The Cuba Libre (, , "Free Cuba") is a highball made of cola, lime, and white rum. This highball is often referred to as a Rum and Coke in the United States and Canada, where the lime juice is optional.

History

Accounts of the invention of the Cuba Libre vary. One account claims that the drink (Spanish for ''Free Cuba'') was invented in Havana, Cuba around 1901/1902. Patriots aiding Cuba during the Spanish-American War — and, later, expatriates avoiding Prohibition — regularly mixed rum and cola as a highball and a toast to this West Indies island.

According to Bacardi:

The world's second most popular drink was born in a collision between the United States and Spain. It happened during the Spanish-American War at the turn of the century when Teddy Roosevelt, the Rough Riders, and Americans in large numbers arrived in Cuba. One afternoon, a group of off-duty soldiers from the U.S. Signal Corps were gathered in a bar in Old Havana. Fausto Rodriguez, a young messenger, later recalled that Captain Russell came in and ordered Bacardi (Gold) rum and Coca-Cola on ice with a wedge of lime. The captain drank the concoction with such pleasure that it sparked the interest of the soldiers around him. They had the bartender prepare a round of the captain's drink for them. The Bacardi rum and Coke was an instant hit. As it does to this day, the drink united the crowd in a spirit of fun and good fellowship. When they ordered another round, one soldier suggested that they toast ''¡Por Cuba Libre!'' in celebration of the newly freed Cuba. The captain raised his glass and sang out the battle cry that had inspired Cuba's victorious soldiers in the War of Independence.

However, there are some problems with Bacardi's account, as the Spanish-American war was fought in 1898, Cuba's liberation was in 1898, and the Rough Riders left Cuba in September 1898, but Coca-Cola was not available in Cuba until 1900. According to a 1965 deposition by Fausto Rodriguez, the Cuba Libre was first mixed at a Cuban bar in August 1900 by a member of the U.S. Signal Corps, referred to as "John Doe".

According to Havana Club:

Along with the Mojito and the Daiquiri, the Cuba Libre shares the mystery of its exact origin. The only certainty is that this cocktail was first sipped in Cuba. The year? 1900. 1900 is generally said to be the year that cola first came to Cuba, introduced to the island by American troops. But “Cuba Libre!” was the battle cry of the Cuba Liberation Army during the war of independence that ended in 1898.

Popularity

This drink was once viewed as exotic, with its dark syrup, made (at that time) from cola nuts and coca.

Soon enough, as Charles H. Baker, Jr. points out in his ''Gentlemen's Companion'' of 1934, the Cuba Libre "caught on everywhere throughout the [American] South ... filtered through the North and West," aided by the ample supply of its ingredients. In ''The American Language'', 1921, H.L. Mencken writes of an early variation of the drink: "The troglodytes of western South Carolina coined 'jump stiddy' for a mixture of Coca-Cola and denatured alcohol (usually drawn from automobile radiators); connoisseurs reputedly preferred the taste of what had been aged in Model-T Fords."

The drink gained further popularity in the United States after the Andrews Sisters recorded a song (in 1945) named after the drink's ingredients, "Rum and Coca-Cola". Cola and rum were both cheap at the time and this also contributed to the widespread popularity of the concoction.

Recipe variations

The Cuba Pintada ("stained Cuba") is one part rum with two parts club soda and just enough cola so that it tints the club soda. The Cuba Campechana ("straightforward Cuba") contains one part rum topped off with equal parts of club soda and cola. They are both popular refreshments, especially among young people.

A recent variation is the Coppertone which uses Malibu Rum (rum with a natural coconut extract) and Cherry Coke for the cola component. The resulting drink smells like suntan lotion and the name is an allusion to that.

Other recent variations are the Cuba Light made with rum and Diet Coke, and the Witch Doctor made with dark rum and Dr. Pepper.

Another variation of the Cuba Libre is the Cuban Missile Crisis. Compared to a normal Cuba Libre, it uses a higher proof rum, such as Bacardi 151 (75.5%).

A variation of the Cuba Libre popular in the West Indies is a “Hot” Cuba Libre which includes a splash of Caribbean hot sauce (for example, Capt'n Sleepy's Quintessential Habanero, or Matouk's).

