Jimi Hendrix Albums

When guitar heroes of rock music are discussed, Jimi Hendrix’s name is often mentioned as perhaps the best of them all. Of course, the topic is highly subjective, and Hendrix status as a rock star who died while still in his twenties can prejudice any such discussion. It is clear, however, that he is among an elite group of rock guitarists, and his prodigious technical skill and showmanship rendered him the first true guitar god of rock. 

Hendrix was born in Seattle, Washington, in 1942. Following a less than stellar stint in the army, he got his start in music as a session guitarist for R&B acts such as King Curtis and the Isley Brothers, and in live performances with the likes of Slim Harpo, Jackie Wilson, Curtis Knight and the Squires, and Sam Cooke. By the mid-Sixties, Hendrix had dubbed himself, “Jimmy James” and with his band, The Blue Flames, was playing the club scene in New York’s Greenwich Village.

In a fortuitous turn, Hendrix met the girlfriend of The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards, Linda Keith, at a New York City club. Keith recommended Hendrix to the Stones’ manager, Andrew Loog Oldham and Chas Chandler of the Animals. Chandler was impressed with Hendrix’s song, “Hey Joe,” and brought him to London in the fall of 1966.

Chandler brought in two Englishmen, bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell as Hendrix’s sidemen and named the newly formed trio, “The Jimi Hendrix Experience.” Hendrix and his new band would soon make rock music history by recording three albums that would all go down in history as ground-breaking classics in the annals of rock.

The first album, “Are You Experienced,” was released in the United Kingdom in the spring of 1967, and shortly thereafter in North America. It was an instant commercial and critical success and contained the classic tunes, “Are You Experienced,” “Fire,” “Hey Joe,” and “Purple Haze.” The album is now hailed as one of the greatest rock albums ever recorded.

Hendrix would follow-up his outstanding debut with “Axis: Bold as Love,” also from 1967. This album contained fewer “hits,” but featured some technical innovations previously unheard on popular music recordings. The opening track, “EXP,” contains channel-switching stereo effects which have the guitar sound fading in one channel and re-emerging in the other. Hendrix also uses the “wah-wah” pedal for the first time on this recording.

For his third effort, “Electric Ladyland” (1968), Hendrix brought in Steve Winwood, Dave Mason and Chris Wood from Traffic and Al Kooper from The Blues Project. The ambitious double album featured the epic tracks, “All Along the Watchtower,” probably the best and most original Bob Dylan cover ever, and “Voodoo Chile (slight return).”

Hendrix and the Experience would break-up and later reunite as “They Band of Gypsys,” and a live album of the Gypsys would appear in 1970. Hendrix died of an apparent drug overdose in London, in September of 1970.



Buffalo Springfield: For What It's Worth

Buffalo Springfield formed as a result of a famous chance meeting on the Sunset Strip between Neil Young and Steven Stills. After driving his 53’Pontiac hearse from Toronto to Los Angeles with his friend, bassist Bruce Palmer, Neil Young encountered Stills on that famous street. Stills was with his friend, singer and guitarist Ritchie Furay, at the time. Stills and Young had previously met in Toronto and instantly recognized each other. The four musicians stopped, chatted, and decided to form a band. Americans Stills and Furay and Canadians Young, Palmer, and drummer Dewey Martin would become famous as “Buffalo Springfield” in 1966.

Buffalo Springfield released their debut album, “Buffalo Springfield” in 1966 and found instant critical acclaim and popularity. Their music could best be described as folk-rock, but this talented assemblage of musicians played a variety of styles including folk, country, rock, and pop. “For what it’s Worth,” “Go and Say Goodbye,” Flying on The Ground Is Wrong,” and “Nowadays Clancy Can Even Sing” are all classic tracks from the debut album.

With their next effort, “Buffalo Springfield Again” (1967), the band would produce their masterpiece. This album was more consistent than the debut and featured more studio polish courtesy of producer Jack Nitzche. “Expecting to Fly” and “Broken Arrow,” two songs by Neil Young, are the albums’ highlights.

 The band would produce one more solid album, “Last Time Around” (1968), featuring outstanding tracks in “Kind Woman,” “One the Way Home,” and “I Am a Child” before disbanding.

Despite their brief run of just two years, Buffalo Springfield was a hugely influential band that spawned the solo careers of Young and Stills and future country-rock bands Poco, Manassas and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.

The Byrds: Eight Miles High

The Byrds are among the greatest bands in the history of American pop music. The band is the original folk-rock outfit and was the first band to play country-rock. Pioneered by folk singer turned rocker, Roger McGuinn, the Byrds saw many lineup changes throughout the years, but despite the turnover of musicians, the band always produced original and inspired music. Originally called the “Beefeaters,” the Byrds formed in early 1964 with members, McGuinn on guitar; David Crosby on guitar; Gene Clark on guitar; Michael Clarke on drums; and Chris Hillman on bass.

The Byrds “jangly” sound was derived from McGuinn’s 12-string Rickenbacker guitar. This trademark sound was in full evidence on their first album, “Mr. Tambourine Man” (1965). The album opens with the title track, a rocking hit version of the Bob Dylan classic. Dylan songs would be covered often by the Byrds and be infused with that unmistakable Byrds sound.

The Byrds next recorded the very solid, “Turn, “Turn, “Turn” album in 1965. The title track of this album also became a big hit.

