"Twisting at the Woodchopper's Ball" was the first ''made in Canada'' single to top the International Charts.RPM Weekly Volume 11 No.13 May 26, 1969, Obituary: Ronn Metcalf

Ronn Metcalfe Ronn Metcalfe (July 20, 1930May 18, 1969) was a Canadian big band leader from St. Catharines and music industry leader. He released an LP named after the title track " Twistin' at the Woodchopper's Ball" which garnered him a gold record. He used ...

released an LP named after the title track, "Twistin' at the Woodchopper's Ball", which garnered him a

gold record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile meta ...

. The album was a good example of high calibre musicianship combined with well written arrangements.Toronto Daily Star Saturday March 17, 1962, Man About Jazz, Metcalfe Band's 'Twistin Music of High Calibre' by Dave Caplan Metcalfe would ride the success of this album to create a

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

scene Scene (from Ancient Greek, Greek σκηνή ''skēnḗ'') may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music *Scene (subculture), a youth subculture from the early 2000s characterized by a distinct music and style. Groups and performers * The S ...

Niagara Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River *Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff ov ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Metcalfe, "Canada's King of Swing", paid $7000 to produce the LP, including the single release from the album, which was chosen "Pick of the Week" in ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' magazine. Metcalfe said of the song, "This is the way back to the

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

s." "Twisting at the Woodchopper's Ball" was a hit recording written by Ronn Metcalfe, based on

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

's "

Woodchopper's Ball "Woodchopper's Ball", also known as "At the Woodchopper's Ball" is a 1939 jazz composition by Joe Bishop and Woody Herman. The up-tempo blues tune in D-flat major was the Woody Herman Orchestra's biggest hit, as well as the most popular composition ...

" (1939). It was recorded by the 19 piece Ronn Metcalfe Orchestra (of St. Catharines, Canada) on the Barry label and distributed by

Quality Records Quality Records was a Canadian entertainment company which released music albums in Canada on behalf of American record labels. They also released recordings by Canadian artists. The company operated between 1950 and 1985 with offices in Toron ...

Ltd., of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

(released on February 19, 1962).Release notice from Quality Records Limited It rose to the top of the charts in Canada (Hit Parade Charts), and made the WLS (Chicago) Top 40 in 1962.

References

{{reflist 1962 singles Canadian rock songs 1962 songs