Carl Gardner, lead singer of the Coasters, died on Sunday. The Coasters were loosely part of the doo wop movement of the late 50's but they were immensely influential architects of rock'n'roll. The Coasters had a string of innovative and infectious hit songs written by the team of Leiber and Stoller. Gardner's lead vocals were a big part of their magic.
"Poison Ivy" was one of these hits, so cool that a member of the Cramps took her name from the title of the song. This live version was recorded long after the band's heyday, but Gardner's voice still sounds great:
And in the classic "Yakety Yak", Gardner sang the immortal words:
Don't you give me no dirty looks
Your father's hip he knows what cooks
Just tell your hoodlum friends outside
you ain't got time to take a ride.
"Young Blood" was one of their best known songs and has been covered by Leon Russell, Bad Company and many others, including even Scotty McCready on this season's American Idol, and another band you may know:
Read more about the Coasters in their Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Coasters
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