Standells-Dirty Water (Rare Version with lyrics)

[peacockcal]

I want some more of that Dicky Dodd!

[mlong1954]

Too bad they did not let these guys actually play!!!!

[Chizoom]

Of the original members in the video, two are still in the group: John Fleck and Larry Tamblyn. FYI dudeofflatbush is a friend of a disgruntled band member who has been doing his best to harrass the present members.

[YoRockinMama]

@Chizoom Saw them play together in Houston. They still got it - fabulous drummer, really kicks it. Didn't care too much for that guitarist, tho...too full of himself, but then again he did replace Valentino! LOL

[udohood]

I lOve the day time with my baby walk around....

[MakingSenseOfPsych]

Hey drummer wannabes, want to learn how to play rock'n'roll drums? Then watch and listen, because this is one of the greatest rock drum performances EVER!!!! Sure, they're lip-synching--but the drummer is recreating the part note-for-note on the video. And the drum sound, the swing, the economic drama of those off-beat fills, and the joyous smile on that drummer's face is SO FREAKING SPOT ON!!! You love rock??? THAT'S ROCK!!!!

[fetchy15]

somebody tell the drummer to settle down he's gonna have a heart attack

[piranalu]

OK- trying to have a picnic in Boston--- the river rats would attack. Had to wear high boots to kick them away. I LOVE Boston~I really do.

[piranalu]

Oh Hell- Yes! I grew up the river- fishing...those "horn-powt' (the cat fish of the Charles) freaked me out- DIRTY BOTTOM EATERS. Dirty, dirty river. If you fell in, you where "infected". !968- 1975.....I loved that "dirty water" !!!!!

[Chizoom]

@ sauroid1 and philmilson: I represent the Standells. Because of the poor quality of the sound, it's hard to distinguish the lyrics. Directly from the sheet music, written by Ed Cobb, they are "lovers, muggers and thieves". The story is that Ed Cobb was mugged in Boston, and that's what inspired him to write it. There is no alternate version of the 1966 song. You can find them on their official Facebook page.

[dudeofflatbush]

@Chizoom There is no official Facebook page for the Standells...

[YoRockinMama]

@dudeofflatbush There WAS a Standells facebook page, but it got taken down because of Valentino. Too bad, it was a great place to visit. There is one up called We Want The Standells, and Larry Tamblyn has a personal one that's active. Hope they can get the other one back up soon; it had tons of great memorabilia.

[sauroid1]

Ah, Phil Milson (you actually used your own name?), I heard this before you were born. It is either fuggers or muggers, did it ever occur to you that there were different versions. Like 1960s radio and TV is going to let buggers get out. GET REAL!!! Before you spit venom at someone, do your homework first young whippersnapper!!!

[sauroid1]

Ah fuggers??? Unfortunately I lived in Boston and think I know what that means.

[philmilson]

@sauroid1 It's buggers, as in queers, not fuggers. You do not change the lyrics because you dislike them!

[BUZZ4134]

Actually...the Charles River is pristine clean and one can drink directly from it. It is true the women in Boston must be in before 12 O'Clock, and they are all very frustrated about that (especially the guys). All parts of the song are factually correct except the river, it is absolutely clean!

[flyingmerkel6]

At 1:05 the drummer is scratching his nose with both hands, Yet the beat continues...............

God bless the 60's & the Standells. My favorite song as a 7 year old kid.

[Chizoom]

The Standells were all from So. California. However, the MA state legislature deemed the Standells honorary citizens in 2007 by official decree. Visit the Standells Facebook page to learn more.

[dudeofflatbush]

@Chizoom Hey Chizoom- I think you have your facts wrong...the song "Dirty Water," as sung by the Standells, was honored...and the Standells weren't made "honorary citizens" (although that would have been nice)!

[gmckennon]

From what I've been told, they would hang out behind the Haffenreffer Brewery in J.P. and party. There was an outside spigot there with abundant beer.....

[gmckennon]

The band was definitely from Boston! They mutually decided to go incognito to keep the papparazi from snooping on them. They still collect their royalties. The "tribute" bands try to get away with not paying their dues to them...

[gropingwithastoker]

No, the band wasn't from Boston, but there are so many authentic parts of this song that it's easy to be fooled. The Charles River was filthy back then. The frustrated women who had to be in by 12:00 were the BU co-eds who had to back in the dorm by midnight. And then there's the "have you heard about The Strangler" line at the end.

[norseleague]

Best band out of Boston for while they lasted. Yes...better than the Carrs in my view.

[gymnastix]

@norseleague The Standells weren't from Boston, but from Los Angeles. Their lead vocalist was Larry Tamblyn, brother of actor Russ Tamblyn ("West Side Story"), and uncle of actress Amber Tamblyn.

"Dirty Water" and many of their other songs were written & produced by the late Ed Cobb. Originally a member of the vocal quartet The Four Preps (who sometimes backed up Ricky Nelson), Cobb produced & wrote for other L.A. garage bands of the mid-1960s, including The Chocolate Watch Band.

[dudeofflatbush]

@gymnastix In the very beginning, Larry Tamblyn was the lead vocalist, but then he was replaced by Dick Dodd (the drummer) as lead singer. It is Dodd who sang "Dirty Water" and a bunch of their hits and great songs - like Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White, Try It and Riot On Sunset Strip...

