folk
"Ain't That a Shame" is a song by Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew, recorded in New Orleans, Louisiana, for Imperial Records and released in 1955. The original recording ("Ain't It a Shame") was a hit for Domino, eventually selling a million copies. It reached #1 on the "Black Singles" chart and #10 on the "Pop Singles" chart. The song is ranked #431 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
The song gained national fame after being re-recorded by white recording artist Pat Boone. Domino's version soon became more popular, bringing Domino's music to the mass market a half dozen years after his first major recording, "The Fat Man".
After "Ain't It a Shame", mainstream artists began covering Domino's songs. Teresa Brewer, for instance, performed the Domino rewrite of a folk song called "Bo Weevil".
According to legend, Pat Boone suggested the title and lyrics be altered to "Isn't That A Shame" to make it more appealing to a broader audience but was dissuaded by his producers. Despite his suggestion being rejected, Boone had his first Billboard number-one single in 1955. Domino complimented Boone's cover of the song. Boone likes to tell the story about a Fats Domino concert and Domino invited Boone on stage. Domino showed a big gold ring and said "Pat Boone bought me this ring."
This was the first song that John Lennon learned to play. He later covered it on Rock 'n' Roll.
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