Get a Job (song)
| "Get a Job" | |
|---|---|
| Single by The Silhouettes | |
| B-side | "I Am Lonely" |
| Released | November, 1957 |
| Format | 45 rpm, 78 rpm |
| Recorded | October, 1957. Robinson Recording Laboratories, Philadelphia. |
| Genre | doo-wop, rhythm and blues, pop |
| Length | 2:25 |
| Label | Ember Records |
| Writer(s) | Silhouettes (Earl Beal, Raymond Edwards, Richard Lewis, William Horton) |
"Get a Job" is one of the best known doo-wop songs of the 1950s. Recorded by The Silhouettes in October 1957, the song reached the number one spot on the Billboard pop and R&B singles charts in February 1958.[1]
"When I was in the service in the early 1950s and didn't come home and go to work my mother said 'Get a job' and basically that's where the song came from," said tenor Richard Lewis, who wrote the lyrics.[2] The four members shared the credit, jointly creating the "sha na na" and "dip dip dip dip" hooks later imitated by other doo-wop groups.
The song was recorded at Robinson Recording Laboratories in Philadelphia in October 1957. Rollie McGill played the saxophone break and the arranger was Howard Biggs. It was released on the Junior label and Doug Moody who later formed Punk/Thrash label Mystic Records brought it to Ember Records where it was licensed for national distribution. Moody then worked with Dick Clark to get the group on American Bandstand.
The Silhouettes performed the song several times on Dick Clark's American Bandstand in early 1958, and it sold more than a million copies.
The song was later featured in the soundtracks of the movies American Graffiti, Stand By Me, the end credits for Trading Places and Joey (in which the group also performed it). The revival group Sha Na Na derived their name from the song's catchy doo-wop introduction. "Get a Job" inspired a number of answer songs, including "Got a Job", the debut recording by The Miracles. In 1999, this song was parodied in a Car Body Shop commercial.
[edit] References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 525.
- ^ Quote from Silhouettes home page Retrieved 22 August 2010
[edit] External links
- The Silhouettes tribute page
- "Get A Job"/"I Am Lonely" (7", 1958) on Discogs.com
| Preceded by "At the Hop" by Danny and the Juniors |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single "Get a Job" by The Silhouettes February 24, 1958 (2 weeks) |
Succeeded by "Don't" by Elvis Presley |
| Preceded by "At the Hop" by Danny and the Juniors |
Billboard R&B Best Sellers in Stores number-one single February 3, 1958 - March 3, 1958 (four weeks) |
Succeeded by "Sweet Little Sixteen" by Chuck Berry |
