Innholdsfortegnelse for October/November 2025 i Vintage Rock

When, on 14 January 1955, DJ Alan Freed launched his inaugural Rock’n’Roll Ball in the Big Apple, shifting over 12,000 tickets to both Black and white teenagers, it was clear that the era of the Big Beat was very much under way. Seven decades on, rock’n’roll’s ‘Year Zero’ is still making waves, with many of its finest musical moments now all-time classics. In this issue’s cover story we take an in-depth look at the lead up to that pivotal 12 months and the artists, tunes and major players that made 1955 such an incendiary year in music. Not least Bo Diddley, who landed with his signature self-titled debut 45 at the top of Billboard’s R&B listings, introducing his infectious take on the hambone rhythm – inside, we tell the story…

Her passing was confirmed by her friend and president of her Concetta Records, Ron Roberts. “It is with a heavy heart and extreme sadness that I inform you of the passing of my dear friend Connie Francis,” Roberts wrote on social media in a statement reposted on Francis’ Facebook page. “I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news.” Francis had recently pulled out of a special Independence Day show alongside radio personality Cousin Brucie having been hospitalised for “extreme pain”. In a Facebook post on 2 July she said: “As many of you may now have learned, I am back in hospital where I have been undergoing tests and checks to determine the cause(s) of the extreme pain I…

RHYTHM RIOT WEEKENDER 9–13 October FEATURING Vicky Tafoya & The Big Beat, Shanda, Deke Dickerson, Mike Sanchez, Los Torontos LOCATION Vauxhall Holiday Park, Great Yarmouth BOOKING WEBSITE rhythmriot.com ELVIS FABULOUS WEEK SHOW 31 October-7 November FEATURING Emilio Santoro & The Creoles, Colin Paul & The Persuaders, The Jets, Dani Reno LOCATION Hemsby Beach Holiday Resort, Hemsby BOOKING WEBSITE yesterdayoncemore.co.uk HEMSBY WEEKENDER #71 7-10 November FEATURING Toto & The Raw Deals, Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys, Marcel Riesco, Dylan Kirk & The Killers, The Ray Allen Band, The Jive Aces LOCATION Hemsby Beach Holiday Park, Hemsby BOOKING WEBSITE hemsbyrocknroll.co.uk 15TH ROCK-N-ROLL WEEKENDER 14-17 November FEATURING The Jets, The Firebirds, The Roosters, The Revolutionares, Darrel Higham LOCATION The Savoy Hotel, Blackpool BOOKING WEBSITE ventureawaymusicweekends.co.uk TEDDY BOY TEMPEST #2: THE WEEKENDER 14-16…

Sam Phillips opened the Memphis Recording Service in 1950 and began producing an astonishing body of work. Before Phillips, no local in Memphis had gone all in on the record business or tapped into the Black talent around town. Phillips loved music that bared raw, intense, authentic human emotion. He found just that in the sounds of Howlin’ Wolf, BB King, and Ike Turner, who made some of their finest works with Phillips. At first, Phillips recorded hits for established record companies: Turner’s Rocket “88” and Howlin’ Wolf’s material for Chess; BB King’s records for the Modern label. But after Phillips founded his Sun Records imprint in 1952, the big sellers had eluded him. When Phillips heard Hound Dog in early 1953, “I said, my God, it’s so true,” he…

The Wallflower (Modern, 1955) Initially titled Roll With Me Henry, and renamed The Wallflower, this answer song to Hank Ballard’s Work With Me Annie made the top spot on the R&B charts in 1955. Renamed Dance With Me, Henry, Georgia Gibbs took it to No.1 on the Pop charts. Good Rockin’ Daddy (Modern, 1955) Written by Richard Berry (and also credited to Joseph Bihari as Joe Josea), this is instantly recognisable as Etta, with the Maxwell Davis Orchestra in fine support. If I Can’t Have You (Chess, 1959) This stunning duet with Harvey Fuqua – issued as Etta & Harvey – was written and recorded by the pair once Etta had moved to Chess and signified a bright future. It ended up on James’ self titled 1962 LP. Fool That…

If the media of the 1950s had been as invasive then as it is now, it’s likely Connie Francis’ relationship with fellow pop icon Bobby Darin would have been over the newspapers as much as Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner’s courtship is today. They first met in 1956 when Darin, a budding songwriter, pitched a jingle at her office. “He played me this song and I made a couple of changes to it. Let’s just say he wasn’t happy,” Francis recalled to Fox News in 2018. “He said, ‘Me and this lady don’t dance to the same tune. I’m outta here.’ So he took his song and started to leave! But he came back with the changes I made. It was an instant dislike that turned into love.” Darin, plagued…

