Nathan was no fool, and he had the Midnighters do the follow-up record, "Annie Had A Baby (Can't Work No More)." This was when orders began coming in for the nonexistent record the listeners thought Nathan wrote, recorded and released as an actual record by that name in 1954. "Work with Me Annie" caused a huge uproar in 1954. The lyric "Can I Get Some Work Tonight, Baby?" had a clear-cut meaning and "Annie, please don't cheat/Give me all my meat" was thrown in for extra publicity for those who weren't sure what the lyrics in the song was about. However, the teenagers loved it. For those who weren't sure of what the lyrics meant the Midnighter's follow up record was "Annie Had a Baby (Can't Work No More). .
As "Work with Me Annie" was gaining momentum in early 1954, the Royals changed their name to the Midnighters to avoid confusion with the Five Royals, another hard, gospel-styled R&B group. "Annie" and its answers kept the Midnighters going strong for a year and a half. The success of "Work with Me Annie" led to a numerous number of songs such as "Annie's Aunt Fannie," Henry's Got Flat Feet (Can't Dance No More)," and Etta James' "answer" song "Roll with Me Henry" renamed "The Wallflower". As "Work with Me Annie" was gaining momentum in early 1954, the Royals changed their name to the Midnighters to avoid confusion with the Five Royals, another hard, gospel-styled R&B group. "Annie" and its answers kept the Midnighters going strong for a year and a half, after which they experienced a respite from the charts that lasted three and a half years. Personnel fluctuated during this period, with Smith returning to replace Sutton, Norman Thrasher replacing Woods, and guitarist Cal Green replacing Arthur Porter, who'd earlier taken Tucker's place. Federal Records seemed to be placing its faith in a new group, James Brown and the Famous Flames, which modeled its torrid style, to a great degree, on that of the Midnighters.
HISTORY OF ROCK AND ROLL For many years, people have been listening to rock and roll music, and not knowing where it originated from. Truthfully, it wasn't just a sudden thing. It came from the combination of various styles and cultures. Through years of development we now have a very define...
