Get a Job (song)

"Get a Job"
Single by The Silhouettes
A-side	"I Am Lonely"
Released	November 1957
Format	45 rpm, 78 rpm
Recorded	October 1957. Robinson Recording Laboratories, Philadelphia
Genre	Doo-wop, rhythm and blues
Length	2:25
Label	Junior
Writer(s)	Earl Beal Raymond Edwards Richard Lewis William Horton
Certification	Gold (RIAA)

"Get a Job" is a song by the Silhouettes released in November 1957. It reached the number one spot on the Billboard pop and R&B singles charts in February 1958.^[1]

Background

"When I was in the service in the early 1950s and didn't come home and go to work, my mother said 'get a job' and basically that's where the song came from," said tenor Richard Lewis, who wrote the lyrics.^[2] The four members of the group shared the credit, jointly creating the "sha na na" and "dip dip dip dip" hooks later imitated by other doo-wop groups.

The song was recorded at Robinson Recording Laboratories in Philadelphia in October 1957. Rollee McGill played the saxophone break, and the arranger was Howard Biggs. Intended as the B-side to "I Am Lonely",^[3] "Get a Job" was initially released on Kae Williams' Junior label; Williams, who was also a Philadelphia disc-jockey, was the Silhouettes' manager.^[4][5] Doug Moody, an executive at Ember Records, acquired the rights to the song for that label where it was licensed for national distribution.

In early 1958, the Silhouettes performed "Get a Job" several times on American Bandstand and once on The Dick Clark Show, appearances that contributed to the song's success by exposing it to a large audience.^{[6][lower-alpha 1]} Ultimately the single sold more than a million copies.^[8]

Legacy

The song was later featured in the soundtracks of the movies American Graffiti (1973), Stand By Me (1986), Trading Places (1983), Get a Job (1985), Joey (1986), and Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). In the 1980s, the UK recruitment agency, Brook Street Bureau, used the song in their two TV commercials, replacing the words "get a job" with "better job".

The revival group Sha Na Na derived their name from the song's doo-wop introduction.^[3] "Get a Job" inspired a number of answer songs, including "Got a Job", the debut recording by The Miracles.^[9] Dennis Wilson, co-founder of the Beach Boys, believed that the group's song "She's Goin' Bald" (1967) paid reference to "Get a Job".^[10]

Cover versions

The song was covered by Jan Berry of Jan & Dean on his 1997 solo album Second Wave. Other covers include those by the Hampton String Quartet (What if Mozart Wrote "Roll Over Beethoven"?), Neil Young & Crazy Horse (Americana, 2012). and The Delltones.

Note

1. Bandstand was a Philadelphia show, broadcast nationally by ABC. Bandstand producer Tony Mammarella bought a share of the rights to "Get a Job" from Kae Williams, an example of the "pay for play" practices for which Clark, Mammarella and others were later rebuked during the Payola scandal.^[7]

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 525.
2. "Get a Job – The Silhouettes". The Silhouettes. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
3. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 2817. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
4. Rosalsky, Mitch (2002). Encyclopedia of Rhythm & Blues and Doo-Wop Vocal Groups. Scarecrow Press. p. 518. ISBN 978-0-8108-4592-3.
5. "Kae Williams". The Silhouettes. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
6. "The Silhouettes and Dick Clark". The Silhouettes. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
7. Scheurer, Timothy E. (1989). American Popular Music: The age of rock. Popular Press. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-0-87972-468-9.
8. Jasen, David A. (2013-10-15). A Century of American Popular Music. Routledge. ISBN 9781135352714.
9. Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 25 – The Soul Reformation: Phase two, the Motown story. [Part 4]" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu.
10. Felton, David (1976). "The Healing of Brother Brian". Rolling Stone.