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NEWSLETTER #145
Vintage Rock 'n' Roll & Rockabilly
 Tommy Blake -> Link Wray + Books & DVDS
 

  

 

NEW BOOKS
 
THE BLUE MOON BOYS The Story Of Elvis Presley's Band by Ken Burke & Dan Griffin ● BOOK $24.95
Hardbound, 279 pages, counts as five CDs for shipping
There are hundreds of books about Elvis but this one is a little different as it is devoted to legendary group that accompanied him in his early days - Scotty Moore, Bill Black and D.J. Fontana. It discusses their relationship with Elvis from his first rehearsals and recording sessions through his landmark 1968 comeback. It includes never-before-told stories of life on the road with young Elvis and a comprehensive look at their post-Presley lives and careers. Book is based on interviews with Moore, Fontana, the family of the late Bill Black and numerous colleagues and features previously unpublished photos.
 
FAKING IT The Quest For Authenticity In Popular Music by Hugh Barker & Yuval Taylor ● BOOK $25.95
Hardback, 375 pages, counts as five CDs for shipping
Mr.'s Barker and Taylor take on the last 50 years or so of popular music, trying to determine what is real heartfelt, important, what is fake BS and who the hell should be the judge. Highly eclectic and opinionated, but entertaining. (JM)

 
WHITE BICYCLES Making Music In The 60S by Joe Boyd ● BOOK $18.00
Soft cover, 282 pages, highly recommended, counts as four CDs for shipping
Joe Boyd has definitely been there, done that, and retained a lucid memory for all of the fantastic stories and notorious incidents that he lived through. He was there when Bob Dylan went electric and when Syd Barret went insane. He helped Muddy Waters to Europe in 1964, ran the legendary U.F.O. club in England, and produced the soundtrack to Deliverance, just to name a few milestones. Artists as diverse as Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Rev. Gary Davis, Nick Drake, Abba, Fairport Convention and many more weave their way through Boyd's story and the book only really covers his career up to the early `70s. Originally this book was only available as an import; thankfully now we are able to carry the much more affordable domestic release. Thoroughly enjoyable read for fans of the wide variety of music of the 1960's and the crazy times that went along with them. (JM)

 

NEW DVDS
   
CHARLIE GRACIE Alpha Video 1023 Fabulous! ● DVD $11.98
Color, 58 mins, recommended
Entertaining biography of Philadelphia rocker Charlie Gracie. Though best known for his massive hit, the pop flavored Butterfly and subsequent hits in a similar vein, he was also a hot rocker with a fantastic guitar style and preceded Elvis by a couple of years with his bluesy rocker Boogie Woogie Blues when he was still in high school. This documentary, told mostly by Charlie himself, tell of his early years learning guitar, his first recordings and his becoming one of the first artists on the fledgling Cameo label and the subsequent success with Butterfly which put the company on the map. He toured Britain in 1957 and '58 and dazzled audiences with his guitar playing and encouraged more than a few aspiring British rockers to pick up the guitar. In the late 50s Charlie was one of the first artists to question his record company about his royalties (or rather lack of) and in response the label stopped promoting his releases and pressured Bandstand, which emanated from Philadelphia, from dropping Charlie. Although he continued to record for other labels the momentum was gone and for the next 20 years he mostly performed at local clubs. In the late 70s the revival of interest in early rock 'n' roll in Europe resulted in re-releases of Charlie's records and a series of tours where he continued to wow the audiences and he has returned there regularly to great acclaim. All this is told by Charlie with candor and in engaging way by Charlie with occasional contributions from family members, disc jockeys and fans like Albert Lee, Grahm Nash, Bill Haley's Comets and others. Presumably the low budget for this production didn't allow for any vintage performance clips to be including but there are clips of him performing in recent years that show that he is still a musician to be reckoned with. (FS)

 
JERRY LEE LEWIS Time Life 19406 Greatest Live Performances Of The '50s, '60s and '70s ● DVD $18.98
13 songs, 71 mins, black & white/ color, very highly recommended
A great selection of (mostly) live performances by The Killer drawn from TV shows broadcast in the 50s, 60s and 70s. The opening performance is the highlight of this DVD featuring a wonderfully demented performance of Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On from his first TV performance on the Steve Allen Show in July 1957 which is worth the price of admission. This is followed by two (rather badly) lip-synched performances from Dewey Phillips Pop Shop in December of the same year and a fine, if relatively tame performance of Breathless from the Dick Clark show in February, 1958. Skip ahead to 1964 and a great 30 minute show from British TV with Jerry Lee in fine form on a collection of six rockers and country songs ending with a storming version of Whole Lotta Shakin'. Excerpts of this have appeared elsewhere but I believe this is the first time it has been reissued in its entirety. From the 70s with Jerry Lee back on top as country singer we have three performances from Ralph Emery's "Country Goes Pop" TV show ending with Jerry Lee duetting on vocals and pianos with his cousin Mickey Gilley on a medley of pop and R&B songs including a hot version of Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee and a killer rendition of Lewis Boogie. Bonus features include a fascinating 20 minute interview with Jerry Lee at the original Sun studios where he discusses his early years as well a trailer for the 1958 movie "High School Confidential" where Jerry Lee performed the theme song. (FS)
 

NEW COMPACT DISCS
   
 
TOMMY BLAKE Bear Family BCD 16797 Koolit - The Sun Years, Plus ● CD $21.98
29 tracks, 65 mins, highly recommended
Texas singer Tommy Blake is best known for his classic Sun recordings of Flat Foot Sam and Lordy Hoody with superb vocals by Tommy and hot guitar from Carl Bailey Adams who appears on many of Tommy's sessions. As this CD shows there was whole lot more to Tommy and this set includes all his Sun recordings from 1957 including numerous unissued songs and alternate takes plus his superb earlier sides for Buddy in 1956 and RCA in 1957 as well as two excellent demos from 1958 and his 1959 single for Recco including the great $ F-olding Money $. Most of his recordings are tough rockabilly but he was also a fine country singer as a number of tracks here show. Among the Sun recordings is a nine track demo session with Tommy only accompanied by his own guitar which are interesting but not always compelling. Usual spectacular sound from Bear Family and extensive documentation in the 36 page booklet with rare photos and label shots. Tommy's life ended on a tragic note when he was shot by his wife when he attacked her in a drunken rage in 1985. (FS)

