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Connie Francis

Connie Francis – On The Dancefloor with…

Bear Family Records – BCD17663 [2024]
If My Pillow Could Talk – Stupid Cupid – Baby Roo – The Tiger And The Mouse – Ol’ Man Mose – Torero – Looking For Love – Send For My Baby – Lipstick On Your Collar – Eighteen – Some Else’s Boy – Swanee – Vacation – My Real Happiness – Plenty Good Lovin’ – Fallin’ – Ain’t That Better Baby? – Hollywood – Gonna Git That Man – Many Tears Ago – Malaguena – Tweedle Dee – Telephone Lover – Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool – Robot Man – Come On, Jerry (Timber) – Mr. Twister – Johnny Darlin’ – He’s Just A Scientist – I Won’t Be Home To You – The Song Is Ended (But The Melody Lingers On) – Goody Goodbye

More than Stupid Cupid, here’s how Bear Family could have subtitled this excellent compilation.
To my great shame, I confess that my knowledge of Connie Francis barely went beyond Stupid Cupid and Fallin’. That’s the reason why I approached this compilation with a mixture of perplexity, apprehension, and curiosity. But with one or two exceptions (the very kitsch Torero, for example), I must admit I was wrong to be suspicious. Connie Francis is an excellent singer capable of covering different genres with disarming ease and communicative energy.
Because behind what seems at first glance to be the ideal soundtrack for a Rockwelian America, the attentive listener will find a musical world much richer and varied than it seems.
Francis is served by a voice that is at the same time flexible, powerful, controlled, and, pitch-perfect, and aided by leading musicians (Hank Garland, Grady Martin, or George Barnes, to name only the guitarists), passes with ease between genres to the other.
Amidst very good teen-pop and smooth rock pieces with which her name is more easily associated, we find real Rock’n’Roll gems like the very Presley-esque Send For My Baby or the excellent The Tiger and the Mouse (written by Doc Pomus and Mort Schuman). What’s more, the repertoire has its share of surprises, such as the very Exotica Swanee. Gonna Git That Man, which could be just another twist, is transformed into a superb Rhythm’n’Blue thanks to Connie’s voice. The Song Is Ended (But The Memory Lingers On) finds her hunting on Frank Sinatra’s land with disconcerting class and Ol’ Man Mouse is more in the Big Band Swing style. These are a few examples. This compilation and Francis’ repertoire are filled with this kind of tunes.
Even in the case of tunes that are certainly a little over-orchestrated (My Real Happiness or Malaguena), we are won over by the singer’s vocal performance. And since we’re talking about vocal performance, what can we say about the sultry and Fever-tinged Come On Jerry (Timber), single-handedly responsible for part of global warming.
In the end, an excellent disc of 32 songs, accompanied by a booklet rich in information (discography and song-by-song analysis) and images.

On the Dancefloor with Connie Francis is available here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Connie Francis

Juvenile Delinquents – The San Records Story

V/A – Juvenile Delinquents – The San Records Story

Bear Family BAF 14036
Gone, Gone, Gone – Don Wade / Juvenile Delinquent – Ronnie Allen / Loving On My Mind – David Barnes and The Hearts / River Of Love – Ronnie Allen / Forever Yours – Don Wade / The Best Of Me – Ronnie Alen / Oh Love – Don Wade / High School Love – Ronnie Allen / I Can’t Stand It Anymore – David Barnes and The Hearts / Gonna Get My Baby – Ronnie Allen / Bust Head Gin – Don Wade / This Love Of Ours – Ronnie Allen

V/A - Juvenile Delinquents - The San Records Story

Harold Tidwell and Curly Sanders founded the small label San records in the second half of the 1950s. The label’s record legacy is relatively small, with six known singles and perhaps a seventh missing, but it is interesting enough that Bear Family took care to reissue all the sides on this 10″ disc. And what a good idea did they have!
1959 saw the release of the label’s first two singles: Gone Gone Gone/Bust Head Gin (San 206) and Forever Yours/Oh Love (San 207). They are credited to Don Wade, which is a pseudonym for Tidwell. Gone Gone Gone is raw and wild Rockabilly with a sparkling and dazzling guitar solo. On the flip side, Bust Head Gin is a superb dragging blues. The San 207 is just as successful with a perfect cover of Carl Perkins’ Forever Young, to which Wade gives some Presleyesque accents, and an excellent Rockabilly (Oh Love).
The label’s next three singles were dedicated to Ronnie Allen. The first (San 208) uses the same formula by combining a rocker (Juvenile Delinquent) with a ballad (River of Love, written by Allen’s mother). The emphasis is on percussion, with an omnipresent cymbal and a bongo player who completes the line-up, giving the whole a certain originality. By Allen’s own admission, the titles that formed the following two singles were more polished. The group is augmented by the addition of backing vocals (two women and a man). The San 209 sounds like a transition with High School Love, a more than correct rocker, and This Love Of Ours, a mid-paced jiver. Allen’s third and final single for the Gonna label Get My Baby/The Best Of Me (San 300), released in 1961, shows an even more marked orientation towards rock’n’roll tinged with teen-pop, notably due to the omnipresence of vocal backings. The Best Of Me, the more interesting of the two titles, is a ballad that allows Allen to express himself vocally with more subtlety.
The label then went on hiatus, partly because of the tragic news story that affected Tidwell (detailed at length in the rich booklet that accompanies the disc). Finally, in 1967, San 302 (San 301 seems missing or was not released) was released by David Barnes and the Hearts (probably another pseudonym of Tidwell). Loving On My Mind is an excellent country rock with twangy guitar coupled with I Cant Stand It Anymore, a plaintive hillbilly which is reminiscent of Charlie Feathers.
As we have said, the disc is supplemented by a detailed booklet, including rare photos and interviews with Ronnie Allen and Glen Hamilton, a close friend of Tidwell.
Lovers of rarity and beautiful objects will not hesitate to grab this disc, limited to 500 copies.

