Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2024 i Vintage Rock

The true mark of greatness for any first generation rockin’ artist is how their influence has resonated across the ensuing decades. As we gather to celebrate 70 years since the legendary Wanda Jackson took her first bite into the music industry, it’s a testament to her remarkable career that a panoply of modern female artists are queuing up in our latest cover feature to give thanks for the way that the Oklahoma-born singer blazed a trail and laid the groundwork for them to follow in her wake. Flying in the face of a conservative music scene that often ridiculed the idea that women could hold their own in rock’n’roll, Jackson took up the challenge and ran with it. No apologies. No compromises. No fear. Join us as we take an…

Al Zioli’s musical odyssey has taken him from Brazil to London and from garage rock to jump blues. The leader of The Blasting Caps reflects on his journey and plans his rhythm and blues future. WORDS BY DAVID WEST When Al Zioli was ayoungster in São Paulo city, Brazil, aneighbour gave him atape featuring The Animals and Brazilian garage rockers Os Mutantes. Once the music bug bit Zioli, it never let go. “I really liked The Animals,” says the singer and guitarist. “I bought one of their records –‘Oh, that’s what they look like, that’s areally cool style.’ I started to pick up records with guys who looked the same on the cover. I wanted to dress like them.” He moved to London and played guitar in self-styled frat rock…

The recent biopic, Little Richard: IAm Everything, got panned by more discerning critics for the lack of time spent on the great man’s actual music. Instead, the documentary chose to obsess about his image, but you could argue this was par for the course. Of all the major early rockers, comparatively little time seems to have been spent talking about Little Richard’s records. The output of the likes of Fats Domino, Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Gene Vincent, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly has been well assessed. But with Richard, the standard biography remains Charles White’s The Life And Times Of Little Richard, written 40 years ago. “Sent from God,” as Richard put it in a round of publicity interviews he did to mark its…

But as the preeminent figurehead of the rock’n’roll revolution, Alan Freed was a high-profile target for the US Congress when they began investigating payola, after their headline-grabbing inquiry into rigged TV quiz shows. Many DJs were fired or quit, and WABC (AM), where Freed had found himself by 1959, demanded all their DJs sign a statement for the Federal Communications Commission that they had never accepted bribes. After refusing, the station fired him. In December 1962, after being charged on multiple counts of commercial bribery, Freed pleaded guilty to two counts and was fined $300 and handed asuspended sentence. Freed wasn’t the only DJ to accept payments from record labels, but he was the most prominent victim of the investigation. His reputation in tatters, he found work hard to come…

In 1982, the British rock’n’roll revival band The Stargazers laid down a version of one of Louis Prima’s greatest shuffles Oh Marie. Although supported by a stylishly shot video by Absolute Beginners director Julian Temple, they were dismayed when CBS put it out as Hey Marie for their second single. Possibly the band were right, because Hey Marie didn’t chart. But it was a fine piece of work, Danny Brittain delivering a Prima-esque vocal without sounding like a carbon copy, and the Anders Janes (double bass) and Ricky Lee Brawn (drums) rhythm section on top form. Three years before David Lee Roth of Van Halen launched a solo career with an excavation of Prima’s Just AGigolo / I Ain’t Got Nobody in 1985, which was widely seen as sparking arevival…

★★★★★EXCELLENT ★★★★VERY GOOD ★★★GOOD ★★PATCHY ★POOR Link Wray And His Ray Men JACK THE RIPPER SUNDAZED ★★★☆☆ Pressed in a suitable shade of blood red vinyl, this Link Wray reissue is remastered from the original Swan Records mono master tapes and offers a nicely packaged new version of this 1963 classic. The album has appeared in many guises over the decades but if you still haven’t tracked down this collection of (mostly) instrumental menace, now is your chance. On reflection, tracks like Mash Potato Party and My Beth are fairly lightweight but then stone-cold whoppers such as Cross Ties, Rumble and Run Chicken Run quickly remind you that you’re in the presence of true guitar greatness. The Glad Rags FLIPPED, FLIPPED! WESTERN STAR ★★★☆☆ Following their EP Introducing The Glad…

