Sam the Sham

Sam the Sham is the stage name of rock 'n' roll singer Domingo “Sam” Samudio from Dallas, Texas. Sam the Sham would later be known for his campy onstage attire of robe and turban (inspiring one of the great tribute album names, Norton Records' 1994 release Turban Renewal) and hauling his equipment around in a 1952 Packard hearse complete with maroon velvet curtains. As the front man for the Pharaohs, he sang on a half dozen Top 40 hits in the mid-1960s, most notably "Wooly Bully".

Early career

Samudio made his singing debut while still in second grade, representing his school in a live radio broadcast. Later, he took up guitar as well and formed a high school group with some friends, one of whom was Trini Lopez.

He formed “The Pharaohs” in 1961 in Dallas. The other members were Carl Medke, Russell Fowler, Omar "Big Man” Lopez and Vincent Lopez (not related to Omar). In 1962 the group made one record but it did not sell. Tired of playing for $5 per man per night, The Pharaohs disbanded in late 1962.

In May, 1963, Vincent Lopez was playing for a band named “Andy and The Nightriders” in Louisiana. When their organist quit, Sam joined the group as the new organist. “Andy and The Nightriders” was composed of Andy Anderson, David A. Martin, Vincent Lopez and Sam. “The Nightriders” became very popular as the house band at The Congo Club. It was here that Sam became the “The Sham” in a dual reference to the fact that the band’s name was “Andy and The Nightriders” and Andy Anderson was the leader but everyone came to hear Sam sing and the fact that Sam couldn’t really play the organ – he could only play chords. Sham or Cham is also an obsolete term for Khan.

In June 1963, “The Nightriders” headed for Memphis, Tennessee and once again became a very popular house band at a club called The Diplomat. In late summer 1963, Andy Anderson and Vincent Lopez left the band to return to Texas. Sam and David A. Martin replaced them with Jerry Patterson and Ray Stinnett and changed the name of the band to “Sam the Sham and The Pharaohs”. Shortly thereafter, the band added saxophonist Butch Gibson.

The breakthrough hit

Main article: Wooly Bully

After paying to record and press their own records to sell at their gigs, Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs wound up with the Pen label in Memphis. There, they recorded what would prove to be their first and biggest hit ever, "Wooly Bully". "Wooly Bully" was a worldwide sensation, selling 3 million copies, and reaching No. 2 on the Billboard charts on June 5, 1965 at a time when the pop music charts were dominated by the "British Invasion".

Although the "Wooly Bully" single never reached #1 on the national charts, it lingered in the U.S. Top 40 for a then-impressive 18 weeks. It was the only recording named Billboard 'Number One Record of the Year' not to have topped the Hot 100 chart, and remained so for 35 years, until Faith Hill's "Breathe" and Lifehouse's "Hanging by a Moment" repeated the feat in 2000 and 2001, respectively. The song is now used as the entrance music for PDC darts player Terry Jenkins.

Further successes

The Pharaohs' next releases-- "Ju Ju Hand" and "Ring Dang Doo"-- were minor chart successes. In late 1965, 11 months after the release of "Wooly Bully", David A. Martin, Jerry Patterson, Ray Stinnett, and Butch Gibson left Sam over a financial dispute. Sam's manager Leonard Stogel discovered a band called Tony Gee & The Gypsys playing at the Metropole Cafe in Times Square, New York City. The band personnel were Tony "Butch" Gerace (bass guitar and vocals) Frankie Carabetta (keyboards, saxophone and vocals) Billy Bennett (drums and percussion) and Andy Kuha (guitar and vocals). It was this new set of Pharaohs that recorded "Li'l Red Riding Hood". On the Hot 100, "Li'l Red Riding Hood" began its two-week peak at #2 the same week that another fairy tale title, "The Pied Piper" by Crispian St. Peters, ended its three-week peak at #4, the week of August 6, 1966. The track did even better by rival Cash Box Magazine's reckoning, reaching #1 the same week.

A series of mostly novelty tunes followed (all on the MGM label) and kept the group on the charts into 1967. The titles of these songs included "The Hair On My Chinny Chin Chin", "How Do You Catch A Girl", "I Couldn't Spell !!*@!" and "Oh That's Good, No, That's Bad".

Post-hit career

In 1967, three girls joined the line up, Fran Curcio, Lorraine Genaro, and Jane Anderson. The new addition was called "The Shamettes". The group traveled to Asia as Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs and The Shamettes. In late 1967, after the war between Israel and Egypt, Sam changed the name of the group to more politically-correct Sam the Sham Revue. In 1970, Samudio went on his own and issued an album called Sam, Hard and Heavy on Atlantic. The album featured Duane Allman on guitar, the Dixie Flyers and the Memphis Horns. He formed a new band in 1974. The early '80s found Sam working with Ry Cooder and Freddy Fender on the soundtrack for the Jack Nicholson film The Border.

Today, Sam is a motivational speaker, poet and still makes occasional concert appearances.

External links

• Official website