Buy it here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

He Took Us By Storm (various artists)

V/A – He Took Us By Storm

Bear Family – BCD17699
Dion – Two Ton Feather – Eric Andersen – Honey – Dick Campbell – You’ve Got To Be Kidding – Bobby Darin – Me & Mr. Hohner – P.F. Sloan – Halloween Mary – Jackie Washington – Long Black Cadillac – Len Chandler – Feet First Baby – David Crosby – Willie Jean – Lou Reed – Men Of Good Fortune (May 1965 – Demo) – Casey Anderson – Little Girl – Bubba Fowler – Next Year This Time – Dean DeWolf – Pistol Slapper Blues – David Blue – The Gasman Won’t Buy Your Love – Tom Rush – You Can’t Tell A Book By The Cover – Barry McGuire – Don’t You Wonder Where It’s At – Bob Seeger & The Last Heard – Persecution Smith – Ferre Grignard – Drunken Sailor – Peter LaFarge – Easy Rider – Donovan – Universal Soldier – Boz Scaggs – Baby Let Me Follow You Down – Joe South – These Are Not My People – Leon Russell – Everybody’s Talking About The Young – Johnny Winter – Birds Can’t Row Boats – Dino Valenti – Black Betty – Sammy Walker – Vigilante Man

he took us by storm

One can measure the importance of great artists and their impact by the fact that there is a before and an after. Elvis Presley is probably one of the most obvious examples. Its appearance caused a cultural revolution, changed mentalities, and sparked an incalculable number of vocations. In another register, we can also cite Billie Holiday, whose vocal style influenced almost all the singers coming after her. To continue with John Hammond’s protégés, there is the Bob Dylan case. His arrival on the Folk scene in the early sixties caused an earthquake, mainly with the release of his second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, containing the classics Blowin’ In The Wind, Don’t Think Twice It’s Alright, and A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall. With this record, Dylan elevated Folk to a higher level of intelligence, songwriting, and interpretation. His phrasing, melodies, and poetry, the same that would earn him the Nobel Prize years later, changed the way of writing songs forever.
As if that were not enough, he caused a second earthquake just as powerful, if not more so, when he plugged in his guitar in July 1965 at the Newport Folk Festival and released two classics in a row the same year: Bringing It All Back Home and Highway 61 Revisited. Once again, popular music was turned upside down, and things were never really the same after that.
Like all earthquakes, these were followed by smaller aftershocks. This perfectly titled compilation invites us to explore this fascinating world.
If Bob Dylan does not sing, play a note on this record, or sign any song, he is nevertheless omnipresent and irrigates the almost 74 minutes of this compilation.
The idea is brilliant, and we can only wonder why no one had it before: bringing together contemporary artists of the Kid from Greenwich Village (all the titles, bar one, were recorded before 1970) and tracing the influence that he may have had on them.
The 25 titles that compose He Took Us By Storm intelligently alternate between established (Dion, one of Dylan’s idols, Bobby Darin), on the way to becoming famous (David Crosby, Lou Reed, Bob Seger, Johnny Winter, who will record a cover of Highway 61 Revisted on Second Winter), and more confidential artists. They show how these artists all drew more or less consciously and to varying degrees from the influence of his Bobness.
From there, beyond the simple musical pleasure (because it must be said, there is nothing to throw away here), the record becomes, for the Dylanian, an exciting and fun treasure hunt. We have fun tracing the various borrowings: a line of text or a wording here, a melody there, a vocal intonation or a harmonica riff elsewhere.
Like with Lou Reed, these titles often show that the Dylan phase is only a stage before finding their own voice. Surprisingly, if some are on the verge of plagiarism (listen to Long Black Cadillac, which is more than reminiscent of Like A Rolling Stone, or the selection by Bob Seger, which sounds like a garage version of Tombstone Blues), these songs still remain despite all very personal, demonstrating intelligence in the selection.
Helped by the copious and detailed booklet, we travel through this disc, discovering several artists that the great history of Rock has not necessarily retained but giving us the envy to know more.
The only minor (but very minor) regret is the presence of only English-speaking artists. I would have liked to discover Dylan’s followers singing in Italian, Greek, French, or Norwegian. But let’s rejoice because this could perhaps be the subject of a second volume.