Growing up in German-speaking Switzerland, there was ajukebox in the restaurant belonging to Emanuela Hutter’s family and everyone liked to sing. “My mother was Italian, she had a very beautiful voice,” says Hutter. “I have one sister, every Christmas she tortures us with Christmas carols.” After starting in punk rock, Hutter met bassist Oliver Baroni and The Hillbilly Moon Explosion formed in Zurich, creating asound that spans rockabilly, country and psychobilly. The quartet’s latest release, Back In Time, is out now on Cleopatra Records. “I played all the rhythm parts on my own,” says Hutter. “Oliver said I play with such a unique style, agood guitar player can’t copy it.” And 2024 will also see Hutter release her debut solo album, recorded with Jimmy Sutton from JD McPherson’s band. A…

Rockabilly Female Nominees Angie Monroy Gizzelle DeAnda ✸ Mozzy Dee – WINNER Svetlana ‘Zombierella’ Nagaeva (Messer Chups) Rockabilly Male Nominees Eddie Clendening ✸ Les Greene – WINNER Oleg ‘Guitaracula’ Fomchenkov (aka Oleg Gitarkin) Omar Romero Rockabilly Group Nominees Black Kat Boppers ✸ Messer Chups – WINNER Televisionaries The McCharmlys Other Winners ✸ Outlaw Female Kelsey Waldon ✸ Outlaw Male Billy Don Burns ✸ Outlaw Group Reckless Kelly ✸ Honky Tonk Female Kaitlin Butts ✸ Honky Tonk Male Sterling Drake ✸ Honky Tonk Group Teddy & The Rough Riders ✸ Western Swing Female Brennen Leigh ✸ Western Swing Male Kyle Eldridge ✸ Western Swing Group Carolyn Sills Combo…

After ajournalist once dubbed her the ‘sweet lady with the nasty voice,’ Wanda Jackson would often joke: “Well, Idon’t know if that’s right, because I’m not sure I’m asweet lady at all!” That writer’s portrait has remained however, and the Queen Of Rockabilly is celebrated today for a singing style so strong it could blow doors off hinges and possessing a voice so powerful it would ultimately break down the barriers of resistance for all aspiring women in rock’n’roll. Switching from playful country kitten purr to rebellious rockabilly wild cat roar, Jackson was a leading lady who would ultimately pave the way for every generation of female artist that has followed. The first lady to make amark in the male-dominated world of 1950s rock’n’roll, Wanda was the original Wonder Woman.…

CORAL (1959) Written for Buddy Holly by his friend Paul Anka, the song would give the Lubbock-born singer a posthumous No.1 in the UK… WORDS BY STEVE O’BRIEN For a man known for writing achingly sweet ballads, Paul Anka was, according to those that knew him early in his career, “a brat”. In an article written by Jeff Meshel, Buddy Holly’s rhythm guitarist Niki Sullivan said: “All the time he was getting into trouble, or doing something wrong. He just couldn’t sit still – a thousand, billion volts of energy.” According to Sullivan, it was when Anka apologised to Holly after accidentally cutting the power to the onstage mics on abill they were sharing, that their friendship blossomed. “From that incident, Buddy and Paul became very close,” stated Sullivan on…

WEEK ENDING 7 MARCH 1962 Elvis and Cliff face off, some twistin’, some yodelling – plus a Liverpool icon DAN BIGGANE 01(01) CAN’T HELP FALLING IN LOVE/ ROCK-A-HULA BABY ELVIS PRESLEY (RCA) 5 WEEKS ON CHART 02(2) THE YOUNG ONES CLIFF RICHARD (COLUMBIA) 8 WEEKS ON CHART 01 CAN’T HELP FALLING IN LOVE/ROCK-A-HULA BABY ELVIS PRESLEY (RCA) Having topped the UK hit parade towards the end of 1961 with the double-A His Latest Flame/Little Sister, Elvis Presley claimed his 10th No.1 with these two contrasting sides. Lifted from his fourth film soundtrack album, Blue Hawaii, the LP shifted significantly more quantities than his recent studio records, Elvis Is Back! and Something For Everybody, thus triggering a trend that defined much of The King’s movie-based output for the 60s. While Rock-A-Hula…

Topping the charts in the United States for a month in April 1961, Del Shannon’s debut single had two secret weapons – the singer’s occasional breaks into falsetto and the use of an unusual clavioline-based electric keyboard called the Musitron. The song was a rewrite of an earlier track, Little Runaway, performed by Shannon as part of Charlie Johnson And The Big Little Show Band back when he was plain old Charles Westover. But fresh from signing a record deal, the newly-monikered Del Shannon’s manager Ollie McLaughlin suggested the singer should revisit the old song and use it as a showcase for keyboard player Max Crook’s unusual instrument. Recorded on 21 January 1961, it was a performance on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand that catapulted Runaway to glory – the track…

