Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu
| "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Huey "Piano" Smith | ||||
| A-side | "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (Part 1) | |||
| B-side | "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (Part 2) | |||
| Released | August 1957 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll | |||
| Length | 2:14 | |||
| Label | Ace | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Huey "Piano" Smith singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube | ||||
"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" is a song written and originally recorded in 1957 by Huey "Piano" Smith, who scored a minor Billboard hit with it, peaking at No. 52 on the Top 100 chart, and a more successful No. 5 on the Most Played R&B by Jockeys chart.[1]
Background
The title is a reference to "walking" pneumonia and the Asian flu, which hit the United States in 1957–58. The lyrics recount the predicament of the singer who would like to approach a woman he sees in a club (or "joint"), but is unsuccessful due to his musical ailments.
Musician credits
- Huey "Piano" Smith – piano
- Sidney Rayfield – vocals
- "Scarface" John Williams – vocals
- Lee Allen – tenor saxophone
- Alvin "Red" Tyler – baritone saxophone
- Earl King – guitar
- Frank Fields – bass
- Charles "Hungry" Williams – drums[2][3]
Johnny Rivers recording
| "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side A of the US single release | ||||
| Single by Johnny Rivers | ||||
| from the album L.A. Reggae | ||||
| B-side | "Come Home America" | |||
| Released | September 1972[4] | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Genre | Blues rock, electric blues | |||
| Length | 3:30 | |||
| Label | United Artists | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Johnny Rivers | |||
| Johnny Rivers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
1972 saw the song become an international hit single for Johnny Rivers, featuring Larry Knechtel on piano as well as other Los Angeles session musicians from the Wrecking Crew.[5] "Rockin' Pneumonia" reached No.6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 during the winter of 1973. It was Rivers' fifth highest charting song and spent a longer time on the chart (19 weeks) than any of his two dozen hits to that date. On the U.S. Cash Box Top 100 the song peaked at No. 5, and in Canada it reached No. 3.[6]
"Rockin' Pneumonia" gave Rivers his third gold record. His final gold record would be with the 1977 hit "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancing)".
Chart performance
Other cover versions
- Larry Williams, in 1957, on Specialty Records, with a back-up band including René Hall, guitar, Earl Palmer, drums, and Plas Johnson, tenor sax.[14]
- The Crickets, on their 1960 album In Style with the Crickets.[15]
- Paul Peek, on his 1966 single for Columbia Records (4-43527).[16]
- Flamin' Groovies, in 1969, on their debut album Supersnazz,[17] and again on their second album Flamingo, in 1970.[18]
- Grateful Dead, on their Europe '72 tour at the Strand Lyceum, London, England, 23 and 24 May 1972.
- Family, in their January 26, 1973 radio concert on the BBC, released in 1991 as BBC Radio 1: Live in Concert.[19]
- Professor Longhair, in 1974, released in 1997 on his album Rock 'n Roll Gumbo.[20]
- Billy Vera, on his 1976 album Backdoor Man and his 2006 album Blue-Eyed Soul Man.[21]
- James Booker, on his albums Gonzo: Live 1976 [22] and King of New Orleans Keyboard.[23]
- Patti LaBelle recorded the song for her 1981 album, The Spirit's in It.[24]
- Aerosmith, in 1987, for the Less than Zero soundtrack.[25]
- Deep Purple, on their 2021 album Turning to Crime.[26]
References
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 535.
- ↑ [The Blues Discography 1943–1970 The Classic Years, Les Fancourt & Bob McGrath (Eyeball Productions)]
- ↑ Huey "Piano" Smith And The Rocking Pneumonia Blues, Author: John Wirt, LSU Press, 2014, P. 49
- ↑ "Johnny Rivers – Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu". 45cat.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ↑ Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew. St. Martin’s Griffin. pp. 261–263. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7.
- ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
- 1 2 "Song artist 376 – Johnny Rivers". Tsort.info. 2007-10-08. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
- ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Image 4260". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
- ↑ "flavour of new zealand – search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
- ↑ "Rockin' Pneumonia - Boogie Woogie Flu (song by Johnny Rivers)". MusicVF.com. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
- ↑ "Cash Box Top 100 1/13/73". Cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 18 February 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
- ↑ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles – 1973". Cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ↑ Larry Williams: Bad Boy The Legends of Specialty Records, Speciality Records 1989, liner notes
- ↑ "The Crickets: In Style with the Crickets" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ↑ "Paul Peek - Pin The Tail On The Donkey" – via www.45cat.com.
- ↑ "Flamin' Groovies: Supersnazz".
- ↑ "Flamin' Groovies: Flamingo" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ↑ "FAMILY - BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1991)". Progarchives.com.
- ↑ Rock 'n Roll Gumbo, retrieved 2021-05-02
- ↑ https://www.allmusic.com/album/blue-eyed-soul-man-mw0002379301
- ↑ Gonzo: Live 1976, Rockbeat Records, 2014-11-18, retrieved 2018-09-14
- ↑ King of the New Orleans Keyboard, Jsp Records, 2000, retrieved 2018-09-14
- ↑ "Patti LaBelle: The Spirit's in It" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ↑ "Original Soundtrack: Less Than Zero" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ↑ "Deep Purple – Turning to Crime". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
External links
- Listen to "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube (Huey "Piano" Smith)
- Listen to "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube (Johnny Rivers)