Sixty Minute Man by The Dominoes

Album: Sixty Minute Man (1951)

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Songfacts®:

Written by group member Billy Ward and his collaborator/business partner Rose Marks, this is an early Doo-Wop classic that held up to many Rock and Roll records that emerged later in the '50s. The song is rooted in Blues music, and follows the frequent Blues theme of the singer bragging about his sexual prowess. This song had more of an R&B sound and was an early influence on Rock music. >>>
Suggestion credit:
Bertrand - Paris, France
With lead vocals by Billy Ward, this was one of the first double-entendre hits, one of the first R&B hits to cross over to the pop charts, and one of the seminal songs that helped shape the newly emerging rock 'n' roll.

Billy Ward and His Dominoes were a big deal in the 1950s, being one of the best-selling acts of that decade and having three Billboard Top-40 hits by the end of the decade. It was an integrated group, named for the black and white on dominoes. Billy Ward, who played piano for the group, lived to the ripe old age of 80.
"Sixty Minute Man" was used in the soundtrack to the 1988 film Bull Durham. It was also performed as a kind of promotional joke by Ed Bradley, reporter for the TV news magazine - what else? - 60 Minutes.
Some popular covers of this song were recorded by Untouchables (#104 US in 1960), Trammps (#108 US in 1972) and Clarence Carter (#65 US in 1973).

Comments: 5

Tony Arioli from Coast GhostI would nominate this recording as the second Rock 'n' Roll song (chart date wise criteria), the first being "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats from one month before (May 1951).
Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn June 3rd 1973, Clarence Carter covered version of "Sixty Minute Man" entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #97; it spent eight weeks on the chart, peaking at #65...
The original version was recorded by the Dominoes in 1951; and on June 30th of that year it peaked at #1 (for 14 non-consecutive weeks) on Billboard's Best Selling R&B chart (on the Pop chart it reached #17)...
The B-side of Carter's 1973 version was another covered song, "Mother-In-Law"; which Ernie K-Doe took to #1 on the Top 100 in 1961...
Mr. Carter celebrated his 78th birthday four months ago on January 14th, 2014.
Stefanie from Rock Hill, ScEven though I got tired of this song when I first heard it, I did come around to liking the Dominoes' version. You can read my previous comment on this page for that story.

@Tedfrom AZ: I can see how this would be a candidate for earliest rock song.
Stefanie from Rock Hill, ScThis is one of the first songs I remember hearing and thinking "They sang about that back then?" It was played in a wedding which had a band instead of a dj, and I seem to remember it being played a bunch; I got sick of it quickly.
Ted from Phoenix, AzThis song gets my vote for earliest rock and roll record. Yes, there were some good recordings before it ("Saturday Night Fish Fry,"), but none had either the guitar or drum sound of this record. And rock 'n' roll was originally a slang word for sexual intercourse, so the lyrics are right on target.

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