Some people substitute Cream Soda and spiced rum to create a bright gold drink, often referred to as a Midas.

Another recent variation is the Venezuela Libre, inspired by the increasing cooperation between the governments of Venezuela and Cuba. It has of Venezuelan White Rum, of Venezuelan Gold Rum, of lemon mix, 1 lemon wedge and a dash of angostura bitters, and diet cola in place of normal cola.

Local variations

The drink's name has evolved somewhat in both Cuba and the United States, where some choose to refer to it as a Mentirita ("a little lie"), in an opinionated reference to Cuban politics.

In Australia, the more popularly known drink is simply Rum and Coke or "Rumbo", which contains no lime, commonly uses a local dark rum and can be purchased in cans as a ready-to-drink. However, the combination of light rum, brown sugar and cola is commonly ordered at cocktail bars as a ''Cuba Libre''.

In Brazil, there is another variation, made with "cachaça" and lemon without peeling.

In Britain, the drink is most commonly served without the lime juice and ordered simply as a Bacardi and Coke . When the lime juice is included and rubbed around the rim of the glass it can be known as a Lou Bega, after the popular singer.

In Chile and Argentina, Chile, and Spain, Cuba Libre is also called "Ron-Cola" and "Cubata".

In Dominican Republic, it is the most popular drink to enjoy, poured with a very generous amount of locally produced Dominican Rum (i.e. Brugal, Bermúdez, and so on.) and Coke, topped off with a slice of lime. Domincans often call "cuba libre" "mentirilla" or little lie as a joke, it all started at the end of the cold war.

In Greece Thessaloniki, there is another variant, that consists of "retsina" and cola, named "tumba libre". "Tumba" is the name of a neighborhood in Thessaloniki.

In the Netherlands the drink is commonly called Baco, from the two ingredients of Bacardi rum and cola.

In Nicaragua, when it is mixed using Flor de Caña (the national brand of rum) and cola, it is called a Nica Libre.

In Peru, a variation called Peru Libre is made with pisco rather than rum.

In Poland, when it is mixed using Burn and rum, it is called a Poland Libre. This, because Burn is a popular drink to mix in Poland and the drink turns red (the color of Poland).

In Russia Cuba Libre without the lime juice is called Rock-n-Roll Star, after a popular song that features the recipe. Any distilled spirit could be substituted for a rum in a pinch, but these variations generally don't have any specific names. In Venezuela the Cuba Libre Preparado ("Prepared Cuba Libre") includes a dash of gin and a dash of Angostura bitters.

References

Category:Cocktails with rum Category:Cuban cuisine

ar:كوبا ليبر bg:Куба Либре ca:Cuba libre cs:Cuba Libre da:Cuba Libre de:Cuba Libre es:Cubalibre fa:کوبا لیبره fr:Cuba libre it:Cuba libre he:קובה ליברה ka:კუბა ლიბრე mk:Куба либре (коктел) nl:Cuba libre ja:キューバ・リブレ no:Cuba libre pl:Cuba Libre pt:Cuba Libre ro:Cuba Libre ru:Куба либре (коктейль) simple:Cuba libre sk:Cuba Libre sl:Cuba Libre fi:Cuba Libre sv:Cuba Libre

Coordinates	29°25′″N98°30′″N
Name	Dame Grease
Birth name	Damon Blackmon
Origin	Harlem, New York
Instrument	Korg keyboard, sampler
Genre	Hip hop
Occupation	Record producer, Producer, record executive
Years active	1997–present
Label	Vacant Lot Productions , Lotmusik, Babygrande Records
Associates acts	DMX, Styles P
background	non_vocal_instrumentalist }}

Damon Blackmon, or Dame Grease, is a Harlem, New York based video and music producer.

Before becoming a staple on every mixtape, The LOX relied on the sounds of Grease in order to acquire the street buzz that landed them their deal on Bad Boy Records in 1996. Fellow Bad Boy Mase sought out Grease’s distinctive sound and gave him the opportunity to provide production on Mase’s triple platinum Harlem World. This led to Grease’s work as the primary producer on DMX’s classic debut It's Dark and Hell Is Hot, where Grease helped the Ruff Ryders mold both their image and their sound into what would become one of the most well-known hip hop crews. During this time, Grease taught and paved the way for Swizz Beatz, another sample-free producer, to make his mark on the game.

