The influence of both jump blues and country music is evident in Bill Haley’s cover version of Big
Joe Turner’s Atlantic hit “Shake, Rattle and Roll.” Haley “cleaned up” the suggestive lyrics of
Turner’s original (although, curiously, he left in a couple of the most blatant sexual metaphors).
The result was an early rock and roll blockbuster, selling a million copies. Since then, dozens of artists have recorded the song, from Elvis to Fats Domino to various British Invasion groups.
The phenomenon of white rock and rollers turning huge profits from a cover version of a black artist’s rhythm and blues tune is amply documented. Ironically, despite the blatant economic inequity, in some cases this brought the attention of white audiences to the original R&B artist.
Turner and Haley actually became good friends and toured together in 1957, and the Comets backed Taylor on one of his 1960s recordings.
Bill Haley and His Comet’s version of “Shake, Rattle and Roll” is definitely modeled after Big Joe
Turner’s. What makes Big Joe’s version sound like “rhythm and blues,” while Bill Haley’s sounds like “rock and roll?”
 Haley’s version has a considerably faster tempo; Turner’s is more laid back, with the characteristic rhythm and blues technique of playing “behind the beat,” in which the drum hits actually fall a fraction of a second later than the expected beat.
 Haley’s version is structurally not exactly identical to Big Joe Turner’s. While it maintains the 12bar blues form, the “Shake, Rattle and Roll” chorus comes in directly after the first verse, in true pop-song fashion, while Big Joe sings three verses before we ever hear the chorus.
 Big Joe’s version has five verses; Haley’s has four. Haley has “cleaned up” most of the lyrics; the former “Get outta that bed” is now “Get out in that kitchen,” and so on.

Both versions featu re a strong backbeat in the drums; however, in Haley’s you can hear another layer of faster notes in a steady, “dotted-note” shuffle-style rhythm characteristic of a lot of early rock and roll songs.
 The bass in Haley’s version “walks” (plays notes that ascend and descend in a stepwise pattern), rather than the standard boogiewoogie pattern heard in Turner’s (The Comet’s saxes, however, play the boogie-woogie patterns during the verse, while the saxes in
Turner’s punctuate the lines with single notes, and play more swing-oriented riffs.)
Both recordings feature a great sax solo; Turner’s played by Sam Taylor, and Haley’s played by
Joey Ambrose. The other players were Johnny Grande, piano; Billy Williamson, steel guitar;
Marshall Lytle, bass; Panama Francis or Billy Gussack, drums; and guitarist Danny Cedrone
(Cedrone also played the famous guitar solo in “Rock Around the Clock.” Ironically, he passed away ten days after “Shake, Rattle and Roll” was recorded, as a result of a fatal fall down a flight of stairs.)

Timings
0:00-0:07
0:07-0:24
Comments
Introduction
4 bars.
Verse 1
12-bar blues form.
0:24-0:41
0:41-0:58
Chorus
Sung by multiple singers.
Verse 2
0:58-1:15
1:15-1:32
1:32-1:50
1:50-2:07
2:07-2:24
2:24-2:28
Chorus
Saxophone solo over Chorus chord changes, with the band yelling “Go!” at the end of every phrase.
Verse 3
Verse 4
Chorus
Also 12-bar blues form.
Ends with 1 st line of chorus, sung by all the vocalists.
Lyrics
Get out in that kitchen and rattle those pots and pans…
I said, Shake, Rattle and Roll…
Wearln’ those dresses, your hair done up so nice…
I said, Shake,
Rattle and Roll…
I’m like a one-eyed cat peeping in a seafood store…
I believe you’re doing me wrong and now I know…
Shake, rattle and roll…
Shake, rattle and roll!