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I was listening to some hit oldies the other day and purely by accident, I realized at least five of them contained some part of the record where the artist was speaking instead of singing.
The first one was “San Franciscan Nights,” in which Eric Burdon advises the “viewer” (an odd reference in a non-visual medium like a record) to buy a ticket on Trans World Airlines and head to the city right away. This monologue takes up the first 40 seconds or so of the 3:20 tune!
Then they played “Don’t Just Stand There,” by Patty Duke, who in the middle of the tune, starts pleading with her boyfriend, “Why can’t you just say it?” all in her best speaking voice.
Later on, I heard one of the longest speaking parts of any record I can remember - “Atlantis” by Donovan, which starts with him telling the story of the mythical island under the sea. It goes on and on and on, before they get to the meat of the song. One of my favorites, but the intro goes on for eternity.
“Hey St. Peter” by Flash & The Pan also contains a moment where the singing stops and the talking begins. So does Meatloaf’s infamous “Paradise By The Dashboard Light,” when Phil Rizzuto’s does the baseball play-by-play.
Elvis Presley’s “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” contains a long passage in which The King launches into a soliloquy, noting, “Someone once said ‘All the World’s A Stage.’” Yeah, someone named Shakespeare! That’s always bugged me, but I guess the Bard’s name wouldn’t exactly have fit in the lyrics.
There must be more of these, but I can’t think of them. Any others come to mind?
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Good topic. I tend to find it interesting when singers choose to do this, with the exception of Atlantis where I think that spoken intro was way too long. I would have liked the song better if Donovan had gone back and forth between singing the chorus and speaking those words as three or four separate verses. Anyway, here are some that I like.
Honey Come Back - Glen Campbell
Starting All Over Again - Mel and Tim (long version)
Have You Seen Her - The Chi-Lites
Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Diana Ross
Kiss And Say Goodbye - The Manhattans
Proud Mary - Tina and Ike Turner (deliberately flipping the order there to reflect who deserved top billing)
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Not sure if this qualifies but it's certainly close:
Hot Rod Lincoln by Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen.
I'm not sure you could consider what he did on that song as singing.
Also, there's "My Girl Bill," by Jim Stafford, which - except for the hooky chorus - is all talk throughout the entire record. In fact, most of Jim Stafford's hits were like that.
Same with Jerry Reed on "When You're Hot You're Hot" and his initial charter, "Amos Moses."
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Well, the last thing I remember Doc, I started to swerve
And then I saw the Jag slide into the curve...
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Hello, baby
Yeah, this is the Big Bopper speakin'
Ha ha ha ha ha
Oh, you sweet thing
Do I what? Will I what?
Oh baby, you know what I like
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Soul & Inspiration by The Righteous Brothers
Chestnut Mare by the Byrds from their "Untitled" album
Two of my top songs from each corresponding group
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Lorne Greene's "Ringo." He never sings a note in any part of the song. Probably borderline for this category.
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N
Taz wrote:
Hello, baby
Yeah, this is the Big Bopper speakin'
Ha ha ha ha ha
Oh, you sweet thing
Do I what? Will I what?
Oh baby, you know what I like
Not a very big Jerry Lee fan, but I have to put this one on here, because I just loved the SHITt out of it.
"What;s that baby, pick you up at eighT and don't be laTe.. I thought you might pick ME up at eight and don't be late."
Andthe later part I never could attribute to anything
"Ya yap and yap and yap and yap was just Jerry Lee,being Jerry Lee/
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The Little Blue Man - Betty Johnson
The singer doesn't talk but another voice does.
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Few more
Rip Van Winkle - The Devotions
Lazy Mary - Lou Monte
Pepino the Italian Mouse - Lou Monte
Loving You Has Made Me Bananas - Guy Marks
I'm Henry The VIII, I Am - Herman's Hermits
The Chipmunk Song – Chipmunks
Beans In My Ears - Serendipity Singers
My Boomerang Won't Come Back - Charlie Drake
Speedy Gonzales - Pat Boone
The Boll Weevil Song - Brook Benton
Big Bopper's Wedding - The Big Bopper
Leader of the Pack - Shangri-Las
A Boy Named Sue - Johnny Cash
The Streak - Ray Stevens
Big Boy Pete - Olympics
Her Royal Majesty - James Darren
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Hey, Bobba Needle - Chubby Checker
On Top Of Spaghetti - Tom Glazer & The Do-Re-Mi Children's Chorus
Deep Purple - Nino Tempo & April Stevens
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One of the biggest...."Convoy" by C. W. McCall (and about everything else he did)"
"Uneasy Rider"...Charlie Daniels
"Whoever Finds This, I Love You"....Mac Davis (one of my favorites)
"Ebony Eyes"....Everly Brothers
...And one with no singing but I have to mention it...
"Delicious"...Jim Backus
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Slightly obscure, but it did reach #12 on Billboard in 1967 - Miriam Makeba's Pata Pata. Towards the end of the song, she breaks out into a short speech about how they celebrate the dance they "do down Johannesburg way." It was her only charted North American hit that amounted to anything.
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OK, it’s been a while but I just thought of Desert Pete by The Kingston Trio.
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As much as I don't like either
Big John & PT109......Jimmy Dean
AS a joke anything by William Shatner
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Polk Salad ....Tony Joe White, Elvis
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Here are five more - each one starts with spoken words at the beginning of the song:
I'm So Young - The Students
He's Sure the Boy I love - Darlene Love
Take Good Care of My Baby - Bobby Vee
My Boyfriend's Back - The Angels
Dawn (Go Away) - The Four Seasons
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As I wander through the day, my mind will suddenly just think of one or two. I can't remember most of them, but here's a few more to the list....
Detroit City...Bobby Bare
500 Miles.... " "
Still.....Whisperin' Bill Anderson
Sweet Nothin's... Brenda Lee
It may not be talking, but it dang sure ain't singing....
'I AM THE GOD OF HELL FIRE AND I BRING YOU FIRE!!!"...Crazy World of Arthur Brown
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Heard one today
Limbo Rock ....Chubby Checker......."Don't touch that bar, you'll be a limbo star....how low can you go"