 
EDDIE BOND Stomper Time STCD 23 Memphis Rockabilly Bond ● CD $18.98
40 tracks, highly recommended
The first CD on the Stomper Time label was issued 15 years ago and featured Eddie Bond. That CD is now deleted and has been replaced by this new revamped edition which leaves off some tracks and adds a whole lot more including his first recordings for Ekko in 1955 and his best rockabilly sides recorded for Mercury in 1956 featuring great vocals and hot guitar from Reggie Young who was Bond's regular guitarist for a number of years. Unlike most of his Memphis contemporaries, Eddie was actually born in Memphis and like many Southern musicians growing up in the 40s starting performing as a country musician before switching to rockabilly. Eddie's first sides for Ekko are country boogie inspired items but by the time he switched to Mercury he was doing pure rockabilly and his six sides for that label are all time rockabilly classics including a modest hit with the great Rockin' Daddy. After leaving Mercury Eddie decided to take charge of his own recording career and formed the Stomper Time label issuing recordings on this label as well as Millionaire, Memphis and others. The remaining recordings here cover the period from 1958 all the way up to 1989 and find Eddie effortlessly moving between country and rockabilly and always putting in a fine performance accompanied by musicians like Jack Clement, Stan Neal, Jimmy Capps, Hargus Robbins, Billy Grammer, Marcus Van Story, Jimmy Van Eaton, Eddie Jones and others. The material is a mix of originals and well chosen covers. This CD really gives you value for money with 40 songs plus 16 page illustrated booklet with extensive notes and discographical info. Consistently fine music. (FS)

 
JIMMY CAVALLO Blue Wave 146 Rock The Joint! The Jimmy Cavallo Collection, 1951-1973 ● CD $15.98
29 tracks, 74 mins, recommended
Jimmy Cavallo is a singer and tenor sax player who was one of the rock 'n' roll pioneers though is little known today. Originally from Syracuse, NY he relocated to North Carolina where he formed a quartet playing rhythm & blues in 1947! After a stint in the Navy he moved back to Syracuse and formed a new groups and cut four sides for the tiny BSD label (included here) including a hot cover of Jimmy Preston's Rock The Joint - a year before Bill Haley covered it. He subsequently formed a band called The House-Rockers and in 1956 auditioned for Alan Freed who arranged for him to be signed to Coral (as Jimmy CavEllo) and had him appear in his film "Rock, Rock, Rock" where Cavallo played the title song as well as the driving The Big Beat. This collection features all of Cavello's recordings made between 1951 and 1973. Cavallo wasn't a great singer though he was better than most of the East Coast urban white artists and he was a terrific tenor player and his band was excellent too. His 50s material was a mix of R&B flavored instrumentals and vocals with the occasional pop or jazz flavored number. By the early 60s Jimmy's voice had gotten tougher and with 50s style rock 'n' roll out of favor he tried his hand at a range of styles - R&B (covers of Roy Brown's Fanny Brown and Ray Charles's arrangement of Louis Jordan's early In the Morning), pop, soul (Otis Redding's I Can't Turn You Loose) and an after hours instrumental in the Earl Bostic style! It doesn't all work but there's enough enjoyable and interesting material here to make it well worth a listen. Cavallo is now in his 70s and is still performing and has toured Europe several times. (FS)
 
IKE CLANTON/ BUZZ CLIFFORD Skunk 501 Ike Clanton Meets Buzz Clifford ● CD $17.98
30 tracks of bland teen pop rock from the late 50s/early 60 including 12 previously unissued songs or alternate takes. Includes 18 sides by Clanton and 12 by Clifford.
IKE CLANTON: (I Guess) I'm Sorry/ A Penny For Your Thoughts/ Adorable/ Down The Aisle/ I Kneel At Your Throne (unrel)/ I'm Guilty/ I'm Sorry (alt take)/ Judy's In Love/ Land Of Dreams/ Lonely Me, Lucky Him/ Makin' Up/ Memory Lane (unrel)/ She's Different/ Show Me The Way/ Sugar Plum/ Sweet Sixteen (unrel)/ The Champ/ When Did You Leave Heaven/ BUZZ CLIFFORD: (Baby I Could Be) So Good At Loving You/ Castaway (unrel)/ Hey Mr. Clown (unrel)/ Just A Little Line (unrel)/ Magic Circle (alt take)/ Movin' Day (alt take)/ My Girl/ My Misery (unrel)/ Please Keep Me In Mind (unrel)/ Pretend/ Star Of The Show (unrel)/ You're Not Welcome

 
EDDIE COCHRAN Castle CMXBX 1452 Guitar Picker, 1954-1960 ● CD $23.98
Two CDs, 50 tracks, highly recommended
Two CD set in a handsome book format with 32 page full color booklet featuring some of this pioneer rockers' more obscure recordings. It includes early country demos from 1955, his recordings for Ekko with singer/ songwriter Hank Cochran as The Cochran Brothers (they weren't related), guitar backups to Jerry Capehart, Bo Davis, Ray Stanley, Bob Luman and others, live performances in England 1960 including a duet with Gene Vincent on White Lightnin' and excerpts from a 1957 interview which also included Buddy Holly, Jerry Allison and Connie "Guybo" Smith. Much of this material was not originally issued and it's thanks to the diligent research of Derek Glenister at Rockstar Records that this material has seen the light of day and has previously been issued by Rockstar. However if you don't have the Rockstar releases or just want some of best of this rare material this is the way to go and the quality packaging and notes don't hurt either. (FS)

 
JERRY COLE Ace CDCHD 1122 Hot Rod Twangin' - The 1960s Crown Recordings ● CD $18.98
24 rockin' guitar instrumentals recorded under a variety of pseudonyms for the Biharis Crown label in the 60s by Jerry Cole who played on hundreds of L.A. sessions in the 60s (including virtually all of Phil Spector's sessions as well as the "Pet Sounds" album). When he wasn't in the studio Cole was touring with The Champs or a member of the house band at Hollywood's famed Palomino Club. The music here covers a range of styles but all of it rocks.
 