[YoRockinMama]

@dudeofflatbush Tamblyn sang lead, and he and Dodd would have continued to share the duties had Dodd not happened to have sung on "Dirty Water".  To say Tamblyn was "replaced" is misleading. Tamblyn sang lead on other songs that were huge for fans, like Mr. Nobody, Pride and Devotion, etc. You got a problem with giving Tamblyn credit for all the years he put into the Standells before and AFTER Dick Dodd,? After all, the band was once known as Larry Tamblyn and the Standells.

[dudeofflatbush]

@YoRockinMama Actually,Tamblyn himself has said in interviews that Dodd replaced him as lead singer. I'm reading one right now (oops). & the songs Tamblyn sang lead on in the early days are songs no one cares about (except you and a few other Tamblyn's hypnofied friend-robots: talk about man-crushes! (oops). The Standells were never honorary citizens as deemed by the MA Legislature. "Dirty Water, as sung by the Standells..." was. I know cause, I'm lookin at it right now..(oops!)

[YoRockinMama]

@dudeofflatbush Yes, I have my favorite Standell. At least mine can sing. Valentino couldn't carry a tune in a fanny pack. Can you post the link to that MA legislature decree?

[YoRockinMama]

@dudeofflatbush Wow, what a hater. Did Tamblyn kick your dog or something?

[dudeofflatbush]

@YoRockinMama As for LT & The Standells, well that's a whole kettle of smelly fish to be sure. I prefer not to open the cover. It stinks too much. As 4 the "Standells" FB page, perhaps, after all the apparent bs posted on it by, i.a, Tamblyn & his "reps," the walls began to come tumblin' down & poof! No more FB page. Or maybe it happened after their 2011 tour got cancelled due to bs they were telling people in Europe about the Standells. I just can't remember which came first..oops

[gymnastix]

@norseleague  Cobb also wrote "Tainted Love," recorded by soul singer Gloria Jones in 1964, made a hit by the British group Soft Cell in 1982.

[gymnastix]

@norseleague But there were some Boston and Bay State garage bands who were contemporaries of The Standells, including The Remains (a/k/a Barry & The Remains), who opened for The Beatles on many of their early tour dates. The Remains' best known songs were "Why Do I Cry," "Don't Look Back," "You Got A Hard Time Coming," and a cover of Bo Diddley's "Diddy Wah Diddy," a hit on the East coast of the U.S.

[gymnastix]

@norseleague Another, great, Boston area garage band of the mid-1960s was The Barbarians, whose drummer Victor "Moulty" Moulton, played with one hand and a hook. Moulton sang lead vocals on the group's infamous "Moulty," which relays the inspirational tale of losing his hand (in a cherry bomb accident), but perserverence against all odds.

[gropingwithastoker]

@gymnastix Moulty sold a house to my sister a few years back. BTW, he's name checked in the Ramones "Do You Remember Rock and Roll Radio" - "Will you remember Jerry Lee, John Lennon, T.Rex, and Ol Moulty". Not bad company for a fairly obscure character.

[gymnastix]

@norseleague The Barbarians opened for The Rolling Stones on some of their early tour dates (Stones' guitarist Keith Richards called his first solo band "The New Barbarians," perhaps in homage, when he was ordered by a Canadian court to perform charity concerts, after a 1970s' drug bust), and were also featured in the legendary rock & roll showcase documentary "The T.A. M. I. Show" (directed by Steve Binder).

[gymnastix]

@norseleague The Barbarians' best-known songs were "What The New Breed Say," and the classic "Are You A Boy Or Are You A Girl," the latter about the androgyny of males wearing longer hair, after The British Invasion in music and pop culture in the mid-'60s. The song was covered 25 years later by another Boston area garage band, The Peecocks, who updated the lyrics to also reflect the female androgyny of such personalities as k.d. lang.

[gymnastix]

@norseleague Other Boston-area garage bands of note were The Beacon Street Union, The Lost, and Teddy & The Pandas.

[memaggiemae]

LOVE THAT DIRTY WATER ON VANCOUVER'S ICE....CONGRATS BLACK -N- GOLD

[zynjan]

#72 Standells-Dirty Water best songs of the 60s

[ronnelson82]

who is the singer?

[ledzepppp666]

odd all they  show is the drummer through the whole song,he must of paid off the camera guy

[moonstone101987]

I love this song I was from the boston area

[jeffsor47]

@moonstone101987 The Standells were from so. Ca. The beach area I think.

[ibwilliamsi]

I remember this song. I didn't remember that they were so cute!

[uscpat]

It's "lovers, MUGGERS and thieves"!

Not fuggers, LOL...

Great song...

[chuckschilling]

I grew up in the Baltimore area in the 70's, and in the version we heard on the radio, they dubbed in "Baltimore" for "Boston" and "Chesapeake Bay" for "River Charles" - I can't remember ever hearing the original/correct version of the lyrics until much later.

[chicagohustler100]

You know what looks worse than the lip syncing? The mustache on the guitar player on the left looks like it was glued on, like one of those you use on halloween. He was just too young to have some bad looking hair under his lip. Good group though and a good song. I really miss those days growing up in Chicago with Cryan Shames,Buckinghams,New Colony Six and Shadows Of Knight.

[Fanik8]

this song was recorded in 1965 and was released in 1966

[johnstodder]

Great song but one of the worst lip-syncing performances ever!

[ash2ashindust]

This is ODDLY a very fitting story for this town, RIGHT NOW! "Well I LOVE THAT DIRTY WATER...BOSTON YOU're MY HOME!!!"

[ShimmyNShake]

I love how unserious he is about the whole lipsynching idea.

[cookmoore]

Yeah!