"Stranded in the Jungle" is a song originally recorded by the American

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

group

the Jay Hawks The Vibrations were an American soul vocal group from Los Angeles, California, active from the mid-1950s to 1976. Most notable among the group's hit singles were " My Girl Sloopy" (1964) and "Love in Them There Hills" (1968). The quintet's me ...

. It was written by Ernestine Smith and the band's first tenor, James Johnson. The Jay Hawks' version of the song peaked at No. 18 on the ''

Billboard Magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

'' Best Selling Popular Retail Records Chart.

Cover versions

Recording cover versions of contemporary songs was standard industry practice during the 1940s and 1950s. A hit song could generate many different versions: pop and instrumental, polka, blues, hillbilly and others by a variety of artists. The American doo wop group, The Cadets, were the first to cover the Jay Hawks' hit, with the Gadabouts not far behind. All three groups proved to be

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

s, with "Stranded in the Jungle" being the only top-40 hit for any of them. The Rhythm Rockets and the Johnston Brothers (

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

to "In the Middle of the House" by the Johnston Brothers and the Keynotes) also covered it in 1956.

Cadets version

The Cadets' "Stranded in the Jungle" is likely the best known version. It sat at No. 16 on the Best Selling Popular Retail Records Chart the same week the Jay Hawks' version reached No. 18 (18 July 1956). A week later, it peaked at No. 15 on the sales chart and at No. 3 on the U.S. Rhythm and Blues chart (the Gadabouts peaked at No. 39 on the pop chart one week later). The Cadets version features spoken verses by Will "Dub" Jones (who would go on to sing bass on most of

The Coasters The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with " Searchin'" and " Young Blood" in 1957, their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producin ...

' hits) with a duet refrain by Willie Davis and Aaron Collins. It was after the second verse that Prentice Moreland delivers the line, "Great Googa Mooga! Lemme outta here!"

Later versions

The next version of "Stranded in the Jungle" came in 1965 as the B-side of the Fearsome Foursome's "Fly in the Buttermilk" single.

Shorty Long Shorty is a nickname, usually for a short person. See Shorty (nickname). Shorty may also refer to: Music Artists * Ras Shorty I, Trinidadian artist and founder of soca music. * Shorty (band), an American rock band formed in 1991 * Shorty (Ame ...

followed in 1968, and Jett Powers followed in 1970. "Stranded in the Jungle" was covered by the

New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved much commercial suc ...

on their 1974 album '' Too Much Too Soon'', and released as its lead single. It was also included on their 1994 compilation album, ''

Rock'n Roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

''. A biography on the life of their drummer

Jerry Nolan Gerard "Jerry" Nolan (May 7, 1946 – January 14, 1992) was an American rock drummer, best known for his work with the New York Dolls and The Heartbreakers. Career A native of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Nolan joined the New York Dolls in the aut ...

Curt Weiss Curt Weiss (born 10 December 1959 in Brooklyn, New York), is an American writer, television producer, and, under the name Lewis King, musician. His writing has appeared in ''Classic Drummer'' magazine, and as author of the 2017 book ''Stranded i ...

is entitled ''Stranded in the Jungle''. Dolls lead singer

David Johansen David Roger Johansen (sometimes spelled ''David Jo Hansen''; born January 9, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the seminal proto-punk band the New York Dolls. He is also known for his work under ...

included a live version of it on his 1982 album, '' Live It Up''. Other bands to make versions of "Stranded in the Jungle" include Crazy Joe and the Variable Speed Band (1981), the Mighty Flyers (1984),

Big Dipper The Big Dipper ( US, Canada) or the Plough ( UK, Ireland) is a large asterism consisting of seven bright stars of the constellation Ursa Major; six of them are of second magnitude and one, Megrez (δ), of third magnitude. Four define a "bowl ...

(1990),

The Nylons The Nylons are an a cappella group founded in 1978 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, best known for their covers of pop songs such as The Turtles' " Happy Together", Steam's " Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", and The Tokens' " The Lion Sleeps Toni ...

(1996), and

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen were an American rock band founded in 1967. The group's leader and co-founder was pianist and vocalist George Frayne IV, alias Commander Cody (born July 19, 1944 in Boise, Idaho, died September 26, 2021 ...

(2007). In 1998 the

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-based punk-rock combo

Voodoo Glow Skulls Voodoo Glow Skulls are an American ska punk band formed in 1988 in Riverside, California, by brothers Frank, Eddie, and Jorge Casillas and their longtime friend Jerry O'Neill. Voodoo Glow Skulls first played at backyard parties and later at Spa ...

covered the song but with a much faster and harder tempo. It was covered by

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by nonconformity, free-form improvisation, sound experiments, musical virtuosity and satire of A ...

during the North American leg of his 1976 tour, and released posthumously in 2009 on the album '' Philly '76''.

Gene Summers David Eugene Summers (January 3, 1939 – February 17, 2021) was an American rockabilly singer, songwriter and guitarist. His most famous recordings include the late 50s " School of Rock 'n Roll", "Straight Skirt", " Nervous", "Gotta Lotta Tha ...

released a cover version of the song on his album ''Taboo!'' released in 2011. In 2003,

Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...

embarked upon an ill-fated attempt to raise awareness of the plight of the

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

mountain gorilla The mountain gorilla (''Gorilla beringei beringei'') is one of the two subspecies of the eastern gorilla. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN as of 2018. There are two populations: One is found in the Virunga volcanic mountains of Centr ...

Central Africa Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, E ...

by reworking "

Stand and Deliver ''Stand and Deliver'' is a 1988 American drama film directed by Ramón Menéndez, written by Menéndez and Tom Musca, based on the true story of a high school mathematics teacher, Jaime Escalante. For portraying Escalante, Edward James Olmo ...

" into "Save the Gorilla." "Save the Gorilla" was part of a five track EP of jungle themed songs, "Stranded in the Jungle" included, set for release on 17 November 2003. "Stand and Deliver" co-writer

Marco Pirroni Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many ...

and

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

blocked its release just days before its intended release, and it never saw the light of day.

References

{{Authority control 1956 songs 1956 singles Modern Records singles New York Dolls songs Gene Summers songs