A #1 (Bad) Spelling Lesson

On this day in 1950 ~ Ed, Gene, Joe and Vic, AKA The Ames Brothers, reached the #1 spot on the pop music charts for the first time, as Rag Mop became the most favorite song in the U.S. The brothers enjoyed many successes with their recording efforts.

The song is actually a 12 bar blues song written by Johnny Lee Wills and Deacon Anderson. It is considered by most to be a novelty number, and I suppose that is probably right. Rag Mop was “adapted” from a late 1940’s song called “Get the Mop!”

For the Ames Brothers, the song was a double-sided hit. Sentimental Me hit the charts in January of 1950, and Rag Mop scored number one status 75 years ago today.

Our high school band was trying to think of a fund raiser. We decided on doing a lip synch contest (long before all the ones you see on late night TV today). I don’t recall how many acts we had, but I do remember the auditorium was sold out! The band kids did little skits between acts so the judges could score.

My buddy, Steve, and I did a lip synch to Rag Mop. The premise was that we’d have a chalk board with the lyrics on it (listen and you will see what I mean). I would be a “teacher” pointing the letters out to my “student,” Steve. When the chorus came, we’d dance around the stage with mops and a mop bucket. It was total stupidity!

What made it memorable for us, and every one watching, was not planned at all. Apparently we picked the defective chalkboard! We flipped the chalk board over for the second verse, and when it came time to repeat the first verse, we went to flip the chalkboard over and one of the legs snapped and the chalkboard started to fall. While both of us cracked up, I was able to get the leg back up, and got the chalkboard to stand. From the time it snapped until we got it back up was about 20 seconds, but it felt like a lifetime. We were laughing so hard we were crying! Needless to say, we didn’t win.

This was the version that went to number one, Steve and I used a more up-tempo version.