Buy He Took Us By Storm here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Sandy and the Wild Wombats

Sandy and the Wild Wombats – The Girl Can’t Help It

Jazztank – TANK 15102 [2015]
The Train Kept A-Rollin’ – Wild One (Real One Child) – Casting My Spell – The Girl Can’t Help It – Have Love Will Travel – Sleepwalk – Drivin’ My Life Away – Riot In Cell Block #9 – Please Don’t Touch – Hoy Hoy – Got A Lot o’livia’ to Do – The Ballroom Blitz

Sandy and the Wild Wombats

Sandy and the Wild Wombats are a German combo led by Sandy, a young girl with a sandpaper voice reminiscent of Wanda Jackson and Kick ’em Jenny. The Wild Wombats consists of Mark Twang on guitar, Marvell Storm on double bass, and Matty Stroke on drums.
This album features only covers, but the band’s renditions of those songs are pretty personal. Although I typically prefer bands that perform their original songs, it’s not a major issue in this case.
Additionally, Sandy and the Wild Wombats benefit from a strong rhythm section and an exceptional guitar player who has developed a unique style blending 1950s guitarists with influences from 1960s bands like the Sonics and the Pirates (and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s also a fan of Paul Fenech). When combined, this mix is quite explosive.
The set mostly features wild rockabilly, but it also includes slower songs, a country-tinged number, and rockabilly renditions of glam rock, offering something for everyone.

The album was later reissued on vinyl by Bear Family with an extra track, an excellent cover of the Guana Batz‘s Electra Glide In Blue.

Fred ”Virgil” Turgis

Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys

Bob Wills – Ida Red Likes The Boogie

Bear Family – BCD 17647
There’s not a hundred miles left in me – Nothin’ but the best for my baby – Charlie changed his mind – Steamboat stomp – Keep knocking (but you can’t come in) – Don’t be ashamed of your age – I didn’t realize – Ida Red likes the boogie – Trouble, trouble blues – Talkin’ bout you – So let’s rock – Bottle baby boogie – The devil ain’t lazy – Twin guitar special – Snatchin’ and grabbin’ – I’ll have somebody else – Yearning (just for you) – What’s the matter with the mill – Texas drummer boy – Cadillac in model ‘A’ – Sugar baby – Hubbin’ it – Nothing but trouble – Whoa babe – Jolie Blond likes the boogie – I laugh when I think how I cried over you – Bring it on down to my house – Rock-a-bye baby blues – Pray for the lights to go out – I won’t be back tonight

Bob Wills

When I come across a new Bob Wills record, I have an almost Pavlovian reflex: I must buy it. Not to mention that this one is part of the excellent series Gonna Shake This Shake Tonight from the German label Bear Family.
At first glance, this compilation seems a bit unbalanced and shaky. The first period, from the first recordings of the Texas Playboys until 1947, is considered the richest by many, yet only seven songs represent it. It’s not much, given the catalog variety, especially since none come from the Tiffany Transcriptions, but perhaps it’s a question of rights. However, it’s a shame to miss out on the dirty and sparkling guitar parts of the great Junior Barnard, which prefigure Rock’n’Roll. Even this selection, for a compilation more oriented towards stirring pieces, forgets phenomenal instrumentals such as “White Heat” or “Playboy Stomp.” But let’s not shy away from our pleasure and enjoy Wills’ vocals on “Yearning,” the Shamblin/McAuliffe duel on “Twin Guitar Special,” or this demonstration of Swing that is “Woah Babe.”
The next part of the collection features 18 titles from the MGM period, which is a great addition. Wills’ MGM period is often underestimated, mainly due to Tommy Duncan’s departure in September 1948. After Duncan left, Wills never found a singer as good or charismatic. The post-war period marked the end of large orchestras. But the Texas Playboys almost reinvented themselves by replacing brass instruments with new guitar, steel guitar, and electric mandolin arrangements, taking their music to new heights and sometimes foreshadowing the emergence of Rock’n’Roll.
Songs like “Ida Red Likes The Boogie,” “Bottle Baby Boogie,” and “Rock A Bye Baby Blues” show the influence of Billy Jack, Bob’s younger brother, who was more in touch with the music of his time. These songs are reminiscent of what Bill Haley would later do with the Saddlemen. The selection also includes blues like “Trouble Trouble Blues” (sung by Bob, not by his brother Luke as erroneously credited in the discography), two excellent songs written by Cindy Walker (“Don’t Be Ashamed Of Your Age” and “Hubbin’ It”), and Western Swing gems that can stand up to comparison with the Okeh sides (“I Didn’t Realize,” “I’ll have Somebody Else”).
Unfortunately, things took a downturn when Wills moved to Decca after MGM. The January 1956 session produced “So Let’s Rock,” an attempt to ride the emerging Rock wave that is rather embarrassing. “Sugar Baby,” sung by Darla Darett, is only marginally better.
In 1960, Wills joined Liberty and reunited with Tommy Duncan. From the April 21, 1960 session, Bear Family selected “What’s the Matter With The Mill.” Despite being slightly weighed down by a heavy electric bass, it is nevertheless an excellent swinging song with brilliant solos.
Dating from 1968, “There’s Not A Hundred Miles Left In Me,” is an excellent Honky Tonk. However, it’s not easy to recognize the richness of Bob Wills’ music behind the Nahsvilian production.
“Talkin’ Bout You” comes from one of the last recording sessions by Wills and gives the impression of a man diminished by illness. Fortunately, Bear chose not to present the songs chronologically, which prevents this good compilation from ending on a somewhat sad note.
This compilation may not be the best to showcase Wills’ genius and rich musical career. A selection from the first period or the Tiffany Transcriptions might be preferred. However, for those who would like to hear lesser-known and different tunes, these thirty titles will provide what they are looking for.

