Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar

"Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" is a song written in 1940 by Don Raye, Hughie Prince, and Ray McKinley. It follows the American boogie-woogie tradition of syncopated piano music.

"Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar"
Sheet music cover
Single by Will Bradley and His Orchestra featuring Ray McKinley
B-side	"Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar Pt. 2"
Released	1940
Recorded	May 21, 1940
Genre	Boogie woogie
Length	2:39
Label	Columbia (no. 35530)
Songwriter(s)	Don Raye Hughie Prince Ray McKinley under his wife's name Eleanore Sheehy

Background

The title adopts 1940s' hipster slang coined by Raye's friend, Ray McKinley, a drummer and lead singer in the Jimmy Dorsey band in the 1930s. McKinley kicked off certain uptempo songs by asking pianist Freddie Slack (nicknamed "Daddy") to give him a boogie beat, or "eight to the bar". For that reason Raye gave a partial songwriting credit to McKinley. The song was formally published under McKinley's wife's name, Eleanore Sheehy, because McKinley was under a songwriting contract with another publisher. The nickname "Daddy Slack" was also used in the 1941 recording by "Pig Foot Pete" with Don Raye singing in Slack's band. It is commonly accepted by jazz historians that this song is in reference and tribute to Peck Kelley, a 1920s jazz pianist.[1]

The Will Bradley Columbia recording was also released on V-Disc as No. 489A by the U.S. War Department in August 1945.

The song was first recorded in 1940 by the Will Bradley orchestra, featuring drummer McKinley on vocals and Freddie Slack on piano.[2] The recording was re-issued by Columbia Records on its Hall of Fame series featuring landmark songs.

Charts

The single placed in Billboard's "Leading Music Box Records of 1941" at number ten.[3]

Recordings

• Will Bradley and His Orchestra in 1940 on Columbia Records, set C-123.[4]
• Andrews Sisters, first in 1940;[5] their 1941 hit, "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", which praises a fictional trumpet player, resembles this hit.[2] Both songs were written by Don Raye and Hughie Prince.
• Glenn Miller and His Orchestra in 1940 on RCA Victor Bluebird.[6]
• Woody Herman in 1940 on Decca.[7]
• Ella Fitzgerald recorded this song with arrangements by Russell Garcia on her Verve release Get Happy! (1959).[8]
• Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen on their album Lost in the Ozone (1971).[9]
• Big Joe Duskin on the 1979 album Cincinnati Stomp.[10]
• Asleep at the Wheel released it on their 1990 album Keepin' Me Up Nights.[11]
• Deanna Bogart on her debut 1991 album Out to Get You.[12]

References

1. Yanow, Scott (2001). Classic Jazz. Backbeat Books. p. 127. ISBN 0-87930-659-9.
2. Gilliland, John (1994). Pop Chronicles the 40s: The Lively Story of Pop Music in the 40s (audiobook). ISBN 978-1-55935-147-8. OCLC 31611854. Tape 2, side B.
3. "Leading Music Box Records of 1941". Billboard. 54 (5): 66. January 31, 1941. ISSN 0006-2510.
4. "Beat Me Daddy (Eight to the Bar)". National Museum of American History. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
5. "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar - The Andrews Sisters | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
6. "Millenium Anthology - Glenn Miller | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
7. "1940-1941 - Woody Herman & His Orchestra | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
8. "Get Happy! - Ella Fitzgerald | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
9. "Lost in the Ozone - Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
10. "Cincinnati Stomp - Big Joe Duskin | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
11. "Keepin' Me Up Nights - Asleep at the Wheel | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
12. "Out to Get You - Deanna Bogart | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.