This Week's "Oldie But Goodie": Hang on Sloopy

The official rock song of Ohio

This week’s "oldie but goodie" is “Hang on Sloopy” by the McCoys. “Hang on Sloopy” (originally "My Girl Sloopy") was written by Wes Farrell and Bert Berns, and recorded in 1964 by R&B vocal group the Vibrations. It which reached No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 1965 the song was re-recorded by the rock band, the McCoys. The MCoys version reached number one in the singles chart. The song has since been covered many times.

A few months after the McCoys version was released, the Ohio State Marching band performed the song for the first time. It was instantly a favorite, becoming a tradition. The song was adopted by Ohio as the state's official rock song in 1985. Two members of the band, Randy and Rick Derringer, were from Ohio. The song is reported to be about Dorothy Sloop, a singer from Steubenville, Ohio, who sometimes used the stage name Sloopy.

The video below is the debut performance of “Hang On Sloopy” by the OSU marching band October 9, 1965.

In the video below Rick Derringer of The McCoys joins the OSU marching band in 2015 to celebrate Hang on Sloopy's 50th anniversary.