Buy it here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

The Brits Are Rocking

The Brits Are Rocking Vol. 10
Cliff Richard – Dynamite

Bear Family BCD 17729
Nine Times Out of Ten – Never Mind – My Feet Hit The Ground – Pointed Toe Shoes – Don’t Bug Me Baby – Blue Suede Shoes – Mumblin’ Mosie – I Cannot Find A True Love – Move It – Tough Enough – Got A Funny Feeling – High Class Baby – Gee Whiz It’s You – Choppin’ ‘n’ Changin’ – Livin’ Lovin’ Doll – Ready Teddy – Mean Streak – She’s Gone – What’d I Say – Apron Strings – Down The Line – Twenty Flight Rock – Dynamite – Baby I Don’t Care – Mad About You – We Say Yeah – Please Don’t Tease – Mean Woman Blues – Whole Lotta Shaking Goin’ On – The Snake And The Bookworm – Forty Days – Do You Want to Dance – My Babe – No Turning Back

Cliff Richard

Between the moment Elvis Presley lit the fuse of Rock’n’Roll and the tidal wave of Beatlemania, Cliff Richard reigned almost unchallenged over the English Rock scene. And even if his music, like his idol Elvis Presley, quickly softened to capture a wider audience, Richard’s influence on British music and that of his group, the Shadows, is immense.
This compilation covers the career of Harry Roger Webb, Richard’s real name, from his beginnings to the end of 1961. The selection focuses on the most rock-oriented tunes, and leaves aside pop material. The songs are very intelligently distributed in a non-chronological order to avoid feeling too strongly about the singer’s pop turn.
First attempt and first masterstroke with Move It. This song alone would almost be enough to make Cliff an essential artist. The song is a superb Rockabilly full of contained rage and tension, counterbalanced by Ernie Shear’s dazzling guitar. Move It is the work of Ian Samwell, originally Richard’s guitarist but relegated for the recordings to the rank of rhythm guitarist. He wrote Richard’s best songs, and let’s hope his pioneering work will one day be recognized for its value.
High-Class Baby and My Feet Hit The Ground were equally successful, both written by Samwell and recorded less than three months later. Cliff’s voice mixing the energy of Little Richard, the warmth of Elvis and the sweetness of Ricky Nelson works wonders.
The following month (November 1958) saw a significant change in Richard’s career. He enlisted the services of a new group, which would become the Shadows, with Hank Marvin and Bruce Welsh on guitars and Jet Harris on bass.

Little Lovin’ Doll is successful and pleasant but nothing more, the success once again coming from a composition by Samwell, Mean Streak, with its heady and disturbing riff.
Cliff’s first album was recorded in February 1959 in live conditions, in front of a select audience, and the atmosphere of a club was recreated in the studio. Exhausted by the intensive touring pace, Richard arrived at the sessions with laryngitis. However, to hear the energy released, you wouldn’t believe it. This compilation offers a selection of six tracks (My Babe, Down The Line, Baby I Don’t Care, Readdy Teddy, Don’t Bug Me Baby, Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On). Although most tracks are covers, Cliff’s voice and the Shadows’ musical inventiveness are enough to make the difference.
The group returned to the studio the following month. Among the tracks recorded, Bear Family selected Never Mind, another brilliant demonstration of Ian Samwell’s talent.
The following session is devoted to recording three songs by Lionel Bart. The two selected for this compilation are No Turning Back, which offers an insane bass part that fits perfectly with the singer’s voice, and Mad About You, which is much more shaky in its structure (what a strange break in the middle) and suffers from the comparison.
September saw Richard and the Shadows record a series of covers (Twenty Flight Rock, Blue Suede Shoes, Mean Woman Blues, Pointed Toe Shoes) which struggled to reach the level of the original versions. Recorded during the same sessions, Dynamite, once again written by Ian Samwell, eclipses all the other songs with its dazzling success. It is one of Richard’s masterpieces. But despite this last stroke of rock’n’roll genius, we feel the end of an era for the singer and the beginning of a new career.
It was not until the beginning of 1960 that Cliff Richard recorded original material again. In the meantime, Samwell threw in the towel, perhaps tired of being relegated to the background, forcing the Shadows to compose for their leader. However, he remains present on Gee Whiz It’s You, a rock ballad composed with Hank Marvin, perfectly served by the Shadows and the suave voice of Richard. With the help of Jet Harris, Marvin composed She’s Gone, a pretty ordinary blues and Bruce Welsh and Pete Chester wrote Please Don’t Tease, a nice and harmless twist. If the quality of the compositions declines, the vocal and musical levels remain. Finally, at the end of March, they recorded a composition by Samwell (I Cannot Find A True Love), which raised the level and put Richard and the Shadows back on the right path of Rock’n’Roll. The song is a Rockabilly gem with a Milk Cow Blues type of break. Likewise, Choppin’ n Changin’, recorded in June, returns to the heyday of Move It and Dynamite.
By comparison, the covers of Johnny Otis (Tough Enough and Mumblin’ Moise) seem very tame, and What’d I Say should be forgotten as quickly as possible. The rest of the selection follows the downward slope that has begun, however, with one last burst of brilliance, which shines all the more given its entourage, the excellent We Say Yeah.
This new volume in the series is once again perfect. It places the importance of Cliff Richard on the emerging British Rock’n’Roll scene, which his long career and ennoblement had perhaps displaced. As with the others, the disc is accompanied by a copious booklet and a detailed discography. I don’t know who the next artist will be selected for the next volume, but there is no doubt that it will be exciting.

