First of all, the Enquirer got it wrong. (What do you mean, “Of course.”? Be nice.)



In an article listing songs about Cincinnati, the Enquirer [26 August 2016] highlighted such classics as “Susie Cincinnati” by The Beach Boys, “Lights of Cincinnati” by Scott Walker and “South of Cincinnati” by Dwight Yoakam. They featured a link to “The Cincinnati Song” from the 1986 “Babes In Toyland” movie starring Keanu Reeves and Drew Barrymore.

Included on the Enquirer list was “The Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati” by Alan Williams.

Wrong!

Alan Williams is a Canadian filmmaker. His “Cockroach” is not a song at all. It’s an award-winning film.

The song, “The Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati,” is well known to fans of novelty-record impresario Barry Hansen, better known as Dr. Demento. You’ll find the song on his 1991 “Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary Collection.” In the liner notes to that album, the good Doctor gratefully credits this song, performed by Rose And The Arrangement, with the success of his long-running radio show:

“Like a thousand other bands, San Diego’s Rose And The Arrangement made a fair living in the 1970s playing Adult Contemporary hits and rock ‘n’ roll oldies for the diversion of Holiday Inn bar patrons. What made R & The A unique was the zany novelty songs they created in their spare time. They didn’t often get to perform them live, but they did manage to record an LP’s worth. Their two-minute audio horror movie “The Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati” did a lot to help make the Dr. Demento Show famous during 1974, my first year in national syndication.”

The song was composed by Rose And The Arrangement piano player Doug Drill, who also wrote the lyrics. Here is the first verse of his delightful paean to our fair city:

I must offer to you a confession,

I like movies that give me a fright.

If the subject is horror, I got to see more or

I won’t be contented all night.

You may call it my ghoulish obsession,

It’s a subject on which I get chatty.

But the worst one it seems, haunting all of my dreams

Was the cockroach that ate Cincinnati!

The history of this classic Cincinnati song begins in, of all places, Alaska where, in 1959, Doug Drill was warming up the crowds at Fairbanks’ Squadron Club. The Squadron Club, somewhat legendary today, was a strip club housed in a rickety wooden structure attached to the fuselage of a Curtiss C-46 Commando transport aircraft. Drill tickled the ivories while Art Harris thumped the doghouse bass. The duo was known as “The Famous Gadabouts.” At least that’s how they were billed in advertisements giving prominence to performers like Renee Starr, “The Dynamite of Alaska” and Bettine Day, “The Girl With The Beautiful Legs.”

They played four shows a night, at 10:00 p.m., midnight, 2:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. The clientele, mostly military, was a rowdy bunch. One night a hooker chased a G.I. down the street, firing a pistol as he tried to pull his pants up. The local newspaper described the incident as a dispute over “personal services.”

Perhaps seeking a warmer clime, or less gunplay, Doug and Art relocated to the Southwest and renamed themselves “The Talents.” They played Arizona in the early 1960s and a publicity photo from the Yuma Daily Sun suggests that humor was an integral part of their act.

Also touring Arizona at the time was a drummer, Sal La Bella, and his singing wife, Rose. The Talents recruited Sal and Rose and the amalgamation became Rose And The Arrangement. Rose La Bella and her husband Sal were musical veterans earning enough to support themselves and their five children. Based in San Diego, Rose And The Arrangement traveled throughout the neighboring states of Arizona and Nevada. An advertisement in the Arizona Republic [30 Nov 1971] captures the flavor of their act:

“Three guys and a girl whose warmth and vitality is sure to captivate all audiences – young and old alike. Their music ranges from soft rock to contemporary compositions (written by their own pianist Doug Drill) with entertaining oldies and some 1957-63 rock thrown in for good measure.”

In 1973, the group went into the studio and recorded two songs for release on a 45 rpm 7-inch single. Side A, the presumptive hit, was “The Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati.” Side B, the sleeper, was a novelty song about Chula Vista, California. The single was released on Highland Records, but the label shows “Possum,” not “Rose And The Arrangements,” as the recording artists. It could be the switch was made because the vocals on the two songs feature Doug Drill and not Rose La Bella.

As often happens, the B side took off. The Chula Vista Star News [20 May 1973] was delighted and promoted the song on its front page:

“’We thought “Cockroach” would be the big hit,’ said Rose La Bella, female lead in the group. ‘But everyone likes “Chula Vista” best.’”

Everyone, that is, except Dr. Demento, who put the A side in heavy rotation on his newly syndicated show. He also included the song, now credited to Rose And The Arrangement, on his very first compilation album, 1975’s “Dr. Demento’s Delights.”

By 1981, Rose and the Arrangement had recorded enough material for a full-length LP. “Totally Bananas” was issued in 1981 on the Twink label. Despite liner notes by Dr. Demento himself, the inclusion of both “Chula Vista” and “The Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati” and additional Doug Drill masterpieces like “Summer Is A Bummer (When You’re Married To The Drummer)” and “Last Tango In Pahrump,” the album tanked.

The credits to “Totally Bananas” indicate the songs were recorded over most of a decade. Art Harris left the group before the first single was recorded and four subsequent bassists appear on the album. By the time the “Totally Bananas” landed in the stores, Doug Drill was on his way out, replaced by John Cain on the keys. Cain published an autobiography in 2007 titled “Life’s a Good Gig” in which he recalls his brief tenure with the group:

“I never laughed so much on a gig as when I worked with [Rose And The Arrangement]. From working with them I learned that if you want the audience to like your music, it takes more than good musicianship and playing a series of tunes. It would behoove you as a musician to relate to the audience with humility and good humor and give them a little entertainment.”

Doug Drill moved north to his home state of Oregon, opened a travel agency and wrote a dictionary with humorously fake definitions, then retired to Arizona, where he died at the age of 80 in 2012. He is buried at Grandview Cemetery in La Grande, Oregon.

Rose and Sal La Bella found new audiences and new horizons entertaining passengers on cruise ships sailing around the world. According to Facebook, it appears that Rose La Bella and Sal La Bella are still semi-active in the San Diego area, although no longer sailing the seas.

There seems to be no record of Rose And The Arrangement ever performing their signature song in any Cincinnati venue.