"Straight Skirt" (later "Straight Skirts") is a song written by Mary Tarver in 1958 and published by Song Productions, BMI the same year. It was originally recorded by Gene Summers and his Rebels, a rockabilly band from Dallas, Texas and was first released in February 1958 by Jan Records #11-100. On March 8, 1958, Cash Box picked it as their 'Sleeper of the Week'. In Billboard 's 'Reviews of Pop Records' they wrote: "The artist is backed by a chorus and cheerful rockabilly support on this blues. The kids might take to this". "Straight Skirt" was flipped with "School Of Rock 'n Roll", an upbeat rockabilly song written by James McClung who was a high school friend of Summers. McClung was also the original guitarist for The Rebels and would continue to work with Summers well into the mid-1960s. In the 1970s, at the beginning of the rockabilly revival in Europe, "School Of Rock 'n Roll" and "Straight Skirt" were re-discovered by a new legion of rockabilly fans and bands. Since that time they have become classic dance floor-fillers and renewed Gene's career to the extent of worldwide concert appearances from 1980 onwards.

Cover versions

Prestige Records #PSP 0066, New Zealand September 1958 Prestige Records PEP 2017, New Zealand October 1958 Southern Music Publishing Company, New Zealand 1958 Around,” “ Straight Skirt,” “ I’m Grateful,” “ How Would ‘Ya Be” Bell Records BE-198, Australia 1959 Music World Records MALPS-536, New Zealand 1972 Festival Records CD 26255, Australia 1998 Festival Records CD D26481, Australia 2000 EMI Records 5784512, New Zealand 2004 (Johnny Devlin “Straight Skirt” track #2.) Mercury Records # , United States 1958 Mercury PYE 7MT.208, U.K. 1958 plus The Platters “Winner Take All”/”My Dream” Mercury Records MG 10114, Spain 1959 Mercury Wing Records MGW 12114 (Mono), United States 1959 (Straight Skirts- Side 2, Track 3) Mercury Wing Records MGW 12114, Canada 1959 (Straight Skirts - Side 2, Track 3) Ebenezer Records 01, (country) (year) (Straight Skirts - Side 1, Track 6) Rome Records 157, Italy 1990 Stardust Records CD 1010, United States 1996 Remember Records CD RMB 75072, Portugal 1999 Canetoad Records CTCD-1013, Australia 2007 (Straight Skirt-Track #11) No Hit Records LP-001, U.K. 1988 No Hit Records CD-001, U.K. 1993 Crystal Clear Sound Records CD CCR 9643-2, United States 1996 Empire Records EMPCD-105, U.K. 2005

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