Chantilly Lace

“Chantilly Lace” is a 1958 rock and roll song by The Big Bopper. It was produced by Jerry Kennedy, and reached No. 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Bruce Channel covered the song on his 1962 album, Hey! Baby. The song was also covered by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1972. Originally cut for Pappy Daily’s D label, the recording was purchased by Mercury Records and reissued in the summer of 1958 just over six months after Chuck Berry released “Sweet Little Sixteen”, which uses the same chord progression. The song was originally released as the flip side to “The Purple People Eater Meets The Witch Doctor”, which parodied “The Purple People Eater” by Sheb Wooley and “Witch Doctor” by David Seville. This was J.P. Richardson’s first release under the moniker The Big Bopper. However, DJs and the public preferred the flip side “Chantilly Lace”, and it was this song that became a hit. The song reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 22 weeks on the national Top 40. It was the third most played song of 1958. On the Cash Box chart, “Chantilly Lace” reached No. 4.