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2/18/2011 – The “Shake A Tail Feather” Cat Fight!

Posted: February 18th, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: R&B | Tags: , , , | 11 Comments »

The Friday Night Cat Fight Podcast

“Shake A Tail Feather”

The Friday Night Cat Fight Podcast presents a great uptempo number to git y’all on the dance floor, “Shake A Tail Feather.”  Who better to get ya shakin’ it, than the original 1963 version by the Five Du-Tones?  Or maybe you prefer the biggest hit version of song from James & Bobby Purify from 1967?  It’s possible that Ray Charles’ version from the “Blues Brothers” film is the one that tickles your tail feather.  Voice your choice!  Listen to the Cat Fight and then decide if it’s one of the hits or one of the lesser-known versions by Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels or Ike & Tina Turner.

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Which One Do You DIG The MOST? - "Shake A Tail Feather"

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11 Comments on “2/18/2011 – The “Shake A Tail Feather” Cat Fight!”

  1. 1 Stickball Eddie said at 3:45 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    The Five Du-Tones “Du-ed” it for me. The sound was nostalgic and original. The other “covers” were fair but did not change my feelings toward the original. Thank you Matt, as always, for setting time aside in your busy schedule to provide your Prowlers with the opportunity to participate in a great tradition. This prowler values your work. The back alleys are not as crowded as they once were but old friends still meet up on this site to share their insights.

  2. 2 Alan KamenName (required) said at 4:55 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    No one says it better than Brother Ray, although Ike and Tina gave him a run for the money. Thanks for doing these podcasts for your listeners. I would love to hear a cat fight between Irma Thomas and Otis Redding doing her song.

  3. 3 David said at 5:15 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    Another great show (thanks, Matt!) and another seemingly bullet-proof song. I were with Brother Ray here in another squeaker. His slightly raunchy vocal, suggestive without being leering, captured it best for me. He also got the best production sound overall, I thought. And that iconic walking bass line was nailed best in his band and by his engineer. I appreciated Mitch Ryder taking a chance with a different tempo, but for me, it didn’t quite work as well as everyone else’s–a little too hectic for the song to breathe. Still very enjoyable, as were the others.

    Happy Birthday, Irma! I loved the groove she found on “Ruler Of My Heart,” too. I call songs with that feel “thunderstorm songs,” because they sound to me like a storm is moving in, all hell about to break loose. It goes back to when I was a young kid and heard Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O” on the radio right before a severe thunderstorm, and then right before another bad storm, Sonny & Cher’s “Baby Don’t Go.” Just an ominous feel.

  4. 4 Virginia said at 8:46 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    The Five Du-Tones got my vote this week, but Ray was sure good and I really enjoyed Ike & Tina’s version too. Happy Birthday, Irma. Thank you once again Matt for our Friday Nite entertainment .

  5. 5 Steve in Arizona said at 9:12 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    The Five Du-Tones tonight but the real winner was Irma Thomas.

  6. 6 Roger said at 11:15 pm on February 18th, 2011:

    Five Du-tones and Ray were close. I’d rank James and Bobby next, then Tina, and Mitch bringing up the rear.

  7. 7 RichZ said at 1:02 am on February 19th, 2011:

    The James & Bobby version and the 5 dutones were close to a tie in my book. And in the case of a tie, I’m always going to go with the original, so it’s the dutones by a tail feather.

    Is it a coincidence that we have a catfight led off by a 6 man group with a name that says they are 5 on the same night we get a Juke on the “5” Royales, who pushed off in the same conflicting number boat a dozen years or so earlier?

  8. 8 Bruce, Deb and Bella said at 12:12 am on February 20th, 2011:

    After shaking our tail feathers to all the versions we found the Five Du-Tones version produced the best shaking (or wagging on Bella’s part) and therefore get our vote.
    Thanks Rich, I never noticed that the 5 Du-Tones actually had six members not five. I guess they either couldn’t count or we got a bonus member for free the – order 5 today and get the 6th for free.

  9. 9 Pinball Wizard said at 2:05 pm on February 24th, 2011:

    I voted for the 5 Du-Tones.

    The piano/drums/bass backing did it for me. Those people played like they were posessed. Maybe they did IV Starbucks before the take.

    On a side note, the audio technical quality is pretty bad on this record but in no way diminishes the energy of the performance. Another of my favorite examples of this is Please Forgive Me by the Du Ettes. An incredible high-energy performance that even a poor recording couldn’t damage.

  10. 10 Galahad said at 10:19 pm on February 28th, 2011:

    Well Rays version is the one I remember best I was really let down on what Mitch Ryder did to the song , but the original by the dutones wasnt half bad, but I gotta give the nod to MR CHARLES. as always Matt thanx for the fri nights , one more reason to look 4 ward to the weekend

  11. 11 Bob Creager said at 7:40 pm on March 11th, 2011:

    I bought the 5 Dutones version on 45 in 1963 on the OneDerFul label. It is still the best by far.

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