Movie soundtracks

As Swizz began to make his mark through the teaching of his mentor, Dame Grease landed a deal with Priority Records to release music through his label, Vacant Lot. Rather than accept offers to be one of Puff Daddy’s legendary Hit Men or an in-house producer on Ruff Ryders, Grease chose to create his own Vacant Lot production company. In 2001, Dame Grease made the accession from producer to composer by providing the score for the Steven Seagal/DMX blockbuster Exit Wounds. In addition to his work on the film, Dame Grease also reunited with DMX on the soundtrack for X’s top-ten hit "Ain’t No Sunshine", an updated, yet much darker remake to the Bill Withers 1972 classic of the same name. Grease continued his work as a composer in on the 2003 box-office hit Cradle 2 the Grave, starring Jet Li, DMX, Gabrielle Union, and Anthony Anderson, as well as 2004’s Never Die Alone.

Grease may have been focused on scoring films, but he also made time in his schedule to put in work on several music projects throughout 2004 and 2005, including albums from LL Cool J, Kelis, DJ Kay Slay, DJ Envy, Slick Rick, Ol’ Dirty , and an artist on Dr. Dre’s Aftermath label named Aimee Terrin. Grease also kept the underground bubbling with “Crown Me,” a collaboration between T.I., Cam’ron, & Juelz Santana. In 2006, Dame Grease lent his hand to “Life Be My Song,” one of the most acclaimed tracks on DMX’s comeback album Year of the Dog…Again.

Discography

Freeway Feat. Jay-Z - 2007

:*"Big Spender"

DJ Drama - 2007

:*"Takin Pictures"

DJ Dame Grease Feat. Nore & Styles P.- 2007

:*"Sour Diesel"

Hell Rell - 2007

:*"Streets Gonna Luv Me"

Das Racist

:*"Rooftop"

DMX

:*"Get At Me Dog" :*"Here We Go Again Intro" :*"Walk These Dogs" :*"My Song :*"Who That" :*"Get Mines" :*"School Street" :*"Shorty Was The Bomb" :*"Trina Moe" :*"D-X-L (Hard White)" :*"Fame" :*"Dogs 4 Life" :*"Fuckin' Wit' D" :*"Look Thru My Eyes" :*"Let Me Fly" :*"X is Coming" :*"Damien" :*"Stop Being Greedy" :*"ATF" :*"For My Dogs" :*"Convo" :*"How's It Goin' Down" :*"I Can Feel It" :*"Niggas Done Started Somethin'"

The LOX

:*"Tribute To The Notorious B.I.G. We'll Always Love Big Poppa"

Mary J. Blige

:*"Dance With Me"

LL Cool J

:*"1 In The Mornin'"

Kelis

:*"Stick Up"

Eve

:*"You Ain't Gettin' None"

NAS

:*"Some Of Us Have Angels" :*"God Loves Us" :*"Quiet Niggas" :*"Ghetto Prisoners"

DMX (MTV Presents Def Jam: Let The People Speak)

:*"Get At Me Dog"

Year Of The Dog Again

:*"Intro" :*"Walk These Dogs" :*"Life Be My Song" :*"Who Dat" (International bonus track)

JR Writer "History In The Making"

:*"Zoolander"

Capone 'N Noreaga

:*"You Can't Kill Me"

Funkmaster Flex Featuring Cam'ron And Juelz Santana

:*"It's Nothing"

Harlem World

:*"Pointing Fingers" :*"Meaning Of Family"

Mase

:*"Niggas Wanna Act" :*"Bad Boy 1997"

Wu Tang Clan

:*"And You Don't Stop"

Fat Joe

:*"Triplets"

The LOX

:*"If You Think I'm Jiggy" :*"Let's Start Rap Over" :*"Not To Bed With" :*"We'll Always Love Big Poppa"

Das-EFX

:*"Greezy"

Tricky With DJ Muggs & Grease

:*"Hot Like A Sauna" :*"I Like The Girls" :*"For Real" :*"Bom Diggy"

Mixtapes

:*Dame Grease ::*’’Live on Lenox’’

