While there have been various recordings of the 1957 song “Louie Louie,” the version recorded in the 60s by The Kingsmen is one of the most well known. It’s also the only version to spark an FBI investigation. The song became a staple at teenage dances, where The Kingsmen often played, and they eventually recorded their own version.
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The recording quality of “Louie Louie” left a lot to be desired. According to a report from NPR, the studio wasn’t set up properly for a rock band to record. Lead vocalist Jack Ely had to shout into the microphone, which was hung high above the band. Additionally, he had braces, which didn’t help his enunciation. Because of these factors, the lyrics couldn’t really be deciphered, not to mention that the words were originally written in an exaggerated Jamaican patois.
The fact that teenagers couldn’t understand the lyrics led to them creating their own. This caused an issue because the kids were now adding “dirty” lyrics to the song. According to Dick Peterson, who replaced the band’s drummer in 1963, “We were on the front page of every newspaper saying that we were corrupting the moral fiber of the youth of America.” Peterson told NPR in 2023, “J. Edgar Hoover launched an investigation – they woke us up in the middle of the night pounding on the door: ‘FBI, FBI!’”
The Kingsmen Record an Indecipherable Version of “Louie Louie” Which Led to Teens Making Up Their Own Lyrics
Additionally, the governor of Indiana banned “Louie Louie” after receiving complaints from two high school students who didn’t like the allegedly “obscene” lyrics. The governor bought a copy of the record, listening to the song at different speeds to determine if the lyrics were, in fact, dirty. According to a 2019 retrospective in the Indy Star, the governor came to the conclusion that the song might be dirty, and contacted the FCC, who got the FBI involved.
In the end, The Kingsmen testified in front of the FCC following the two-year investigation by the FBI. According to Peterson, the judge asked to listen to the record. “And he thought, ‘Why are you fighting over this? It’s a piece of junk,’” Peterson said, adding, “And so he said, ‘Listen, nobody can tell what it says. I’m going to deem it unintelligible at any speed, and lift the ban.’”
A similar situation happened in 1985, when Tipper Gore attempted to ban the Filthy Fifteen. This list included songs from Prince, Twisted Sister, and AC/DC, and even involved the Supreme Court. It ended with the Parental Advisory stickers we saw on so many CDs, until the recent push to streaming.
Featured Image by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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