The Drifters: “Under The Boardwalk”

Atlantic Records

There were over 60 members of The Drifters and their membership overlaps and recurs throughout the existence of the quartet, making an accurate timeline of members would be extremely hard to delineate. There have also been various groups calling themselves variations of “The Drifters” over the years, often featuring one or two members that were with the group at some point.

During the recording of the bands classic hit, “Under The Boardwalk,” lead singer Rudy Lewis died, unexpectedly of a heroin overdose. Rather than stop the sessions to find a new singer, they brought in longtime member Johnny Moore to sing lead on the song. The end result wasn’t just one song, but two different versions of the same song. There are subtle differences in the lyrics. For example, the first version contains the lyric, “we’ll be falling in love” but the second version contains that lyric in addition to, “we’ll be making love.” These are two separate versions, not just re-edits of the same song musician on The Drifters albums.

(Source)

The Drifters: “Under The Boardwalk”

Oh, when the sun beats down
And burns the tar up on the roof
And your shoes get so hot
You wish your tired feet were fireproof
Under the boardwalk
Down by the sea, yeah
On a blanket with my baby
Is where I’ll be

(Under the boardwalk) Out of the sun
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be having some fun
(Under the boardwalk) People walking above
(Under the boardwalk) We’ll be falling in love
(Under the boardwalk, boardwalk)

In the park you hear
The happy sound of the carousel
You can almost taste the hot dogs
French fries they sell
Under the boardwalk
Down by the sea, yeah
On a blanket with my baby
Is where I’ll be

[Instrumental Interlude]

Oh, under the boardwalk
Down by the sea
On a blanket with my baby
Is where I’ll be