:*DJ Kay Slay (‘’The Street Sweeper Vol. 1 Champions’’) ::*"Coast To Coast Gangstas"

:*Smack The Album Volume 1 ::*"Gonna Get Mine - DMX"

Movies/Soundtracks

:*Turn It Up (New Line Home Entertainment 2000) ::*"Ja Rule, Pras, Robert Adetuyi"

:*’’Exit Wounds’’ (Warner Home Video 2001) - Producer ::*"Steven Segal, Dmx, Andrzej Bartkowiak"

:*’’Cradle 2 the Grave’’ (Warner Home Video 2003) - Producer ::*"Jet Li, Dmx, Andrzej Bartkowiak"

:*’’Never Die Alone’’ ( Fox Home Entertainment 2004) "DMX, David Arquette , Ernest R. Dickerson"

:*’’Hood Near You Radio’’ Mixtape-Giovanny (Creatior Of Hood Near You DVD)

:*Narckotickz Trafficking Mixtape-Giovanny(Creatior Of Hood Near You DVD)

Resurgence

The world has seen a resurgence of Grease’s sound in 2007, with the Harlem producer securing DJ Drama’s lead-off “Takin’ Pictures” (featuring Young Jeezy, Rick Ross, Jim Jones, T.I., and Young Buck) and Freeway’s single “Big Spender” (featuring Jay-Z). Grease also produced several tracks on Hell Rell’s debut album “For The Hell Of It,” which has been described by many as one of the most well-rounded releases by a Dipset artist. Grease has also been hard at work on his own album and recently released the single “Sour Diesel,” which features N.O.R.E. and Styles P. With several more projects lined up that will last well into 2008, Dame Grease looks to continue to lace Hip Hop with the same quality production that he has for the past decade and a half.

In the year 2009, Dame Grease produced the track "Lambo Dreams" for Curren$y which will be included on Curren$y's This Aint No Mixtape: Championship Edition.

In a recent 2010 radio interview ,Dame discussed his forthcoming projects with The Lox, DMX and his new Max B project, pairing Max with unreleased verses from Notorious B.I.G. and 2 Pac.

Since 2010, Dame Grease has been producing a majority of French Montana's music.

Latest projects

Greasealizer (MAGIX Music Maker Greasealizer Version) - Released March 15, 2010: http://www.magix.com/us/music-maker-special-versions/greasealizer/

Dame Grease & JUiCY RNB Presents: Tanya aka T6 "The Introduction" - Released September 14, 2009

"Goon Music 1.5" with rap artist Max B which was released on May 27, 2008.

"Goon Music 2.OWWW" with Evil Empire which was released on July 2009

"Dame Grease & DJ Delz" Wave Gang 4

"Dame Grease & DJ Delz" Strip Club Music

References

Category:American record producers Category:Living people Category:American hip hop record producers

de:Dame Grease pl:Dame Grease

Coordinates	29°25′″N98°30′″N
name	Sailor Jerry
other names	Norman K. Collins, Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins, NKC, Sailor Jerry, SJ, $
birth name	Norman Keith Collins
birth date	January 14, 1911
birth place	Reno, Nevada
death date	June 12, 1973
spouse	Carrie Edwards
occupation	Tattoo artist, Sailor}}

Norman Keith Collins (January 14, 1911 - June 12, 1973) was a prominent American tattoo artist who was also known as "Sailor Jerry".

Life

Collins was born on January 14, 1911 in Reno, Nevada. As a child, he hopped freight trains with across the country and learned tattooing from a man named "Big Mike" from Palmer, AK. Practicing on drifters, he later sailed the Pacific Ocean before settling in Hawaii. A big brute with a dirty mouth, he often wore plain white T-shirts that exposed his ink-sleeved arms. Mike Malone, who took over Sailor Jerry's shop after he died, described Jerry as "a class-A pirate."

At age 19, Collins enlisted in the United States Navy. It was during his subsequent travels at sea when he was exposed to the art and imagery of Southeast Asia. He remained a sailor for his entire life thereafter. Even during his career as a tattoo artist, he worked as a licensed skipper of a large three-masted schooner, on which he conducted tours of the Hawaiian islands.

