Shirley Ellis
Shirley Ellis (born 1941) is an American soul music singer and songwriter of West Indian origin.[1] She is best known for her novelty hits "The Nitty Gritty" (1963) (US #8), "The Name Game" (1964) (US #3) and "The Clapping Song" (1965) (US #8/UK #6). "The Clapping Song" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.[2]
By 1954 she had written two songs which were recorded by The Chords.[1] Ellis was originally in the group The Metronomes and she went on to marry the lead singer, Alphonso Elliston. All her solo hits were written by her and her manager, record producer, and songwriting partner, Lincoln Chase.
Ellis had recording contracts with the Kapp Records subsidiary Congress and later Columbia and Bell Records, but retired from the music industry in 1968.
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Cover versions [edit]
Cover versions of her hits have been recorded by Madeline Bell, The Belle Stars, Laura Branigan, Aaron Carter, Gary Glitter, Ricardo Ray, Pia Zadora, Southern Culture on the Skids, Gladys Knight and the Pips (a version of "The Nitty Gritty", produced by Norman Whitfield) as well as a 1980s high energy dance version of The Name Game by transgender actor and personality "Divine" aka. Harris Glenn Milstead.[1]
In addition, her song "Soul Time" was sampled by the UK band, The Go! Team for their single "Bottle Rocket".[3]
On the January 2, 2013 Season 2 episode of American Horror Story titled "The Name Game", the song was used in a sequence where Jessica Lange's character hallucinates herself and some of the other main characters singing and dancing to the song.
Discography [edit]
Albums [edit]
- 1964: Shirley Ellis in Action
- 1965: The Name Game
- 1967: Sugar, Let's Shing a Ling
- 1995: The Very Best of Shirley Ellis
- 2001: The Complete Congress Recordings
Singles [edit]
| Year | Single | Chart positions[4] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B |
UK[5] | ||||
| 1963 | "The Nitty Gritty" | 8 | 4 | — | ||
| 1964 | "(That's) What the Nitty Gritty Is" | 72 | 14 | — | ||
| "Shy One" | 130 | 43 | — | |||
| "The Name Game" | 3 | 4 | — | |||
| 1965 | "The Clapping Song (Clap Pat Clap Slap)" | 8 | 16 | 6 | ||
| "The Puzzle Song (A Puzzle in Song)" | 78 | — | — | |||
| "I Will Never Forget" | — | — | — | |||
| "You Better Be Good, World" | — | — | — | |||
| 1966 | "Ever See a Diver Kiss His Wife While the Bubbles Bounce About Above the Water?" | 135 | — | — | ||
| "Birds, Bees, Cupids and Bows" | — | — | — | |||
| 1967 | "Soul Time" | 67 | 31 | — | ||
| "Sugar Let’s Shing-a-Ling" | — | — | — | |||
| 1978 | "The Clapping Song" (re-release) | — | — | 59 | ||
| "—" denotes the single failed to chart | ||||||
References [edit]
- ^ a b c Rateyourmusic.com
- ^ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 190. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ diddywah.blogspot.com
- ^ "Shirley Ellis US singles chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^ "Shirley Ellis UK chart history". chartstats.com. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
External links [edit]
- Shirley Ellis Name Game Home Page
- Shirley Ellis at Allmusic
- Fansite biography
- | Biography and full discography
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