like sandpaper".
The Beatles' cover eventually hit #1 on both the UK and US pop charts.
Impact
The Beatles's version enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in 1986 after Matthew Broderick lip synced it in the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off and introduced it to a new generation of listeners.