Poison Ivy (song)
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This is about the song by The Coasters. There was also a song of that title by Faster Pussycat.
| "Poison Ivy" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The Coasters | ||||
| B-side | "I'm a Hog for You" | |||
| Released | August 1959 | |||
| Recorded | July 16, 1959 | |||
| Label | Atco 6146 | |||
| The Coasters singles chronology | ||||
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"Poison Ivy" is a popular song by American songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. It was originally recorded by The Coasters in 1959. It went to #1 on the R&B chart and #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [1]. This was their third top-ten hit of that year following "Charlie Brown" and "Along Came Jones".
The song discusses a girl named Ivy, calling her "Poison Ivy" because of her reputation with men as a player. The song makes references to other flowers such as a rose and a daisy, and diseases like measles, mumps, chickenpox, the common cold, and whooping cough. In a recently published biography about Jerry Lieber & Mike Stoller, the song's authors, it was revealed that the song's lyrics are about sexually-transmitted disease, not the illnesses previously thought.
[edit] Cover versions
- The Dave Clark Five recorded and released a version in 1963. It was released as part of an E.P. [2]
- The Paramounts recorded and released a version in 1963. It released as both a single (1963) and as part of a E.P (released 1964). The single version got to #35 on the U.K Charts. [3] [4]
- The Rolling Stones recorded two different versions in 1963, the second version appeared on the EP 'The Rolling Stones', released early 1964. The first version appeared on a 1972 compilation of the Rolling Stones called More Hot Rocks (Big Hits And Fazed Cookies).[3]
- The song was also a massive nationwide hit for Australian group Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs in 1964, famously knocking The Beatles off the #1 spot on the charts there, even though they were touring the country at the time.[3]
- The Hollies recorded a version in the 1960s
- Versions were also later recorded by, The Puppets, Manfred Mann, and The Lords in the mid-1960s.
- The Lambrettas in 1980, who performed a "ska" version of the song which reached #7 in the British charts.
- Linda McCartney recorded the song in 1987 and her cover was released on her posthumous album Wide Prairie in 1998.
- A hip-hop version was also recorded in 1988 by Young & Restless.
- It was also covered by Chris Burke.
- In 1997, a trip-hop version of the song with slightly altered lyrics was recorded by Meshell Ndegeocello. Her cover was included on the Batman & Robin soundtrack, in which Poison Ivy the villainess, was a main character.
- 60's Brazilian artist Rita Lee has recently released a cover version of "Poison Ivy" translated to Portuguese and titled "Erva Venenosa". Rita's version features a more modern approach and have played a lot on Brazilian radio.
[edit] Popular culture references
• The song is sung by Rack 'Em Willie from The Damn Show on numerous occasions
[edit] References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 125.
- ^ "The Dave Clark Five". unknown. c.late 90s-2000s. http://www.oocities.com/fabgear6366/clark.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
- ^ a b c Nuttall, Lyn (2000s). "Feature Item - poparchives.com.au - Poison Ivy". Lyn Nuttall. http://www.poparchives.com.au/feature.php?id=235. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
- ^ "The Paramounts". unknown. c.late 90s-2000s. http://www.oocities.com/fabgear6366/paramounts.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
| Preceded by "I'm Gonna Get Married" by Lloyd Price |
Billboard Hot R&B Singles number-one single October 5, 1959 (first run) |
Succeeded by "Sea of Love" by Phil Phillips with The Twilights |
| Preceded by "You Better Know It" by Jackie Wilson |
Billboard Hot R&B Singles number-one single (second run) October 26, 1959 - November 9, 1959 (three weeks) |
Succeeded by "So Many Ways" by Brook Benton |
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