#13 – “I Fought the Law” – Bobby Fuller Four (1966), Palisades Park – Freddy Cannon (1962), Del Shannon – Runaway (1961), etc.

“The song ‘I Fought the Law’ was written in 1959 by singer-songwriter Sonny Curtis, who was with The Crickets. (Curtis played the guitar with The Crickets after Buddy Holly’s death). The song was on their 1960 album In Style with the Crickets and was released as a single, but it did not chart successfully. Others covered it, but the version by the Sixties rock music band Bobby Fuller Four was released in December of 1965 and in 1966 it went to #9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and #11 in Canada. They also released it on their 1966 album titled I Fought the Law. There have numerous covers of the song, including versions by The Clash, Hank Williams, Jr., Dead Kennedy’s, Sam Neely, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Dave Courtney, Mike Ness, John Cougar Mellencamp, Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, Green Day, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Grateful Dead, Stray Cats, and oh so many more. The Bobby Fuller band formed in El Paso, Texas, around 1962. On this track were Bobby Fuller (vocals, guitar), Randy Fuller (backing vocals, bass guitar), Jim Reese (backing vocals, guitar), and DeWayne Quirico (drums). They had other hits with ‘Let Her Dance’ and ‘Love’s Made a Fool of You.’ Sadly, Bobby Fuller died at the age of 23 of asphyxiation in a car parked near his Hollywood, CA, apartment. It was one of those mysterious celebrity deaths that could have been suicide or possibly murder. After Bobby’s death, his brother Randy took over the lead vocals and named the band after himself. He also had a solo career. …”
Pass the Paisley, W – “I Fought the Law”
YouTube: Bobby Fuller Four – I Fought The Law (1966), YouTube: Del Shannon – Runaway (1961), YouTube: Dion – Runaround Sue (1961), YouTube: Palisades Park – Freddy Cannon (1962), YouTube: The Marvelettes – Please Mister Postman (1962), YouTube: Terry Stafford – “Suspicion” (1964), YouTube: I Go to Pieces – Peter & Gordon (1964), YouTube: Procol Harum -“A Whiter Shade Of Pale” (1967), YouTube: A Beautiful Morning – The Rascals (1968), YouTube: The Who – Substitute (1968)