61 Versions of Tico Tico

MP3s: 61 versions of Tico Tico below the jump

Maybe the reason I keep playing single-chord songs on my show lately is because at one time, I couldn't get enough of the song Tico Tico, the tune that packs in more notes per measure than a scat singer on Dexedrine. I stumbled onto my cassette cache of Tico Tico's the other day, and without someone nearby to slap some sense into me, I ripped all of them. Then I came to the station and proceeded to find even more versions. Then I stupidly searched online and.. and...and... just go below the jump for all 61 versions.

Tico Tico was written in 1917 by Zequinha de Abreu. The song's first title was actually Tico Tico no Farelo, and in the 40's it became Tico Tico no Fuba. The song was imported to the US by Disney via their animated piece of World War Two-era Happy Latinos propaganda, "Saludos Amigos," in which Donald Duck introduces the song. That version is below. Do I want more versions? No. Unless you have the Captain Beefheart version. I gave up my Tico Tico obsession on the air years ago because I quickly discovered it was a bottomless pit of wants, desires and notes. Lots of notes. Three hour's worth (note to Kenny G: don't do it!)

Next song to get this treatement, The Internationale. It has fewer notes.

Xavier Cugat  |  Ruben Calzado  |  Jensen Publication Marching Band |

Andre Verchuren  |  Ethel Smith and The Bando Carioca  |  Palm Court Project |

Xavier Cugat #2  | Don Amore Orchestra  |  101 Strings  |  Johan Dalgas Frisch |

Bob Sobodon Vicicevic  |  Henry Mancini  |  The Andrews Sisters |

Eddie Layton  |  Disney Version from Saludos Amigos  | Henry King Orchestra  |  Al Stephano Trio  | 

Lenny Herman  |  George Feyer  |   George Feyer # 2  |  Les Baxter  | 
Esy Morales and Roberto Gomez  | 

Les Baxter Trio  |   Riviera Orchestra  |  Esquivel  |  Liberace  |  Bloomfield College Band  |  Ferrante & Teicher #1  |

Jo Anne Castle  |  Paco DeLucia  |  Lucien Jeunesse  |  Ferrante & Teicher #2  |  Shooby Taylor  |

The Harmonicats  |  Bonnie Pruden  |  Mickey Katz  |  Les Paul and Mary Ford  |  Microscopic Septet  |

Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra  |  Nestor Amaral  |  Raymond Scott & Dorothy Collins  |

James Moody  |  Don Swan Orchestra  |  Bajan  |  Banda Black Trio  | 
Baraban Notenarchiv  |

Boots Musulli Quartet  |  Charlie Parker  |  Desi Arnez  |  Ebony and Ivory  |  Enric Madriguera  |

Familia Lima  |  James Booker  |  James Last  |  Jorge Vega  |  Laura Villasol Quinteto  |

Korean Mandolin Orchestra  |  Paula Green  |  Perez Prado  |  Philharmonic Jazz  |  SHS Jazz Choir  |

Comments

[MisterPants]

Homer and Jethro recorded a nice version of this as well. Might the list be expanded to 62?

[Ron D]

Thanks WFMU! These are great! One question, Where is the Shobby Taylor version?

[Chardman]

Slovenian faux-Nazis Laibach's live album Ljubljana-Zagreb-Beograd has a funny, distorted and sped-up electronic version of Tico Tico that they call Tito-Tito.
Get it?

[st vincent]

Gad, someone else out there had the same idea! I've only managed to find maybe 6 versions so far (all on 78 RPM), thus I am quite humbled. My modem is smoking, I downloaded the whole schmeer. Once again, the internet assures me that there are other freaks like myself out there in the world... (***sniff!!!***)

Thank you Station Manager Ken.

In this vein, my other obsession: "Kiss Of Fire". I have several versions of this... anyone else? I even learned to play it on my geetar.

StV
Portland, OR

[Lee Hartsfeld]

I'm wondering if you're being humorous about the number of notes. In alla breve (cut time) meter, there are as many as eight notes per measure in "Tico Tico." Whether or not eight notes is "a lot" is, I suppose, relative to one's listening experience. Please avoid Bach preludes and Chopin etudes if you're working with an eight-note-per-measure limit.

Jimmy Liggin's "Drunk" has far fewer notes than "Tico-Tico." The chorus goes: "Drunk; drunk; drunk; drunk" over the course of eight bars, no pun intended. That averages to half a note per measure.

Lee

[LG3]

I only wish I can send more versions of tico tico so they can post-em. There should be a tico-tico homepage.

