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Rock'n'roll

Bill Hurley

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Bill Hurley and The Enforcers – Live In London

Cat Records – CAT047
Sweet Little Rock’n’ Roller – Mess of Blues – Need your Love – Lawdy Miss Clawdy – Nadine – The Hunter – Brown Sugar – If you Need Me – Blues Deluxe – Promised Land

Bill Hurley

After a live album (On the Road With…) and an unpublished 45 rpm from Inmates, the solo album from Peter Gunn, and an unreleased album from Bill Hurley (The Untold Story), the small label Cat Records continues its excellent work dedicated to the Rock cause with this time “Live In London” recorded in 1998 by Bill Hurley and the Enforcers.
A little step back, to re-contextualize, is necessary. By the end of the 1990s, the Inmates were playing much less, and each member, except Bill, took a day job to pay the bills. For his part, the latter set up a parallel group to tour pubs and other concert halls. The Enforcers were born. The lineup was never really steady, and different musicians played in the formation.
In August 1998, Bill and the Enforcers were hired to perform a series of concerts in Sardinia. The band then included Simon Mulvey on bass, Eddie Edwards (Vibrators, Inmates) on drums, and Eddie Angel (Planet Rockers) on guitar. It was decided to quickly record ten tracks (one day for the whole recording and mixing process) in order to have a cassette to sell at concerts. It is this recording that Cat Records, with the help of Eddie Edwards and Pat Collier (bassist of the Vibrators, but also producer of Inmates, Frenzy, Little Bob Story…) for the mastering, releases.

You won’t find a perfectly produced record with a polished sound here, much less any musical revolution. On the other hand, if you put the disc in your player expecting to hear a talented group expressing their love for Blues and Rock’n’Roll in its purest expression, there is no doubt that you have come to the right place.
The repertoire comprises only covers, most of which are quite well-known. But Bill Hurley’s powerful and inimitable voice is more than enough to infuse them with personality. The main focus is therefore on Rock’n’Roll with a superb Lawdy Miss Clawdy and no less than three tunes by Chuck Berry (Sweet Little Rock’n’Roller, Nadine, Promised Land) which, supported by a relentless rhythm section, rush forward without taking any prisoners. It’s also the opportunity to hear Bill confront the Rolling Stones directly with a dazzling and wild Brown Sugar, on which the singer is completely unleashed. The Blues is also very well represented by Mess Of Blues (which Bill has already covered in his album Angel to Memphis) and Blues Deluxe by Jeff Beck. Finding this track is unsurprising because Bill Hurley has often said that Truth was one of his favorite albums. On this one, Hurley achieves perfect synergy with Eddie Angel to take this cover to the album’s heights. Lovers of expressive guitar solos, this track is made for you. The set is completed by some Boogie-blues with Albert King’s The Hunter and a poignant Rhythm’n’Blues ballad with Need Your Love by Little Willie John (to whom we owe Fever and I’m Shaking). Even more moving is If You Need Me (by Solomon Burke but also performed by Wilson Pickett), a song full of soul that allows Bill Hurley to show the full range of his vocal talent.
Live in London is a short record—only 10 tracks—but it is a concentrated collection of raw energy and emotions.

Buy it here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Janis Martin

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Janis Martin – The Blanco Session

Cow Island Music – CIM020
As Long As I’m Movin – Wham Bam Jam – Long White Cadillac – Wild One – It’ll Be Me – Sweet Dreams – Find Out What’s Happening – I Believe What You Say – Roll Around Rockin’ – Oh Lonesome Me – Walks Softly On This Heart Of Mine

janis martin

After years of hard labor, Rosie Flores finally managed to take Janis Martin back to a recording studio to cut new material. Martin and Flores already recorded together when Flores invited her to sing two songs on her Rockabilly Filly album. Thus, in just two days in April 2007, she found herself at Dennis Challman’s Rancho Relaxo studio in Blanco, Texas, with a cast of stellar musicians from Austin. These included Dave Biller (Biller & Wakefield, Wayne Hancock, Dale Watson), Sarah Brown (The Memphis Rockabilly Band), T Bonta (Horton Brothers, Cornel Hurd Band, and many more), Beau Sample (Cave Catt Sammy), Jonathan Doyle (Four Charms). Together, they recorded eleven tracks co-produced by Bobby Trimble. This album could have been – or should have been – Martin’s comeback album; sadly, the singer succumbed to cancer at age 67 shortly after the sessions.
Anyone lucky enough to see Martin on stage in the years preceding her passing can attest that she had aged wonderfully. Those recent recordings had nothing to envy to her 50s sides. In that she is comparable to Ronnie Dawson. Her voice had gained a deeper tone. The recorded material covered various styles, from blues to country, rhythm’n’blues to rock’n’roll, with plenty of rockabilly in between.The passing of such a great artist was an incomparable loss, but courtesy of the tireless effort of Miss Flores, we have this album, which is the best way to remember her, doing what she did best among musicians who loved her.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Comet Combo (the)