John ‘Duff’ Lowe, piano player in The Quarrymen lineup that featured John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison, has died at the age of 81. A school friend of McCartney, Lowe was invited to join the band in February 1958. A Quarrymen member for two years, ‘Duff’ was part of the lineup when the band laid down a cover of Buddy Holly’s That’ll Be The Day and the McCartney-Harrison co-write In Spite Of All The Danger at Phillips Sound Recording Service in Liverpool – the first time the future Beatles would appear on a disc. The finished 78RPM acetate was handed around the band members with Lowe keeping it safe until McCartney finally bought it from him in 1981 for an undisclosed fee. The songs would eventually appear in remastered…

VIVA LAS VEGAS 18-21 April FEATURING Lee Rocker, Chuck Mead, Linda Gail Lewis, The Spunyboys, The Jive Aces LOCATION The Orleans Hotel & Casino 4500 W Tropicana Avenue, Las Vegas, Nevada BOOKING WEBSITE vivalasvegas.net WILDEST CATS IN TOWN SUMMER PARTY REUNION 5-8 July FEATURING Bill Haley Jr, Matchbox, Sue Moreno, The 4 Fenders, Levi Dexter, The Jets, John Lewis LOCATION Pontins Seaside Holiday Village, Pakefield, Lowestoft, Norfolk BOOKING WEBSITE tennesseeclub.net SHAKEDOWN ROCK’N’ROLL WEEKENDER #16 18-22 July FEATURING $lim $lip & The Sliders, The Deadshots, The Spunyboys, Gene Gambler & The Shufflers LOCATION Tumpy Green Lane, Cam, Dursley BOOKING WEBSITE shakedownrocknroll.co.uk ELVIS FESTIVAL 6-13 September FEATURING Darrel Higham And The Enforcers, Alan Power And The Aftershocks, Cody Lee And The Boogie Boys, Jenson Bloomer With Mondo Carne, The Rocking Sixties LOCATION…

As Vintage Rock catches up with Dion DiMucci to discuss the making of his new album Girl Friends, it’s hard to believe that the distinguished gentleman who greets us is 84 years old. Not only does he cut a fine figure, looking trim and debonair with tinted glasses and white goatee, but he’s also in fine voice as he has deftly demonstrated on the 12 original duets featured on his latest record. Showcasing a stellar roster of female collaborators such as Carlene Carter, Susan Tedeschi and the UK’s Joanne Shaw Taylor to name just a few, Girl Friends is Dion’s third studio album in recent years released via Joe Bonamassa’s label, Keeping The Blues Alive Records. “The thing about women is that when they walk in the room something changes,”…

Rock’n’roll has many mothers and fathers. But while those artists who helped cement it as the defining sound of the 1950s are continually referenced by the media, there are others vital to this story that history has largely forgotten. As you’re reading this magazine, it’s likely that you’re already well acquainted with Alan Freed. He’s a figure that pops up regularly within these pages, and someone who remains atitanic name to music scholars. After all, look up ‘rock’n’roll’ on Wikipedia and Freed’s name appears more times than Elvis Presley. Stroll down Vine Street in Hollywood and there he is on the city’s Walk Of Fame, with the organisation’s website posting: “He became internationally known for promoting African-American rhythm and blues music on the radio in the United States and Europe…

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★★★★★EXCELLENT ★★★★VERY GOOD ★★★GOOD ★★PATCHY ★POOR Dion GIRL FRIENDS KBTA RECORDS ★★★★★Having enjoyed recent success via his albums Blues With Friends (2020) and Stomping Ground (2021), for Joe Bonamassa’s Keeping The Blues Alive Records, Dion continues to celebrate a deep-rooted love for the genre on his latest LP Girl Friends. Across 12 tracks, the singer showcases a stellar list of female collaborators to create a record of smooth and soulful sounds, which is a delight to the ears. Dion himself is in fine form, both as a singer and songwriter. Alongside writing partner Mike Aquilina, with a contribution from Scott Kempner, the tracks form a fascinating exploration of women and their contribution to the world. As Dion states: “I write about my preoccupations, and I know no better preoccupation than…