People are strange, namely me. There are four of us that play golf a few times a week. Same four. Same results. I finish last. Same guy finishes first. I hit two (or three) in woods. We drink a beer or three. We go home, we do it again soon.
But....... there are many (MANY) times these idiotic four 69 year old, 70 year old somethings, break out in song between shots. (I know, I thought weird too.).. It could be "I see a little silhouette of a man, Scaramouch, Scaramouch, will you do the fandango".........Or.. when your ball is on the green and it's in the way of the guy who's turn it is to putt, you can't find a coin to 'mark it', so you sing "There's a hole in my pocket dear Liza dear Lisa"...
Or, "Can anybody... find me... someome to love."....... or, "Hit the road Jack..".. or.. "Hello baby.. yeah this is the big bopper speakin'...ha ha ha ha ha.. Oh, you sweet thing.. Do I what?.. Will I what?.. Oh baby you know what I like."
The accompanying stench to our singing keeps dangerous varmits away, as well as chiggers, mosquitos. We are of the age we don't give a rats what anyone thinks, thus, (for us), FUN.
One day I gave it the ole "Ooga-chaka ooga-ooga"...one guy swore I made it up.. (Hell, I mighta already blogged about that, oh well, I repeat myself, sorry.) Another guy said "BJ Thomas? Hooked on a Feeling?"...
Upon further review, kinda sorta. A childhood friend of BJ's, Mark James, actually wrote the song. James be a perty good songwriter - as, also to his credit he wrote "Suspicious Minds" for Elvis and Willie's "Always on My Mind."
The kinda-sorta part. Ooga-chaka ooga-ooga wasn't in BJ's version. A couple years after BJ recorded it, Jonathan King added the ooga-chaka ooga-ooga. (It's kinda fun to say, especially amongst buds on the golf course.)
Then, a Blue Swede singer Bjorn Skifs and producer Bengt Palmers (Vanna honey, tell Mr. Sajak I'd like to buy a couple vowels for these guys) took King's lyrics, released it, BOOM, big hit. (Appeared in a trailer for 'Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2").....
It is suggested the ooga-chaka bit was kinda sorta stolen, mimicked from George Jones' 1962 song Runnin' Bear and it's "uga-uga uga-uga" chants.. (We have not sung Running Bear on the golf course, but we do admit to peeing behind a tree when called for.)
Upon further review. My opine only of course, I knda think the history of (some) songs is almost as yummy as the song itself.
Runnin' Bear was actually written by Jiles Perry Richardson - you might know him better by the name "The Big Bopper." Well Bop actually gave it to Johnny Preston to sing in 1959, a couple years before ole' George recorded it.
There is tragedy, ALL ABOUT. Preston recorded it shortly after "The day the music died", ie, the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper.
Preston's 1960 version ironically came just after Marty Robbins' "El Paso" and just before Mark Dinning's "Teen Angel", both of which feature a death of, or affecting, the protagonist.
Running Bear ends tragically as well. It's about 'A young indian brave' and Little White Dove, an indian maid. The two are in love..........but......
Their tribes hate each other. And, they are each on the opposite side of a raging river. Against all odds, they each jump into the river, share a passionate kiss, are swept under by the current, drown, thus "Now they'll always be together, in their happy hunting ground."
That about wraps that up. I'm off to play in, literally, an old fart golf tourney at the course (We actually tee off from the women's tees, don't tell nobody.. please.) If you can think of any catchy ooga-chaka ooga-ooga, or uga--uga uga-uga-like songs for us to sing, please leave it in the remarks.
Can anybody....... find me... someone to love (that doesn't give a rats how crappy of a golfer or singer that I am.)
Love, Victurd (Forward by Jack Nicklaus, Ed Ames and Bo Diddly)
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