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GFS - Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (Who's Got De Ding Dong?)
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RWC
2024-12-01 13:05:06 UTC
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GFS stands for: one of Geoff's Favorite Songs

*Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (Who's Got De Ding Dong?)*

Playlist (12 versions - 1954-1962):
https://www.youtube.com/watch_videos?video_ids=ijLEcsW9jDg,0CFJtmSwwEI,-gRyjipJc7o,TpGsmUoyuIg,m95c1n86K80,P4ts5RNCjWw,cBdA2Z48078,Fcxxs4mzGlA,xWKgmrz3GV0,MjcJknLx8xc,jbmKqI1Dmww,R4fGxcuKfgs,
(apologies for sound volume sometimes varying from track to track)

1. Eartha Kitt with Henri René's Orchestra And Chorus [RCA 5610] - Jan
1954


2. Georgia Gibbs [Mercury 70298] - Jan 1954


3. Ella Fitzgerald [Decca 29008;b-side] - Feb 1954


4. Edmundo Ros [UK Decca F.10263] - Feb 1954


5. Sylvia Sims, The Carillons & The Larry Clinton Orchestra [Bell
1032] - Mar 1954


6. The Beverley Sisters with Wally Stott AHO [UK Philips P.B.257] -
Apr 1954


7. Marion Williams [UK Columbia D.B. 3451] - 1954


8. Svend Asmussen - Sweden 1954


9. The Mellomen - 1954


10. Olga Lee - Argentina, 1956


11. Caterina Valente and Silvio Francesco [Germany EP Polydor 21 516]
- 1959

lyrics end with "Somebody Good Found De Wedding Bell"

12. Chubby Checker [LP Parkway 'Limbo Party'] - 1962

many amusing additions to the standard lyrics

Morey Amsterdam [UK MGM SP-1086] - Apr 1954
*not found*

Flo Harper with Enoch Light AHO [Prom 1073;b-side;Newark NJ] - 1954
*not found*

George Browne [UK Parlophone CMSP 17] - 1954
*not found*

Les Welch [AU Festival 327] - 1954
*not found*
===================================

LYRICS as sung by Eartha Kitt:

Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Now, nobody can get married

Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Somebody know but nobody tell
Cause somebody bad stole de wedding bell

We got sarsaparilla soda on the ice
We got shoes and rice and free advice
We got a bridal suite in Honeymoon Hotel
But what good is that without a wedding bell

Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Now, nobody can get married

Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Somebody know but nobody tell
Cause somebody bad stole de wedding bell

All day the people look at the steeple
But they don't see the bell

We got very fine detective, Sherlock Jones
And he's sure to question every man
So in the marketplace where people buy and sell
He's sure to arrest the one who sells the bell

Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell

Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Somebody know but nobody tell
Cause somebody bad stole de wedding bell

We got solos by the island singing band
We got lots of sun and lots of sand
We got lover's moon we got a wishing well
And oh how I wish we had a wedding bell

Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Somebody bad stole de wedding bell
Now, nobody can get married

Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Who's got the ding dong who's got the bell
Somebody know but nobody tell
Cause somebody bad stole de wedding bell

==========================================

OVERALL MEANING of the song:

In Eartha Kitt's song 'Somebody Bad Stole The Wedding Bell,' the
lyrics paint a picture of a town that has all the fixings for a
wedding celebration, except for one crucial element - the wedding
bell. The bell is stolen by an unknown culprit, leaving the
townspeople in a state of panic as they cannot properly celebrate
their weddings without it. Throughout the song, the singer asks who
has the bell, but no one seems to know or is willing to speak up.

