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It's pretty clear Schaap was talking about the original release of Parts 1 and 2, not any subsequent reissue of one over the other. Clearly though Honky Tonk Part 2 being picked is an indication of its overall popularity.   Which brings up another aspect I didn't get into ... but what's with the "engineer left the equipment running for a smoke break" but also "keep going, keep going, keep going"? Fastest smoke break in history?  Because he would have had to come back fast enough to keep them playing, too. I find that aspect of the story a bit questionable.

@medjuck: Re- Topsy: Maybe there WERE some out there among these 6 millions who had been exposed to the Cozy Cole hit single first (due to its "oldies" status) and then became curious enough to check out its origins?   BTW, not wanting to unduly debunk Phil Schaap's story about which side of the original "Honky Tonk" singles often wore out faster than the other, but there is some postscript to the "Honky Tonk" chart history, it seems: Acording to the list of Bill Doggett chart successes on the back cover of his "All His Hits" compilation LP on King/Gusto 5009, "Honky Tonk" entered the Billboard Hot 100 in early February 1961 again, spent 10 weeks on the charts and made it up to no. 57. And this time it was "Honky Tonk Part 2" that charted! See the below Billboard Hot 100 excerpt of March 1962 to show the company it was in at the time. N.B. At that time Bill Doggettt had already signed with Warner Brothers. The two original Honky Tonks had been on King 4950 in 1956, but the 1961 single was released on King 5444 and here "Honky Tonk Part 2" was coupled with "Floyd's Guitar Blues" (rec. in December, 1958).  So do we know which King singles Phil Schaap most often saw that led him to think "Honky Tonk Part 2" was more worn? 4950 or 5444?  After all it would not have been much of a surprise if the "Honky Tonk Part 2" hit side of King 5444 would have received more spins.  (But we'll never know, I guess ...)  

Not sure but one of the things I've noticed on WKCR broadcasts of Honky Tonk in performance is how Schaap would constantly introduce it with some sort of variation on this: "There was a hit record back in 1956 and me and my friends were saying "what's that sound?  What's that sooouuunnd? Well it was the tenor sax of this man (it wasn't) Percy France ..." I always thought this story was so unlikely ... Schaap was 4 or maybe 5 years old in 1956.  He and his toddler friends had records to play, especially easily breakable 78s?  Or that Schaap didn't know what a saxophone sounded like? Well it turns out in the interview I quoted from in the story, Schaap fleshed out the story and said that a neighbor (he of course remembered the kid's name) had heard the tenor sax on Honky Tonk and indeed, asked "What's that sound? What's that sooouuunnd?"

When I began listening to jazz in 1961 I discovered  that Topsy was originally by the Basie band.  I just checked it on  Spotify and saw that  the Basie version  has  twice as many plays (6 millions) as One O'clock Jump.

Time for some Pops. Never can have enough. This is prime Louis. Louis Armstrong “The Alternate Takes In Chronological Order Volume 2 1935-1944” Neatwork cd   300×300 11.5 KB