"Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love)" is a song first recorded by Dick Holler & the Holidays, written by Don Smith and Cyril Vetter. It was later recorded by the Swingin' Medallions who released it as their second single in 1966. Peaking at No. 17 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100,[ Billboard Singles], Allmusic.com the recording became a hit although banned on many radio stations due to lines referring to drinking and sex: "worst hangover I ever had" and "she loved me so hard".At the request of Smash Records, a sanitized version substituting "worst morning after I ever had" and "she kissed me so hard" was created that ended up on some, but not all, pressings of the group's first album.
The song has since been recorded by numerous artists, including the Residents, Joe Stampley, and the Cockroaches.
Copyright ownership In 1962, Cyril Vetter and Donald Smith cowrote "Double Shot (Of My Baby’s Love)" and assigned their copyright to Windsong Music Publishers. Decades later, Smith’s heirs and Vetter registered a renewal copyright in the song. Both parties agreed that Vetter’s assignment of the renewal term to Windsong was effective because he survived into the renewal term, whereas under Stewart v. Abend the Smith estate was ineligible because Smith had died before the beginning of the renewal term. Windsong therefore owned 50% of the renewal copyright, and Smith’s heirs held the other 50%. In August 2019, Windsong was acquired by Resnik Music Group, and the Smith heirs sold their interest to Vetter.https://cmm.loyno.edu/news/jan-16-2026_loyola-university-professor-wins-landmark-global-copyright-ruling
In 2022, the American Broadcasting Company contacted Vetter about licensing "Double Shot" for use in a television show that would be broadcast and streamed worldwide. Resnik Music Group claimed it still owned a partial interest in the song outside the United States, and that Vetter's copyright termination only applied within America. The dispute led Vetter to file a lawsuit in federal court to claim his worldwide ownership rights to the song.
In January 2026, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that Vetter could reclaim the worldwide publishing rights to "Double Shot" from Resnik. On March 20, 2026, Capitol Christian Music Group, Warner-Tamerlane Publishing, BMG Rights Management and Essential Music Publishing announced that they had acquired Resnik's remaining 25% stake in the song.https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/publishers-acquire-stake-in-rock-song-at-center-of-landmark-termination-rights-case-as-they-plan-to-pursue-supreme-court-challenge/
List of versions +YearArtistNotes1963Dick Holler And The HolidaysDale & Grace1966Swingin' MedallionsThe K-OticsHarry Deal and the Galaxies1967Clifford Curry And The C. C. DriversThe UniquesThe Invaders1968The Tams1974The ResidentsThe Residents' first version, featured in a medley on The Third Reich 'n Roll.1975Harry Deal and the Galaxies1982Joe StampleyJoe Stampley was a member of The Uniques.Clifford Curry1983Rick Dees1986The Basement Wall1987The CockroachesPeaked at number 32 on the Australian chart. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid-1983 and 12 June 1988.1988The HighlinersThe ResidentsTheir second use of the song, released as a single alongside God in Three Persons (on which the organ riff is a recurring motif).1997Dick Holler1999George Thorogood2010Dale & Grace2011Better Than Ezra
References
External links [ Allmusic.com: Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love)] Louisiana Music Hall of Fame: Cyril Vetter