Sailing and tattooing were only two of his professional endeavors. He played saxophone in his own dance band and for years, frequently hosted his own radio show on KTRG, where he lectured against the impending downfall of the American political system by infiltration of liberals. He was a prolific writer and carried on in-depth communications with many pen-pals throughout the world.

Legacy of Sailor Jerry

Collins entrusted his artwork to his two proteges, Ed Hardy and Mike Malone, both of whom have become prominent figures in their own right. Hardy, who turned down an MFT scholarship to Yale in order to pursue tattooing, is known for his artistic sophistication and large-scale tattoos. Malone, who designed under the name "Rollo Banks", and was known for his conceptual boldness and distinctive designs, died in 2007.

Norman Collins is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, a military cemetery located in Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu. His grave site is 124/Section T.

Sailor Jerry Ltd.

In 1999, Hardy and Malone partnered with a small independent Philadelphia clothing company to establish Sailor Jerry Ltd., which owns Norman's letters, art, and flash, and produces clothing and an idiosyncratic collection of other items, such as ash trays, sneakers, playing cards, church keys and shot glasses. As an anti-sweatshop company, Sailor Jerry Ltd. produces nearly all its items in the United States. Items are sold on the company’s web site or from the Sailor Jerry Store at in Philadelphia, which frequently plays host to performances by independent musicians. The company also showcases rising talents with its "Artist Series", which it describes as a way to "keep Sailor Jerry’s legacy alive and kicking".

Sailor Jerry Ltd. produces a 92 proof spiced Navy rum featuring a quintessential Sailor Jerry hula girl on the label. As the bottle is emptied, additional Pin-up girls designed by Sailor Jerry are visible on the inner side of the label. The rum is distilled in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It takes its influence from Caribbean rum, which sailors would spice with flavors from the Far East and Asia to make it more enjoyable to drink.

Sailor Jerry Tattoos

Popular symbols used by Sailor Jerry include:

Bottles of booze

Snakes

Wild cats

The infamous “Aloha” monkey

Eagles, falcons and other birds of prey

Swallows

Motor heads and pistons

Nautical stars

Classically styled scroll banners

Knives, guns and other weapons

Dice

Collins expanded the array of colors available by developing his own safe pigments. He created needle formations that embedded pigment with much less trauma to the skin, and he was one of the first to utilize single-use needles and hospital-quality sterilization. His attention to detail was so precise that the depiction of rigging in his nautical tattoos was said to be perfectly accurate. Artistically, his influence stems from his union of the roguish attitude of the American sailor with the mysticism and technical prowess of the Far East. He maintained a close correspondence with Japanese tattoo masters during his career. He regarded tattoos as the ultimate rebellion against "the Squares". He took the bold line style of tattooing and incorporated what he learned from his correspondences with the Japanese masters, known as Horis. He brought this style to the Sailor Jerry Tattoo parlor he opened on Hotel Street in Honolulu.

Sailor Jerry's last studio was in Honolulu's Chinatown, then the only place on the island where tattoo studios were located. He thrived in the hotbed of competition. His work was so widely copied, he took to printing "The Original Sailor Jerry" on his business cards.

References

Hook, Sonya. "Sailor Jerry gets revamp", ''Morning Advertiser'', March 4, 2010.

External links

Honolulu's Chinatown

History of Sailor Jerry

Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry A feature length documentary exploring the roots of American tattooing through the life of Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins

Sailor Jerry LTD

Sailor Jerry Rum

Sailor Jerry Music Blog

More info on Sailor Jerry's tattoo shop and life.

Category:1911 births Category:1973 deaths Category:Tattoo artists Category:United States Navy sailors

fr:Sailor Jerry ru:Моряк Джерри fi:Sailor Jerry

Coordinates	29°25′″N98°30′″N
name	Chubby Checker
background	solo_singer
birth name	Ernest Evans
born	October 03, 1941
origin	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
instrument	Vocals
genre	Rock and roll
occupation	Singer-songwriter
years active	1959–present
label	Parkway, MCA
website	ChubbyChecker.com
notable instruments	}}

Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He also popularized the dance style Twist, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard's R&B; hit "The Twist". In September 2008, "The Twist" topped Billboard's list of the most popular singles to have appeared in the Hot 100 since its debut in 1958.

