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Sam the Sham
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Sam the Sham
Domingo Samudio (born February 28, 1937), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham is known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains.[citation needed] As the front man for the Pharaohs, he sang on several Top 40 hits in the mid-1960s; "Wooly Bully" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs was the number one song of 1965 according to Billboard magazine's year-end Hot 100. However, the song never reached number one on the weekly charts. "Li'l Red Riding Hood" was another charting song for Samudio.
Samudio made his singing debut in second grade, representing his school in a radio broadcast. Later, he took up guitar and formed a group with friends, one of whom was Trini Lopez. After graduating from high school, Samudio joined the Navy, where he was known as "Big Sam." He lived in Panama for six years, until his discharge.
Back in the States, Samudio enrolled in college, studying voice at Arlington State College, now the University of Texas at Arlington. He recalled: "I was studying classical in the daytime and playing rock and roll at night. That lasted about two years, before I dropped out and became a carny."
Most sources refer to Samudio's ancestry as Mexican-American. However, a 1998 article by the Chicago Tribune described Samudio as being of Basque/Apache descent. In a 2007 conversation with music writer Joe Nick Patoski, Samudio described his grandparents fleeing the Mexican Revolution and settling in Texas, where his family supported themselves working in the cotton fields.
After leaving the music business, Samudio worked in Mexico as an interpreter and as a mate on small commercial boats in the Gulf of Mexico. He later became a motivational speaker and still makes occasional concert appearances. He was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2016.
In Dallas in 1961, Samudio formed the Pharaohs, the name inspired from the costumes in Yul Brynner's portrayal as pharaoh in the 1956 film The Ten Commandments. The other members of the Pharaohs were Carl Miedke, Russell Fowler, Omar "Big Man” Lopez, and Vincent Lopez (no relation to Omar). In 1962, the group made a record that did not sell and later disbanded.
In May 1963, Vincent Lopez was playing for Andy and the Nightriders in Louisiana. When their organist quit, Samudio joined. Andy and the Nightriders were Andy Anderson, David A. Martin, Vincent Lopez, and Samudio. The Nightriders became house band at The Congo Club, near Leesville, Louisiana. It was here that Samudio took the name Sam the Sham from a joke about his lack of ability as a vocalist.
In June 1963, the Nightriders headed for Memphis, Tennessee, and became the house band at The Diplomat. In late summer 1963, Andy Anderson and Vincent Lopez left to return to Texas. Samudio and bassist David A. Martin replaced them with drummer Jerry Patterson and guitarist Ray Stinnett and changed the band's name to Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. Shortly thereafter, the band added saxophonist Butch Gibson.
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Sam the Sham
Domingo Samudio (born February 28, 1937), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham is known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains.[citation needed] As the front man for the Pharaohs, he sang on several Top 40 hits in the mid-1960s; "Wooly Bully" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs was the number one song of 1965 according to Billboard magazine's year-end Hot 100. However, the song never reached number one on the weekly charts. "Li'l Red Riding Hood" was another charting song for Samudio.
Samudio made his singing debut in second grade, representing his school in a radio broadcast. Later, he took up guitar and formed a group with friends, one of whom was Trini Lopez. After graduating from high school, Samudio joined the Navy, where he was known as "Big Sam." He lived in Panama for six years, until his discharge.
Back in the States, Samudio enrolled in college, studying voice at Arlington State College, now the University of Texas at Arlington. He recalled: "I was studying classical in the daytime and playing rock and roll at night. That lasted about two years, before I dropped out and became a carny."
Most sources refer to Samudio's ancestry as Mexican-American. However, a 1998 article by the Chicago Tribune described Samudio as being of Basque/Apache descent. In a 2007 conversation with music writer Joe Nick Patoski, Samudio described his grandparents fleeing the Mexican Revolution and settling in Texas, where his family supported themselves working in the cotton fields.
After leaving the music business, Samudio worked in Mexico as an interpreter and as a mate on small commercial boats in the Gulf of Mexico. He later became a motivational speaker and still makes occasional concert appearances. He was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2016.
In Dallas in 1961, Samudio formed the Pharaohs, the name inspired from the costumes in Yul Brynner's portrayal as pharaoh in the 1956 film The Ten Commandments. The other members of the Pharaohs were Carl Miedke, Russell Fowler, Omar "Big Man” Lopez, and Vincent Lopez (no relation to Omar). In 1962, the group made a record that did not sell and later disbanded.
In May 1963, Vincent Lopez was playing for Andy and the Nightriders in Louisiana. When their organist quit, Samudio joined. Andy and the Nightriders were Andy Anderson, David A. Martin, Vincent Lopez, and Samudio. The Nightriders became house band at The Congo Club, near Leesville, Louisiana. It was here that Samudio took the name Sam the Sham from a joke about his lack of ability as a vocalist.
In June 1963, the Nightriders headed for Memphis, Tennessee, and became the house band at The Diplomat. In late summer 1963, Andy Anderson and Vincent Lopez left to return to Texas. Samudio and bassist David A. Martin replaced them with drummer Jerry Patterson and guitarist Ray Stinnett and changed the band's name to Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. Shortly thereafter, the band added saxophonist Butch Gibson.
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