DICK DALE & THE DEL-TONES Sundazed 6251 King Of The Surf Guitar ● CD $13.98
14 tracks, 36 mins, highly recommended
Dick Dale's debut recording for Capitol Records and--in my opinion--one of his all time best. Rip-roaring classics like Dick Dale Stomp/ Hava Nagila, and Riders in the Sky. Lots of wailin' sax provided from a small army of session cats. The cream of the studio players available are on this, Glen Campbell, Leon Russell, Hal Blaine, to name just a few. Bonus tracks Lobo and Cotton Picking are fantastic instrumentals, both previously unreleased. (JM)

 
DICK DALE & THE DEL-TONES Sundazed 6252 Checkered Flag ● CD $13.98
14 tracks, 28 mins, recommended
Sundazed is doing a bang-up job getting the classic Dick Dale catalog back in print with great sound, liner notes, and bonus tracks. "Checkered Flag" is a hot batch of hot rod tunes with bonus surf tracks- Secret Surfin' Spot and Surfin' and Swingin'. Of the sidemen on this recording, the drummer Hal Blaine would be the best known, but all are great players. I'm not a huge fan of Dale's singing and this record is pretty heavy on the tracks with vocals; nonetheless, there are definitely some barn burning instrumentals on this, the stand outs of which would be Surf Buggy/ The Wedge and the super sonic Night Rider. (JM)

 
DICK DALE & THE DEL-TONES Sundazed 6253 Mr. Eliminator ● CD $13.98
13 tracks, 29 mins, highly recommended
This one is my favorite of this re-issue batch. Non-stop hot rod madness! Mr. Eliminator/ Taco Wagon/ My X-KE/ Nitro Fuel, etc.. Wild, wild bonus tracks Wild Ideas and Wild, Wild Mustang. Stellar backing musicians with both Glen Campbell and Jerry Cole on guitars, Bruce Johnston on keyboards and Earl Palmer on drums, to name a few. Great liner notes by Gary Usher Jr. (JM)

 
DICK DALE & THE DEL-TONES Sundazed 6254 Summer Surf ● CD $13.98
13 tracks, 35 mins, recommended
Dick Dale not only plays his usual amazing guitar licks on this, but also busts out some pretty impressive Trumpet playing. I guess when you are recording your fourth album in about a year, you want to branch out a bit. The law of diminished returns starts to apply on this one, not that there's not some real good songs on this, but at the rate he was cranking these out in '63 - '64 a little of the magic isn't present. Again with the cream of the session guys. Bonus cuts are Who Can He Be and Oh Marie. (JM)

 
CHARLIE FEATHERS Last Call 422407 Honky Tonk Man ● CD $13.98
14 tracks, 40 mins, recommended
We've turned up some more copies of this out of print compilation. Reissue of 80s tracks produced by Charlie himself and previously issued on two LPs. Charlie is accompanied by a small group with son Bubba on lead guitar. There's one great original country number, We're Getting Closer To Being Apart and an interesting rockabilly reworking of the gospel standard, Working On A Building along with rocking standards (Blue Suede Shoes/ Ooby Dooby/ Roll Over Beethoven, etc) and country favorites (Honky Tonk Man/ In the Pines, etc) all given the distinctive Feathers treatment. (GM/WC)

 
CHARLES MANN Jin 9084 Pushing Your Luck ● CD $15.98
12 tracks, 39 mins, recommended
New recordings by this fine swamp pop artist. Not as impressive as his 60s/ 70s sides (reissued on Jin 9060 - $15.98) but an enjoyable blend of rock 'n' roll, blue eyed soul and Cajun music. Mostly new songs including the title tune + I Started With An Angel/ Cocodrie Stomp/ Just You And Me/ I Played The Fool/ I Loved You Till It Hurt, etc. (FS)

 
THE STRING-A-LONGS Ace CDCHD 1144 The Tex-Mex Teen Magic Of The String-A-Longs ● CD $18.98
26 Tracks, 56 mins, recommended
Twangy guitars galore! The String -A-Longs are veterans of Norman Petty's Clovis studio. Some might consider them to have a bit of an identity crisis: as the String-A-Longs they were a crisp and clean instrumental band, but they recorded under many different aliases. As the Leen Teens, they flair up a Rockabilly influence; when they wanted to add vocals those records were released as either Brian Keith or Keith & Kay; The Rock 'n' Rollers, The Bugmen_ all incarnations are here including three tracks under the (real) name of Keith McCormack making their 2007 debut here. Also included is Mary Mary by the Leen Teens making its first appearance. The band has the sizzling three guitar + Bass and Drums line-up, that should turn on fans of bands like the Fireball, Ventures etc. (JM)

 
HAYDEN THOMPSON St. George 7714 Rockabilly Rhythm ● CD $14.98
Fine recent recordings by pioneer rocker Hayden Thompson who recorded for Sun back in the day. he is accompanied by a fine guitar including excellent lead guitar by Rockin' Billy Harnden and, on some cuts, the bluesy country fiddle of Ruby Harris. Legendary drummer Warren Storm is there to keep the beat. A mix of rockabilly and rocking blues standards along with some more recent compositions. Includes Mama's Little Baby/ Rockabilly Boogie/ Milk Cow Blues Boogie/ Sugar-Coated Love/ Chicago River Blues/ Can't Hardly Stand It/ Boppin The Blues, etc.
 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Ace CDCHK 730 Baby That Is Rock 'n' Roll ● CD $10.98
18 rock 'n' roll gems - no rare sides but several tracks here may not be familiar to newcomers. Includes sides by Little Richard, Larry Williams, The Everly Brothers, Young Jessie, Long Tall Marvin, Richard Berry, Ron Holden (his storming My Babe - not the Little Walter song), Don & Dewey and more. State of the art sound from Ace and booklet with briuef notes and pointers to Ace albums by these artists.
RICHARD BERRY: Yama Yama Pretty Mama/ JERRY BYRNE: Lights Out/ BOBBY DAY: Rockin' Robin/ DON & DEWEY: Justine/ BIG AL DOWNING: Down on the Farm/ THE EVERLY BROTHERS: Bird Dog/ Wake Up Little Susie/ RON HOLDEN: My Babe/ LITTLE RICHARD: Good Golly Miss Molly/ Long Tall Sally/ LONG TALL MARVIN: Have Mercy Miss Percy/ ROY MONTRELL: (Every Time I Hear) That Mellow Saxophone/ CHAN ROMERO: Hippy Hippy Shake/ RITCHIE VALENS: Come On, Let's Go/ THE WAILERS: Dirty Robber/ LARRY WILLIAMS: Dizzy Miss Lizzy/ Slow Down/ YOUNG JESSIE: Hit, Git And Split

