Tutti Frutti (1956) Pat Boone

MUSC-21600: The Art of Rock Music Prof. Freeze

LISTEN FOR • Shuffle beat throughout entire rhythm section • Jazz-style tenor sax solo contrasts with general lack of R&B influences • Smooth, controlled vocal style • Bowdlerized lyrics minimize sexuality

CREATION Songwriters Richard Penniman (music), Dorothy LaBostrie (lyrics) Label, Record Dot Records 15443 Recording mono Charts Pop 12

MUSIC Genre Rock ’n’ roll Form Simple verse-chorus 12-bar blues chorus Key B-flat major Meter 4/4

MUSC-21600 Listening Guide Freeze “Tutti Frutti” (Pat Boone, 1955)

LISTENING GUIDE Time Form Lyric Cue Listen For 0:00 Intro (2) “A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop” • Smoother, more controlled vocal quality than Little Richard. 0:02 Chorus (12) “Tutti frutti” • Shuffle rhythm with prominent walking bass, less prominent backbeat • Backup voal group sings “ahs” 0:15 “A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop” • Stop time.

0:18 Verse 1 (12) “I got a gal, her name’s Sue” • Piano more prominent in rhythm section; uneven subdivisions contrast with Little Richard’s even eighths. 0:34 Chorus (12) “Tutti frutti” • As before.

0:49 Verse 2 (12) “I got a gal, her name’s Daisy” • Like Verse 1.

1:05 Chorus (12) “Tutti frutti” • As before.

1:21 Instr. Break (12) • Tenor sax solo, improvised in bebop- jazz style 1:37 Chorus (12) “Tutti frutti” • As before.

1:53 Verse 2 repeat (12) “I got a gal, her name’s Daisy” • Like Verse 1.

2:09 Chorus (12) “Tutti frutti” • As before. 2:22 “A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a- • Backup vocal group moves to lop-bam-boom” foreground to harmonize final “bam-boom”

2 MUSC-21600 Listening Guide Freeze “Tutti Frutti” (Pat Boone, 1955)

LYRICS A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a-lop-bop-bop But pretty little Susie, is the gal for me Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Whooo, Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a-lop-bop-bop Tutti Frutti, all rootie A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a-lop-bop-bop I got a gal, her name’s Sue, She knows just what to do [repeat chorus] I got a gal, her name’s Sue She knows just what to do I got a gal, her name’s Daisy I’ve been to the east, I’ve been to the west She almost drives me crazy But she’s the gal, that I love the best I got a gal, her name’s Daisy She almost drives me crazy Tutti Frutti, all rootie She’s a real gone cookie, yes, sir-ree Tutti Frutti, all rootie But pretty little Susie, is the gal for me Whooo, Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a-lop-bop-bop Whooo, Tutti Frutti, all rootie Tutti Frutti, all rootie I got a gal, her name’s Daisy Tutti Frutti, all rootie She almost drives me crazy A-bop-bop, a-loo-mop, a-lop-bam-boom I got a gal, her name’s Daisy She almost drives me crazy She’s a real gone cookie, yes, sir-ree

SOURCES • Katherine Charlton, Rock Music Styles: A History, 6th ed. (New York: McGraw Hill, 2011), 72. • http://www.oldielyrics.com/lyrics/pat_boone/tutti_frutti.html