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Comet Combo (the) – Race With The Devil

El Dandy Records – DR-007 [2023]
I Sure Miss You – Race With the Devil / Woman In Black – Incinerator

the Comet Combo

The Comet Combo is a supergroup formed by Al Nicholls (the Big Six, the Big Town Playboys) on sax, Ricky Lee Brawn (the Big Six, the Stargazers, the Space Cadets and a whole lot more) on drums, Peter Davenport and Tim Purkess (both from the Stargazers) respectively on guitar and double bass and Cliff Edmonds. (the Avengers) on vocals. Dave Brown (Darrel Higham, Rusti Steel) guests on a few tracks. Edmonds is well-known for being a huge Gene Vincent fan and recorded (see or rather hear the album he recorded with the Virginians – including Ricky Lee Brawn -for Vampirella). The other four have played together or separately in the best Big Beat bands in the UK. This Ep is the exact combination of these two major influences. The band took three carefully chosen Gene Vincent covers (two from the Capitol years and one from the end of his career) and turned them into Bill Haley-typed songs, albeit with an unmistakable British feel, so maybe Tony Crombie, too. A fourth tune, an instrumental penned by Brawn, completes the set.
The result is perfect from start to finish and highly danceable (even for a non-dancer like me). Not only does this reappropriation work terribly well (who could have guessed?), but as you can imagine, with musicians of this pedigree, the musicianship is top-notch. From Nicholls’ sax to Davenport’s guitar, which is both Jazzy and Rock’n’Roll simultaneously, backed by the hot groove delivered by Brawn and Purkess, you can’t go wrong. This is the perfect support for Edmonds’ solid vocals. Rock’n’Roll seems to be a simple genre in appearance, which is why Bill Haley doesn’t have the recognition he deserves, in my opinion. But you need top-notch musicians to make it work (don’t forget that Haley’s Comets previously played in jazz bands, including the likes of Benny Goodman). This is what we have here: high-calibre musicians and singers playing the hottest Rock’n’roll, and the result is like a well-oiled machine or the musical equivalent of a perfectly crafted piece of marquetry where each piece fits precisely into the other.
There are two bonus tracks (from Davenport and Brawn) on the CD.

El Dandy Records

Fred ”Virgil” Turgis

Shook Boys

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Shook Boys – Shook Boys

Self-released [2023]
I Can’t Control – Blue Eyes, Black Hair – Dead By 22 – Tell On You – Love Bandit Jones – Miss Anne – Oh Annie

Shook Boys

If you like bluettes, delicate Rockabilly (a la Ricky Nelson or Buddy Holly) or more hillbilly-oriented Rockabilly, go your way. The Shook Boys are not for you! The Shook Boys are mean, raw and wild.
This Canadian combo formed by Murry Robe (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Big Mark (lead guitar), Mack Black (double bass) and Rockin’ Paddy (drums) plays frenetic, desperate and white-hot Rockabilly and Rock’n’Roll. Their natural environment does not seem to be the countryside or the bayou, but rather the asphalt and the urban jungle. Musically, they belong to the same family as Gene Maltais, Benny Joy or, closer to us, the Raging Teens, Johnny Carlevale and The Racketeers.

Armed with a repertoire of short, even ultra-short tunes, the group exudes an energy close to violence at times. But unlike others who confuse speed with haste or drown everything in a deluge of decibels, the Shook Boys opt for contained energy, always close to breaking. It is the interpretation that gives this feeling of power, not the noise they produce. Because when you listen closely, you realize that the group plays at a relatively low volume, and, except for the electric guitar (and what a guitar!), the sound is generally acoustic, notably a superb rhythm guitar.
Even when the group ventures to play a calmer and almost doo-wop number (Oh Annie, which sounds like a slow version of the Dell Vikings’ Come Go With Me), the result is somehow disturbing and even uncomfortable. But don’t think that it’s a gloomy album. It’s overflowing with vitality and, at times, humour, like on the excellent “Tell On You”.
Now, don’t trust my words; trust your ears and listen to this highly recommendable album here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Lily Locksmith