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Ace CDCHD 1153 The Rockin' South ● CD $18.98
30 tracks, 68 mins, highly recommended
Great collection of rockabilly and rock 'n' roll recorded in Atlanta, Ga between 1955 and 1961 for various labels run by music publishing mogul Bill Lowry including NRC, Wonder, Judd, Fox, Scottie and Stars. Most of the artists are obscurities that recorded only a handful of sides but a few went on to greater fame. The biggest hit was, unsurprisingly, the least interesting track - the teen pop flavored Robbin' The Cradle by Tony Bellus. Tommy Roe had big hit in 1962 with his Sheila based on Buddy Holly's Peggy Sue but two years earlier he had recorded the song for Judd with a different arrangement and this is included here along with another fine early tracks. Joe South came to national prominence in the late 60s with his Games People Play by which had been writing, recording and producing for 10 years and three of his early rockers for NRC are featured here including his novelty The Purple People Eater Meets The Witch Doctor which snuck into the top 50. Other artists here include Rod Willis, Paul Peek (who played guitar with Gene Vincent's Bluecaps for a while), Wayne Cochran (who wins the award for the greatest haircut of the 50s - Esquerita, eat your heart out!), The Shades (two fine instrumentals - Strollin' After Dark is particularly fine), Chuck Atha, Little Jimmy Dempsey (country guitarist with the hot vocal Bop Hop), The Night owls (rockin' doo-wop), The Four Mints, Ric Cartey (best known as co-writer of Young Love with a rockin' blues Scratchin' On My Screen based on the traditional Diggin My Potatoes and featuring Jerry Reed & Joe South on guitars), Ray Smith, Cleve Warnock, Jimmy Smith & The Ranch Hands, Walt Benton & The Diplomats, Robert Gill & The Gill-O-Teens and others. Superb sound and 16 page illustrated booklet with extensive notes by Johnny Carter and Rob Finnis
 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Big Beat CDWIKD 261 It Came From The Garage - Nuggets From Southern Califor ● CD $18.98
24 tracks, 58 mins, highly recommended
The third volume to plumb the depths of the legendary Downey Record's vaults, covering the mid-late 1960's-pretty much the end days for the label that put out so many cool records. Garage bands that were storming the So-Cal and West Coast suburbs flocked to Downey records and laid down some great rockers and rowdy R&B. On this you get magical tracks by the likes of The Bel Cantos, The Rumblers, Sir Frog & The Toads (outstanding!), The Barracudas, New Breed and many more obscure and delightful also-rans. 13 of these tracks were previously featured on the now unavailable "Scary Business" CD that Big Beat put out a few years ago, but had to withdraw due to legal issues. Many tracks are making their CD debut here and three fantastic flips are making their debut in any format: Penicillin by Johnny MacRae, Clap Hands by the Rumblers and a cover of the Ike Turner tune A Fool In Love by the Bel Cantos with none other than a young unknown named Barry White! Nuggets indeed, well worth checking out. (JM)
THE BARRACUDAS: I Can't Believe That You're Really Mine/ The Reason Why/ These Ironic Days/ What I Want You To Say/ THE BEL CANTOS (WITH BARRY WHITE): A Fool In Love/ THE BEL CANTOS: Feel Aw Right Part 1/ BUD & KATHY: Hang It Out To Dry/ THE CRAIG & MICHAEL: Drifty/ ESP LIMITED: Tell Me/ KICKS: Oh My Baby/ THE LAST WORD: Don't Call Me, I'll Call You/ Jump Point And Shout/ Sleepy Hollow/ JOHNNY MACRAE: Penicillin/ NEW BREED: I Got Nothin To Say To You/ The Words Ring Back/ THE NEW BREED: I'll Still Be Waiting There/ PAT & THE CALIFORNIANS: Bad/ Be Billy/ THE RUMBLERS: Clap Hands/ Hey Did-A-Da-Da/ SIR FROG & THE TOADS: The Frog/ SUNDAY GROUP: Edge Of Nowhere/ THE SUNDAY GROUP: Pink Grapes

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Big Beat CDWIKD 262 Get Ready To Fly-Pop-Psych From The Norman Petty Vaults ● CD $18.98
26 tracks, 73 mins, highly recommended
Herein we have a compilation of the late `60s Norman Petty productions. The brilliant producer behind the early Buddy Holly, The Fireballs etc., so this will be full of twangy guitars, sincere melodies and classic Rock `n Roll, right? Well, it's more like fuzzy guitars, spaced-out lyrics, two fisted strychnine infused dope rock madness. except Petty didn't allow that kind of behavior in his studio; what these pimple-faced troglodytes did in the parking lot was their own biz, but they better be able to produce when the tape rolls, otherwise he'll get one of the Fireballs to replace ya. Bands The Hooterville Trolly, The Apple Glass Cyndrom, The Dard, Group Axis, The Tyme of Day and many more full of misplaced consonants from all over the west coast flocked down to Clovis, NM to get a little of that Petty magic before he gave up on this Rock `N Roll beast that seemed so distant from the good ole days. Like Frankenstein still trying to calm his monster while the windmill burned, Petty tried to mold these young A-heads into stately pop gentlemen. What you get is some pure psych pop experimentation drenched in the blues, rife with melody and, for the most part, locked away in vaults for decades until 2007, where twelve of these imperfect gems finally see the light of days and 14 more get put into their proper context. The heart of darkness, the belly of the beast--not really, but a lot of 60's fun to goof on and play to confuse your friends. (JM)
THE APPLE GLASS CYNDROM: Going Wrong/ Someday/ THE BRENTWOODS: Yeah, Yeah, No, No/ MIKE BURNETT: Mattie Jo's/ Saying Things/ THE BUTTER REBELLION: Aftermath/ THE CORDS: Ain't That Love/ The Lesson/ THE DANIEL PAUL REVELATION: Reflections Of Mine/ THE DARD: I Know/ THE FIREBALLS: Groovy Motions/ THE FRANTICS: Just For A While/ Think About It/ GROUP AXIS: Not Fade Away/ Silly Ants/ THE HAPPY RETURN: To Give Your Lovin'/ THE HOOTERVILLE TROLLEY: No Silver Bird/ THE INTRICATE BLEND: Door Knob/ Insane (The Jungle)/ THE LIVIN' ENDS: Jolyn/ STU MITCHELL WITH WES DAKUS' REBELS: Acid/ THE SHI GUYS: Mystic Magic Movements/ THE TYME OF DAY: Listen To What Is Never Said/ WHITE LIGHTNIN': Blue Man (Peace Of Mind)/ WILLIE & THE WALKERS: Magic In Her Eyes/ Poor Janie

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Bongo 001 Beat, Beat, Beatsville! ● CD $15.98
20 tracks, 42 mins, recommended
Cool Daddy-o, this is, like, the livin' end, packed full of crazy hip tunes to knock your socks off. and make Kerouac spin in his grave. Capturing all of the cartoonish glory that was pop culture's impression of the Beat Generation, plus throwing in a few great rockers from time to time. Edd "Kooky" Byrnes, Herman Munster, Louis Nye and more take it to the campiest extreme, while The Royal Jokers, The Champs, The Beats and others bring some solid rockin' to the party. Throw in the voluptuous Mamie Van Doren into the mix and what a party it is! Pure fun! (JM)
THE BEATS: Beatnik Bounce/ THE BEE HIVES: Beatnik Baby/ JOHNNY BEEMAN: Laffin Beatnik/ EDD BYRNES: Like, I Love You/ THE CHAMPS: Beatnik/ BING DAY: Mama's Place/ BARBARA EVANS: Beatnik Daddy/ PAUL EVANS: Beat Generation/ PAUL GAYTEN: Beatnik Bounce/ THE HERMIT: Guy Lombardo's Back in Town/ HERMANN MUNSTER READS: / LOUIS NYE: Teenage Beatnik/ RUNE OVERMAN: Beatnik Walk/ RICHARD PINE: Beatnik Bill/ THE ROYAL JOKERS: Beatnik/ HUEY SMITH: Doin the Beatnik Twist/ THE UNTOUCHABLES: Benny the Beatnik/ MAMIE VAN DOREN: The Beat Generation/ J.M. VAN EATON: Beat-Nik/ THE WILD MAN OF WILDSVILLE: Endsville

