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Lee Dorsey

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Birth name
  
Irving Lee Dorsey

Role
  
Singer

Name
  
Lee Dorsey

Years active
  
Late 1950s–1986

Occupation(s)
  
singer


Lee Dorsey httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediaenffeLee

Born
  
December 24, 1924 New Orleans, Louisiana, United States (
1924-12-24
)

Died
  
December 1, 1986, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Albums
  
Yes We Can, The EP Collection...Plus

Genres
  
Rhythm and blues, Soul music

Record labels
  
Polydor Records, Fury Records, Amy Records, ABC Records

Similar People
  
Allen Toussaint, Ernie K‑Doe, Irma Thomas, Betty Harris, Professor Longhair

Lee dorsey ya ya 1961


Irving Lee Dorsey (December 24, 1924 or 1926 – December 1, 1986) was an African American pop and R&B singer during the 1960s. His biggest hits were "Ya Ya" (1961) and "Working in the Coal Mine" (1966). Much of his work was produced by Allen Toussaint with instrumental backing provided by The Meters.

Contents

Lee Dorsey Lee Dorsey Discography at Discogs

Lee dorsey ride your pony


Career

Lee Dorsey Lee Dorsey Songs AllMusic

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Dorsey was a childhood friend of Fats Domino before moving to Portland, Oregon when he was ten years old. He served in the United States Navy in World War II and then began a career in prizefighting. Boxing as a lightweight in Portland in the early 1950s, he fought under the name Kid Chocolate and was reasonably successful. He retired from boxing in 1955 and returned to New Orleans, where he opened an auto repair business as well as singing in clubs at night.

Lee Dorsey Holy Cow The Very Best of Lee Dorsey Lee Dorsey Songs Reviews

His first recording was "Rock Pretty Baby/Lonely Evening" on Cosimo Mattasa's Rex label, in 1958. This was followed by the Allen Toussaint-produced "Lottie Mo/Lover of Love", for the small Valiant label in late 1960 (picked up by ABC Paramount in 1961). These efforts were unsuccessful, but around 1960 he was discovered by A&R man Marshall Sehorn, who secured him a contract with Fury Records, owned by Bobby Robinson. After meeting songwriter and record producer Allen Toussaint at a party, he recorded "Ya Ya", a song inspired by a group of children chanting nursery rhymes. It went to number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961, sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Although the follow-up "Do-Re-Mi" also made the charts, later releases on Fury were not successful. Dorsey returned to running his repair business, but also released singles on the Smash and Constellation labels in 1963 and 1964.

Lee Dorsey Lee Dorsey Music Rising The Musical Cultures of the Gulf South

He was then approached again by Toussaint, and recorded Toussaint's song "Ride Your Pony" for the Amy label, a subsidiary of Bell Records. The song reached no.7 on the R&B chart in late 1965, and he followed it up with "Get Out of My Life, Woman", "Working in the Coal Mine" – his biggest pop hit – and "Holy Cow", all of which made the pop charts in both the US and the UK. Dorsey toured internationally, and also recorded an album with Toussaint, The New Lee Dorsey in 1966. In 1970 Dorsey and Toussaint collaborated on the album Yes We Can; the title song was Dorsey's last entry in the US singles chart. It was later a hit for the Pointer Sisters under the title, "Yes We Can Can". With declining sales, Dorsey then returned to his auto repair business.

Lee Dorsey Great Googa Mooga Lee Dorsey Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic

In 1976 Dorsey appeared on the album I Don't Want to Go Home by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, which led to more recordings on his own with ABC Records, including the album Night People. In 1980, he opened for English punk band The Clash on their US concert tour, and also toured in support of James Brown and Jerry Lee Lewis.

Lee Dorsey Absolutely the Best Lee Dorsey Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic

Dorsey contracted emphysema and died on December 1, 1986, in New Orleans, at the age of 61.

Legacy

Dorsey's songs have been covered by artists as diverse as Petula Clark and Johnny Hallyday ("Ya Ya Twist", a 1962 French version of "Ya Ya") and Devo ("Working in the Coal Mine"). "Ya Ya" was covered on John Lennon's Rock 'n' Roll album. "Get Out of My Life, Woman" was performed often by the Byrds (who based their instrumental "Captain Soul" on it), the Jerry Garcia Band, and Robert Palmer had a hit with "Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley". His version of the Allen Toussaint song "Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky (From Now On)" is referenced in the Beastie Boys' song "Sure Shot", with the lyric "Everything I do is funky like Lee Dorsey." "Ya Ya" was spoken by Cheech Marin in Cheech and Chong's Next Movie, as he was waiting for his girlfriend.

Albums

  • Ya Ya (1962)
  • Ride Your Pony - Get Out of my Life Woman (1966)
  • The New Lee Dorsey - Working in the Coalmine (1966)
  • Yes We Can (1970)
  • Night People (1978)
  • All Ways Funky (1982)
  • Everything I Do Gohn Be Funky (1967–1969) (compilation of non-album material)
  • References

    Lee Dorsey Wikipedia