In October 1979, Carlene was playing at The Bottom Line, a famous Greenwich Village club where everyone from Carl Perkins and Van Morrison to Bruce Springsteen and Dolly Parton has performed. In a bit of stage banter to set up Swap-Meat Rag, her playful song about husband swapping, Carter said, “Well, if this don’t put the c**t back in country, I don’t know what will!” “It wasn’t really meant for the audience,” Carter explains with a sigh. “I turned around and was laughing with my band about something, and just said it to them. But the mic picked it up, and everyone heard it, and it’s lingered all these years. Although I’d never take it back, because it was not done maliciously. It was just an off-the-cuff remark. And I…

Maybe Tomorrow Talk about hitting the ground running. The Fury vocal style, with its air of loneliness and longing, is already present on his first Decca single, released in January 1959. A self-penned ballad, the arrangement from Harry Robinson is suitably plaintive. The B-side Gonna Type A Letter is another gem, the heavy beat, parping sax and ‘typewriter’ effect typifying the fabulous big sound emanating out of the era’s British studios. Halfway To Paradise Fury is said to have disliked this record, yet he admitted it proved a career turning point, lifting him from headliner on the Parnes package shows to standalone star. The New York Brill Building team of Gerry Goffin and Carole King wrote the song for Tony Orlando, but aside from Fury’s superior vocal, the stirring British…

01 LIVING DOLL CLIFF RICHARD AND THE DRIFTERS (COLUMBIA) “Put on your dancing trousers and get down to the utter King of Rock’n’Roll, CLIFF RICHARD!” Who could possibly forget that enthusiastic introduction to the chart-topping cover version in 1986? Featuring a fully committed Cliff, goofing around with The Young Ones, the video also includes a cameo from Hank Marvin, who had reunited with Richard for the first time in over 10 years for Comic Relief. While the cover sat at No.1 for three weeks and helped raise millions for charity, the original held the top spot for six weeks and was the UK’s biggest-selling hit of 1959. Composed by Lionel Bart, the collective initially weren’t keen on Bart’s ‘pseudo-rock’ styling. But after Bruce Welch gave it a facelift, the easy-going 45…

The roots of rock’n’roll lie in the blues, and the roots of the blues lie in everyday experience. It should come as no surprise, then, that a large portion of 1950s rock’n’roll singles address the subjects of crime and punishment – an unavoidable facet of human history. In fact, by the numbers, rock’n’roll songs about prison and murder arguably rank second only to woeful tales of teenage love. Many of the entries on this list are inspired by real events, either witnessed first-hand or absorbed into popular culture, and perhaps that’s why they remain so gripping. As a species, we are undeniably fascinated by social transgressions, particularly those which cross the line of the law – the darker, the better. Such topics lend an immediate appeal to narrative songs, which are…

Unknown Artist/Chuck Fayne DON’T BUG ME BABY/JAKE THE SNAKE NOT ON LABEL The story behind these recordings lies somewhere between Nashville State Penitentiary and Santa Monica Boulevard, and neither of the title tracks have seen the light of day for more than 60 years. Both of these singles have only ever appeared on long-lost acetates, so they make a very limited appearance here on vinyl for the first time. The practice of trawling state prisons for newly written songs seems to have been common back in the 1950s, and Don’t Bug Me Baby was actually written by convicted felons John Henry Bragg and Daniel Leon Luallen Jr while they were still doing hard time. Their tune made it out into the free world and over the years it has been…

No stranger to the pages of Vintage Rock, Slim Jim Phantom is one of the nicest guys you could meet, with an enthusiasm and love for all things rock’n’roll that’s positively infectious. When we caught up with him this time around, he was heading to the UK for a short run of shows with Neal X and Phil Polecat in STARCAT. “With STARCAT, we play a bunch of Sigue Sigue Sputnik songs that Neal sings, some Polecats songs that Phil sings, and a few Stray Cats numbers,” Slim says. “So, for me, besides the Stray Cats ones, it’s all new material that I’d never played before. It’s kind of cool, and I don’t have to sing every song. “Neal and I made a single that’s out now. We did a…

