Duke, Duke, Duke, Duke of Earl...

[Buried Alien]

I've got the old 1960s Gene Chandler song "Duke of Earl" stuck in my head BADLY right now.

It's not even the "Duke, Duke, Duke" part that usually gets stuck in people's heads. For some reason, it's the chorus..."As IIIIIIII.....walk through this world..."

And it's with the stupidest image too: I happened to catch the ending of the 1991 John Goodman movie KING RALPH, which featured this song in the closing credits. Now, I'm stuck on this image of Goodman and a couple of other guys dressed in 17th Century English noblemen's gear singing this old doo-wop number!

Buried Alien (The Fastest Duke Alive!)

[Jessica Drew]

I've got the old 1960s Gene Chandler song "Duke of Earl" stuck in my head BADLY right now.

It's not even the "Duke, Duke, Duke" part that usually gets stuck in people's heads. For some reason, it's the chorus..."As IIIIIIII.....walk through this world..."Buried Alien (The Fastest Duke Alive!)

I love that song. And the part you're talking about isn't the chorus; it's the first verse. The chorus is my favorite part: the beginning of it, when Chandler, sings, "Yes, and I;" and the end, when Chandler croons "Ooo-ooh-ooh-oo-oo-ooh" over the "Duke, Duke, Duke" parts.

The whole titular conceit is hilarious, because both Duke and Earl are titles of nobility, with Duke being the title with the highest rank. So, I guess Chandler knew what he was doing when coining the title*. If he had swapped places--The Earl of Duke--then, I guess, he might not feel noble enough to sing this song (not to mention the scatalogical ramifications!!!)

And it's with the stupidest image too: I happened to catch the ending of the 1991 John Goodman movie KING RALPH, which featured this song in the closing credits. Now, I'm stuck on this image of Goodman and a couple of other guys dressed in 17th Century English noblemen's gear singing this old doo-wop number!

Buried Alien (The Fastest Duke Alive!)

Chandler** and his group, the Dukays, used to perform the song dressed the exact same way.

*Actually, the song title originated from Chandler singing "doo, doo, doo, doo-doo-doo." Since his group were called the Dukays, the "doos" quickly became "Dukes." Chandler added the Earl cause that was the name of another member of the group, Earl Edwards.

**Chandler's real name is Eugene Dixon. The Gene is obvious, but he chose Chandler as an homage to his favorite actor, one-time Academy Award nominee (for 1950's Broken Arrow) Jeff Chandler.

[scratchie]

Let me help.

Wake me up, before you go-go
Don't leave me hanging on like a yo-yo
Wake me up before you go-go
I don't want to miss it when you hit that high
Wake me up before you go-go
'Cause I'm not plannin' on going solo
Wake me up before you go-go
Take me dancing tonight
I wanna hit that high (yeah, yeah)

You're welcome.