Sam the Sham | |
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 Sam the Sham | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Domingo Samudio |
| Born | (1937-02-28)February 28, 1937 (age 88) Dallas,Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | |
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| Instrument |
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| Years active | 1959–1982 |
Domingo Samudio[2] (b. February 28, 1937 inDallas,Texas, United States), better known by his stage nameSam the Sham, is a retiredAmericanrock and roll singer. Sam the Sham is known for hiscamp robe andturban and hauling his equipment in a 1952Packardhearse with maroon velvet curtains.[citation needed] As the front man for the Pharaohs, he sang on several Top 40 hits in the mid-1960s; "Wooly Bully" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs was the number one song of 1965 according to Billboard magazine's year-end Hot 100.[3]However, the song never reached number one on the weekly charts. "Li'l Red Riding Hood" was another charting song for Samudio.
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Samudio made his singing debut in second grade, representing his school in a radio broadcast. Later, he took upguitar and formed a group with friends, one of whom wasTrini Lopez. After graduating from high school, Samudio joined theNavy, where he was known as "Big Sam." He lived inPanama for six years, until his discharge.
Back in the States, Samudio enrolled in college, studying voice at Arlington State College, now theUniversity of Texas at Arlington.[4] He recalled: "I was studying classical in the daytime and playing rock and roll at night. That lasted about two years, before I dropped out and became acarny."[5]
Sam married Louise Smith on August 28, 1959, in Dallas, Texas. They had one son, named Dimitrius Samudio, born on May 28, 1963, in Dallas. They divorced on May 16, 1968, in Dallas.
Most sources refer to Samudio's ancestry as Mexican-American.[6][7][8] However, a 1998 article by theChicago Tribune described Samudio as being ofBasque/Apache descent.[9] In a 2007 conversation with music writer Joe Nick Patoski, Samudio described his grandparents fleeing theMexican Revolution and settling in Texas, where his family supported themselves working in the cotton fields.[10]
After leaving the music business, Sam worked in Mexico as an interpreter and as a mate on small commercial boats in the Gulf of Mexico.[11] Sam later became amotivational speaker and still makes occasional concert appearances. He was inducted into theMemphis Music Hall of Fame in 2016.
Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs | |
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The Pharaohs in 1965. Clockwise from upper left: Butch Gibson,David A. Martin, Jerry Patterson, Sam the Sham (in front) and Ray Stinnet | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | Garage rock |
| Years active | 1961-1967 |
| Past members | Domingo "Sam" Samudio Ray Stinnett David A. Martin Butch Gibson Jerry Patterson Tony "Butch" Gerace Frankie Carabetta Billy Bennett Andy Kuha Carl Miedke Russell Fowler Todd Lovas Omar "Big Man” Lopez Vincent Lopez |
InDallas in 1961, Sam formed the Pharaohs, the name inspired from the costumes inYul Brynner's portrayal as pharaoh in the 1956 filmThe Ten Commandments. The other members of the Pharaohs were Carl Miedke, Russell Fowler, Omar "Big Man” Lopez, and Vincent Lopez (no relation to Omar). In 1962, the group made a record that did not sell and later disbanded.[12]
In May 1963, Vincent Lopez was playing for Andy and the Nightriders inLouisiana. When theirorganist quit, Sam joined. Andy and the Nightriders were Andy Anderson,David A. Martin, Vincent Lopez, and Sam. The Nightriders became house band at The Congo Club, nearLeesville, Louisiana. It was here that Sam took the name Sam the Sham from a joke about his lack of ability as a vocalist.[12]
In June 1963, the Nightriders headed forMemphis, Tennessee, and became the house band at The Diplomat. In late summer 1963, Andy Anderson and Vincent Lopez left to return to Texas. Sam and bassist David A. Martin replaced them with drummer Jerry Patterson and guitarist Ray Stinnett and changed the band's name to Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. Shortly thereafter, the band addedsaxophonist Butch Gibson.
After paying to record and press records to sell at gigs, Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs wound up with the XLlabel in Memphis. There they recorded their first and biggest hit, "Wooly Bully", in late 1964.[13] Once MGM picked up the record, "Wooly Bully" ended up selling three million copies and reaching No. 2 on theBillboardHot 100 on 5 June 1965, at a time when American pop music charts were dominated by theBritish Invasion.[2] It was awarded agold disc.[14]Leonard Stogel was their manager.
Although "Wooly Bully" never reached No. 1, it lingered on the Hot 100 for 18 weeks, the most weeks for any single within the calendar year 1965, 14 of which were in the top 40. The record achieved the distinction of becoming the firstBillboard "Number One Record of the Year" not to have topped a weekly Hot 100 and remained the only one for 35 years, untilFaith Hill's "Breathe",Lifehouse's "Hanging by a Moment", andDua Lipa's "Levitating" in 2000, 2001, and 2021, respectively.[15][16]
The Pharaohs' next releases – "Ju Ju Hand" (No. 26 US, Canadian No. 31) and "Ring Dang Doo" – were minor successes.
In late 1965, 11 months after "Wooly Bully", David A. Martin, Jerry Patterson, Ray Stinnett, and Butch Gibson left over a financial dispute.