Available here.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol.8
Vince Taylor – Brand New Cadillac

Bear Family BCD17646
Brand New Cadillac – Long Tall Sally – Rocky Road Blues – What’cha Gonna Do (Southern Love) – I Like Love – Sweet Little Sixteen – Endless Sleep – Baby Let’s Play House – Jet Black Machine – Shaking All Over – Ready Teddy – Move Over Tiger – So Glad You’re Mine – Lovin’ Up A Storm – My Babe – Right Behind You Baby – Twenty Flight Rock – Blue Jean Bop – I’ll Be Your Hero – C’mon Everybody – Don’t Leave Me Now – Mean Woman Blues – B. B. Baby (Big Blond Baby) – There’s A Whole Lot of Twistin’ Goin’ On – Love Me – Rip It Up – Have I Told You Lately That I Love You – Mimi – Peppermint Twist – Part I – Peppermint Twist – Part II – Pledging My Love – Don’t Ever Let Me Go

Vince Taylor

Vince Taylor had an undeniable charisma and the magazines knew how to exploit his half-angel, half-demon image. This same charisma, combined with a good dose of energy gave dazzling stage performances. Unfortunately, all this does not necessarily show through on his recordings.
His recording career begins with a very good Rockabilly-inspired single, the excellent Right Behind You Baby coupled with I Like Love on the B side. This one benefits from the presence of Tony Sheridan on guitar and Brian Benett (Shadows) on drums. Benett is renewed for the next session in February 59, and was joined by the excellent Joe Moretti on guitar. The result gives the dazzling Brand New Cadillac (the only composition by Vince Taylor on this compilation). This single piece would be enough to leave him a place in the pantheon of Rock’nroll. Success did not come, Taylor changed label and after Parlophone joined Palette for which he recorded another excellent single I’ll Be Your Hero with the wild Jet Black Machine on the B side. But already, we can see an evolution in the sound. After another solid single for Palette, Taylor found refuge in France and signed for Barclay. If the accompaniment always remains of quality, the inspiration seems to disintegrate and very often the listener has the impression of hearing an imitator of Gene Vincent or Eddie Cochran without the flame of genius that makes the difference. Taylor sings well, sometimes overdoes it, but too often settles for the bare minimum. The last period covered by this CD, corresponding to the year 1962, sees Taylor evolving towards Twist and a rather uninteresting pop-Rock.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol. 5
Lee Curtis & the All Stars – Let’s Stomp

Bear Family BCD17626
Boppin’ The Blues – Let’s Stomp (1st Version) – I’ve Got My Eyes On You – Jezebel – Boys – Irresistible You – Nobody But You – Memphis Tennessee – It’s Only Make Believe – A Mess Of Blues – My Baby – Sticks And Stones – Stupidity – Hello Josephine – Stand By Me – Slow Down – Shot Of Rhythm And Blues – When I Get Paid – Can’t Help Falling In Love – Let’s Stomp (Second Version) – Little Egypt – Blue Suede Shoes – One Night – Exstacy – Wooly Bully – Mohair Sam – Jezebel (Live At The Cavern) – Skinnie Minnie (Live At The Cavern) – Um Um Um Um Um

