The Little Black Egg

"The Little Black Egg"
Song by The Nightcrawlers
Released 1965
Genre Folk rock, Bubblegum pop, Garage rock
Length 2:45[1]
Label Lee Records[2]

"The Little Black Egg" is a song first performed by Daytona Beach, Florida garage band The Nightcrawlers in 1965.[1] It reached number 85 on the Billboard charts in 1967,[3] and has been since covered by multiple artists including The Lemonheads, Tarnation and The Cars. It was The Nightcrawlers' only hit.[4]

Original recording

Allmusic review Matthew Greenwald describes the song as a "slightly bizarre nursery rhyme", with lyrics about a rotten bird's egg.[1] The song was originally recorded in 1965 by sound engineer Lee Hazen and released on Hazen's record label Lee Records;[2] the 1965 release became a regional hit in The Nightcrawlers' home state of Florida and in the Midwest.[1] The song was re-released on Kapp Records in 1966[2] and charted nationally (reaching number 85 on Billboard's Top Pop Singles chart) the following year.[3]

Other versions

In 1981, during recording sessions for Shake It Up, members of The Cars recorded a version of "The Little Black Egg" featuring Ric Ocasek on lead vocals.[5] The song was later stripped of Ocasek's vocals and re-sung by fashion model Bebe Buell, whom Ocasek had befriended.[5] The version with Buell's vocals was included on her 1981 EP Covers Girl;[6] the Cars version was released on 1995's Just What I Needed anthology.[7]

Other recordings of "The Little Black Egg" include a 1991 version by The Primitives, released on their Galore album;[8] a 1993 version by The Lemonheads, released on their Into Your Arms CD single;[9] and a 1997 version by the Paula Frazer-led country band Tarnation, released on their Mirador album.[10] Allmusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine described the Tarnation version of "The Little Black Egg" as a highlight of Mirador.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Greenwald, Matthew. "The Nightcrawlers: The Little Black Egg". allmusic. http://allmusic.com/song/the-little-black-egg-t4342253. Retrieved January 24, 2011. 
  2. ^ a b c Poe, Randy (September 1, 2006). Skydog: the Duane Allman story. Backbeat Books. p. 20. ISBN 0879308915. http://books.google.com/books?id=nBC5wukMKXIC&lpg=PP1&ots=Lg4cI8LFyN&dq=%22The%20Little%20Black%20Egg%22&lr&pg=PA20#v=onepage&q=%22The%20Little%20Black%20Egg%22&f=false. 
  3. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (June 1, 2004). Joel Whitburn's top pop singles 1955-2002. Record Research Inc.. p. 511. ISBN 0898201551. http://books.google.com/books?id=PSYKAQAAMAAJ&q=%22The+Little+Black+Egg%22&dq=%22The+Little+Black+Egg%22&hl=en&ei=IDg_TeXsGIT68AbNyeHiCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CEUQ6AEwCDgU. 
  4. ^ Jancik, Wayne (1998). The Billboard book of one-hit wonders. Billboard Books. p. 223. ISBN 0823076229. 
  5. ^ a b Milano, Brett (1995). Album notes for Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology by The Cars, pp. 16–17. Rhino Records.
  6. ^ Buell, Bebe; Bockris, Victor (July 19, 2002). Rebel Heart: An American Rock 'n' Roll Journey. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 368. ISBN 0312301553. http://books.google.com/books?id=gORJt0vP6z0C&pg=PA368&dq=funtime+%2B%22Iggy+Pop%22&hl=en&ei=kbs8TczLCYGglAfG-8ioBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDsQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=funtime&f=false. 
  7. ^ Prato, Greg. "The Cars: Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology". allmusic. http://allmusic.com/album/just-what-i-needed-the-cars-anthology-r226720. Retrieved January 24, 2011. 
  8. ^ "The Primitives: Galore". allmusic. http://allmusic.com/album/galore-r593414. Retrieved January 25, 2011. 
  9. ^ Ankeny, Jason. "The Lemonheads: Into Your Arms (CD Single)". allmusic. http://allmusic.com/album/into-your-arms-cd-single-r334998. Retrieved January 24, 2011. 
  10. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Tarnation: Mirador". allmusic. http://allmusic.com/album/mirador-r259546. Retrieved January 24, 2011.