Sam'smanager,Leonard Stogel, discovered Tony Gee & the Gypsys at the Metropole Cafe inTimes Square, New York City and brought them on as the new Pharaohs. The band now, besides Sam, was Tony "Butch" Gerace (bass guitar andvocals), Frankie Carabetta (keyboards,saxophone andvocals), Billy Bennett (drums andpercussion), and Andy Kuha (guitar andvocals). This new set of Pharaohs recorded "Lil' Red Riding Hood". On the Hot 100, "Lil' Red Riding Hood" began its two-week peak at No. 2 the week of August 6, 1966, just as another fairy tale title,Crispian St. Peters' "The Pied Piper", ended its third and final week there at No. 4.
A series of mostlynovelty tunes followed, all on theMGM label, keeping the group on the charts into 1967. Titles included "The Hair on My Chinny Chin Chin" (US No. 22, Canadian No. 13), "How Do You Catch a Girl" (US No. 27, Canadian No. 12), "I Couldn't Spell !!*@!", and "Oh That's Good, No That's Bad" (US No. 54).
In late 1966, three women, Fran Curcio, Lorraine Gennaro, and Jane Anderson, joined as the Shamettes. The group traveled to Asia as Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs and the Shamettes and released the album titledThe Sam the Sham Revue (originally to be titledNefertiti by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs, which is printed on the inside record labels). Sam also released a solo album in late 1967, titledTen of Pentacles.
In 1970, Sam went off on his own, and in 1971, issued anAtlantic album calledSam, Hard and Heavy. Sam also wrote the liner notes on the album, which won theGrammy Award for Best Album Notes in 1972. The album featuredDuane Allman on guitar, the Dixie Flyers, and the Memphis Horns. He formed a new band in 1974. In the late 1970s, he worked with baritone saxophonist Joe Sunseri and his band, based in New Orleans. The early 1980s found Sam working withRy Cooder andFreddy Fender on thesoundtrack for theJack Nicholson filmThe Border.[2]
As Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs:[17]
As Sam the Sham:
As Sam Samudio:
As Sam and Charity:
As Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs:
| Year | Titles (A-side, B-side) Both sides from same album except where indicated | Peak chart positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 | USR&B | CAN | UK | |||
| 1965 | "Wooly Bully" b/w "Ain't Gonna Move" (Non-album track) | 2 | 31 | 2 | 11 | Wooly Bully |
| "Juímonos (Let's Went)" b/w "Shotgun" | - | - | - | - | Wooly Bully | |
| "Ju Ju Hand" b/w "Big City Lights" (fromOn Tour) | 26 | - | 31 | - | Their Second Album | |
| "Ring Dang Doo" b/w "Don't Try It" (Non-album track) | 33 | - | - | - | On Tour | |
| 1966 | "Red Hot" b/w "A Long, Long Way" (Non-album track) | 82 | - | - | - | |
| "Li'l Red Riding Hood" b/w "Love Me Like Before" (Non-album track) | 2 | - | 2 | 46 | Li'l Red Riding Hood | |
| "The Hair on My Chinny Chin Chin" b/w "(I'm in With) The Out Crowd" | 22 | - | 13 | - | The Best of Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs | |
| "How Do You Catch a Girl" b/w "The Love You Left Behind" | 27 | - | 12 | - | Non-album tracks | |
| 1967 | "Oh That's Good, No That's Bad" b/w "Take What You Can Get" | 54 | - | 52 | - | |
| "Black Sheep" b/w "My Day's Gonna Come" | 68 | - | 59 | - | The Sam the Sham Revue | |
| 1968 | "Old MacDonald Had a Boogaloo Farm" b/w "I Never Had No One" (Non-album track) | - | - | - | - | Ten of Pentacles |
| 1969 | "Wooly Bully" b/w "Ain't Gonna Move" (Non-album track) Re-release with standard MGM catalog number (14021) | - | - | - | - | Wooly Bully |
As Sam the Sham:
| Year | Titles (A-side, B-side) | US Hot 100 | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | "Betty and Dupree" b/w "Man Child" | - | Non-album tracks |
| 1964 | "The Signafyin' Monkey" b/w "Juimonos (Let's Went)" | - | |
| "Haunted House" b/w "How Does a Cheating Woman Feel" | - | ||
| 1967 | "Banned in Boston" b/w "Money's My Problem" | 117 | |
| "Yakety Yak" b/w "Let Our Love Light Shine" (Non-album track) | 110 | Ten of Pentacles | |
| 1968 | "I Couldn't Spell !!*@!" b/w "The Down Home Strut" (fromTen of Pentacles) | 120 | Non-album track |
| 1973 | "Fate" b/w "Oh Lo" | - | Non-album tracks |
| 1977 | "The Wookie, Part I" b/w Part II | - | |
| 1978 | "Ain't No Lie" b/w "Baby, You Got It" | - | |
| 1967 | Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs released “Groovin'” i |
As Sam Samudio:
| Year | Titles (A-side, B-side) | US Hot 100 | Album |
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| 1970 | "Key to the Highway" b/w "Me and Bobby McGee" (Non-album track) | - | Sam, Hard and Heavy |
| International | |
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| Artists | |