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Collector 4509 Rockabilly Hoodlums, Vol. 6 ● CD $16.98
30 tracks, recommended
More rockabilly, rockin' country and rock 'n' roll rarities from the 50s and early 60s. While other labels recycle the same old classic material Cees Klop at Collector digs deep to find obscurities that are unknown to all but the most dedicated rockabilly enthusiast. It's not all great but there are enough worthwhile tracks here to make this and enjoyable compilation - most of it making it's first appearance on CD. This set includes side by The Collins Coins, Ford Nix & The Moonshiners, Dick Marcus, Joe Garlin Trio, Ralph Wooldridge (I'm not too sure what his Sit It Out is about), Frank Bell & Aaron Smith (the great Trucker's Lament which sounds like a rocked up version of a traditional folk song), The Rockets, Dick Shearer & The Cavaliers, Bashful Bobby Wooten, Lewis Pruett & The True Lads, Jack Renshaw & The Night owls (his smokin' instrumental Hide-A-Way is not the the Freddie King tunes) and others. Good sounds and booklet has label shots and photos of hoodlums! (FS)
JOHNNY ACTON: Snuffy Smith/ DONALD BEAL & THE CAROLINA WRANGLERS: That's What's Making You Cry/ FRANK BELL & AARON SMITH: Trucker's Lament/ BIG BRAD & THE FOUR STAR BOYS: It Won't Last/ BOBBY & THE FIFTHS: My Baby's Fine/ GEORGE BOWE & THE TRAVELERS: Big Man/ RICHARD CHEVALIER & THE STARLITES: Hang My Tears On A Line Outside/ THE COLLINS COINS: Jilted Again/ REGGIE DAVIS: 6:30 In The Morning/ Hungry For Love/ JIM FOSTER WITH THE KOUNTRY KUT UPS: Rog Roof Roadster/ JOE GARLIN TRIO: Joe's Breakdown/ JIM HAGGARD: Memphis Blues/ LARRY HOLLIS: Oil Field Rock And Roll/ DICK MARQUIS: Let Me Hold You Tight/ Walkin’AroundIn Circles/ FORD NIX & THE MOONSHINERS: Ain’t No Sign I Wouldn’t If I Could/ Nine Times Out Of Ten/ LEWIS PRUITT & THE TRUE LADS: This Little Girl/ JACK RENSHAW & THE NIGHT OWLS: Hide-A-Way/ THE RHYTHM RANGERS: J.C.Boogie/ THE ROCKETS: Danger/ Little Drummer/ JOE & RAY SHANNON: Hobo Baby/ DICK SHEARER & THE CAVALIERS: The Jungle Boogie/ LES TASHER & HIS REBEL ROCKS: Silly Lilly/ LEROY WILKERSON: Backfired/ RALPH WOOLDRIDGE: Sit It Out/ BASHFUL BOBBY WOOTEN: Goin' Deer Huntin'/ Leon

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Collector 4510 Rockin' With Unknown Greats ● CD $16.98
30 tracks of rockabilly and rock 'n' roll obscurities from the 50s and early 60s including sides by Stoney Kilroy with La-Sabers,Charlie Gaston, Keith Courville & Combo,Bob Carpenter & The Swingin' Sounds, Rusty Evans, Bill Keen & The Tradewinds and others. I'm not sure if any of these artists would be considered greats but there's lots of good stuff here.
ANGIE & THE CITATIONS: I Wanna Dance/ MIKE BREWER & THE GALAXIES: I’m All Through With You/ BOB CARPENTER & THE SWINGIN’ SOUNDS: Mary Jane/ KEITH COURVILLE & COMBO: Trapped Love/ THE DEL FI’S: Ah Chee Wah/ VERNON DERRICK: Let Go Your Love, Little Girl/ THE DETOURS: Hot Stuff/ DICK D’AGOSTIN: What Gave You The Idea/ JIM EDGAR & THE ROADRUNNERS: New Girl In Town/ RUSTY EVANS: Shine The Light On Me/ Uh Huh Uh Huh Uh Huh/ FLORéAL: Shakin’Around/ CHARLE GASTON: I Dreamt Last Night/ BILL KEEN & THE TRADEWINDS: Don’t Call Me/ STONEY KILROY WITH LA-SABERS: Goodbye Johnny(B Goode)/ BUTCH KRIEGER: Betty Jean/ LES LEDO & HIS CONSORTS: Nina/ AL LEE WITH BILLY STAR & THE MAVRICKS: I Don’t Believe I’ll Fall In Love Today/ KEN LORAN: Top Man/ FRED MICK & THE KINGSMEN: Baby,What Do You Want Me To Do/ Daddy-O-Goose & The Three Little Piggies/ THE MOSRITERS: Turmoil/ THE OUTLAWS: Hold Up/ RORAY REID & HIS HONKY TONK BAND: Mad Lovin’/ THE RHYTHM SURFERS: “502 “/ LARRY SHIFLETT & THE DETOURS: Suzie Q/ JIMMY TESTA: Yeh,Yeh! No, No!/ THE TREYTONES WITH THE COLLEGIANS: Cool Beat/ CHARLES VANELL & CHORUS: Knowing The Part/ J.FRANK WILSON & THE CAVALIERS: That’s How Much I Love You

