Hey! Baby


"Hey! Baby" is a song written by Margaret Cobb and Bruce Channel, recorded at Clifford Herring Studios in Ft. Worth, Texas, by Channel in 1961. First released on a local Fort Worth label, LeCam Records. After it hit, it was released on Smash Records for national distribution. Channel co-produced the song with Major Bill Smith and released it on Mercury Records' Smash label. It reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, starting the week ending March 10, 1962.
The song features a prominent riff from well-known harmonica player Delbert McClinton, and drums played by Ray Torres. Other musicians on the record included Bob Jones and Billy Sanders on guitar and Jim Rogers on bass. According to a CNN article from 2002, while touring the UK in 1962 with the Beatles, McClinton met John Lennon and gave him some harmonica tips. Lennon put the lessons to use right away on "Love Me Do" and later "Please Please Me". Lennon included "Hey! Baby" in his jukebox, and it is also featured on the 2004 related compilation album John Lennon's Jukebox. In addition to this, a version of the song was recorded by Ringo Starr in 1976.
"Hey! Baby" was used in the 1987 hit film Dirty Dancing in the scene in which Johnny and Baby dance on top of a log.

Anne Murray version

Canadian country pop singer Anne Murray covered the song in 1982, reaching number 7 on the US Country Singles chart and number 26 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Murray also reached number 1 on the RPM country and adult contemporary charts in Canada.

DJ Ötzi version

Austrian artist DJ Ötzi recorded a cover version titled "Hey Baby ". It was released in July 2000 as the lead single from his debut solo album, Love, Peace & Vollgas. This version reached number one in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia. In 2002, it was re-released when it became the unofficial theme song for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. In the United States, the song was released to promote the 2003 buddy comedy film Kangaroo Jack.

Music video

The official music video features large groups of people singing along to the song in a taxi at different times, interspersed with DJ Ötzi singing on a TV screen. An animated music video was also produced featuring a cartoon version of DJ Ötzi performing with a band of robots while trying to woo a princess.

Track listings

Standard maxi-CD and cassette single
  1. "Hey Baby " – 3:36
  2. "Hey Baby " – 4:15
  3. "Uh! Ah!" – 3:38
European CD single
  1. "Hey Baby" – 3:36
  2. "Anton aus Tirol" – 3:47
US CD single
  1. "Hey Baby" – 3:36
  2. "Hey Baby" – 3:36
Canadian maxi-CD single
  1. "Hey Baby"
  2. "Hey Baby"
  3. "Uh! Ah!"

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Austria 17
Europe 24
Germany 56
Ireland 4
Netherlands 56
Sweden 9
UK Singles 5

In popular culture

Darts player Tony O'Shea uses it as his walk-on song. In 2017 and 2018, Team Canada used the radio mix version of the hit as their goal song at the 2018 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. The song has become an icon in the WJC as the song was heard around 39 times in the tournament, as the Canadian juniors scored 39 goals. In 2021, the song returned in Edmonton at the 2022 World Juniors. However, three days after the tournament began, the 2022 edition of the WJC was cancelled due to multiple COVID-19 outbreaks within teams. WWE fans often chant the song at Bayley, substituting her name for the word "baby".

Other notable versions