 The Brits are Rocking Lee Curtis & the All Stars

The fifth volume of this excellent series sheds light on Lee Curtis (real name Peter Flannery), a minor hero of the Mersey scene. His band once featured Pete Best, who almost became a Beatle and was signed to Decca. The label that refused the Fab Four probably tried to find a band with a similar potential. Lee Curtis and his All Stars were once voted second in a music poll, just behind the Beatles, but one must admit that today, except for true amateurs, his name is almost forgotten.
There are many reasons for that: some missed opportunities from Decca, a lousy schedule and poor management. And the material was also a problem. If Curtis was a good singer, he didn’t write his own songs and thus, stuck to covers.This album gathers the best sides recorded for Decca and Star Club. There’s a good dose of danceable and uptempo numbers. Though enjoyable, they are not all that original, and the similarity of repertoire with King Size Taylor is not always in favour of Curtis. But Curtis had a magnificent and powerful voice that shone through some slower tunes. He’s perfect on Exstacy, It’s Only Make Believe, Stand By Me, Irresistable You, and Little Egypt. Even Jezebel, albeit a tad emphatic, is perfect. This song, along with Bill Haley’s Skinnie Minnie, also appears in live versions recorded at the Cavern. Both are excellent, and one can regret that more live recordings don’t exist. Lee Curtis and the All Stars were a terrific live act by all accounts. Anyway, if you’re not a real completist of the British scene of the early 60s, 29 songs might be a bit too much. But if you’re curious and open-minded, you’ll find some good tunes on this volume. As usual, the booklet is quite impressive, with a biography, press clips and plenty of photos.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol. 4
Colin Hicks – Sexy Rock

Bear Family – BCD 17582 [2020]
Giddy Up A Ding Dong – Empty Arms Blues – Wild Eyes And Tender Lips – Sexy Rock – MeanWoman Blues – Oh Boy! – Love’s Made A Fool Of You – Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On – Hanging Around – Tallahassee Lassie – Jambaylaya (On The Bayou) – Blue Moon Of Kentucky – That Little Girl Of Mine – lea lea – Robot Man – Put Me Down – Lovin’ Up A Storm – A Teenager In Love – Book Of Love – Hallelujah, I Love Her So – Brand New Cadillac – All Because Of You – Impazzivo Per te – Johnny B. Goode – Tutti Frutti – Twenty Flight Rock – Hung Up My Rock And Roll Shoes

 The Brits are Rocking   Colin Hicks

Here’s volume four of this excellent and exciting new series on Bear Family. This time, you have a full album dedicated to Colin Hicks covering the period from 1957 to 1961. Some of you may not know him, and to be honest, until I received this cd, I had never heard about him. Colin Hicks is none other than Tommy Steele’s little brother, who is also part of this series, but his name seems to be reduced to a footnote in British music history.
The reasons are multiple. Hicks never achieved the same degree of success as his older brother at least in England. Both looked very similar, and even sometimes their voices could sound the same. So maybe England was too small for two Hicks/Steele. And when success knocked upon his door, it was in Italy.
It has to be said; Hicks didn’t have the talent of his brother. Some of the songs recorded here are pretty average. He also lacked original material, and most of his covers are very well known. It probably didn’t allow him to create a personnal sound. And if his approach of Blue Moon of Kentucky is very original, one can forget in the minute his version of Johnny B. Goode. But the curious listener and the amateur of British Rock’n’roll will find pretty to enjoy here. If Hicks is not Steele, it doesn’t mean he’s an average singer. Far from that. He can rock like none other, and, to pursue the comparison with his older brother, he seems more free, even wilder, in his approach.
Like on many of Bear Family reissues,you’ll aso find rare tracks. Among them are Hicks debut single for Pye Nixa recorded by Joe meek in 1957, or Impazzivo Per Te that was released as a flexi disc in an Italian magazine in 1960.
This compilation is an excellent occasion to rediscover an artist that should receive more credit. Taken separately, this one is maybe not as essential as the first three volumes, but as a whole, its place is fully justified.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol. 3
King Size Taylor – Doctor Feelgood

Bear Family BCD17603 [2020]
Heeby Jeebies – All Around The World – Dr. Feelgood – She Said Yeah – Hippy Hippy Shake – Hello Josephine – Slow Down – Sweet Little Sixteen – Never In A Hundred Years – Money – Bad Boy – Sherry Baby – Whole Lot Of Lovin’ – Stupidity – Long Tall Sally – Domino Twist – Short On Love – Memphis, Tennessee – Mashed Potatoes And Hot Pastrami – Lipstick, Powder And Paint – Slippin’ And Slidin’ – Twist And Shout – Dizzy Miss Lizzy – I Can Tell – Fortune Teller – You Can’t Sit Down – I’m Late – Sad And Blue – Saw My Baby With Another Guy – Matchbox – Good Golly Miss Molly