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Collector 4511 Rock & Roll Covers - Hot Steamy Lovers, Vol. 3 ● CD $16.98
Another collection of obscure covers of rock 'n' roll and some country hits. 33 tracks including Ritchie Diato doing Splish Splash, Dickey McCanless doing A Thing Called Love, Delbert Barker with No help Wanted, Buddy & The Hearts doing Thirty days, Jimmy Cone with Sweet Little Sixteen, unknown artists doing Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On and That'll Be The Day, Lalo Guerroro doing Hound Dog with a Chicano touch and more.
ARMANDO & THE CHILLI PEPPERS: Don‘t Say Goodnight/ South Of The Border/ DELBERT BARKER: No Help Wanted/ LOREN BECKER: My Baby Left Me/ MEL BERRY: Blackberry Boogie/ DON BEST: Raunchy/ BILL & RONNIE & J.CARROLL ORCH.: Short Shorts/ BUDDY & THE HEARTS: Thirty Days/ JIMMY CONE & J. CARROLL ORCH.: Sweet Little Sixteen/ RITCHIE DIATO: Splish, Splash/ DR. FEELGOOD(PIANO RED): Right String Baby But The Wrong Yo-yo/ JERRY DUANE & THE RHYTHM ROCKERS: Rip It Up/ LALO ™PANCHO LOPEZ™ GUERRERO: Hound Dog/ HANK JARMAN: Mule Skinner Blues/ GARY KING: Rockin‘robin/ EDDY KIRKLEY & DAVID SHIPES: Cottonfield/ LENNY & THE CONTINENTALS: Get Off The Road/ Yankee Doodle Rock/ ARTIE MALVIN & R & R RHYTHM ROCKETS: Rock-a-beatin‘-boogie/ ARTIE MALVIN & THE R & R RHYTHM ROCKETS: Shake Rattle And Roll/ KEN MARVIN: Two Tone Ten Ton/ DICKEY MCCANLESS: A Thing Called Love/ JOHN OWENS: I‘m Moving On/ THE OZARK MOUNTAIN TRIO: Corrina/ TED PRILLAMAN & VIRGINIA RAMBLERS: Franky & Johnny/ AUGIE RIOS: Linda Lou/ ROGER RUDY & THE PYRAMID: Oh Boy/ THE SAINTS: Rock & Roll Ruby/ HUGHIE SCOTT & THE METEORS: Be Bop A Lula/ THE TANSI CHEROKEES: Wipe-out/ UNKNOWN ARTIST (2): That‘ll Be The Day/ UNKNOWN ARTIST: Whole Lot Of Shakin‘goin‘on/ HALL WILLIS & WOODCHUCKERS: At The Hop

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Collector 4512 Rock & Roll Covers - Hot Steamy Lovers, Vol. 4 ● CD $16.98
The fourth volume in this series features another 33 tracks with Blacky Vale doing Mac Curtis's If I Had Me Woman, Jim Morrison doing Hank Williams' Jambalaya, The Bossmen with I'm Ready, Dave Waldroop & The Country Wranglers with Mule Skinner Blues, The Syrup with Blue Suede Shoes and others.
THE BLACK DIAMOND BOYS: White Lightning/ THE BOSSMEN: I‘m Ready/ JOHNNY CHESTER WITH THE CHESSMEN: Lonely Weekends/ JIMMY DAWSON & THE MASON-DIXON BAND: Bony Maronie/ DONNIE & ANDY DOLL BAND: Hey Ba Ba Re Bop/ BILL DUNIVEN: Knocking On The Backside/ JIM ELKS & THE RHYTHM ROUSERS: Just Because/ Riding Down The Canyon/ RUFUS GORDON & HERBIE LAYNE’S ORCH.: Long Tall Sally/ BOBBY HANKINS & ANDY DOLL BAND: Wild Side Of Life/ P. JAY & THE HAYSTACKERS: Little Heart Attacks/ DANNY LAMEGO & JUMPIN’JACKS: Rudy‘s Rock/ BILL LANHAM: “t “ For Texas/ JOYCE LEE & THE WESTERN COUSINS: Tore Up/ PAUL MCDOWELL & THE COUNTRY RAMBLERS: Orange Blossom Special/ EDDIE MERCER & JIMMY CARROLL ORCH.: All Shook Up/ LITTLE RICHARD MORELAND & THE PYRAMIDS: Mailman Blues/ JIM MORRISON: Jambalaya/ PETE PETERS,THE RHYTHMAKERS & THE FIVE NOTES: Fanny Brown/ LEW RAYMOND ORCH.: Wake Up Little Susie/ DARRELL RHODES: Red Sails In The Sunset/ RODNEY & THE BLAZERS: Summertime/ BOB SAVER: Honky Tonk/ HERMAN SCHMERDLEY: Are You Lonesome Tonight/ JIM SHELBY: I‘m A Long Gone Daddy/ BILL STAMPER: Baby What You Do To Me/ Molly Darling/ THE SYRUP: Blue Suede Shoes/ THE TOPPERS: Mr. Lee/ WHELAN TYME & B.W.BOYS: Margie/ BLACKY VALE: If I Had Me A Woman/ FRANK VIRTUOSO & THE VIRTUES: Rollin‘and Rockin‘/ DAVE WALDROOP & THE COUNTRY WRANGLERS: Mule Skinner Blues

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Flame 102 Desperate Rock 'n' Roll, Vol. 2 ● CD $16.98
There was a CD on Flame issued some years ago called "Desperate Rock 'n' Roll, Vol. 2" but this is a completely different collection featuring 25 wild rockers, up tempo country and an occasional blues. Quite a few tracks seem to be making their first appearance on CD. Includes sides by Johnny & The Thunderbirds, Donnie Nix, Johnny Canales (sounds like a Chicano rocker with a hot cover of Johnny B. Goode), Gene Terry & His Kool Kats, Bo Duddley, Ron & Ellie Jay, Richard Wylie, Fred Richards, Bruce Channell, The Millionaires, The Dreamers, Chuck Bradford, Sherman Evans, etc. Includes booklet with label shots and notes on all the songs.

