who recorded the first important national garage-band hit louie louie
Louie Louie "Louie Louie" is an American rhythm and blues song written by Richard Berry in 1955 and best known for the 1963 hit version by The Kingsmen. It has become a standard in pop and rock, with hundreds of versions recorded by different artists. The song is based on the tune "El Loco Cha Cha” popularized by bandleader René Touzet and is an example of Latin influence on American popular music. "Louie Louie" tells, in simple verse–chorus form, the first-person story of a Jamaican sailor returning to the island to see his lady love.