"Doin' the Raccoon" (1928)

Still roaring along in 1928, our next college-themed song is "Doin' the Raccoon" by songwriters Raymond Klages and J. Fred Coots. Mr. Coots being best-known as co-author of "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" a few years later!

The sheet music really evokes wacky college antics of the 1920s with raccoon coats and all!

The most popular version of "Doin' the Raccoon" was by George Olsen and his Music on Victor Records:

George Olsen's records have plenty of 1920s feel to them, but I think they were a bit square even at the time!

One of the most popular singers of the 1920s was Rudy Vallée, who was well-known for having attended Yale University. As such, he had a college-vibe, so it's not surprising for him to pop up with this budget label take on "Doin' the Raccoon":

The label says Rudy is accompanied by his Yale Men rather than the usual Connecticut Yankees. Hmmm...

I remember seeing Rudy Vallée on TV when I was a kid and it was hard to reconcile the older character actor with the "Vagabond Lover" of the 1920s, but he was a sensation back in the day!

For a sequel to "Doin' the Raccoon" we need to turn once again to Spike Jones, who included an original tune called "Doin' the New Raccoon" from his 1950 Charleston album:

Not sure what the story behind the song is, but Eddie Maxwell produced  lot of original material for Spike.

The label credits the vocal duo as "Gil Bert and Sully Van," which is obviously a gag, but one of the singers is definitely former City Slicker Del Porter. It seems to be a bit of a mystery as to who the second singer was, but it may have been Eddie Maxwell himself.