Ain’t It a Shame

Fats Domino and his producer/collaborator Dave Bartholomew pioneered the big beat of rock with "Ain't That a Shame." Domino's original single bore the title "Ain't It a Shame," and it's alleged that Pat Boone tried to retitle the song 'Isn't It a Shame' when he cut his whitewashed cover version. (Personally, Domino was partial to Cheap Trick's big, fat, hard-rock version, a Top 40 hit in 1979 from their At Budokan set.) Regardless of what it was called, the kids preferred Domino’s New Orleans-flavored original and made it a Top 10 hit. Bartholomew, who initially had his doubts about the song, warmed up to the simplicity of Domino’s lyric: "'Ain't That a Shame' will never die," he said. "It will be here when the world comes to an end."