Tag: Honeydrippers

Honeydrippers – Rockin’ At Midnight

Back in the ’80s, I remember seeing this band on SNL. Of course, the big thing at the time was that Page and Plant were working together again, although not with Zeppelin. I loved their sound, and I went out and bought the single Sea Of Love. 

You know what I liked most about these recordings by the Honeydrippers? Rather than modernizing the song, they kept the arrangement close to the spirit of the original. The horns, piano, and guitar all feel like a small-club sound. It doesn’t have a huge, polished studio production.

This song was first written and recorded by Roy Brown in 1949. Brown’s version had that jump-blues energy that helped bridge swing music into early rock and roll. Roy’s original version peaked at #13 on the US R&B charts. Little Richard has mentioned Roy Brown as a huge influence. 

I first really found out about Plant and his love of rockabilly through The Concert of Kampuchea. He sang the Elvis song Little Sister with Rockpile. Great performance of that song. So, when I heard the Honeydrippers, it sounded totally in place. Robert Plant had been talking for years about his love of early R&B and jump blues, the records he grew up with before Led Zeppelin. The Honeydrippers project gave him a way to step outside Zeppelin’s shadow and record the kind of songs that first got him interested in music.

The band’s floating members were incredible. Robbie Blunt was one, and he did a lot of great work on Plant’s solo music. To me, his guitar playing was just as identifiable as Plant’s voice; it was that important in Plant’s music. I would say the same thing about James Wisely, whose guitar playing was just as important to Chris Isaak.  Other members included Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Nile Rodgers, Brian Setzer, Paul Shaffer, and many more. Talent was not an issue for this band. 

Their album The Honeydrippers: Volume One peaked at #4 on the Billboard Album Charts, #40 in Canada, and #56 in the UK in 1984. The song peaked at #25 on the Billboard 100 and #18 in Canada. 

A concert by The Honeydrippers

Rockin’ At Midnight

Have you heard the news?
There’s good rockin’ at midnight
Oh, I’m gonna hold my baby
With all my might
What a wonderful time we had that night
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Have you heard the news?
There’s good rockin’ at midnight
Oh, I’m gonna hold my baby
With all my might
What a wonderful time we had that night
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Now, sweet Charlie Brown and sweet Lorraine
They got caught on Caledonia’s land
Sioux City Sue, she told it all
Those fellas got drunk and they had a ball
Crying hey, hey
Good rockin’ at midnight

Well, two times

Well, I tell y’all about now Deacon John
He got so high they had to take him home
Hear the news about Ella Brown
He stole a chicken and he ran out of town
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Caledonia got drunk and grinning like a pig
She fell down and she lost her wig
Charlie Brown she laughed and she got sick
Caledonia got mad and grabbed a brick
Crying hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Oh now let’s go two times

Oh yeah

Oh yeah, wanna tell you all about now Deacon John
He got so high they had to take him home
Here’s the news about Ella Brown
He stole a lot of chickens and he ran out of town
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Now, now, now Caledonia got drunk and grinning like a pig
She fell down and lost her wig
Charlie Brown she laughed and she got sick
Caledonia got mad and grabbed a brick
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Uh, mm, rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock

Well yeah I’m gonna rock
Gonna rock
We gonna rock
Ooh-hoo yeah we’re gonna rock
We’re gonna rock
There’s still rockin’ at midnight, midnight, midnight, midnight, yeah oh

Let’s go out ah

Now sweet Charlie Brown and sweet Lorraine
They got caught on Caledonia’s land
Soon pretty soon they told it all
Those girls got drunk and they had a ball
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

We gonna rock
We gonna rock
Yeah-es we gonna rock
Now, now, now we gonna rock
We gonna rock
Ooh-ah-yeah
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah

Honeydrippers – Sea of Love

I immediately liked this song when I heard it in 1984.  The song originally was by Phil Phillips with the Twilights and they took it to #2 in 1959. Phil Phillips and George Khoury wrote this song. I knew Robert Plant wanted to distance himself from the hard sounds of Led Zeppelin when I heard this. I went out and immediately bought the single.

This version of the Honeydrippers included Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck. I had forgotten that Brian Setzer was in it also but it makes complete sense.  The members were…

Robert Plant – vocals
Jimmy Page – guitars
Jeff Beck – guitars
Paul Shaffer – keyboard
Nile Rodgers – guitar, co-producer
Wayne Pedzwater – bass
Dave Weckl – drums
Brian Setzer – guitar
Keith “Bev” Smith – Drums

That is some kind of band… a lot of great players in famous bands in this group. The song peaked at #1 in Canada, #3 on the Billboard 100, #12 in New Zealand, and #56 in the UK.

Robert Plant was actually quite horrified with this song’s success for The Honeydrippers. The A-side was “Rockin’ At Midnight,” with “Sea of Love” as the B-side. But the single got flipped. Plant feared that this would destroy his reputation and he would be typecast as a crooner, so he deliberately cut off the career of the Honeydrippers.

He thought about bringing them back in the 21st century with Ahmet Ertegün, but at the latter’s passing Plant put the idea on permanent hold. Robert can really sing those 50s hits quite well. I remember seeing him on the broadcast of the Concert for Kampuchea playing with Rockpile.

“Sea Of Love”
Do you remember when we met?
That’s the day I knew you were my pet
I wanna tell you how much I love you

Come with me, my love, to the sea
The sea of love
I wanna tell you just how much I love you
Come with me to the sea of love

Do you remember when we met?
Oh, that’s the day I knew you were my pet
I wanna tell you, oh, how much I love you

Come with me to the sea of love
Come with me, my love, to the sea
The sea of love
I wanna tell you just how much I love you
I wanna tell you, oh, how much I love you