The Dominoes were a black vocal group consisting of
Clyde McPhatter (1932–1972), who later left the group to form
the Drifters; Charlie White (1930-2005); and Joe Lamont (1920-1991), The recording features
René Hall on guitar, and used Bill Brown's bass voice, rather than McPhatter's tenor, as the lead. It features the singer's boasts of his sexual prowess, of being able to satisfy his girls with fifteen minutes each of kissing, teasing, and squeezing, before his climactic fifteen minutes of "blowing [his] top". The chorus was specific: ::There'll be fifteen minutes of kissin' ::Then you'll holler "Please don't stop" (Don't stop!) ::There'll be fifteen minutes of teasin' ::Fifteen minutes of squeezin' ::And fifteen minutes of blowin' my top Lyrics of this type already had a long history. The reference to "Dan" (alternatively, "Jim Dandy") dates back at least to
minstrel shows in the nineteenth century, and double-entendre had been used in blues lyrics for decades before the song was written. A common reference was to "Dan, the Back Door Man"—the lover of a married woman who would leave her house by the back door—as in a song of that title recorded by
Georgia White in 1937. Among the many precedents, but with a different perspective, is "One Hour Mama" by
Ida Cox. Consequently, "Sixty Minute Man" is also listed as an example of a
dirty blues song. "Sixty Minute Man" was banned by many radio stations and was seen as a
novelty record at the time. However, in hindsight it was an important record in several respects: it crossed the boundaries between
gospel singing and
blues, its lyrics pushed the limits of what was deemed acceptable, and it appealed to many white as well as black listeners, peaking at number 17 on the pop chart. Cover versions were made by several white artists including
Hardrock Gunter.
Bill Haley & His Comets sang the song in the mid-1950s during their live shows. In later years, the Dominoes' record became a contender for the title of "the
first rock and roll record". On the other hand,
The Drifters' explicit "
Honey Love" and "
Such a Night" and
The Midnighters' "Sexy Ways" were banned in 1954. The Dominoes became one of the more popular vocal groups of the 1950s. However, Bill Brown, lead singer of "Sixty Minute Man", left in 1952 to form
The Checkers. In 1954, Brown and The Checkers cut a follow-up to "Sixty Minute Man" titled "Don't Stop Dan," in which the original song's Lovin' Dan seems to meet his match. Clyde McPhatter was replaced by
Jackie Wilson in 1953, and went on to form
The Drifters, before embarking on a solo career in 1955. In 1955 with a new lineup, the Dominoes recorded their own
answer song "Can't Do Sixty No More" with the same melody (the flip side "If I Never Get to Heaven"), which included the line "Please excuse my blown-out fuse, because I can't do sixty no more." Coincidentally,
Prentice Moreland recorded with the group in this lineup as well as with The Du-Droppers who had recorded an earlier version of "Can't Do Sixty No More" in 1952. Though they share the same title, the earlier version was written by
The Du Droppers' lead tenor,
J. C. Ginyard. ==Legacy==