What Did They Do Before Rock 'n' Roll - Shelley Fabares, Paul Peterson

Say, Dad

(Mmm, yes kids)

We’d like to have a heart-to-heart talk

(Oh-oh, have you spoken to your mother yet?)

No, Dad, we wanna ask you

(Well, I guess you’re both old enough)

What we wanna know is

What did they do before rock 'n' roll?

(ah-ha)

How’d they ever make it

Bless my soul

All day long they had to listen to (ah-ha)

(My time is your time)

What did they do before Elvis Pee (ah-ha)

Fabian and Avalon and Brenda Lee?

All they heard on the radio was

(May the blue of the light, make the buh-buh-buh-boom)

I found some ancient records (ah-doo-wah)

From nineteen-forty-five (ah-doo-wah)

I put a couple on the phonograph (laughed)

Laughed ha-ha-ha-ha ha-ha

Oh well, I thought I’d die

Now, let me tell you, Dad

It was an awful sound

To hear what twenty-seven cats

Were puttin' down

I couldn’t believe my ears

It was a shock to me

'Cause all that they were playin'

Was the melody

They had a thing called swing

They didn’t have no beat

That rikki-tikki music never move my feet

And then I played your records

Strangest thing I heard

I know you’ll think I’m goofy

But I’m pretty swerve

They didn’t twang guitars

I meant like it was sad

And tell me

What’s a Hugo Winterhalter, Dad?

Oh well, I felt so poor

For those old time souls (ah-ha)

They never had the benefit

Of rock 'n' roll

All they heard on the radio was (ah-ha)

(Doo-fal-dee-ooh, boop-boop-pee-doo, ooh)

Oh, no!