70-Year-Old Songs: Salty Dog

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One of the great things about doing countdowns like this is the research. I majored in library science in college so I could do research like this. It’s great, because I get to learn things that I never knew, and hopefully pass it on to y’all. In the process, long-buried music gets a second chance. That’s the case of today’s song that’s turning 70 this year. Salty Dog - The Lamplighters These poor guys don’t even have a Wikipedia page!! If that doesn’t scream obscure I don’t know what does! According to Discogs, the group changed their name at least six times before having a hit in 1962 with “Papa Oom Mow Mow” as The Rivingtons. I mean, John Mellencamp could get away with changing his name every week because HE was well established! This song was written by Rudy Toombs, who wrote hits for Ruth Brown and the Clovers. Toombs was robbed and murdered in his apartment building in 1962. This is a fun song (and NO relation to the bluegrass standard “Salty Dog Blues”), and I’m happy to let someone else hear it. Salty Dog Written by Rudy Toombs Recorded by The Lamplighters Released as a single, 1954 The rabbit jumped over the fence: