Ooh Poo Pah Doo: Golden Classics

Reviews

Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2007-08-01
Summary: "Almost A One-Hit Wonder"

Another reviewer sums up Jessie Hill's career pretty good. All I can add is that Collectables did not continue their usual pattern of leaving off one hit, which they seem to do in their compilations of artists with but a handful of hits. Perhaps because Hill only HAD two charters.

Ooh Poo Pah Doo Part II was, of course, the best for this singer/pianist/ drummer, going to # 3 R&B and # 28 Billboard Hot 100 in summer 1960 b/w the instrumental version (Part I). What led to the appeal of the vocal side were the call-and-response effects enshrined by the late, great Ray Charles. However, in spite of having the acknowledged talent of Alain Toussaint on production, all he could ever achieve after that for the Minit label was a # 91 Hot 100 that same year with Whip It On Me [b/w I Need Your Love]. Strange, because that WAS a catchy tune, as were several others recorded there.

Having started out with Huey "Piano" Smith & The Clowns [where Bobby Marchan was the lead singer], and remaining there until 1958, Hill then left New Orleans for California when his hits at Minit dried up. There he teamed up with several others who had also departed The Big Easy, including Dr. John, on several singles [unsuccessful] as well as an LP for Blue Thumb in 1970.

Seems to me he deserved better.

Rating: 3 / 5
Date: 1999-02-16
Summary: "New Orleans street music revisited"

This CD contains the original Minit Record songs by New Orleans native Jessie Hill. Hill was originally a drummer who worked with Professor Longhair and Huey Smith. In 1958 Jessie fronted a band called the Houserockers on vocals and tambourine. In 1959 Jessie went to the fledgling Minit Records in New Orleans with a Houserockers tune called "Ooh Poo Pah Doo". Minit arranger Allen Toussaint was unimpressed by this nonsense sylable street song. However, the song became a local hit during 1960 Mardi Gras and, eventually, peaked nationally at #3 for R&B and #28 in the Hot 100. This was Jessie's only hit. The Houserocker's band broke up in a dispute over wages while on tour.Jessie continued on at Minit and released another uptempo rocker "Whip It On Me" which charted for one week. Ths was his last charted song. Jessie's style stagnated on uptempo nonsense sylable street songs like "Scoop Scoobie Doobie" and "Oogsey Moo" (called Oogsey Moo Take 10 on this CD) when pop music was becoming more sophisticated. In all Minit released 6 Jessie Hill singles ending in 1962 with "Can't Get Enough of that Ooh Poo Pah Doo". Jessie moved to Los Angeles and became a songwriter. His only other known recording is duets with Shirley Goodman on Blue Thumb. Hill returned to New Orleans in 1977 due to legal and professional problems. He died in 1996 from kidney and heart failure. The first four singles I mentioned are his best work. On this CD, "Ooh ..." has an occasional crack sound at the start and "Scoop ..." has 35 seconds extraneous talk at the start. There is a pointless alternate take on "Oogsey ..." and several mediocre unreleased tunes are included. Most B sides are here - all bad, but the instrumental "Ooh ... Part II" and "My Love" (the "Oogsey" flip) are missing. This CD has no liner notes - shame, shame.Jessie Hill generated some very good New Orleans street music songs. Perhaps if he had recorded a few years earlier. he might have turned out different than a one hit wonder.