LEE DORSEY

Lee Dorsey was an early New Orleans funkateer who worked with the veteran songwriter/producer, Allen Toussaint.

He was born Irving Lee Dorsey on December 24, 1924. He was a childhood friend of Fats Domino before the Dorseys moved to Portland, Oregon, when Lee was ten years old. He was drafted into the U.S. Navy during World War II. He served on a destroyer and sustained a leg wound when a Japanese Zero attacked the ship. Dorsey later became a professional boxer. In the early ‘50s, he fought in Portland under the name Kid Chocolate; but he fought only one bout and was knocked out in the second round.

Dorsey returned to New Orleans in 1955, studying body and fender repair under the G.I. Bill. He also hung out in the nightclubs of the French Quarter but did not sing in them. He did, however, sing at work, and a local record producer was taken with Dorsey’s somewhat nasally voice. He ended up recording his first single, “Rock Pretty Baby,” on Cosimo Matassa’s Rex label in 1959. It got some local airplay and led to Dorsey’s next release, 1960’s “Lottie Mo” on Valiant Records (and picked up for national distribution by ABC-Paramount). The session was produced by the New Orleans Rhythm & Blues veteran, Allen Toussaint. Though “Lottie Mo” was not a national hit, it did earn Lee Dorsey an appearance on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand.”

Dorsey later met A&R (artists and repertoire) man Marshall Sehorn, who got him signed to Bobby Robinson’s Fury Records. While Robinson was visiting Dorsey’s house, they heard some kids outside chanting a catchy tune that Dorsey, Robinson, and a third collaborator, C.L. Blast, turned into “Ya Ya.” The funky novelty song hit #1 R&B in November 1961 and peaked at #7 on the pop chart. It sold more than a million copies and received a gold record from the Recording Industry Association of America. Dorsey’s next single, the similarly themed “Do-Re-Mi,” also made the charts, but his subsequent Fury releases did not. He next recorded unsuccessfully for the Smash and Constellation labels.

By 1965, Dorsey was again working with Allen Toussaint, recording “Ride Your Pony” for Bell Records. (Toussaint wrote the song under the pseudonym “Naomi Neville.”) It became his biggest hit since “Ya Ya,” and was followed by pair of top five R&B smashes: “Get Out of My Life, Woman” and “Working in the Coal Mine.” The latter also was a top ten pop hit in 1966. Dorsey ended the year with another with another chart hit, “Holy Cow.” He also recorded two albums, Ride Your Pony Again and The New Lee Dorsey. Unfortunately, his constant touring put a strain on Dorsey’s marriage; he and wife ended up divorcing.

His 1969 single, “Everything I Do Gohn Be Funky (From Now On),” with instrumental backing by the Meters, is acknowledged as a forerunner of the ‘70s funk movement. In 1970, Dorsey and Toussaint collaborated on the Yes We Can album. The title cut made the Billboard Soul Singles chart and became an even bigger hit for the Pointer Sisters, who did the song in 1973 as “Yes We Can Can.”

In 1976, Dorsey appeared on the LP, I Don’t Want to Go Home, by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes. This led to a recording contract with ABC Records, from which came Dorsey’s 1978 album, Night People. In 1979, he suffered two broken legs in a motorcycle accident. However, that did not stop Dorsey from playing jazz festivals in New Orleans and opening for The Clash on their 1980 U.S. concert tour. He also went out on the road with Jerry Lee Lewis and James Brown.

Lee Dorsey developed emphysema and died on December 1, 1986, at the age of 61. 

His signature hit, “Ya Ya,” inspired numerous cover versions. They included Tony Sheridan & The Beat Brothers (A/K/A The Beatles, 1962), Tommy James & The Shondells (1966), Mouse & The Traps (1967), the Hombres (1968), Lee Michaels (1971), John Lennon (1975), Trio (1981), and the Steve Miller Band (1988). There were also French-language versions called “Ya Ya Twist” by both Petula Clark and Johnny Hallyday in 1962.

Rock critic Dave Marsh included “Ride Your Pony” in his 1989 book, The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.

Charted singles:

“Ya Ya” (1961) R&B #1 (1 week), Pop #7
“Do-Re-Mi” (1961-62) R&B #22, Pop #27
“Ride Your Pony” (1965) R&B #7, Pop #28
“Get Out of My Life, Woman” (1966) R&B #5, Pop #44
“Working in the Coal Mine” (1966) R&B #5, Pop #8
“Holy Cow” (1966) R&B #10, Pop #23
“My Old Car” (1967) Pop #97
“Go-Go Girl” (1967) R&B #31, Pop #62
“Everything I Do Gohn Be Funky (From Now On)” (1969) R&B #33, Pop #95
“Yes We Can, Part 1” (1970) R&B #46
“Night People” (1978) R&B #93