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Link Wraycords 6503 Strummin' Mental! Part Three ● CD $15.98
After more than five years comes the third volume in this series of CDs designed to break your lease with some of the wildest and raucous rock 'n' roll and surf instrumentals you've ever heard. 33 tracks recorded between 1958 and 1965 including the amazing Blowout by Johnny & The Volumes which will describe the state of your speakers if you play it too loud! Also includes sides by The Reekers, Four El-Moroccos, Sunny & The 4 Shades, The Torquettes, Downbeats, X-Terminators, Space Walkers, Vy-Dels, Galaxies, Malcontents, Los Shains and others. Mostly guitar dominated with the occasional scorching sax lead.
 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Proper BOX 122 Classic Rockabilly ● CD $24.98
Four CDs, 120 tracks, highly recommended
If you're only get one rockabilly collection this is probably the one to get with 120 classic sides covering rockabilly's heyday from late 1954 to late 1956. All the rockabilly heroes are here - Elvis, Carl Perkins, Billy Lee Riley, Johnny Carroll, Warren Smith, Charlie Feathers, Gene Vincent, Roy Orbison, Eddie Bond, Johnny Burnette, etc. along with country stars who hitched their wagon to the rockabilly style with verve - Skeets McDonald, Red Foley, Webb Pierce, George Jones, Freddie Hart, etc. as well as a host of performers who only recorded a few sides but left an indelible mark on the music - Jeff Daniels, Wayne McGinnis, Sammy Masters, Sonee West, Lew Williams, Bill Flagg, Joe Clay, Hal Willis, Jaycee Hill, JImmy Johnson and many more. Diehard rockabilly fans will probably have everything here but just about every track is, indeed, a classic and the set comes with a thick 68 page booklet with extensive notes by rockabilly expert Adam Komorowski (who also compiled this set) along with loads of artists photos and label shots and full discographical details. Tracks are arranged in a cute way - disc one is all songs with "Rock" in the title, disc has "Cat" or "Chick" in the title, disc 3 has "Bop","Shake" or "Boogie" in the title and the fourth disc has "Baby" in each title. If you have any interest in rockabilly this is an indispensable collection. (FS)
DOUG AMERSON: Bop Man Bop/ MACK BANKS: Be-Boppin' Daddy/ GLENN BARBER: Shadow My Baby/ LONNIE BARON: Teenage Queen/ BILL BEACH: Peg Pants/ ARKIE BITTLE: Jitterbug Drag/ TOMMY BLAKE: Koolit/ EDDIE BOND: Boppin' Bonnie/ Rockin' Daddy/ BILL BOWEN: Don't Shoot Me Baby/ SONNY BURGESS: We Wanna Boogie/ JOHNNY BURNETTE TRIO: Oh Baby Babe/ Tear It Up/ SONNY BURNS: Real Cool Cat/ JOHNNY CARROLL: Hot Rock/ Wild Wild Women/ JEAN CHAPEL: I Won't Be Rockin' Tonight/ SANFORD CLARK: Usta Be My Baby/ JOE CLAY: Ducktail/ Sixteen Chicks/ JACKIE COCHRAN: Hip Shakin' Mama/ AL COKER: Don't Go Baby (Don't Go)/ THE COLLINS KIDS: Beetle Bug Bop/ SIMON CRUM: Bop Cat Bop/ PAT CUPP: Come Back Baby/ MAC CURTIS: Grandaddy's Rockin/ JEFF DANIELS: Daddy-O Rock/ DENVER DUKE & JEFFREY NULL: Rock And Roll Blues/ EARL EPPS: Be Bop Blues/ WERLY FAIRBURN: Everybody's Rockin'/ THE FARMER BOYS: Cool Down Mame/ My Baby Done Left Me/ CHARLIE FEATHERS: Bottle To The Baby/ Everybody's Lovin' My Baby/ Tongue Tied Jill/ AL FERRIER: My Baby Done Gone Away/ No No Baby/ SONNY FISHER: Pink And Black/ BILL FLAGG: Go Cat Go/ RED FOLEY: Rock 'N' Reelin'/ TRUITT FORSE: Chicken Bop/ JAMES GALLAGHER: Crazy Chicken/ DICK GLASSER: Catty Town/ BEN HALL: Moo Mama/ RAY HARRIS: Come On Little Mama/ FREDDIE HART: Dig Boy Dig/ J.C. HILL: Romp Stompin' Boogie/ THE HODGES BROTHERS: I'm Gonna Rock Some Too/ AUTRY INMAN: Be-Bop Baby/ EDDIE JACKSON: Rock And Roll Baby/ JIMMY JOHNSON: Cat Daddy/ How About Me Pretty Baby/ THUMPER JONES: Rock It/ RANDY KING: Be Bopping Baby/ SID KING: Gonna Shake This Shack Tonight/ Good Rockin' Baby/ BAKER KNIGHT: Bring My Cadillac Back/ BOBBY LORD: Everybody's Rockin' But Me/ DICK LORY: Ballroom Baby/ BILL MACK: Cat Just Got Into Town/ THE MADDOX BROS & ROSE: The Death Of Rock 'N' Roll/ JOE MAPHIS: Rock 'N' Roll Guitar/ JANICE MARTIN: Let's Elope Baby/ JANIS MARTIN: Barefoot Baby/ Drugstore Rock 'N' Roll/ SAMMY MASTERS: 2 Rock-A-4/ Pink Cadillac/ Whop-T-Bop/ SKEETS MCDONALD: You Ought To See Grandma Rock/ WAYNE MCGINNIS: Rock Roll And Rhythm/ JOE MONTGOMERY: Cool Cat/ SPARKLE MOORE: Rock-A-Bop/ ROY MOSS: You're My Big Baby Now/ JIMMY MURPHY: Granpaw's A Cat/ My Gal Dottie/ ROY ORBISON: Rockhouse/ You're My Baby/ CARL PERKINS: Blue Suede Shoes/ Boppin' The Blues/ WEBB PIERCE: Teenage Boogie/ LYNN PRATT: Tom Cat Boogie/ ELVIS PRESLEY: Good Rockin' Tonight/ My Baby Left Me/ VERN PULLENS: Bop Crazy Baby/ GLEN REEVES: Rockin' Country Style/ THE RHYTHM JESTERS: Rock To The Music/ THE RHYTHM ROCKERS: Fiddle Bop/ BILLY RILEY: Rock With Me Baby/ HOYT SCOGGINS: Tennessee Rock/ TOMMY SCOTT: Cat Music/ JIMMY SELPH: Tom Cattin' Around/ RAY SMITH: Gone Baby Gone/ Swinging Boogie/ WARREN SMITH: Rock 'N' Roll Ruby/ TOMMY SPURLIN: Hang Loose/ One Eyed Sam/ ANDY STARR: Rockin' Rollin' Stone/ JIMMY STAYTON: Hot Hot Mama/ HOYT STEVENS: 55 Chevy/ BRAD SUGGS: Bop Baby Bop/ JIMMY SWAN: Country Cattin'/ JUNIOR THOMPSON: Mama's Little Baby/ JUSTIN TUBB: I Gotta Go Get My Baby/ JOHNNY TYLER: Lie To Me Baby/ RUCKUS TYLER: Rollin' And A Rockin'/ CAL VEALE: Don't Cry Baby/ GENE VINCENT: Be-Bop-A-Lula/ Blue Jean Bop/ CLEVE WARNOCK: My Baby Is Gone/ ALVIS WAYNE: Swing Bop Boogie/ SONNY WEST: Rock-Ola Ruby/ Sweet Rockin' Baby/ ONIE WHEELER: Onie's Bop/ LEW WILLIAMS: Bop Bop Ba Doo Bop/ Cat Talk/ HAL WILLIS: Bop-A-Dee Bop-A-Doo/ My Pink Cadillac/ BILL WOODS: Bop/ LUCKY WRAY: What'cha Say Honey/ MALCOLM YELVINGTON: Rockin' With My Baby