 The Brits are Rocking king size taylor

For their third volume in their series The Brits are Rocking, Bear Family decided to put the spotlight on King Size Taylor and his band the Dominoes. It’s somewhat surprising as one could expect more familiar names like Marty Wilde or Wee Willie Harris. But it’s also an excellent thing since Taylor needs to be rediscovered.
If you, like me, think that the Beatles never sounded so good than when they were five angry (and hungry) lads struggling in Hamburg, this cd is sure to please you.
This compilation covers the period 1963-1964 and contains all his recordings made for Philips, Polydor, and Ariola. It also includes four demos from 1958. Except for these four songs, the tracks were all recorded in Hamburg, Germany, in the studio or on stage.
Associated with the Beat bands of the Merseyside, King Size Taylor and the Dominoes developed a more aggressive sound than many of their counterparts and stayed true to Rock’n’roll and Rhythm’n’Blues. Unfairly they never reached commercial success in their own country.
Except for their first single, which was more pop-oriented, King Size Taylor and the Dominoes were a beautiful war machine, blasting killer rhythm’n’ blues tunes with a rocking edge one after another. Whether in the studio or on stage, they took no prisoners. Ted “Kingsize” Taylor was probably one the best British singers, but sadly remains one of the unsung heroes of the period. He had a powerful and expressive voice that was ideally suited for material by Larry Williams, Fats Domino, Little Richard, and Solomon Burke. The band was equally amazing with sharp guitar parts and for the live recordings two saxophones blowing scorching riffs and solos.
With all those qualities, why didn’t they achieve international success? Maybe they lacked a good manager to get them a good contract. Probably they were too busy in Germany to develop something ielsewhere. And perhaps the fact that they didn’t have originals didn’t help either.
Anyway, this well-deserved cd (and the 36-page booklet that comes with) is the perfect object to rediscover this artist. Maybe Taylor didn’t have originals, but I wouldn’t trade the 2 minutes and 14 seconds of his version of Short On Love (way better and meaner than Gus Backus inoffensive original version) for any of the LSD influenced stuff that their most famous counterparts later recorded.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol.2
Billy Fury – Wondrous Place

Bear Family Records – BCD17583
Gonna Type A Letter – Baby How I Cried – Comin‘ Up In The World – Wondrous Place – Don‘t Leave Me This Way – Colette – Keep Away – Running Around – Bumble Bee – Nothin‘ Shakin‘ (But The Leaves On A Tree) – My Advice – Don‘t Say It‘s Over – Unchain My Heart – Sticks And Stones – Twist Kid – Push Push – Baby Come On – What Did I Do – If I Lose You – One Kiss – Play It Cool – Sweet Little Little Sixteen – Don‘t Knock Upon My Door – That‘s Love – Don‘t Jump – Tell Me How Do You Feel – Talkin‘ In My Sleep – I‘d Never Find Another You – I‘m Moving On – It‘s You I Need – Phone Call – Turn My Back On You – Alright, Goodbye – You‘re Having The Last Dance With Me

 The Brits are Rocking Billy Fury

After Tommy Steele, the second volume of this series is deservedly dedicated to Ronald Wycherley, better known as Billy Fury. I personally hold “the Sound of Fury” as one of the best pieces of Rockabilly ever recorded. Billy Fury had it all, the look, the voice, and above all, he could write his own songs (and he was good at that!). This 34-song collection focuses on Fury’s most upbeat material and avoids the hits and the well-known songs like “Halfway to Paradise” or “Maybe Tomorrow” (which is a good thing if you ask me.)
To compose a varied compilation, Bear Family chose to present the songs randomly, but for this review, we’ll take them chronologically in the order of the recording sessions.
“Gonna Type Me a Letter” was originally the b-side of Maybe Tomorrow. It’s a solid rocker, though the typewriter gimmick can be slightly annoying.
Asked about his influences, Fury answered, “I was most of all an Eddie Cochran fan. I was an Elvis Presley fan second, and then I liked Dion.” If you can, without a doubt, hear some of the latter two throughout this collection, “Don’t Knock Upon My Door” is pure Cochran.
“Colette” was obviously written with the Everly Brothers in mind. “On Baby How I Cried,” a plaintive ballad, his voice channels the best of Gene Vincent while the Vernon Girls enhance the performance with their backing vocals. “Turn My Back On You,” recorded during the same session, is a pure Rockabilly masterpiece and will appear on “The Sound of Fury.” Eight out of ten songs of that essential album are included here. From the Buddy Holly tinged “My Advice” to the bluesy “Phone Call,” those songs are worth the price of that compilation alone. They also benefit from the superb guitar work of Joe Brown. For the anecdote, Andy White, the session drummer, is best remembered for having replaced Ringo Star during the recording of “Love Me Do” (and he also married Lyn Cornell one of the Vernon Girls.) Also, since the art of the slap bass was yet to be discovered in Albion, two basses were used: one electric bass to play the notes and an acoustic to record the slap.
In June 1960, Billy Fury cut his masterpiece, Wondrous Place, an eerie ballad with sparse backing, sounding like a mix between Elvis’ “Heartbreak Hotel” and “Crawfish.” Even more provocative, listen to that breath just before he drops ‘Wondrous Place.’ Bear Family made an excellent choice by including the first version rather than over-arranged one recorded in 1963.
By comparison, “Push Push” with its semi Calypso beat seems pale while “You’re having the Last Dance With Me” adds nothing to the glory of Fury.
Penned by Gene Pitney, “Talkin’ In My Sleep” brings a little more blues, and “Comin’ Up In The World” offers a superb contrast between the singer’s voice and the screaming sax.
Backed by a Duane Eddy sounding twangy guitar and an ethereal female vocal at the right moment, “Don’t Jump” is a splendid melodramatic tune. “I’d Never Find Another You” is another highlight thanks to Billy, of course, but also to the arranger who kept it simple despite the presence of strings. Just compare to Paul Anka’s version to see how a poor arrangement can waste a good song. From the same session comes “If I Lose You,” a soulful ballad that shows the other side of Fury’s voice, the rough one.
The next pair of songs, both written by Norie Paramor, are far less successful. On “Play It Cool,” the mix between strings and Rock’n’Roll doesn’t work very well, whereas “the Twist Kid” proves that even Fury couldn’t turn lead to gold.
The Presley-esque “Running Around” finds him in better form with a song more suited to his voice. “One Kiss” sees him returning to his idol Eddie Cochran, in a laid back jazzy manner.
“On Keep Away” and “What Did I Do,” the singer is backed by the Tornadoes of “Telstar” fame. The former shows the inspiration of Elvis’ “Stuck On You.”
After a session without the Tornadoes to record Laverne Baker’s “Bumble Bee,” the band returns to record the live-in-the-studio album “We Want Billy.” Five songs are lifted from that album (Sweet Little Sixteen, Baby Come On, Sticks and Stones, Unchain My Heart, and I’m Moving On.) The singer is wild and more rhythm ‘n’ blues than ever, and the Tornadoes are excellent throughout.
“Tell Me How do You Feel,” recorded in 1963, continues with the rhythm ‘n’ blues vein with organ, sax, and a trumpet solo.
The compilation ends with “Nothing Shaking (But The Leaves On The Tree)” on which one can hear some Mersey echoes.
As usual with Bear Family, it comes with a thick 40-page booklet containing photos, informative liner notes, record covers, and detailed sessions. Highly recommended.