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Lily Locksmith – s/t

Enviken Records EnRec181 [2022]
When I Put The Blues On You – Praying – Bad – Last Night – Player – Farther Up The Road – Burn Toast And Black Coffee – You Gotta Try – I Don’t Need – No Use But O’Well – When It’s Good Enough For You – I Tried – Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave – Catfight – You Did Me Wrong – What Do You Know About Love

lily locksmith

Caroline Låås, aka Lily Locksmith, had an incredible voice. Her sudden death, at the too-early age of 37, left a massive void on the Rock’n’Roll scene. When she passed away, Lilly was working on an album. Friends of the singer, knowing that her dream was to release a full-length vinyl album, decided to finish it. Thanks to the label, her friends, musicians, and fans who contributed to the project via a Kickstarter campaign, the project was completed and saw the light of day.
Among the sixteen tracks, nine are covers, the remaining seven being from the pen of Locksmith or guitarist Chris Bergström. The covers range from Candye Kane to Bo Diddley, with tunes by Nick Curran, Shorty Long, Little Richard, Chris Ruest, Big Mama Thornton, Larry Davis and Bobby Blue Bland in between.
The whole album is a rollercoaster through the blues idiom. You go from straightforward blues to Rock’n’roll, with groovy stuff and plenty of Rhythm’n’Blues thrown in for good measure. And, of course, like all good albums, there’s a tear-jerker ballad (Last Night). The band is top-notch, providing an excellent job and a solid structure to put the spotlight on Locksmith’s vocals and her impressive range of emotions.
We lost a great singer, but this album is not a monument commemorating the death of someone. Instead, it’s a celebration of life. Each groove of the vinyl and each bit of the CD ooze energy and vitality. This is the best hommage that could’ve been done to this fantastic singer, and I suppose that’s how her friends wanted her to be remembered.

Lily Locksmith – I Don’t Need

Enviken ENREC4512 [2020]
I Don’t Need / Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave

Lily Locksmith has a strong and powerful voice. But, unlike many, she knows how to control it, and this single is the perfect vehicle to show her skills.
The A-side, penned by Locksmith’s guitar player Chris Bergström, is a Bo Diddley tinged song with tremolo guitar and a hint of Garage.
The B-side is a cover of Little Richard. This slow tune allows the singer to play with her voice and its variations, containing the power before letting it explode.
I’m looking forward to the whole album.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Sabrejets (the)

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sabrejets

Sabrejets (the) – The Restless Kind

Raucous Records – RAUCD288 [2021]
You’re Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone – Hell Yeah! – Tennessee Flat Top Bop – If I Gotta Explain – Faster Than The Eye Can See – Lightnin’ – Blue Moon Baby – Don’t Turn Your Back On Love – I Got The Shakes – Train To Hell – Zorita – Someone’s On The Loose – You Don’t Love Me – Storm In A D-Cup – The Restless Kind

sabrejets

The Sabrejets from Belfast have been on the Rock’n’Roll scene for some time now. But time doesn’t seem to have a hold on them, and the band is still just as creative, energetic and biting, to say the least.
Their new album, appropriately named the Restless Kind, is clear proof of this. This record demonstrates that with almost 70-year-old recipes drawn from Johnny Burnette and Chuck Berry (to name just two), one can produce a powerful and inventive Rock’n’Roll album. Because it is Rock’n’Roll that we are talking about, the real deal, the unadulterated and original one. The dangerous version, always on the edge, not this bastardized version that the media tries to sell us. I let you put here the names you want, there are too many, and I don’t have the time or the desire to dive into it. I prefer to talk about the Sabrejets, which give back their letters of nobility to this music. They approach it in a pure and straightforward way, and if I were not afraid that it would be taken pejoratively, I would say naive. We have four guys who know their stuff and play this music, not because they hope to sell records or gather huge crowds, but because it runs in their blood. It’s obvious from the first track that grabs you right away. Throughout the fifteen songs, one can hear references, a bit of Burnette in one intro, the same kind of tension as in Johnny Horton’s I’m Comin’ Home in another, or the Meteors’ aggressiveness a little further, but the result is always 100% Sabrejets. It’s always exciting, and it never feels like a band on autopilot each time our interest is revived, either by a Surf/Hot Rod instrumental (Lightnin’) or by a surprising melodic song with pop accents (Don’t Turn Your Back On Love). Most songs are written by Brian Young, the singer-guitarist or Liam Killen, the guitarist. Three well-chosen covers complete the set: Dave Diddle Day’s Blue Moon Baby (sung by Bill Johnston, the bassist), Willie Cobb’s You Don’t Love Me and ex-Whirlwind Nigel Dixon’s Someone’s on the Loose.

Get this album as soon as possible, and a good tip, crank up the sound!

Available here

The Sabrejets on facebook

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

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