In a recent MSNBC commentary, I mentioned that the old dance known as the twist was so ubiquitous in early 1960s that even soul great Sam Cooke spent time twisting the night away. Although some commenters seemed incredulous about this, that really is a fact: Cooke’s “Twisting the Night Awayâ€Â hit Number 9 on the Billboard charts in 1962 (a cover version by Rod Stewart got to Number 59 in 1973).
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That got me thinking about how the twist wasn’t just a trendy dance – it was an all-out craze. It took off in 1960 and then got revived two years later. I first noticed this while I was in college and used to spend my “study timeâ€Â studying the Billboard book of  top 100 hits (aka “Top Pop Singles), which I later bought. A huge number of artists cut twist records. Most of us know all the hits, by Chubby Checker, Gary “U.S.â€Â Bonds, etc. So here’s a list of some of the weirdest.
“Twisting Bellsâ€Â – Santo and Johnny (#49, 1960)
“Kissin’ and Twistin’â€Â – Fabian (#91, 1960)
“Everybody’s Twistin’â€Â – Frank Sinatra (#75, 1962)
“The Alvin Twistâ€Â – The Chipmunks (#40, 1962)
“Oliver Twistâ€Â – Rod McKuen (#76, 1962)
“Twistin’ Postmanâ€Â — The Marvelettes (#34, 1962)
“The Basie Twistâ€Â – Count Basie (#94, 1962)
“Tequila Twistâ€Â – The Champs (#99, 1962)
“Twistin’ All Night Longâ€Â – Danny and the Juniors (#68, 1962) ÂÂ