Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu

"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" is a song written and originally recorded in 1957 by Huey 'Piano' Smith, who scored a minor Billboard hit with it, peaking at No. 52 on the Top 100 chart, and a more successful No. 5 on the Most Played R&B by Jockeys chart.^[1]

"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu"
Single by Huey 'Piano' Smith
A-side	"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (Part 1)
B-side	"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (Part 2)
Released	August 1957
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	2:14
Label	Ace
Songwriter(s)	Johnny Vincent Huey Smith
Huey 'Piano' Smith singles chronology
"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (1957) "Don't You Just Know It" (1958)
Official audio
"Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube

Background

The title is a reference to "walking" pneumonia and the Asian flu, which hit the United States in 1957–58. The lyrics recount the predicament of the singer who would like to approach a woman he sees in a club, or ‘joint,’ but due to his ‘musical ailments,’ he is unsuccessful.”

Musician credits

• Huey "Piano" Smith – piano
• Sidney Rayfield – vocals
• "Scarface" John Williams – vocals
• Lee Allen – tenor saxophone
• Alvin "Red" Tyler – baritone saxophone
• Earl King – guitar
• Frank Fields – bass
• Charles "Hungry" Williams – drums^[2][3]

Johnny Rivers recording

"Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu"
Side A of the US single release
Single by Johnny Rivers
from the album L.A. Reggae
B-side	"Come Home America"
Released	September 1972[4]
Recorded	1972
Genre	Blues rock, electric blues
Length	3:30
Label	United Artists
Songwriter(s)	Johnny Vincent Huey Smith
Johnny Rivers singles chronology
"Think His Name" (1971) "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" (1972) "Blue Suede Shoes" (1973)

1972 saw the song become an international hit single for Johnny Rivers, featuring Larry Knechtel on piano as well as other Los Angeles session musicians from the Wrecking Crew.^[5] "Rockin' Pneumonia" reached No.6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 during the winter of 1973. It was Rivers' fifth highest charting song and spent a longer time on the chart (19 weeks) than any of his two dozen hits to that date. On the U.S. Cash Box Top 100 the song peaked at No.5, and in Canada it reached No.3.^[6]

"Rockin' Pneumonia" gave Rivers his third gold record. His final gold record would be with the 1977 hit, "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancing)."

Chart performance

Weekly charts Chart (1972–1973) Peak position Australia (Go-Set)[7] 27 Canadian Top Singles (RPM)[6] 3 New Zealand (Listener)[8] 11 U.S. Billboard Hot 100 6 U.S. Cashbox Top 100[9] 5 U.S. Record World [7] 4

Year-end charts Chart (1973) Rank U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [10] 78 U.S. Cash Box [11] 30

Other cover versions

• In 1957, the tune was recorded by Larry Williams on Specialty Records. The back-up band included René Hall, guitar, Earl Palmer, drums, and Plas Johnson, tenor sax.^[12]
• The Crickets,on their 1960 album In Style with the Crickets.
• Paul Peek,on his 1966 single Columbia records 4-43527.
• The Flamin' Groovies, in 1969, on their debut album Supersnazz, and again on their second album Flamingo, in 1970.
• Family, in their January 26, 1973 radio concert on the BBC, relapsed in 1991 as BBC Radio 1: Live in Concert.
• Aerosmith, in 1987, for the Less than Zero soundtrack.
• Grateful Dead, on their Europe '72 tour at the Strand Lyceum, London, England, 23 and 24 May 1972.
• Billy Vera, on his 1976 album Backdoor Man.
• James Booker, on his albums Gonzo: Live 1976 ^[13] and King of New Orleans Keyboard.^[14]
• Professor Longhair, in 1974, released in 1997 on his album Rock 'n Roll Gumbo. ^[15]
• Deep Purple, on their 2021 album Turning to Crime.^[16]

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 535.
2. [The Blues Discography 1943–1970 The Classic Years, Les Fancourt & Bob McGrath (Eyeball Productions)]
3. Huey "Piano" Smith And The Rocking Pneumonia Blues, Author: John Wirt, LSU Press, 2014, P. 49
4. "Johnny Rivers – Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu". 45cat.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
5. Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew. St. Martin’s Griffin. pp. 261–263. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7.
6. "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
7. "Song artist 376 – Johnny Rivers". Tsort.info. 2007-10-08. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
8. "flavour of new zealand – search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
9. "Cash Box Top 100 1/13/73". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
10. "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
11. "Cash Box YE Pop Singles – 1973". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
12. Larry Williams: Bad Boy The Legends of Specialty Records, Speciality Records 1989, liner notes
13. Gonzo: Live 1976, Rockbeat Records, 2014-11-18, retrieved 2018-09-14
14. King of the New Orleans Keyboard, Jsp Records, 2000, retrieved 2018-09-14
15. Rock 'n Roll Gumbo, retrieved 2021-05-02
16. "Deep Purple – Turning to Crime Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 February 2023.

External links

• Listen to "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube (Huey "Piano" Smith)
• Listen to "Rockin' Pneumonia – Boogie Woogie Flu" on YouTube (Johnny Rivers)