The Brits Are Rocking Vol. 1
Tommy Steele – Doomsday Rock

The Brits Are Rocking  Tommy Steele

Bear Family BCD17581
Rock Around The Town – Giddy-Up A Ding Dong – Teenage Party (LP version) – The Trial – Tallahassee Lassie – Give! Give! Give! – Build Up – Knee Deep In The Blues – Rock With The Caveman – Take Me Back, Baby – Time To Kill – Hair-Down Hoe-Down – Swaller Tail Coat – Drunken Guitar – Kaw-Liga – Elevator Rock – Grandad’s Rock – Puts The Lightie On – On The Move – Cannibal Pot – Hollerin’ And Screamin’ – (The Girl With The) Long Black Hair – Rebel Rock – Two Eyes – Hey You – Happy Go Lucky Blues – Singing The Blues – Butterfly – Doomsday Rock – Razzle Dazzle – Come On Let’s Go – Honky Tonk Blues – Young Love – You Gotta Go

2019 saw Bear Family launching a new series called The Brits are Rocking dedicated to the British pioneers of the ’50s and 60s.
They couldn’t choose a better artist than Tommy Steele (real name Tommy Hicks) to begin this series with. If he wasn’t the best nor the most rocking, Steele was one of the first – if not the first – and he had a strong British identity to boot. Above all, unlike Tony Crombie, who was already 30 when he jumped on the Rock’n’roll bandwagon, Steele was a teenager singing for the teenagers.
Steele began his musical career by singing Hank Williams tunes and playing guitar various bands. George Martin signed him. He later recalled: “We sat with our coffee and watched this genial young man bounce on to the stage with his guitar over his pelvis, and my immediate impression was that he was a blond cardboard imitation of Elvis Presley. Tommy had a lot of energy, but he didn’t sound too great.
Fortunately for the young lad, people at Decca saw some potential in Tommy and, following his test audition, they almost immediately signed him. Two days later, Steele was in the recording studio to cut his debut single “Rockin’ with the Caveman / Rock Around the Town.”
This 34-song/71 minute compilation album spans the years 1956 to 1960. It shows how versatile Steele was, playing styles as various as pop-tinged stuff, country and western, novelty songs, and more. But, of course, the most exciting songs, were his Rock’n’roll sides. Steele was a credible rocker, and tunes like Teenage Party, Rock With the Caveman, Doomsday Rock, Two Eyes are small classics. This album also proposes good live versions of Freddie Bell’s Giddy Up Ding Dong and Haley’s Razzle Dazzle and the weird and Link Wray sounding semi-instrumental Drunken Guitar.
At first, I was surprised that the songs were not in chronological order, but it happened to be a good idea. It avoids the problem of too many compilations, especially when they are copious like this one, to have ten solid rockin’ tracks at the beginning and, as the years pass, you find mellower material. This is not the case with this compilation, which alternates styles and paces as well as studio and live recordings.
As usual with Bear Family, it comes with a 40-page booklet richly illustrated, though, for some reason, there’s no sessionography.
This album definitely proves that the Brits, and Tommy Steele, could easily rock like their American counterparts.
Hopefully, this is the beginning of a long series.

Available at Bear Family
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