"Shout and Shimmy" is an R&B songwritten by James Brown, and recorded by him and The Famous Flames. It rose to #16 on the R&B chart and #61 on the BillboardHot 100. The critic Douglas Wolk described the song as "a truly shameless ripoff of The Isley Brothers' 1959 hit "Shout"... basically the fast parts of "Shout" with the gospel inflections removed and the word 'shimmy' added." Wolk argues that Brown and The Famous Flames probably performed "Shout and Shimmy" in the October 24, 1962 concerts at which Live at the Apollo was recorded, but that it was left off of the album to prevent sales competition with the studio version of the song. Evidence to support this contention includes the fact that Brown customarily began his concerts with his latest hit, and the presence of "Shout and Shimmy"'s a cappella opening immediately before the first song on the album, "I'll Go Crazy". James and The Famous Flames sang and performed this song on Dick Clark's American Bandstand,on a telecast dated June 11th, 1962. A performance of "Shout and Shimmy" was the first track on Brown & The Flames' next live album, 1964's Pure Dynamite! Live at the Royal, featuring a comedy skit between Brown and Famous Flame Bobby Bennett.
The Who version
In two days during 12 to 14 April, 1965, British rock group the Who recorded "Shout and Shimmy" as the B-side to their fourth single "My Generation", which was released on October 29, 1965. The A-side reached number 2 in the United Kingdom, but only reached number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 99 in Cashbox magazine. The song was part of the Who's repertoire from late 1964, along with several other rhythm and blues covers, including other songs by James Brown. It was ultimately dropped in 1966 once the group had written enough original material. Several other songs was recorded during the same session as "Shout and Shimmy", including "I'm a Man", "Leaving Here", "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" along two other songs written by Brown: "Please, Please, Please" and "I Don't Mind". Their version is undisputedly greatly derived from "Shout", a song by the Isley Brothers made famous by Lulu and the Luvvers, including call- and-response lyrics throughout, similar to other songs by the group at the time, including "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere". In the US however, "Shout and Shimmy" was not released as the B-side of "My Generation", and was instead substituted by "Out in the Street", which later appeared on their debut albumMy Generation. On this release the song is dubbed "Out in the Street." "Shout and Shimmy" became a rare collectible in the US, since it wasn't included on the equivalent version of My Generation released in America, The Who Sings My Generation, and instead would remain unissued until it was belatedly released as the opening song to Who's Missing, a collection of rare tracks by the Who was released in 1985. The group would eventually revisit the song, recording it for their 1979 documentary film The Kids Are Alright. It has since been included on reissues and remasters of My Generation.Ultimate Classic Rock ranked it 130 on their list ofAll 245 Who Songs Ranked Worst to Best in 2018, stating "A party record that captures an element of how frenetic these James Brown covers must have sounded at early Who gigs. A whole mess of fun.
