LOOK WHAT I HAVE FOUND vol 265
"Big beat" - 16 thunderin' thompin' tunes from 1955-1965

 

In The Trashcan Records       GARBAGE265
"The stroll, the blues, the carioca, the twist...listen and dance to the big beat of the thunder bird..."

Gee
1. fever twist - henry wright

Excellent popcorn twist version of Little Willie John's classic 1956 song "Fever". I dont know why this American singer was quite popular in Italy in the 1960s. Released in 1962 on Galleria Del Corso. Many more singles would follow on this Italian record label.




9. walking along - the diamonds

Funny feel-good doowop song from 1958 by these Canadian vocal quartet who first got my attention thanks to their "Black denim trousers and motorcycle boots" three years earlier. Originally issued by Mercury Records.

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Spotlight
2. mumbles blues - bobby lewis

Uptembo rhythm 'n' blues stomper from 1956, five years before his smash hit "Tossin' and turnin'".  Here he is, age 23, and I think it was his debut single. A Spotlight release. See also volume 162.




10. when my baby is gone - rochell & the candles

Another rockin' doowop song, from 1960. Rochell Henderson was the leader of this outfit. I think this was their first single, A-side is "Once upon a time". A Swingin' release.

Swingin'
Checker 3. thunder bird - little walter

What a nice rockin' blues instrumental this is. Marion "Little" Walter Jacobs reinvented the blues harmonica when he arrived in Chicago after WWII. This flipside of "My babe", a minor hit in 1955, is one of his finest moments. Issued by Checker.




11. big beat - hollis champion

Also five years too late came this beatnik rockin' flipside of "Long gone lonesome blues". This ain't no 1959, it is 1964. Nevertheless it is a fantastic tune!

Stripe
Spade 4. it's my life - vern pullens

First class rockabilly from 1956. It's the underrated B-side of "Bop crazy baby". Did you know that one of the band names Lux and Ivy were thinking of was Bop Crazy Babies? Luckily they went for The Cramps. Vern recorded this for Spade Records.



12. my babe - little walter

Yes, this is the Willie Dixon song and I must say it is one of the best versions ever recorded. Walter Jacobs played the harmonica in a completely new way and was a major influence on many blues musicians in the 1960s. He recorded this version in 1960, fifteen years after he moved to New York to become a musician.


Checker
Gee 5. you can't do me no wrong - toni knight

Most likely this was his sole output. It is an ace uptempo rocker from that magical year of 1961. A promo release on the obscure Gee Records label. The slow doo-wop flipside already appeared on a Gee anthology sampler, put together by George Goldner.





13. please don't talk about me when i'm gone - ron volz

He was a member of The Rockin' R's and recorded a handful of singles in 1958-1960. This solo release came out in 1959, a solid rocker, issued by the small Tempus label.



Tempus
Candlelight 6. hoy hoy - clyde stacy & the nitecaps

Best Clyde Stacy song ever is "So young". This rockabilly holler is the flipside, recorded in 1957 for Candlelight Records. Check out volume 100 for more info.



14. be mine - billy ward

Rare rockabilly by Willie Ward who was better known to me as Ward Darby (and The Raves; remember their fabulous "Safari" from 1959). A 1958 Star release.


Star
MGM 7. carioca - roger king mozian

Percussive splendor on this spectacular exotica tune from 1960. For more Mozian tracks from this EP, see vol 114. Also on vol 169 for a great version of "Temptation".



15. rock, rock, rock - the dixiebelles

Black vocal girl group from Memphis, Tennessee, first known as The Tonettes, featuring Mary Hunt (listen to "Shake for you"). This flipside is much better than their silly version of "Down at Papa Joe's". A 1963 release on Sound 7 Stage.


Sound 7 Stage
Stripe 8. long gone lonesome blues - hollis champion

This doesn't sound 1964 to me, still it is a genuine rocker as if it were 1957. Some people may know him as Elmer Fudpucker, his stage name in the 1980s and '90s. A Stripe release.




16. the stroll - the diamonds

A 1957 Mercury release about a stroll, titled The Stroll… Originally issued b/w "Land of beauty".



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