Welcome
to track six on the 6th Annual Doug Green Associates Crawfish boil
CD. Held in Madisonville, Louisiana on March 9, 2013, the boil drew from
Louisiana’s rich musical heritage. It featured Davis Rogan, a musician from New
Orleans who has become a crawfish boil staple and Warren Prejean and the Zydeco
Rhythm and Blues Band. In previous blog posts we’ve covered Rogan’s songs. Now
we’re deep into Prejean and the Zydeco Rhythm and Blues Band. Next up is the
R&B classic, Mustang Sally.
Songwriter Mack Rice penned Mustang Sally in 1965. Born in
Clarksdale, Mississippi in 1935, Rice got his musical start in the 1950s in
Detroit. From 1957 to 1963 he performed with the Falcons, a group that included
Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, and Joe Stubbs. After leaving the band, Rice
carved out a career for himself primarily as a songwriter. Along with Mustang Sally, he wrote songs like Respect Yourself, Betcha Can't Kiss Me (Just One Time), Money Talks, It Sho Ain't Me,
and Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin'. Artists
from Etta James to Lynyrd Skynrd to Ike and Tina Turner have also performed
songs written by Rice. In addition to songwriting, Rice ventured into
performing his own works as well. In 1992, he released his first solo album
titled Right Now. To this day, he
lives in Detroit and still performs.
 |
| Mack Rice |
Rice
wrote Mustang Sally following a visit
to his friend, singer Della Reese in New York City. Reese had off-handedly mentioned
that she planned to buy her drummer a Lincoln for his birthday. Calvin Shields,
the drummer, appreciated the thought, but reportedly replied, “I don’t want a
Lincoln, I want a Mustang.” Shields’ response confused Rice. He could not
understand why anyone would want the small Mustang instead of the bigger and
more powerful Lincoln. After returning to Detroit, Rice began work on a song
titled “Mustang Mama.” A serendipitous visit to Aretha Franklin’s house led to
the name change to “Mustang Sally.” Franklin believed that “Mustang Sally” fit
better with the music. And so the song was born.
 |
| Wilson Pickett |
Rice
wrote and released his own version of the song in 1965. At a performance at the
famed Apollo Theater, Wilson Pickett heard Rice performing Mustang Sally and decided to record his own version. Pickett’s
cover, released as a single and on his
1966 album The Wicked Pickett, became
a hit. It peaked at 23 on the pop music charts in 1966 and reached number six
on the R&B charts. In 2010, Rolling Stone Magazine named Pickett’s version,
the 441st greatest song of all time. The song, however, very nearly
never made it out of the studio. When
Pickett finished recording at FAME studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, the tape
flew off the reel and broke. Tom Dowd, a legendary engineer working on the
album, ordered everyone out of the room and told them to come back in a half an
hour. When they did, he had managed to piece the tape back together and save
the song. The rest is musical history.
“Mustang Sally”
Mustang Sally, think you better
slow your mustang down.
Mustang Sally, think you better
slow your mustang down.
You been running all over the
town now.
Oh! I guess I'll have to put
your flat feet on the ground.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
One of these early mornings,
oh, you gonna be wiping your weeping eyes.
I bought you a brand new
mustang 'bout nineteen sixty five
Now you come around signifying
a woman, you don't wanna let me ride.
Mustang Sally, think you better
slow your mustang down.
You been running all over the
town now.
Oh! I guess I'll have to put
your flat feet on the ground.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride
around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
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