The song sets the stage for a lighthearted and comical storyline, as
it highlights the trivial nature of the bell in the grand scheme of
things. However, it also shows that oftentimes it's the little things,
like a wedding bell, that can bring people together and make a
celebration complete. It's a reminder to appreciate and not take for
granted the small details that make life special.
Roger
2024-12-01 16:10:36 UTC
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Post by RWC
GFS stands for: one of Geoff's Favorite Songs
*Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (Who's Got De Ding Dong?)*
Here's one you missed

The Bobbettes - Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (1963)

RWC
2024-12-02 00:24:10 UTC
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Post by Roger
Post by RWC
GFS stands for: one of Geoff's Favorite Songs
*Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (Who's Got De Ding Dong?)*
Here's one you missed
The Bobbettes - Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (1963)
http://youtu.be/_EXBWImDSYw
I really don't enjoy that version :)

For this song, the vintage 1954 sound is so much better.
RWC
2024-12-02 00:18:32 UTC
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Post by RWC
GFS stands for: one of Geoff's Favorite Songs
*Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell (Who's Got De Ding Dong?)*
I've just realized that "GFS", if spoken as one word,
sounds like "Geoff's" if said with a strong Kiwi accent
(eg, they pronounce "eggs" as "eegs")
DianeE
2024-12-03 01:08:40 UTC
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Post by RWC
7. Marion Williams [UK Columbia D.B. 3451] - 1954
http://youtu.be/cBdA2Z48078
----------
I couldn't believe the powerful-voiced gospel singer recorded this
light-pop tune, so I checked it out. Clearly a different Marion
Williams! This one's a somewhat lilting soprano.
Roger
2024-12-03 06:21:34 UTC
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Post by DianeE
Post by RWC
7. Marion Williams [UK Columbia D.B. 3451] - 1954
http://youtu.be/cBdA2Z48078
----------
I couldn't believe the powerful-voiced gospel singer recorded this
light-pop tune, so I checked it out. Clearly a different Marion
Williams! This one's a somewhat lilting soprano.
Yep,the UK Marion Williams was born in London in 1931. She was part
black having a Nigerian father and an Irish mother. She recorded for
Columbia here in the 50's but later worked for the UK Woolworths own
Embassy label that put out cheapo singles with covers of current Top 20
hits on each side. She died in 2014.

Here she covers Connie Francis in 1962



And here's a fairly detailed piece on her

https://www.sandybrownjazz.co.uk/JazzRemembered/MarionWilliams.html
DianeE
2024-12-04 14:48:19 UTC
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Post by Roger
 >
 > 7. Marion Williams [UK Columbia D.B. 3451] - 1954
 > http://youtu.be/cBdA2Z48078
 >
----------
I couldn't believe the powerful-voiced gospel singer recorded this
light-pop tune, so I checked it out.  Clearly a different Marion
Williams!  This one's a somewhat lilting soprano.
Yep,the UK Marion Williams was born in London in 1931. She was part
black having a Nigerian father and an Irish mother. She recorded for
Columbia here in the 50's but later worked for the UK Woolworths own
Embassy label that put out cheapo singles with covers of current Top 20
hits on each side. She died in 2014.
Here she covers Connie Francis in 1962
http://youtu.be/9szZ9wFpI5o
And here's a fairly detailed piece on her
https://www.sandybrownjazz.co.uk/JazzRemembered/MarionWilliams.html
--------------
Thanks for posting that; very interesting article.
Bruce
2024-12-04 18:55:09 UTC
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Post by Roger
Here she covers Connie Francis in 1962
http://youtu.be/9szZ9wFpI5o
Video unavailable
This video is not available

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Roger
2024-12-05 16:37:39 UTC
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Post by Bruce
Post by Roger
Here she covers Connie Francis in 1962
http://youtu.be/9szZ9wFpI5o
Video unavailable
This video is not available
You're not missing much

Its just a second rate cover of Connie's irritating "Vacation" hit from
1962
Bruce
2024-12-05 18:32:29 UTC
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Post by Roger
Post by Bruce
Post by Roger
Here she covers Connie Francis in 1962
http://youtu.be/9szZ9wFpI5o
Video unavailable
This video is not available
You're not missing much
Its just a second rate cover of Connie's irritating "Vacation" hit from
1962
I don't consider it irritating, although she certainly has SOME
irritating records.

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