Seven decades after he entered Sun Studios in Memphis to record his rock’n’roll standard Blue Suede Shoes, Carl Perkins is making an unexpected return to our stereos via a long lost, never-before-heard album of material. Recorded in 1990 in Nashville and in Perkins’ pool house in Jackson, Tennessee, Some Things Never Change was helmed by Grammy-nominated producer and musician Bill Lloyd and features both original songs and covers, including John Hiatt’s Memphis In The Meantime and Johnny Cash’s Get Rhythm, ably supported by Perkins’ sons Stan and Greg, as well as studio musicians Jerry Douglas and Pete Finney. “I got to work with the legendary Carl Perkins,” Lloyd told I Don’t Hear A Single. “[Lloyd’s duo] Foster & Lloyd used to open for him and I recorded demos at his home…

Sun Records and audio specialists McIntosh pay tribute to Sun star and country icon Johnny Cash with a new album entitled McIntosh Sessions Volume 2: Pure Johnny Cash. Released early this summer, the album is an 18-track collection that revisits Cash’s early Sun years and some lesser-heard recordings, restored and remastered from the original analogue tapes. The special edition LP is pressed on 180-gram audiophilegrade 12" vinyl at 45rpm and features alternative versions of early Sun recordings including Cash classics such as Train Of Love, Ballad Of A Teenage Queen, and I Walk The Line. “Sam Phillips had a way of capturing lightning in a bottle, and these early recordings of Johnny Cash perfectly exemplify that,” commented Chase Gregory, Senior Director A&R and Sync at Sun Records. “Remastering them in…

Big changes are afoot for Eddie Lopez. He formed Eddie And Thee Scorpions in 2015 with guitarist Luis ‘Slim’ Ferns of The Desperados. “I met Luis Ferns at a show they used to have in Burbank called Viva Cantina,” says Lopez. “I was holding a guitar, he said, ‘Play me a song’. I played a song, ‘Ah, you need to start a band.’” Based in Santa Ana, California, and joined by bassist Jesus ‘Chuy’ Holguin and drummer Mario Perea, they soon caught the attention of Reb Kennedy’s Wild Records, releasing their debut LP Better Beware in 2017, featuring 14 original compositions. That was followed by In Love Or Insane the following year and a run of acclaimed performances at festivals on both sides of the Atlantic. Now Lopez has swapped California…

Achoppy tremolo guitar rubs against the shinka-shinka of maracas and insistent tom-toms, making a syncopated beat that defies your body not to move with it. The intro of Bo Diddley’s namesake first single may be the most infectious and influential ten seconds in rock’n’roll history. When the record hit No.1 on the Billboard R&B chart seventy years ago, in 1955, it made Diddley an instant star and started a rhythmic chain reaction that’s bopped through music by hundreds of artists – from The Rolling Stones to The Who, from Bruce Springsteen to U2. What’s known as the ‘Bo Diddley beat’ has roots that stretch back to the 17th century, to the beginnings of slavery in America. On plantations, slaves were banned from using drums, as it was thought they could…

What makes the album special is the balance and pacing, the inclusion of two quality rockaballads, and the occasional country and blues flavourings Billy Fury was an old school singles artist. Even if he’d wished it otherwise, health issues ensured a limited LP output. It’s therefore ironic that he was also responsible for one of the few outstanding rock’n’roll records to emerge from the early British scene. The Sound Of Fury was issued in the 10" format, rather than the usual 12", in 1960. Uniquely for the time, Fury was permitted to write all the songs himself. There’s an edge in Fury’s voice, but it isn’t wall-to-wall rockabilly. Turn My Back On You and It’s You I Need fit the description. Since You’ve Been Gone starts out as blues but…

This autumn sees the 45th anniversary of Matchbox’s biggest UK hit. Their version of The Crickets’ When You Ask About Love went to No.4 on the singles chart in September 1980, just reward for one of the totemic British revival bands. After years doing the hard yards at the rock’n’roll clubs and pubs, they’d been the first act to break through from the underground scene onto the singles chart with Rockabilly Rebel in 1979. Admittedly, the production on some of their subsequent records got a bit middle of the road to suit their old following. And with the Stray Cats about to break with a punkier neo-rockabilly sound, Matchbox’s mainstream appeal faded. Their time on the Magnet label ended in 1982, reflecting the wider inability of the bigger record companies to…

While we Brits will have to wait to see the rockabilly revival icons make their return to the live stage, US audiences were thrilled at the news that Stray Cats will shortly be packing up the tour bus for a full run of shows across the States. After a worrying announcement made earlier this year that Brian Setzer was unable to play guitar due to an auto-immune disease, the star frontman, alongside Lee Dresser and Slim Jim Phantom, is due to head out again. Beginning 25 October in Mount Pleasant, the trio will cross the States, closing with a final performance in Wheatland, California on 23 November. These are the first shows since the release of the band’s 2019 album 40 and subsequent reunion tour. The trio promise a set…

