MP3 Nat Kendrick & The Swans - Nat Kendrick & The Swans

A simple twelve bar blues tune featuring James Brown, "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" became a Top Ten R&B hit in 1960 and fed what would eventually grow into a national dance craze.

13 MP3 Songs in this album (29:35) !
Related styles: URBAN/R&B: Soul, BLUES: Juke Joint Blues

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Details:
I received a call from James Brown while he was in Miami with his new backup band, The J.B.'s. He informed me he was having a problem with Syd Nathan at King Records. Syd refused to let Brown record with The J.B.'s. Always believing in Brown and standing by him, I suggested we record him and his backup band under a pseudonym. I had seen Brown at Ernie Busker's Palms of Hallandale nightclub doing a dance he called "The James Brown Mashed Potatoes." At Criteria the next day we decided to cut an instrumental track and title it "Do The Mashed Potatoes."

One of the repeated lines was for someone to shout "Mashed Potatoes" and Brown volunteered. At the last minute I decided it was too risky using Brown's very recognizable voice and turned to him and said, "You can't do that! I can't use your voice on this record because Nathan will be on our ass. We have to leave your voice off and strictly make this an instrumental." I still liked the idea of someone shouting "Mashed Potatoes", but I had to use someone else.

Brown agreed, so I contacted one of Miami's top black radio DJ personalities by the name of Carlton "King" Coleman and dubbed his voice on top of the recording. If you listen to the record very carefully, you can still hear Brown's voice in the background. I released the song my own Dade label under the name of Nat Kendrick and The Swans. Kendrick was Brown's drummer at the time and The J.B.'s temporarily became The Swans. The single became a smash hit after peaking at #8 on the national R&B charts while reaching #84 on the Billboard Hot 100. - Henry Stone