My Ding-a-Ling
Encyclopedia
"My Ding-a-Ling" was the title of a novelty song
recorded by Chuck Berry
, and his only U.S.
number-one single on the pop charts. Later that year the song, in a longer unedited form, was on the album The London Chuck Berry Sessions
. The Average White Band members guitarist Onnie McIntyre and drummer Robbie McIntosh played on the single.
'My Ding-a-Ling' was originally recorded by Dave Bartholomew
in 1952 for King Records. When Bartholomew moved to Imperial Records, he re-recorded the song under the new title, 'Little Girl Sing Ding-a-Ling'. In 1954, The Bees on Imperial released a version entitled "Toy Bell." Berry recorded a version called "My Tambourine" in 1968, but the version which topped the charts was recorded live during the Lanchester Arts Festival at the Locarno ballroom in Coventry
, England
, on 3 February 1972, where Berry – backed by The Roy Young Band – topped a bill that also included Slade
and Billy Preston
. Boston radio station WMEX
disc jockey
, Jim Connors
, was credited with a gold record for discovering the song and pushing it to #1 over the airwaves and amongst his peers in the United States
.
. The lyrics consistently exercise the double entendre
with ding-a-ling standing in for the penis
. During the live version, Berry calls on the audience to join in the chorus, and in the final verse, he admonishes "those of you who will not sing" that they "must be playing with [their] own ding-a-ling".
s to refuse to play it, and British morality campaigner Mary Whitehouse
tried unsuccessfully to get the song banned. Moreover, pop critics generally dislike the song (especially the fact that it was Berry's sole #1 single in his career) and say that it is unworthy for someone who was so important in early rock 'n' roll (Alan Freeman
once introduced the song by saying "oh Chuck baby, how could you!?!"). Nevertheless, Berry still likes it and on the recording calls it "our Alma Mater
".
This controversy was lampooned in The Simpsons
episode "Lisa's Pony
", in which a Springfield Elementary School student attempted to sing the song during the school's talent show. He barely finished the first line of the refrain before an irate Principal Skinner rushed him off the stage.
The censorship of this song has continued decades later. In one case, for a re-run of American Top 40
, some stations, such as WOGL
in Philadelphia, replaced this song with an optional extra when it aired a rerun of a November 18, 1972 broadcast of AT40 (where it ranked at #14) on December 6, 2008. Among other stations, most Clear Channel
-owned radio stations to whom the AT40 '70s rebroadcasts were contracted did not air the rebroadcast that same weekend, although it was because they were playing Christmas music
and not because of the controversy. Even back in 1972, some stations would refuse to play this song on AT40, even when it reached number one.
Berry's resulting live album
was named, The London Chuck Berry Sessions
, even though London is more than 100 miles away from where the live tracks were recorded. London is likely the location where the studio tracks on this album were recorded.
Novelty song
A novelty song is a comical or nonsensical song, performed principally for its comical effect. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music. The other two divisions...
recorded by Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
, and his only U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
number-one single on the pop charts. Later that year the song, in a longer unedited form, was on the album The London Chuck Berry Sessions
The London Chuck Berry Sessions
The London Chuck Berry Sessions is a studio/live album by American rock and roll icon Chuck Berry released by Chess Records in October 1972. Side one of the album consisted of studio recordings, while side two featured three extended live performances recorded at the Lanchester Arts Festival in...
. The Average White Band members guitarist Onnie McIntyre and drummer Robbie McIntosh played on the single.
'My Ding-a-Ling' was originally recorded by Dave Bartholomew
Dave Bartholomew
Dave Bartholomew is a musician, band leader, composer and arranger, prominent in the music of New Orleans throughout the second half of the 20th century...
in 1952 for King Records. When Bartholomew moved to Imperial Records, he re-recorded the song under the new title, 'Little Girl Sing Ding-a-Ling'. In 1954, The Bees on Imperial released a version entitled "Toy Bell." Berry recorded a version called "My Tambourine" in 1968, but the version which topped the charts was recorded live during the Lanchester Arts Festival at the Locarno ballroom in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on 3 February 1972, where Berry – backed by The Roy Young Band – topped a bill that also included Slade
Slade
Slade are an English rock band from Wolverhampton, who rose to prominence during the glam rock era of the early 1970s. With 17 consecutive Top 20 hits and six number ones, the British Hit Singles & Albums names them as the most successful British group of the 1970s based on sales of singles...
and Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
. Boston radio station WMEX
WWZN
WWZN is an AM radio station licensed to serve the Boston media market. Its programming is a time-brokered mix between progressive talk radio during the daytime , sports talk and religious programming in the overnight hours...
disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
, Jim Connors
Jim Connors
Jim "JC" Connors was a popular radio personality of the 1960s through 1980s in the United States.-Highlights:...