Graham Fenton, frontman of British rockabilly revivalists The Househakers and Matchbox, has passed away, aged 76. The embodiment of British rock’n’roll, Fenton’s passion for music arrived at an early age, when his brother Ken introduced him to skiffle and the greats of the golden era. Fenton forged his own career in the revival scene of the late 60s, before going on to form The Houseshakers, who built their reputation in South London and the south of England. In the early 70s, the group toured the UK extensively, culminating in the London Rock And Roll Show in 1972 at Wembley. His next band, The Hellraisers, played alongside a host of Brit revivalists such as Crazy Cavan & The Rhythm Rockers and Matchbox, whom Fenton joined in 1977. It wasn’t until 1979…

Described as “a thought-provoking exploration of the Black musicians who inspired Elvis Presley’s music”, in his latest book Before Elvis: The African American Musicians Who Made The King, Preston Lauterbach explores the Black artists who gave Elvis Presley some of his best-loved early hits. With fascinating chapters split into both before and after the King took their songs to the mainstream, Lauterbach investigates the overlooked, often turbulent, stories of Little Junior Parker (Mystery Train), Willie Mae ‘Big Mama’ Thornton (Hound Dog), Arthur ‘Big Boy’ Crudup (That’s All Right (Mama)) and Calvin Newborn, and their influence on Elvis. The book discusses copyright theft, lost royalties and ‘race’ radio, and explores the artists that Presley met during his early life, his love of gospel born of time spent at preacher and civil rights…

Having made a bold return with new 45 Lucia, Pat Capocci is ready to drop Echoes From The Asphalt Jungle, an album that’s sure to be a solid fixture on the Vintage Rock stereo for the foreseeable. For the latest record, the Aussie axeman returned to trusted producers Jamie ‘Dingo’ Suppa and Paulie Bignell, plus he’s enlisted some top-drawer guests including Kid James, piano king Carl Sonny Leyland and steel guitar legend Jeremy Wakefield. With the new album fresh off the press, Pat chatted to us about his songwriting, philosophy and writing an imaginary surf soundtrack for Albert Camus… What’s happened since we last spoke? It’s been an exciting few years! I just got back from a quick European tour of Belgium, Austria and Italy, plus our new singles, album…

Bo Diddley Bo Diddley No wonder this stomper was self-titled, given that it introduced its creator’s much-imitated shuffling beat, which he allegedly came up with by accident while bodging a rendition of Gene Autry’s (I’ve Got Spurs That) Jingle, Jangle, Jingle. LaVern Baker Play It Fair Baker’s biggest hit of the year (it reached No.2 on the R&B chart) blended smouldering Black blues with a smooth vocal inspired by white crooners, a combination that was quintessentially 1955. The Platters Only You (And You Alone) “We forget about The Platters today,” says music historian Billy Vera, “but at the time their music was on the radio as much as Elvis. They were huge. They were wonderful songs. Very melodic, memorable.” Ruth Brown It’s Love Baby (24 Hours A Day) Many mid-50s…

The title track and heart of Etta James’ debut album began its life as a composition commissioned to Glenn Miller And His Orchestra for the 1941 movie Sun Valley Serenade, directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, but remained unused in the movie aside from short instrumental excerpts in three scenes. Instead, a re-recorded version, again by Miller and his orchestra and now with a vocal duet from Ray Eberle and Lynn Bari (dubbed by Pat Friday), would appear in its entirety in the 1942 film Orchestra Wives. (It was also issued as a US Army Victory disc and sent to overseas personnel.) That 1942 version made Billboard No.2. Readers should seek it out to really appreciate the majesty of Etta’s complete transformation of what was then a relatively run-of-the-mill musical number.…

Who’s Sorry Now (1958) This blues-infused cover of a 1923 Tin Pan Alley standard transformed Francis’ career from struggling artist to star. Originally a waltz by Ted Snyder, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, Francis’ version features a slow-burning rhythm and emotive vocals that build to a defiant climax. Stupid Cupid (1958) Penned by Howard Greenfield and Neil Sedaka, this feisty rock’n’roller captures the frustrations of young love with Buddy Holly-esque twang and playful lyrics. Francis’ energetic delivery, complete with sassy inflections, makes it irresistibly fun and eminently danceable. Lipstick On Your Collar (1959) A sprightly jukebox favourite about infidelity, this song boasts a dynamite guitar solo by George Barnes and Francis’ robust, accusatory vocals. Its greatness stems from the upbeat tempo contrasting the betrayal theme, making it a true proto-feminist…

