Aired on Treasure Island Oldies – Aug 31, 2025
Born in New Orleans in 1924, our featured singer/songwriter, whose first name was Irving, was raised amid the musical rhythm of the Crescent City but chased early success with his gloves, not his voice.
After a serving in the Navy during World War II, he became a professional boxer. Irving went by the name Kid Chocolate and was undefeated in his lightweight and featherweight bouts, retiring in 1955 at the age of 31.
Irving returned to New Orleans and took up auto repair to pay the bills. He opened a body shop, but music, which had been a side passion, began pulling him into a different kind of spotlight.
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Singing at local clubs in the 50s, he eventually caught the attention of Allen Toussaint—one of New Orleans most influential songwriters, arrangers, and producers of the 50s through the end of the century.
Toussaint was more than just a producer; he was a sculptor of sound. In the early 60s, he gave Irving a series of hit songs, which skyrocketed up the charts. But the real gem—the one everyone remembers—didn’t arrive until 1966.
That year, Allen Toussaint wrote a quirky little tune with a strange beat and a stranger hook. Toussaint hadn’t written it for Irving, but Irving’s playful voice fit the song’s unique syncopation and tongue-in-cheek fatigue perfectly. It wasn’t a protest song; it wasn’t a dirge—it was a toe-tapper about backbreaking labor. That contrast, that irony, made it unforgettable.
Released in the summer of ’66, the song “Working In A Coal Mine” climbed the charts, reaching the #8 position on the Billboard Hot 100. Despite never being near a coal mine, it became Irving Lee Dorsey’s signature song and it’s this week’s Tom Locke moment in time.
YouTube listing of the song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7ND17Zf68s
This “Moments In Time” story is yet another example of a “golden oldie” or forgotten favorite that earned its place in the evolution of Rock & Roll.