, was credited with a gold record for discovering the song and pushing it to #1 over the airwaves and amongst his peers in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Content
The song tells of how the singer received a toy consisting of "silver bells hanging on a string" from his grandmother, who calls them his ding-a-ling. According to the song, he plays with it in school, and holds on to it in dangerous situations like falling after climbing the garden wall, and swimming across a creek infested with snapping turtlesChelydridae
Chelydridae is a family of turtles which has seven extinct and two extant genera. The extant genera are Chelydra the snapping turtles, and its larger relative Macrochelys, of which the Alligator Snapping Turtle is the only species. Both are endemic to the Western Hemisphere...
. The lyrics consistently exercise the double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
with ding-a-ling standing in for the penis
Penis
The penis is a biological feature of male animals including both vertebrates and invertebrates...
. During the live version, Berry calls on the audience to join in the chorus, and in the final verse, he admonishes "those of you who will not sing" that they "must be playing with [their] own ding-a-ling".
Controversy
The lyrics with their sly tone and innuendo (and the enthusiasm of Berry and the audience) caused many radio stationRadio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s to refuse to play it, and British morality campaigner Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse, CBE was a British campaigner against the permissive society particularly as the media portrayed and reflected it...
tried unsuccessfully to get the song banned. Moreover, pop critics generally dislike the song (especially the fact that it was Berry's sole #1 single in his career) and say that it is unworthy for someone who was so important in early rock 'n' roll (Alan Freeman
Alan Freeman
Alan Leslie "Fluff" Freeman, MBE was a British disc jockey and radio personality in the United Kingdom for 40 years.-Career:...
once introduced the song by saying "oh Chuck baby, how could you!?!"). Nevertheless, Berry still likes it and on the recording calls it "our Alma Mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
".
This controversy was lampooned in The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Lisa's Pony
Lisa's Pony
"Lisa's Pony" is the eighth episode of the third season of The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 7, 1991. In this episode, Homer goes drinking at Moe's Tavern instead of buying a new reed for Lisa's saxophone, resulting in her flopping at the school...
", in which a Springfield Elementary School student attempted to sing the song during the school's talent show. He barely finished the first line of the refrain before an irate Principal Skinner rushed him off the stage.
The censorship of this song has continued decades later. In one case, for a re-run of American Top 40
American Top 40
American Top 40 is an internationally syndicated, independent radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds and Ron Jacobs. Originally a production of Watermark Inc...
, some stations, such as WOGL
WOGL
WOGL is an FM radio station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.The station plays mostly post 1964 pop leaning Oldies positioned Classic Hits music, including Motown, soul and rock and roll spanning roughly 1964–1985. An occasional pre-1964 song is played. WOGL is owned by CBS Radio...
in Philadelphia, replaced this song with an optional extra when it aired a rerun of a November 18, 1972 broadcast of AT40 (where it ranked at #14) on December 6, 2008. Among other stations, most Clear Channel
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
-owned radio stations to whom the AT40 '70s rebroadcasts were contracted did not air the rebroadcast that same weekend, although it was because they were playing Christmas music
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
and not because of the controversy. Even back in 1972, some stations would refuse to play this song on AT40, even when it reached number one.
Berry's resulting live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
was named, The London Chuck Berry Sessions
The London Chuck Berry Sessions
The London Chuck Berry Sessions is a studio/live album by American rock and roll icon Chuck Berry released by Chess Records in October 1972. Side one of the album consisted of studio recordings, while side two featured three extended live performances recorded at the Lanchester Arts Festival in...
, even though London is more than 100 miles away from where the live tracks were recorded. London is likely the location where the studio tracks on this album were recorded.
Charts
| Chart (1972) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Top Singles (RPM RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... ) |
1 |
| US Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
1 |
| US R&B Singles Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... (Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... ) |
42 |