Early life

Ernest Evans was born in Spring Gulley, South Carolina and as a child was raised in the projects of South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he lived with his parents and two brothers. By age eight Evans formed a street corner harmony group and, by the time he entered high school, learned to play the piano as well as entertain his classmates by performing vocal impressions of popular entertainers of the day, such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley and Fats Domino. One of his classmates and friends at South Philadelphia High School was Fabiano Forte, who would become a popular person of the late 1950s and early 1960s as Fabian.

After school, Evans would entertain customers at his various jobs, including Fresh Farm Poultry on Ninth Street and at the Produce Market, with songs and jokes, and it was his boss at the Produce Market, Tony A., who gave Evans the nickname "Chubby". The storeowner of Fresh Farm Poultry, Henry Colt, was so impressed by Ernest's performances for the customers that he, with his colleague and friend Karl Mann, who worked as a song-writer for Cameo-Parkway Records, arranged for young Chubby to do a private recording for American Bandstand host Dick Clark. It was at this recording session that Evans got his stage name from Clark's wife, who asked Evans what his name was. "Well", he replied, "my friends call me 'Chubby'". As he had just completed a Fats Domino impression, she smiled and said, "As in Checker?" That little play on words ('chubby' meaning 'fat', and 'checkers', like 'dominos', being a game) got an instant laugh and stuck, and from then on, Evans would use the name "Chubby Checker".

Career

Checker privately recorded a novelty single for Clark in which the singer portrayed a school teacher with an unruly classroom of musical performers. The premise allowed Checker to imitate such acts as Fats Domino, Frankie Avalon and The Chipmunks, each singing "Mary Had a Little Lamb". Clark sent the song out as his Christmas greeting, and it received such good response that Cameo-Parkway signed Checker to a recording contract. Titled "The Class", the single became Checker's first release, charting at #38 in the spring of 1959.

Checker introduced his version of "The Twist" in July 1960 on ''The Clay Cole Show'', a local New York City television program broadcast live from Palisades Amusement Park. "The Twist" went on to become the only single to top the Billboard Hot 100 twice, in two separate chart runs. (Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" had done so on ''Billboard'''s earlier chart.)

"The Twist" had previously peaked at #16 on the ''Billboard'' rhythm and blues chart, in the 1959 version recorded by its author, Hank Ballard, whose band The Midnighters first performed the dance on stage. Checker's "Twist", however, was a nationwide smash. The song was so ubiquitous that Checker felt that his critics thought that he could only succeed with dance records typecasting him as a dance artist. Checker later lamented:

Despite Checker's initial disapproval, he found follow-up success with a succession of up-tempo dance tracks and produced a series of successful dance-related singles, including "The Hucklebuck" (#14), "The Fly" (#7), "Dance the Mess Around" (#24), and "Pony Time", which became his second #1 single. Checker's follow-up "twist" single, "Let's Twist Again", won the 1961 Grammy Award for Best Rock and Roll Solo Vocal Performance. A 1962 duet with Dee Dee Sharp, "Slow Twistin'", reached #3 on the national charts. "Limbo Rock" reached #2 in the fall of 1962, becoming Checker's last Top Ten hit.

Checker is the only recording artist to place five albums in the Top 12 all at once. The performer has often claimed to have personally changed the way we dance to the beat of music, as when he told ''Billboard'', "Anyplace on the planet, when someone has a song that has a beat, they're on the floor dancing apart to the beat. And before Chubby Checker, it wasn't here." Clay Cole agreed: "Chubby Checker has never been properly acknowledged for one major contribution to pop culture—Chubby and the Twist got adults out and onto the dance floor for the very first time. Before the Twist dance phenomenon, grownups did not dance to teenage music."

In 1964, he married the Dutch Catharina Lodders, who was Miss World in 1962. Checker continued to have Top 40 singles until 1965, but changes in public taste ended his hit-making career. He spent much of the rest of the 1960s touring and recording in Europe. The 1970s saw him become a staple on the oldies circuit, including a temporary stint as a disco artist. In 1983, he fathered a daughter, Mistie, with Pam Bass. Mistie Bass is currently a professional women's basketball player in the WNBA.

