The Song Born Before the Band, Tequila

Recorded on December 23, 1957, this song was placed on the flip side of Dave Burgess's recording of "Train to Nowhere." It was an improvisation based on the Cuban mambo song "Como Mi Ritmo No Hay Dos," and reportedly, they went to record it without even listening to the demo. Ironically, while Dave's song didn't gain traction, this track became a massive hit, eventually reaching number 1 on the Billboard Pop Chart on March 28, 1958. This led to the formation of the band, named 'The Champs,' meaning 'champions.' Following this success, perhaps conscious of the hit, they released follow-up songs like 'Too Much Tequila' and 'Tequila Twist,' but they reportedly didn't achieve the same level of attention as the original. A notable feature of this song is that the lyrics appear only three times, and only the word 'Tequila.' It's essentially an instrumental track.