[Blind Uncle Gaspard]

If you people don't settle down, I'm going to put my three hour radio show that was ALL "Caravan" onto some digital format.

Then you'll be sorry.

M.

[Station Lanager Ken]

OK, I give, send me whatever versions y'all have, as long as they're not larger then ten MB. I'll add a batch more in a few days. I've already got a few new ones to put up. Gotta have that Homer and Jethro!

Ron, Shooby is there. Lee, yes, I was joking.

-ken

[Chuck Jones]

This is so crazy.
I spent most of this summer tracking down versions of tico tico and Hawaiian War Chant. I have 75 Tico Ticos and that's before I've downloaded any of the ones above.

This is so insane that someone else is as crazy.

[Lanager Manager]

I think I gave my "Tico Tico" (c.70s) to an FMU DJ as a slow 45 candidate; but none of these artists seem familiar.
Attn. M - Blind Uncle Gasparde: legendary FMUxDJ Crowe claims to have accumulated more than 3 hrs of "Caravan," tho I don't know that he played more than an hour's worth at a shot.
Attn. Chuck: I commend your "Hawaiian War Chant" project, do not fail us.
Apart from the West Coast "Louie Louie" days, did anything like this precede Steve Krinske's "Hucklebuck" broadcast?
TomB

[mark]

well, it stabnnds to reaason you're going to get requests for the Beefheart version !
.. or sombody's gong to supply a link to it.

I'd like to hear it, definetely.

[ralph]

Hawaiian War Chant was the first thing I thought of when I saw this post; I remember David Garland's great three hour "Spinning On Air" one Saturday afternoon on WNYC-FM several years ago where he played nothing but versions of Hawaiian War Chant. It was an amazing show.

[Jacob Haller]

Man, the James Booker is so good.

[BenT]

I'd add to your "Tico Tico" list the version by FRENCHY on their CD "Che's Lounge".

I'd love to see the list of "Caravan" covers. It seems that every time I come back from an auction or thrift store run, I have a couple more renditions of this. I just glommed onto the Sandy Nelson version of Caravan on his LP "Drums Are My Beat" this morning.

[Rix]

A version I never let you have when you were still collecting them, by the Weber Maestro German Orchestrion.

[Chris Reid]

Ethyl Smith's version was the intro/theme song for a late night show I presented on Radio One (Dunedin, New Zealand) for five years in the eighties. In fact it was a different version than the one in the list and I have a third version by Ethyl on cassette somewhere. I never realised that I was pioneering the appreciation of cheesy lounge music at the time.
My cat's called Tico.

[Chris Reid]

Hey! Where is Carmen Miranda on that list?

[Hal Glatzer]

There's yet another Xavier Cougat version of "Tico Tico", with Abby Lane singing the lyric (the last line of which is "Tico-tico tico-tico tico tock").

[Peter Nicolai]

No Percy Faith???

[Bibi]

Hey Chris Reid, I upload the Carmen Miranda version here: http://rapidshare.de/files/7718628/Carmen_Miranda_-_Tico_Tico.mp3.html

[la flo]

bonjour !
merci pour toutes ces versions de tico-tico ! je viens de les télécharger et de les écouter, l'enregistrement de Mickey Katz and his Kosher Jammers est terrible !!! et j'ai découvert deux formidables pianistes George Feyer et Ferrante and Teicher... de toutes les versions celle qui est la plus émouvante c'est quand même celle d'Enric Madriguera Orchestra... avec un petit parfum suranné qui pousse à la nostalgie...
Formidable votre blog ! à quand une centaine de versions d'"Around midnigth" ???
merci mille fois et amitiés de France !
la flo

[ruud verkerk]

Tico, Tico, Tico!

This was great fun to download. It seems that there are at least 500 versions of this Louie Louie for Latin lovers. In Holland there is a collector with more than 1300 versions of Summertime, what are we talkin' about...

[Chuck Jones]

I've read that there is a version by Roy Clark which I want desperately.

Carmen Miranda was the first one I ever heard. Then the Andrew sisters.

There is also a super fantastic one by pianist and Chicago symphony orchestra director Daniel Barenboim. It's light and crispy.

[Clayton Counts]

Um... isn't there always supposed to be an exclamation point following Esquivel!'s name? And speaking of, how 'bout that Ray Conniff?

[Oddio Katya]

Perri of Zenguin.com music site created a Tico Tico playlist at Webjay that's got some other versions in it. Give it a listen! -- yours, katya