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"Beep Beep" is a novelty single by The Playmates, released in 1958 by Roulette Records (catalog number 4115) as the B-side to "Your Love".[1] The song describes an unintended road race between two mismatched cars.

For other similarly-titled songs, see Beep, beep (disambiguation) § Music.

"Beep Beep"
One of side-A labels of original 1958 US single
Single by The Playmates
A-side"Your Love"
Released1958 (1958)
GenreNovelty
LabelRoulette
Songwriter(s)
  • Carl Cicchetti
  • Donald Claps

Production


"Beep Beep" was written by Carl Cicchetti and Donald Claps,[2] also known as Chic Hetti and Donny Conn,[3] the band's arranger/pianist and drummer, respectively.[4]

The song is built around accelerando: The tempo of the song gradually increases commensurate with the increasing speed of the drivers.[5] In his book The Guide to United States Popular Culture, Ray B. Browne lists "Beep Beep" as an example of "motoring music [...] in the chase mode".[6] It is a tortoise-and-the-hare story, substituting the drivers of two unequal cars, a Nash Rambler and Cadillac, respectively.[1]

Roulette Records did not want to release the song as a single, because the song changed tempo, it explicitly named contemporary products on the market, and was not danceable; when disc jockeys began playing it off the album, it forced the label's hand, and Roulette released the 45 single.[3] Because of a contemporary BBC directive that prohibited songs with brand names in their lyrics, a UK version of "Beep Beep" was recorded for the European market, replacing the Cadillac and Nash Rambler with the generic terms limousine and bubble car; this recut version was also released in the US for radio stations with similar policies about product placement.[7]


Reception


"Beep Beep" began charting with Billboard on November 3, 1958; it charted for 15 weeks, peaking at number four.[8] After the single sold one million copies (The Playmates' only), it was awarded a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America.[9] The Playmates were scheduled to perform their song on the December 3, 1958 episode of The Milton Berle Show.[10]

In December 1958, Time credited the popularity "Beep Beep" with helping Nash Motors break records. In November 1958, the company doubled its previous year's production record with 26,782 cars; Ramblers accounted for 9.2% of October 1958's automobile sales in the United States; and though "total U.S. exports slid 16% in 1958, Rambler's climbed 10.3%."[11] "Beep Beep" was also popular with the workers building Ramblers on AMC's assembly lines in Kenosha, Wisconsin.[12]

In 1994, a "near-mint commercial copy" of the single was valued at US$8 (equivalent to $14.63 in 2021).[8]


References


  1. Warner, Jay (2006) [1992]. "The 1950s". American Singing Groups: A History from 1940 to Today. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard. pp. 278–279. ISBN 0-634-09978-7. LCCN 2006922018.
  2. Belz, Carl (1969). "Selected Bibliography: 1953–1963". The Story of Rock. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 230. LCCN 75-83059.
  3. Bronson, Fred (1995). "The Top 100 Songs of 1958". Billboard's Hottest Hot 100 Hits. Broadway: Billboard Books. pp. 242–244. ISBN 0-8230-7646-6.
  4. Bolstad, Helen (August 1961). Mosher, Ann (ed.). "Hey! Look Us Over". Radio TV Mirror. Vol. 56, no. 3 (Midwest ed.). East 42nd Street: Macfadden Publications. pp. 17–29.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  5. Pica, Rae (2008). "Elements of Movement". Physical Education for Young Children: Movement ABCs for the Little Ones. Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-7360-7149-9.
  6. Ackerman, Paul, ed. (December 1, 1958). "Playmates 'Beep' Sans Ad Plugs". The Billboard. Vol. 70, no. 48. p. 5. ISSN 0006-2510.
  7. Whitburn, Joel (1994). "Artist Section". Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1993 (seventh ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research. p. 465. ISBN 0-89820-104-7.
  8. Murrells, Joseph (1978) [1974]. "1958". The Book of Golden Discs: The Records That Sold a Million. London: Barrie and Jenkins. p. 106. ISBN 0-214-20480-4.
  9. Rolontz, Bob (December 1, 1958). Ackerman, Paul (ed.). "Music as Written". The Billboard. Vol. 70, no. 48. p. 7. ISSN 0006-2510.
  10. Alexander, Roy; Fuerbringer, Otto, eds. (December 8, 1958). "Rambler in High Gear". Time. Vol. LXXII, no. 23. pp. 95–96. ISSN 0040-781X. OCLC 1311479.
  11. Giles, Diane (May 21, 2013). "Little Nash Rambler". That's Entertainment. Kenosha News. Retrieved August 29, 2019.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)




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