"Lulu's Back in Town" was popularized by
Fats Waller in his recording of 8 May 1935 for
Victor Records which made the US charts. Others who recorded it include
Dick Powell,
Mel Tormé,
Mills Brothers,
Wingy Manone,
Chick Bullock,
Bob Howard,
Teddy Hill,
Bert Ambrose,
Ted Fiorito,
Thelonious Monk,
Art Tatum,
Oscar Peterson,
Booker T. & the M.G.'s,
The Four Freshmen, and
Leon Redbone. In the 1969–70 premiere season of
Sesame Street, the song was performed by a pair of
Muppets: "Lulu" was an aggressive monster with red-ribboned black hair, and the lead singer was a mild-mannered mustached man in a tuxedo who was simultaneously fascinated and frightened by Lulu. Redd Foxx and Timmie Rogers performed the song on
Sanford and Son in the episode "Brother, Can You Spare an Act?".
Rachel York, as the character of
Circe, sang a cover of "Lulu's Back In Town" in the
Justice League Unlimited episode "This Little Piggy". The 2008 film
Be Kind Rewind uses the version done by Booker T. and the M.G.'s. ==References==