Left to right: Norm Sundholm, Lynn Easton, Dick Peterson, Mike Mitchell, and Barry Curtis of the touring version of the rock and roll band "The Kingsmen" perform onstage in 1964. (Michael Ochs | ...

This 1963 chaotic garage-rock classic sparked national outrage after listeners became convinced the lyrics were obscene.

RASCOE: "Louie Louie," recorded by the Kingsmen. Almost everybody knows it, but almost nobody can understand the words. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LOUIE LOUIE") THE KINGSMEN: (Singing, inaudible). RASCOE: ...

The rock standard stirred up quite the controversy at the time, but it remains an enduring hit.

In 1963, The Kingsmen made one of the greatest rock n’ roll recordings of all time in Portland, Oregon. The original “Louie Louie” was a calypso-style song, but today it transcends genre – a theory ...

It might be the best-known rock song of all time. It might be the most important rock song of all time. It’s “Louie Louie” and it’s so well-known that with just the title, you likely can begin to hear ...

"Louie Louie," recorded by the Kingsmen, began climbing the pop charts 60 years ago. It's a song almost everybody can recognize, but almost nobody understands the words to. And even fewer people know ...

RASCOE: And even fewer people know the history of a West Coast dance hit that became a party anthem, with an FBI investigation and a Supreme Court case along the way. Here's Deena Prichep. DEENA ...

The Kingsmen's enduring recording of the song turns 60 this year, and remains a classic, in part because of its dramatic history. 'Louie Louie': The story behind the song everyone knows but no one ...