Based on outcry from parents who bought into what may
have started as an idle rumor, the FBI launched a formal
investigation in 1964 into the supposedly pornographic
lyrics of the song “Louie, Louie.”
That investigation finally neared its conclusion on this
day in 1965, when the FBI Laboratory declared the lyrics
of “Louie Louie” to be officially unintelligible.
No one will ever know who started the rumor that “Louie
Louie” was dirty. As written by Richard Berry in 1955, the
lyrics revolve around a sailor from the Caribbean lamenting
to a bartender named Louie about missing his far-away love.
As recorded in poor conditions and in a single take by the
Kingsmen in 1963 in Portland, Oregon.
The tune that would go on to become one of the most-
covered songs in rock-and-roll history.
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