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Rajon 0686 The Sun Records Story - A Commemorative Collection ● CD $45.98
Another go round for the Sun label - this time courtesy of a five CD set from the Australian Rajon company. 118 tracks mixing up blues, rockabilly and country in no particular order. Mostly fairly familiar material along with a few originally unissued sides, some rarely reissued sides (Johnny Bernero, Jim Williams, Texas Bill Strength, etc) plus both sides of Elvis's first demo and a couple of cuts from the Million Dollar Quartet sessions. Each disc comes with an eight page booklet with the same notes in each.
ANDY ANDERSON: Johnny Valentine/ JOHNNY BERNERO: Cotton Pickin' Boogie/ BUDDY BLAKE: Please Convince Me/ TOMMY BLAKE: Sweetie Pie/ EDWIN BRUCE: Rock Boppin' Baby/ Sweet Woman/ SONNY BURGESS: Ain't Got A Thing/ Red Headed Woman/ We Wanna Boogie/ What'cha Gonna Do/ JOHNNY CARROLL: Rock Baby Rock It/ That's The Way I Love/ JOHNNY CASH: Cry Cry Cry/ Get Rhythm/ Guess Things Happen That Way/ I Walk The Line/ JEAN CHAPEL: I Won't Be Rockin' Tonight/ JACK CLEMENT: Black Haired Man/ Ten Years/ THE CLIMATES: Breakin' Up Again/ JAMES COTTON: My Baby/ BILLY "THE KID" EMERSON: Little Fine Healthy Thing/ Move Baby Move/ No Teasin' Around/ Red Hot/ When It Rains It Pours/ NARVEL FELTS: Did You Tell Me/ My Babe/ FRANK FROST: Jelly Roll King/ RUDY GRAYZELL: Judy/ RAY HARRIS: Come On Little Mama/ Greenback Dollar, Watch & Chain/ Lonely Wolf/ DAVID HOUSTON: Sherry's Lips/ JACKIE BOY & LITTLE WALTER: Selling My Whiskey/ ROLAND JANES: Rolando/ THE JESTERS: Cadillac Man/ Night Train From Chicago/ BILL JOHNSON: You Better Dig It/ BILL JUSTIS & HIS ORCHESTRA: Raunchy/ THE KIRBY SISTERS: Red Velvet/ DICKEY LEE & THE COLLEGIATES: Good Lovin'/ JERRY LEE LEWIS: Crazy Arms/ Great Balls Of Fire/ Hillbilly Fever/ Little Queenie/ Ubangi Stomp/ Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On/ JIMMY LEWIS: Gone And Left Me Blues/ LITTLE JUNIOR'S BLUE FLAMES: Feelin' Bad/ Feelin' Good/ Mystery Train/ LITTLE MILTON: Beggin' My Baby/ JOE HILL LOUIS: We All Gotta Go Sometime/ CARL MANN: Ain't Got No Home/ Baby I Don't Care/ Mona Lisa/ Pretend/ THE MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET: I Shall Not Be Moved/ Paralyzed/ WILLIE NIX: Baker Shop Boogie/ ROY ORBISON: Cause Of It All/ Claudette/ Go Go Go/ Ooby Dooby/ TRACY PENDARVIS: A Thousand Guitars/ Beat It/ CARL PERKINS: Blue Suede Shoes/ Lend Me Your Comb/ Look At That Moon/ Movie Magg/ Put Your Cat Clothes/ Right String But The Wrong Yo Yo/ BARBARA PITTMAN: I Need A Man/ Two Young Fools In Love/ JOHNNY POWERS: Be Mine All Mine/ Me And My Rhythm Guitar/ ELVIS PRESLEY: My Happiness/ That's Where Your Heartaches Begin/ THE PRISONAIRES: Baby Please/ Just Walkin' In The Rain/ SLIM RHODES: Take And Give/ CHARLIE RICH: Lonely Weekends/ Popcorn Polly/ Rebound/ Sittin' And Thinkin'/ BILLY LEE RILEY: Baby Please Don't Go/ Flyin' Saucers Rock 'N' Roll/ Pearly Lee/ Rock With My Baby/ BILLY RILEY: Trouble Bound/ DOCTOR ROSS: Boogie Disease/ GENE SIMMONS: Drinkin' Wine/ I Done Told You/ RAY SMITH: Right Behind You Baby/ Shake Around/ You Made A Hit/ WARREN SMITH: I've Got Love If You Want It/ Red Cadillac And A Black Moustache/ Rock 'N' Roll Ruby/ EDDIE SNOW: Ain't That Right/ DANE STINIT: Don't Knock What You Don't Understand/ TEXAS BILL STRENGTH: Call Of The Wind/ JEB STUART: I Betcha Gonna Like It/ VERNON TAYLOR: Sweet And Easy To Love/ RUFUS THOMAS: Save That Money/ CLIFF THOMAS & BARBARA: Jumpin' Jack/ RUFUS THOMAS JR.: Bear Cat/ Tiger Man (King Of The Jungle)/ HAYDEN THOMPSON: Love My Baby/ THOMAS WAYNE: Tragedy/ ONIE WHEELER: Tell 'Em Off/ JIM WILLIAMS: Fire Engine Red/ ANITA WOOD: I'll Wait Forever/ MALCOLM YELVINGTON: Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee/ It's Me Baby/ Rockin' With My Baby/ Yakety Yak

 
VARIOUS ARTISTS Rev-Ola CRBAND 10 Rock You Sinners! The Dawn Of British Rock & Roll ● CD $15.98
31 tracks, 77 min., good
Most of these early British rock and roll efforts are of a big band variety or boogie flavored (see The Squadronaires Rock 'n' Roll Boogie for both simultaneously), which, in some camps, isn't rock and roll at all. In fact two apparently humorous tracks by the legendary Goons, one featuring comic master Peter Sellers, poke fun using the new music as a jumping off point, but are tough to take more that a time or two. The best thing going is Tony Crombie & His Rockets, who thankfully have more cuts (six) that anyone. But most of the rocking here is a touch tame, and even The Rockets are closer to Bill Haley than, say, the Little Richard or Jerry Lee Lewis. The Deep River Boys, who get 4 cuts, cover Rock Around The Clock in workman-like fashion, but it lacks the energy and rawness of the original, which, after all, is about all the original had going for it. And hearing Gale Warning's cover of Heartbreak Hotel is like listening to your grandmother sing Nirvana. Worth hearing are the Ted Heath Orchestra, Ray Ellington Quartet, and Don Lang & His Frantic Five, among others. A mixed bag but an interesting document of a transitional time. (JC)