The song achieved its initial and most outstanding success in 1946 with Louis Jordan’s recording, which reached #1 on the Billboard R&B chart and remained there for 17 weeks. His recording also reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was considered a great feat for an African American artist to crossover into the predominately Anglo-Saxon chart. Ray Benson’s award-winning band, Asleep at the Wheel, also covered the song, reintroducing it to a new audience as a western swing hit in 1978.
The Jazzabillies, a western swing group, re-introduced the public to Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens, on their 2006 album, Show Me, proving that Kramer and Whitney’s toe-tappin’, comical tune will remain a timeless and favoured classic.
Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens has appeared in the 1999 independent British film Swing and the 2002 film Swept Away, starring Madonna.
