Cliff Richard recorded the song in 1960 and
The Strangeloves included it on their 1965 album
I Want Candy.
The Youngbloods released a version of the song on their 1971 album,
Good and Dusty.
Johnny Rivers included the song on his 1973 album
Blue Suede Shoes.
Eric Clapton recorded "Willie and the Hand Jive" for his 1974 album
461 Ocean Boulevard. Clapton slowed down the
tempo for his version. Author Chris Welch believes that the song benefits from this "slow burn".
Record World said that "Clapton slowly boogies [the song] into laid-back magnificence." However,
Rolling Stone critic Ken Emerson complains that the song sounds "disconcertingly mournful". Other critics praised Clapton's confident vocals. Author Marc Roberty claimed that on this song, "Eric's vocals had clearly matured, with fluctuations and intonations that were convincing rather than tentative as in the past." Clapton's version of the song was released as a single in 1974 and reached #26 on the
Billboard Hot 100 and #28 in the Netherlands. It also reached #31 on the
RPM magazine's top singles chart in Canada and peaked at #99 on the
Oricon singles chart in Japan. Clapton included the song on his compilation album
Time Pieces: Best of Eric Clapton. The single's B-side,
George Terry's "Mainline Florida", was described as "breaking away from the established tone" of the album and features Clapton's using
talk box during his outgoing solo. Clapton often played "Hand Jive" live, and it appeared on the live DVD
One Night Only Live. Author Harry Shapiro said that the song could sound like "a
dirge on bad nights but uplifting when the mood was right". Music author
Dave Thompson claimed that Clapton's "live versions almost get you learning the [hand jive] movements all over again."
George Thorogood recorded a version of "Willie and the Hand Jive" for his 1985 album with the Destroyers,
Maverick. His version was released as a single in June 1985. It charted on the
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, peaking at #25, and reached #63 on the
Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it Thorogood's only song to reach the chart. A music video was made for the song, which was produced at the Fifth Floor Productions in
Cincinnati, Ohio, by Ellen Goldman and Maureen Arata.
Allmusic critic James Christopher Monger called the song one of Thorogood's "high points." Other artists who covered the song include:
Johnny Rivers,
New Riders of the Purple Sage,
The Flying Burrito Brothers,
Sandy Nelson,
The Tremeloes,
Amos Garrett,
Ducks Deluxe and
Levon Helm. The
Grateful Dead played "Willie and the Hand Jive" live several times in 1986 and 1987. ==Soundtracks==