Turner and John then co-wrote "Leave My Kitten Alone", cover versions of which were recorded by Johnny Preston, the Beatles, and Elvis Costello. In 1959, King Records issued Turner's first hit single, "The Return of Stagolee," an answer song to Lloyd Price's "Stagger Lee". He repeated the trick with his next release, "We Told You Not to Marry," an answer to Price's "I'm Gonna Get Married." In 1960, Ray Charles recorded Turner's song "Sticks and Stones", many cover versions of which have been issued over the years. By 1961 Turner had his biggest solo success with "Sound-Off", which came from the only album he ever released. The track was described by Joel Whitburn in Top Pop Singles 1955–2002 as a "popular US Army marching drill chant," which had been a number 3 hit for Vaughn Monroe in 1951.
