Released 1963 Recorded 1963 Length 2:24 | Format Single Genre Soul Label One-DERFUL! | |
"Shake a Tail Feather" (Otha Hayes, Verlie Rice, and Andre Williams) is a song originally recorded in 1963 by the Chicago-based group The Five Du-Tones. (This version was featured on the soundtrack of the 1988 film Hairspray). A 1967 version by James & Bobby Purify reached #25 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Cover versions
"Shake a Tail Feather" has been covered by many other artists over the years. Ray Charles covered and performed the song during his scenes in the 1980 film The Blues Brothers in a version that included calls for various 1960s dances, such as the Twist, the Monkey, The Fly, The Swim, The Frug and the Mashed Potato, The Boogaloo to be performed by a crowd gathered outside Ray's Music Exchange.
The song was covered by The Cheetah Girls for the 2005 Walt Disney Pictures film, Chicken Little.
The Kingsmen included the song on their 1966 The Kingsmen Up And Away album.
The Monkees performed the song in 1968 on the band's television special, 33 1⁄3 Revolutions Per Monkee.
Hanson included the song in a medley with "Gimme Some Lovin'" on their 1998 release, Live from Albertane.
Japanese garage punk band Teengenerate recorded the song for their 1994 10" vinyl release "Audio Recording".
In 2012, one of the songwriters, Andre Williams included the song on his 2012 Alive album, Life.
In November 2013 The Overtones recorded the song for their album Saturday Night at the Movies.
Other artists who have recorded the song include Ike & Tina Turner (as re-created in the film What's Love Got to Do with It), Mitch Ryder, Gerry & The Pacemakers, Tommy James and the Shondells, and The Romantics.