Tequila (The Champs song)
1958 single by the Champs From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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1958 single by the Champs From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Tequila" is a 1958 Latin-inspired surf instrumental song written by Chuck Rio and recorded by American rock and roll band The Champs. "Tequila" became a No. 1 hit on both the pop and R&B charts at the time of its release and continues to be strongly referenced in pop culture to this day.[3]
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"Tequila" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by the Champs | ||||
from the album Go, Champs, Go! | ||||
Language | Spanish/English | |||
A-side | "Train to Nowhere" | |||
Released | January 15, 1958 | |||
Recorded | December 23, 1957 | |||
Studio | Gold Star, Hollywood, California | |||
Genre | Surf[1] | |||
Label | Challenge | |||
Songwriter(s) | Chuck Rio[2] | |||
Producer(s) | Joe Johnson (Challenge Records) | |||
The Champs singles chronology | ||||
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In 1958, the song won a Grammy for Best Rhythm & Blues Performance at the 1st Annual Grammy Awards.[4] In 2001, that song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[5]
In 1957, Gene Autry's record label, Challenge Records, signed Dave Burgess (born 1934), a rockabilly singer-songwriter from California who often recorded under the name "Dave Dupree". At the end of 1957, having produced no hits, Challenge Records looked to Burgess, who organized a recording session on December 23 in Hollywood. In the studio that day were Burgess on rhythm guitar, Cliff Hils on bass, the Flores Trio (Danny Flores saxophone and piano, Gene Alden on drums, and lead guitarist Buddy Bruce), and Huelyn Duvall contributing backing vocals. They gathered primarily to record "Train to Nowhere", a song by Burgess, as well as "Night Beat" and "All Night Rock" (a song that has never been released).
The last tune recorded was "Tequila", essentially just a jam by the Flores Trio. It is based on a Cuban mambo song "Como Mi Ritmo No Hay Dos" by Cachao. The word "tequila" is spoken three times throughout the tune. There were three takes, and Danny Flores, who wrote the song, was also the man who spoke the word "Tequila!" solo.[6] The song served as the B-side for "Train to Nowhere", which was released by Challenge Records (No. 1016) on January 15, 1958. Duvall recalls that the record initially found little success, but, after a DJ in Cleveland played the B-side, "Tequila" reached No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart on March 28, 1958. The song reached No. 1 in Canada, March 24, 1958.[7]
Daniel Flores had written "Tequila", but, because he was signed to another label, the tune was credited to "Chuck Rio", a name he adopted for the stage. Those present for the December 23 session began recording together again on January 20, 1958, under the name the Champs; the group technically formed after recording "Tequila". The tune has been noted[by whom?] to have a similar rhythm structure to Bo Diddley's 1958 release "Dearest Darling" from his self-titled compilation album.[citation needed]
The Champs recorded a sequel to "Tequila" titled "Too Much Tequila". Released as a maroon-label Challenge single, it reached No. 30 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2020, group leader Dave Burgess resurrected The Champs and recorded 12 new tracks for an LP titled Tequila Party. The album contains a "party" version of "Tequila".
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