Later years

His material during his 1960s heyday was recorded for Cameo-Parkway Records and along with the label's other material, became unavailable after the early 1970s because of the company's internal legal disputes. For decades, almost all compilations of Checker's hits consisted of re-recordings. A dance-floor cover version of The Beatles' "Back in the U.S.S.R." was released in 1969 on Buddah Records, but only charted at #82. It was Checker's last chart appearance until 1982.

He also recorded a psychedelic album in the early '70s that was initially only released in Europe. Originally the album was named "Chequered!", but renamed "New Revelation" in later releases. To this day, Checker dislikes talking about the album.

Despite his mixed feelings towards his biggest hit single, Checker has always been able to capitalize on its enduring popularity. In 1987, he recorded a new version of "The Twist" with rap trio The Fat Boys. The lyrics to this new version implied he was pleased with his association with it. Checker also sang the song in a commercial for Oreo cookies in the early 1990s. In 2008, he performed "The Twist" in venues ranging from the Daytona 500 to ''The Opie and Anthony Show''.

In 2002, Chubby Checker protested the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his hit The Twist receiving lack of airplay, claiming that "Peppermint Twist receives more airplay". Seymour Stein, president of the Rock Hall's New York chapter and member of the nomination committee, claimed "I think that Chubby is someone who will be considered. He has in certain years."

In 2008 Chubby Checker's "The Twist" was named the biggest chart hit of all time by Billboard magazine. Billboard looked at all singles that made the charts between 1958 and 2008.

Checker had a #1 single on Billboard's dance chart in July 2008 with "Knock Down the Walls". He also continues to perform on a regular basis.

In 2009, Checker recorded a public service announcement (PSA) for the Social Security Administration to help launch a new campaign to promote recent changes in Medicare law. In the PSA, Checker encourages Americans on Medicare to apply for Extra Help, “A new ‘twist’ in the law makes it easier than ever to save on your prescription drug plan costs.”

Hit songs

1959:

"The Class" (#38).

1960:

"The Twist" (#1)

"The Hucklebuck" (#14)

1961:

"Pony Time" (#1)

"Dance the Mess Around" (#24)

"Twistin' U.S.A." (#68)

"Let's Twist Again" (#8)

"The Fly" (#8)

"The Twist" (recharted at #1 in January 1962)

"Jingle Bell Rock" (with Bobby Rydell) (#21)

1962:

"Slow Twisting'" (with Dee Dee Sharp) (#3)

"Dancin' Party" (#12)

"Limbo Rock" (#2)

"Popeye The Hitchhiker" (#10)

1963:

"Twenty Miles" (#15)

"Let's Limbo Some More" (#20)

"Birdland" (#12)

"Twist It Up" (#25)

"Loddy Lo" (#12)

"Hooka Tooka" (#17)

1964:

"Hey, Bobba Needle" (#23)

"Lazy Elsie Molly" (#40)

1965:

"Let's Do the Freddie" (#40)

"Baby Baby Balla Balla" (with Dutch band ''ZZ & the Maskers'')

"Stopping is Las Vegas" (with Dutch band ''ZZ & the Maskers'')

1988:

"The Twist (Yo, Twist!)" (with the Fat Boys) (#16)

("Knock Down the Walls" topped the dance chart in July 2008; it did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100.)

References and footnotes

Bibliography

''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990,'' Record Research Inc., P.O. Box 200, Menomonee Falls WI, 1991 (ISBN 0-89820-089-X)

''Joel Whitburn's Top R&B; Singles 1942-1988,'' Record Research Inc., P.O. Box 200, Menomonee Falls WI, 1988 (ISBN 0-89820-069-5)

External links

Official website

Chubby Checker - King Of The Twist - by Dr. Frank Hoffmann

Chubby Checker says "There’s a New ‘Twist’ in the Law!" (Social Security Public Service Announcements)

Interviewed March 22, 2010 on WNYC SoundCheck with John Schaefer; Discusses this wikipedia entry and career

Join The Movement To Induct Chubby Checker Into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame

Category:1941 births Category:Living people Category:African American musicians Category:African American rock musicians Category:American male singers Category:Musicians from South Carolina Category:Musicians from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Category:Grammy Award winners Category:People from Georgetown County, South Carolina Category:People from Williamsburg County, South Carolina Category:Gullah

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