AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Babe Ruth

Artist:Babe Ruth
Song:The Mexican
Album:Grand Slam: The Best Of Babe Ruth





Babe Ruth was a British progressive rock band who had modest success in the early 70s. They probably didn't stay together long enough to have any kind of legacy. They never had a hit single but the Mexican is frequently sampled by hip hop guys. Babe Ruth were from Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England which was a fertile ground for music. The leader of Babe Ruth was guitarist Alan Shacklock who wrote and arranged all the songs. Shacklock grew up with Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor and Jethro Tull bassist John Glascock. Their band The Gods recorded a couple of albums for Columbia. The Gods split into two bands and Shacklock formed Babe Ruth with lead singer Jenny Haan, bassist Dave Hewitt, pianist Dave Punshon and drummer Dick Powell. Babe Ruth signed with Harvest Records and their debut album First Base was released in 1971. The album did really well in Canada but also did OK in the US but not in England. There was no hit single though Wells Fargo did get some college radio airplay. The Mexican has turned out to be Babe Ruth's most enduring song. Shacklock says he wrote The Mexican as a response to the historical inaccuracies in the 1960 John Wayne film The Alamo. And it is based on Ennio Morricone's theme from the film For A Few Dollars More. In 1978, there was a disco version by Bombers. Then in 1984, legendary mixmaster John "Jellybean" Benitez recorded a dance remix of The Mexican featuring Jenny Haan. It topped the dance charts. Since then the song has been sampled frequently by hip hop guys, most recently by rapper Gza. But at the time, Babe Ruth wasn't all that successful. They recorded four albums and then Jenny left. They tried to replace her but it didn't work out and Babe Ruth disbanded. Shacklock went on to a successful production career. This comp is a good intro to their music. Babe Ruth reunited in 2006 and recorded an album in 2007. They have toured and they still play occasional shows. Here's Babe Ruth performing The Mexican 1974.