Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)
| "Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)" | |
|---|---|
| B-side to "Turquoise" by Donovan | |
| Published | 1965 |
| Released | 30 October 1965 |
| Recorded | October 1965, Peer Music, Denmark Street, London, England |
| Genre | Folk rock |
| Label | Pye Records |
| Writer | Donovan |
| Producer | Peter Eden, Geoff Stephens and Terry Kennedy |
| "Hey Gyp" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Eric Burdon & The Animals from the album Animalism | |
| Released | 1966 |
| Recorded | 4 July 1966 |
| Genre | Psychedelic rock, Acid rock, |
| Length | 3:46 |
| Label | MGM Records |
| Writer | Donovan |
| Producer | Tom Wilson |
"Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)" is a song by Donovan. Donovan based it on the song "Can I Do It For You" by Memphis Minnie & Kansas Joe McCoy. The name "Gyp" refers to Donovan's best friend, Gyp Mills, known then at Gypsy Dave, and is one of many songs that Donovan wrote and recorded as a dedication to his close friends.
Pye Records first released the song in the UK as the B-side to Donovan's song "Turquoise" in October 1965. The single was also licensed in this fashion in Canada, France, and Scandinavia. Hickory Records released it as the A-side to Vietnam-themed "The War Drags On" in July 1966. The single was reissued in Frace as a B-side to "Colours in 1975. The song has since been issued on numerous collections of Donovan's music and as a bonus track to his 1965 album Fairytale.
Cover versions
The Animals released their version of the song in December 1966 on the album Animalism. After reconfiguring the band as "Eric Burden and the Animals', they continued to perform it in their live set and released it as the title track of a 4-song EP in France in 1967.
The Soul Survivors also released the song as the B-side to their hit "Expressway to Your Heart". "Hey Gyp" has also been covered by the Belfast Gypsies, Knights of Day, the Underdog Blues Band, 3½, Keith Shields, Santa Esmeralda, the Truth, the Orphans, and The Astro Zombies.
