The Song
A Night At Daddy Gee's was Showaddywaddy's final single of the 1970s, being released on 19th October 1979. The song's release was the cause of some tension between Showaddywaddy's and the band's label Arista Records, with SWW wanting to release a self-penned track, "That's Alright With Me" instead.The b-side was a Trevor Oakes-penned track, "I Appreciate The Job". Both the A and B-side featured on the following album, 'Crepes & Drapes' which was released a couple of weeks later on 2nd November 1979.
TV Appearances
The first appearance of "A Night At Daddy Gee's" was on ATV's Tiswas on 10th November 1979 when the promo video for the song was shown, followed by an appearance on Top Of The Pops a few days later on 15th November.IMDB shows a listing for Showaddywaddy featuring on a Swedish TV show called Showtime on 11th December 1979, the track performed not listed but no doubt being "Daddy Gee's".
On 13th December 1979, "A Night At Daddy Gee's" was mimed on Musikladen with a stand-in drummer from the Lew Lewis Band. Bill Gask and Trevor Oakes did not feature, Bill reportedly being in hospital following a skirmish with the locals.
Promo Video
A promo video was recorded for the single, with two locations in Leicester being used. The opening scenes are filmed in the Modino Cafe on Hinckley Road. The cafe became a hang out for local Teddy Boys when it opened in 1959. It remained virtually unchanged for over 60 years and closed in 2022. The other location was the Palais De Danse, a dance hall in Humberstone Gate which opened in the 1930s. In 1985 the building was refurbished, with many of the original interior features lost forever, and after seeing different uses and passing through many hands, closed its doors in 2013.Personnel
Vocals: Dave Bartram, and Malcom Allured with the opening line "Come on everybody….".Lead Guitar: Russ Field
Rhythm Guitar: Trevor Oakes
Bass: Rod Deas (the bass line sounds very much like Al James, however Rod is playing bass in all TV performances and in the promo video recorded for the song).
Drums: Malcolm Allured
Saxophone: Jeff Daly
Composer
Curtis Lee - Showaddywaddy had previously released other Curtis Lee tracks, "Under The Moon of Love" and "Pretty Little Angel Eyes". The latter had previously charted with Curtis Lee in 1961. Curtis released "Daddy Gee's" a year later in 1962 but it did not chart.Lyrics
Come on everybody, we're going down to Daddy Gee's!Well come everybody, we're going down to Daddy Gee's,
We're gonna do some rock 'n' rollin, like you ain't never seen,
So come on with me, I said we're going down to Daddy Gee's.
Come on little Susie, I want you to come along too,
Take your shoes off, comb your hair down, I'm gonna dance on like you.
So come on with me, I said we're going down to Daddy Gee's.
Feel so good now you're on - come on baby, rock me all night long.
Come on everybody, gonna have a happy time,
Take your shoes off, comb your hair down, I know it's gonna work out fine,
So come on with me, I said we're going down to Daddy Gee's - roll it Daddy!
What's his name? Daddy Gee!
Well come everybody, we're going down to Daddy Gee's,
We're gonna do some rock 'n' rollin, like you ain't never seen,
So come on with me, I said we're going down to Daddy Gee's.
Come on with me, I said we're going down to Daddy Gee's - rock it Daddy!