A Hundred Pounds of Clay

The original by Gene McDaniels, produced by Snuff Garrett with Earl Palmer on drums and written by Luther Dixon along with two unknowns, is kind of a moderately enjoyable major key R&B not-quite-novelty song, but there are also all sorts of cover versions, including one by Craig Douglas which was Too Ten in the UK, French and Spanish versions and a Dee Dee Sharp version referencing Chubby Checker which necessitates lyrically doubling the clay load to two hundred pounds.

The Spanish version itself seems to have a dozen or so covers!

Wikipedia sez this song was banned in the UK during the early 60s for some reason.

There is an okay doo wop version by an almost unknown group called The Laddins.

But mostly this song successfully emerged from the No Man’s Land Swamp Dogg between R&B and Country, in particular being covered by the master of that domain, Arthur Alexander himself.

Here is the Dalida version, also covered by Johnny Hallyday and somebody named Richard Anthony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aW3Jkt3fV0

The version by The Impressions is much closer to the gospel side of R&B.

Spanish versions are grebt!

Cien Kilos de Barro

Cool surfy Shadow-y instrumental version done by a Dutch group called The Jumping Jewels, seems to be under the French title « Avec une poignée de terre »
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqaCA_RZy30

Gary Lewis & The Playboys did it as well.

Never-ending source of wonder that the guy who originally sang this also wrote “Compared To What.”

As someone many of us are familiar also once remarked upon: https://tomblog.rip/the-left-rev-mcd-the-strange-career-of-geneeugene-mcdaniels/

I was just singing this to myself yesterday. Love this song.

Love this live version with Gene from 2010. I'll start looking into the covers. Arthur Alexanders seems like a promising place to start.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB10MHhftXc

Gary Lewis & the Playboys version is too cutesy, bouncy for me.

Shirelles version starts with an interesting organ sound

here we go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKzBPVFyJog