This song is a bridge of sorts between two others. It started with Helen Hume’s Be-Baba-Leba, recorded in 1945. From there, the lyrics changed into the “Hey! Baba-Re-Bop” that you hear…right here:

Gene Vincent and his Blue Caps put their twist on the lyrics with “Be-Bop-a-Lula” in 1956. The biggest hit of the three: you guessed it..this one, which stayed atop the R and B charts for 16 weeks.

You’ve got to check out this video . It’s Lionel in 1982 with a comedy legend on drums and some absolutely amazing 80’s crowd dancing.