- Written and originally performed by Mary Chapin Carpenter, (born 2/21/58 in Princeton NJ)
- The original backing band for this song was Beausoleil, a group of some of the best Cajun artists of the day
- In 1987 movie The Big Easy, which included music from Beausoleil, stirred interest interest in Cajun music in general, which helped to increase the popularity of the song
- Mary Chapin Carpenter was a fixture in the Washington DC live music scene for several years before landing her record contract which would take her on to stardom
- The song Down at the Twist & Shout was released in 1990 on the
album Shooting Straight in the Dark
. It was the third single released from that album, which reached #11 on the Billboard Magazine Top Country Albums chart
- The single reached #2 on the Billboard Magazine Country Top 40 Chart, her 7th song to reach the Top 40
- The song won the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 1992
- The same year Carpenter won the Country Music Association award for Female Vocalist of the Year, as well as the Academy of Country Music Award for Top Female Vocalist
- One of the most popular recordings of the song was made in 1997 when Carpenter performed the song at halftime of the Super Bowl XXXI in New Orleans between the Green Bay Packers and the New England Patriots (Green Bay won the game)
- The live version from the Super Bowl was included on Mary Chapin
Carpenter's 1999 greatest hits album "Party Doll and Other Favorites
"
| An excerpt from a live Oracle Band performance of this song is available as both a streaming RealAudio format, or as a higher quality downloadable MP3. Select the version you'd prefer. | |
| RealAudio | MP3 |
Song Lyrics -
Down At The Twist And Shout
Saturday night and the moon is out,
I wanna head on over to the Twist and Shout
Find a two-step partner and a Cajun beat
When it lifts me up I'm gonna find my feet
Out in the middle of a big dance floor
When I hear that fiddle wanna beg for more
Wanna dance to a band from a-Lou'sian' tonight
Well, I never have wandered down to New
Orleans,
Never have drifted down a bayou stream,
But I heard that music on the radio,
And I swore some day I was gonna go
Down Highway 10 past Lafayette
To Baton Rouge and I won't forget
To send you a card with my regrets
'Cause I'm never gonna come back home
Saturday night and the moon is out
I wanna head on over to the Twist and Shout
Find a two-step partner and a Cajun beat
When it lifts me up I'm gonna find my feet
Out in the middle of a big dance floor
When I hear that fiddle wanna beg for more
Wanna dance to a band from a-Lou'sian' tonight
They got an alligator stew and a
crawfish pie,
A gulf storm blowing into town tonight
Living on the delta's quite a show,
They got hurricane parties every time it blows
But here up north it's a cold, cold
rain,
And there ain't no cure for my blues today
Except when the paper says Beau Soleil
Is a-coming into town, baby let's go down
It's Saturday night and the moon is out
I wanna head on over to the Twist and Shout
Find a two-step partner and a Cajun beat
When it lifts me up I'm gonna find my feet
Out in the middle of a big dance floor
When I hear that fiddle wanna beg for more
Wanna dance to a band from a-Lou'sian' tonight
Bring your mama, bring your papa, bring your sister too.
They got lots of music and lots of room
When they play you a waltz from a-1910,
You're gonna feel a little bit young again
Well you learned to dance with your
rock and roll
You learned to swing with a do-si-do
But you learn to love at the fais-do-do
When you hear a little Jolie Blon
Saturday night and the moon is out
I wanna head on over to the Twist and Shout
Find a two-step partner and a Cajun beat
When it lifts me up I'm gonna find my feet
Out in the middle of a big dance floor
When I hear that fiddle wanna beg for more
Wanna dance to a band from a-Lou'sian' tonight
Note that the lyrics posted here are those as interpreted and performed by The Oracle Band. In a few cases we have taken some liberties with the lyrics to make them more appropriate for tasteful gatherings. Their use here is intended as an aid for people in selecting music for their wedding reception or private party, and may not be reproduced for any commercial, for-profit use.
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