The Lone Twister: "The Lone Twister" (Atlantic)

When the twist was all the rage in the early sixties, lots of folks tried their own hand at getting a slice of the twist pie. Here's a record that goes into it a little further. It's a Doc Pomus-Mort Schuman composition all about some macho guy who only dances the twist. I'm not sure, but I think the Lone Twister was actually a relatively well-known DJ of the period. At any rate, we'll let him explain himself:

Everybody's dancin'
and cheek-to-cheek romancin'
Aww, but that ain't my groove
'Cause I dig music that makes me wanna move!

Right on, there, Mr. Twister. He goes on with some more lingo like "Make my hair stand, man! Make my teeth click, chick!" None of that slow stuff for him. "No hand holdin' sister! Not when you dance with the Lone Twister!" ("Gettin' dizzy? Ha-ha, that's what I like!") He raps all this over a background of guitar, congas and drums that pound out the twistin' rhythms he no doubt loves so well.

Appropriately enough, the flip is called "Twistin' Up A Storm" and it's a frantic number in its own right, but it isn't as inspired as "Lone Twister." For one thing, the DJ tries to sing and comes off as average. For another, it's another of those songs that rhapsodize on how easy it is to twist and everybody's doin' it and so forth. The self-titled A-side is the one to stick with for moments of great lines and macho swagger. So, round and round and round and round we go!

My favorite line: "I don't dig that slow jive, cause I want music that makes me feel alive!" Such an attitude endears it greatly to "It's Great Shakes."