There’s little consensus across the generations on the merits of early British rock’n’roll. One view, usually favoured by those who were around at the time, is that even a mediocre platter by Johnny No-Hit from Oklahoma had to be way more exciting than anything out of a rainy old Britain just off the ration books. But another opinion, often held by those of us of a later stock, is that you must have cement in your ears not to get a kick out of Tommy Steele, Driftersera Cliff, Marty Wilde, Johnny Kidd & The Pirates and several notable others. What everyone seems agreed on, however, is that Liverpudlian Billy Fury was special. As Colin Kilgour put it on his now defunct BlackCat Rockabilly Europe website, he “was the greasiest, sexiest, most…

Some music reviewers have adopted a sneery attitude to Billy Fury’s output, presenting him as a wouldbe Elvis type forced by his bosses to sing saccharin love ballads. It’s not entirely wrong. Fury clearly relished the studio moments when he was able to cut loose on something more biting. But listening to him is always a nostalgic experience. Even the later re-recordings from the 1970s reflect an artist whose greatest years were before the 1960s beat explosion. He was born the same year as John Lennon and Ringo Starr, but his style was that of another era. It’s easy to forget that at one time he was quite controversial, berated for his suggestive stage moves. “Some of his antics during a ‘love scene’ with the microphone were downright disgusting,” fumed the…

HALF PRICE SALE “The best rock’n’roll magazine on the market”VINTAGE ROCK SUBSCRIBER Join our vibrant community of music lovers at Vintage Rock and each issue you’ll have access to exclusive artist interviews, in-depth features and must-read reviews. Plus, sign up now and you can save 50% off the price of your subscription. WHY SUBSCRIBE TO VINTAGE ROCK? ★ Receive every issue direct to your door, saving 50% off the cover price ★ The biggest exclusive artist interviews, in-depth features & must-read reviews in every issue ★ Exclusive subscriber discount on back issues and special editions ★ Join a community of likeminded people, and immerse yourself in the music you love ★ Free & easy cancellation anytime SUBSCRIBE OR SCAN THE QR CODE WITH YOUR PHONE CAMERA Join us today with…

Pat Capocci ECHOES FROM THE ASPHALT JUNGLE SLEAZY While the term ‘concept album’ always seems to carry a negative connotation, there certainly seem to be many references throughout this new long player from Pat Capocci that ponder over modern life and seem to suggest that taking a little step back for reflection might be a positive move. If you’ve got the time to really explore the lyrics then a rich seam of entertainment awaits, but if you just want to rock out then there is equally plenty here to enjoy. Lucia and Diggin’ My Grave have already appeared in 7" form by way of a taster and both are such strong creations that you may think that the high points of the album are already out there. Thankfully, there are…

Elvis Presley SUNSET BOULEVARD SONY LEGACY This box set is a mammoth treat for Elvis fans or anyone with even a passing interest in the creative process within a recording studio. A five CD box set, each with individual covers, this also includes an illustrated set of detailed sleevenotes. These 89 tracks are lifted from the King’s recording sessions at RCA’s historic Sunset Boulevard Studio between 1970 and 1975. Disc one offers the most mainstream interest with a stripped down set of masters that have had all unnecessary overdubs removed. The result are songs you know well, such as T-R-O-U-B-L-E, Always On My Mind and For The Good Times, that now have a little less bombast and a bit more honesty. Disc 2 features a selection of 17 alternate takes…

Doo-wop was in the ascendant in 1955, as plenty of harmony groups burst their way into the mainstream, with Tony Williams’ peerless tenor guiding The Platters’ to R&B No.1 and Pop No.5 via their timeless love ballad Only You, and other outfits including The Moonglows, The Flamingos and The El Dorados, also chart and radio playlist regulars. But perhaps the greatest jukebox wonder of them all was The Penguins’ mighty prom night classic Earth Angel, which finally settled at No.1 in the Billboard R&B and Pop Top 10 after a slow and steady rise. Helmed by producer Dootsie Williams, the track was issued on his record label Dootone in October 1954, originally as the flipside to Hey Señorita. But when savvy DJs determined Earth Angel the better side, it began its…