"Wild Weekend" is an instrumental written by Phil Todaro and
Tom Shannon and performed by
The Rockin' Rebels
The Rebels (also known as The Rockin' Rebels) were a band from Buffalo, New York, known for their instrumental "Wild Weekend". The original members were Jim Kipler (Guitar), Mick Kipler (Saxophone), Tom Gorman (Drums) and Paul Balon (Bass/Guitar).
...
. It reached #8 on the
U.S. pop chart and #28 on the
U.S. R&B chart in 1963. The song was originally recorded as the theme for Shannon's show on
WKBW in
Buffalo, New York; the song title is not found in the song's original lyrics (Shannon's show aired on weekdays). and was later reworked and featured on The Rebels 1962 album ''Wild Weekend''.
The song ranked #22 on
''Billboard'' magazine's
Top 100 singles of 1963.
Other versions
*
Bill Justis released a version of the song on his 1963 album ''Bill Justis Plays 12 Instrumental Smash Hits''.
* Disc jockey
Joey Reynolds (who had worked with Shannon at WWKB) added lyrics to make this the theme song for his nightly show on WPOP, Hartford, 1963.
*
The Surfaris released a version of the song on their 1963 album ''
Wipe Out''.
*
Kim Fowley
Kim Vincent Fowley (July 21, 1939 – January 15, 2015) was the American record producer, songwriter and musician who was behind a string of novelty and cult pop rock singles in the 1960s, and managed The Runaways in the 1970s. He has been ...
released a version of the song on his 1968 album ''Born to Be Wild''.
*
Andy Mackay
Andrew Mackay (born 23 July 1946) is an English multi-instrumentalist, best known as a founding member (playing oboe and saxophone) of the art rock group Roxy Music.
In addition, he has taught music and provided scores for television, while his ...
released a version of the song as a single in 1974 in the
UK, but it did not chart. It was featured on his album ''
In Search of Eddie Riff''.
*
Jon and the Nightriders released a version of the song on their 1987 album ''Stampede!''
*
NRBQ released a version of the song as a single in 1989 with lyrics entitled "It's a Wild Weekend", but it did not chart.
*
Euphoria's Id released a live version of the song on their 2003 compilation album ''Mastering the Art of French Kissing''.
*
The Ventures released a version of the song on their 2009 compilation album with
The Fabulous Wailers entitled ''Two Car Garage (50 Years of Rock 'N Roll)''.
*
Beaver Brown released a live version of the song on their 2017 album ''Live at the Bottom Line 1980''.
The Thunderbirds (Australia) charted with a single in 1961
References
1962 songs
1962 singles
1974 singles
1989 singles
Bill Justis songs
The Surfaris songs
The Ventures songs
Swan Records singles
Island Records singles
Virgin Records singles
Surf instrumentals
1960s instrumentals
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