you know that song that goes 'naa, na na na naa, na na na naa na na naa na na naa, na na na naa'?

[derien]

Eor fixed my email night before last, so yesterday I was able to write email to my coworkers about a song which they'd all been trying to place.


(Sorry I couldn't write last night, my email was down.)

The song we were wondering about, yesterday, was Land of a Thousand Dances, originally by Chris Kenner.  The reason memory is so confused is that it is really a standard, covered by just about everybody and used in several movies as well as at least one commercial.  Details here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_of_a_Thousand_Dances

Or, alternatively, Land of 1000 Dances.  The original introduction by Kenner, eliminated in most covers, went:
"I'm gonna take you, baby, I'm gonna take you to a place. The name of the place is the Land of a Thousand Dances."
( http://www.tsimon.com/land.htm )

If you can use YouTube there's a bunch of videos there, which I checked just to make sure it was the right song.  Here's a link to one by Wilson Pickett (I think it doesn't translate so well to video, but it must have been an amazing concert to be at): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdi1_Es85fA

According to some people the 'na na na naa' chant was added by Cannibal and the Headhunters http://www.frankiegarciascannibalandtheheadhunters.com/about_us.html
when they couldn't remember the words in their recording session.  Which would make it one of the great mistakes of all time, if it's true, since that's the part of the song everyone really loves and remembers.

The pared down lyrics, basically it's just listing dances if you take away the personalizing and grandstanding which is the art of any good musician...

Got to know how to pony
Like Bony Maronie
Mash potato, do the alligator
Put your hand on your hips, yeah
Let your backbone slip
Do the Watusi
Like my little Lucy

Na na-na-na-na na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na na-na-na-na
I need somebody to help me say it one time
(Na na-na-na-na na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na na-na-na-na )

Na na-na-na-na na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na na-na-na-na
Come on y'all, let's say it one more time
(Na na-na-na-na na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na na-na-na-na )

Playing, it is a habit
With long tall Sally
Twistin' with Lucy
Doin' the Watusi
Roll over on your back
I like it like that
Do that Jerk-uh
Watch me work y'all




I think they're all just confused as to why I would spend so much time on such a thing, but it's way too easy for me to just lock into something like that, early in the morning. This really caught me because of the extent to which this pretty basic chant is so ingrained into the consciousness of people in this culture. YouTube has videos of garage bands covering it, cheerleaders and marching bands doing it at sporting events, and everyone recognizes it, yet nobody consciously knows the name or the words. I suspect this sort of effect is what is actually meant by the word 'meme.'

Yeah, I'm way too tired, still. And we've decided to go to the Bodies exhibit tomorrow, after all. I've refused to wake up before 8am, though, so I made the reservation for noon. ;)

Comments

[sospan-fach.livejournal.com]

It had other lyrics? o.o

Well, I have learned something new today... Fascinating! Amazing how songs can mutate so fluidly.