Jan and Dean

The group continued to tour until Berry's death in March, 2004, with 1960s nostalgia providing them with a ready audience. This group scored a hit record with the instrumental "Weekend." Although the Comets did the actual recordings, when The Kingsmen went on tour, a different set of musicians performed instead of Haley's people. As a result, the group did not perform again until 1973, and made an official comeback in 1978 on tour with the Beach Boys. Prior to this group's formation, another group called The Kingsmen operated in 1958 and was made up of members of Bill Haley & the Comets who were moonlighting from their regular work with Haley. Early in 1966 Jan was involved in a serious motor vehicle accident, resulting in severe head injuries. If anything, all this attention only made the song more popular. Subsequent hits included "Little Old Lady From Pasadena" (1964) and the eerily portentous "Dead Man's Curve" (1964). The band attracted nationwide attention when "Louie, Louie" was banned by the governor of Indiana and attracted the attention of the FBI because of alleged indecent lyrics in the Kingsmen's version of the song.

Playing local venues, they met and performed with the Beach Boys, and discovered the appeal of the latter's "surf sound".With considerable help from Brian Wilson, they eventually scored a number one national hit with "Surf City" (1963). The official band had more hits in the 1960s with party versions of "Money," "Little Latin Lupe Lu," and "The Jolly Green Giant.". With the help of friend Herb Alpert and producer Lou Adler, they scored a modest hit with Baby Talk (1959), and then entered a long dry spell. Easton eventually established his right to the name, and Ely was forced to stop using it. After Dean returned from an army stint and Arnie went off to other pursuits (by 1962, he was a hugely successful rock and roll deejay in Boston), the two began to make music again as Jan and Dean. Easton and another original member remained with the official band; Jack Ely, who sang lead on "Louie Louie," formed his own band with the same name; and Don Gallucci, the piano player, formed Don and the Goodtimes. Their first commercial success was Jennie Lee (1958), an ode to a local burlesque performer which they recorded along with pal Arnie Ginsberg. The Kingsmen were a rock band from Milwaukie, Oregon who rose suddenly to fame with their recording of Richard Berry's "Louie Louie." After their recording of a much altered version of the song became a national hit in 1964, the group was reorganized when drummer Lynn Easton trademarked the band's name and announced that he was now lead singer (although, because he could not sing "Louie Louie," he lip-synched the recording when performing).

They first performed on stage as The Barons at a high school dance. Download sample of "Louie Louie". Primitive recording sessions followed soon after, in a makeshift studio in Jan's garage. They began singing together after football practice at University High School in Los Angeles. Jan Berry (April 3, 1941, Los Angeles -- March 26, 2004) and Dean Torrence (born March 10, 1940, Los Angeles) were a rock and roll duo briefly popular in the early 1960s as part of the "surf music" craze inspired by The Beach Boys.