Two excellent albums came next: “Fifth Dimension” (1966) and “Younger than Yesterday” (1967) spawning hits with “Eight Miles High” and “So You Want to Be a Rock and Roll Star,” respectively.

It was at this point, seemingly at the peak of the band’s commercial and critical success, when Gene Clark and David Crosby departed to pursue solo careers. For their next project, “The Notorious Byrd Brothers” (1968), the band was reduced to a trio. No matter it seems when the listening to the result-a brilliant album of stunning experimental music. The album is inspired from start to finish, especially on numbers like, “Draft Morning,” “Wasn’t Born To Follow,” “Natural Harmony,” and “Get to You.”

Now a trio, the Byrds added new members, country-hippie Gram Parsons from the International Submarine Band and the superb country guitarist Clarence White. With the overt country influence of its new members, the Byrds produced the first true country-rock album, the excellent “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” (1968). Parsons soon left the band to form the Flying Burrito Brothers.

The Byrds had reached the peak of their creative powers and would continue to record until 1973, but only the “Untitled” album released in 1970 would approach the heights they achieved in the Sixties.

George Gershwin Songs

George Gershwin was an American pianist and modern classical composer whose contributions to popular music fall within the realm of jazz. Gershwin was the first classical musician or composer who embraced the new 20^th century music of jazz and melded it with classical music.

Gershwin was born Jacob Gershowitz in Brooklyn, New York, in 1898, to Russian/Ukrainian parents. He studied piano from age ten under the tutelage of classical pianist Charles Hambitzer, who would remain Gershwin’s mentor until Gershwin was around 20-years-old.

Gershwin began his music career upon dropping out of high school at age 15, finding work as a songwriter of pop tunes in New York City’s famed Tin Pan Alley. His first successful song was the ragtime hit, “Rialto Ripples,” in 1917. Two years later he penned the famous song, “Swanee,” which would become a huge hit for Al Jolson. Gershwin also produced piano rolls for player pianos for the Aeolian company.

Gershwin began writing jazz songs in the early Twenties with lyricist Buddy DeSylva and his brother, Ira Gershwin. The team’s early songs included “Oh, Lady Be Good” and “Fascinating Rhythm.” These classic songs were followed by “Funny Face,” “I Got Rhythm,” and “Of Thee I Sing.”

In 1924, Gershwin wrote the jazz-infused modern classical masterpiece, “Rhapsody in Blue.” This famous work was introduced to the world by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra in a New York City performance. Gershwin then headed to Paris with the ambition of furthering his classical training, but was rejected by several prospective mentors including Maurice Ravel. While in Paris, Gershwin penned another jazzy classical masterpiece, “An American in Paris,” which made its debut at New York City’s Carnegie Hall in 1928.

In 1929, Gershwin turned his attention to Hollywood and the burgeoning film industry that required his musical talents to write scores. He wrote the score for the film, “Delicious,” in 1929, but was upset when much of the music he wrote was scrapped by the film’s producers.

Gershwin, embittered by the treatment of the Delicious score, switched his efforts back to classical music and wrote the American folk opera masterpiece, “Porgy and Bess,” which contained some of Gershwin’s most brilliant compositions including, “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” “I Got Plenty of Nuttin’,” and “Summertime.” Porgy and Bess was a commercial failure at the time, but has since become a staple of American opera and popular music.

Gershwin returned to Hollywood and wrote film scores, including the one for the Fred Astaire musical, “Shall We Dance.” In 1937, Gershwin died suddenly from the effects of a brain tumor.

Gershwin’s music is best heard on the following collections: “Rhapsody in Blue/An American in Paris (New York Philharmonic; The Columbia Symphony/ Leonard Bernstein)” (1959), ‘S Marvelous: The Gershwin Songbook” (1994) and “The Essential George Gershwin” (2003).

BB KIng: History and Album Guide

Riley B. King was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, in 1926. He is still active today as a blues performer well into his eighties. He is currently a resident of Memphis, Tennessee, the city he came to in the Forties to play music and work as a radio DJ.

King arrived in Memphis with his cousin, the country blues guitarist Bukka White, and landed a job as a disc jockey on the Memphis radio station, WDIA. It was here that he was coined “BB,” a moniker which means, “blues boy.” In 1949, he landed a recording contract with RPM Records. Many of his early recordings were produced by Sam Philips who would later found Sun Records. He also assembled a band which came to be known as the BB King Review.

During 1949, King played at a honky-tonk where a fire broke out during one of his shows. As the patrons, musicians, and King fled the bar, King realized that he had forgotten his guitar inside. He battled the flames as he reentered the burning structure in order to save his forgotten guitar. He later heard that the fight in the bar was about a girl named, “Lucille.” King named his guitar after the girl and Lucille, the guitar has been with him ever since.

By the Fifties, King had become one of the biggest names in the blues, amassing numerous hit recordings and touring almost constantly. Among his hits during the Fifties were, “3 O Clock Blues,” “Woke Up This Morning,” “Please Love Me,” Whole Lotta Love,” “Everyday I Have the Blues,” “Ten Long Years,” and “Bad Luck.” He gained a reputation as one of the best guitarists in popular music with his economical style which featured string bending and heavy vibrato. Every rock guitarist that followed would be influenced directly or indirectly by King’s style of playing.

In late 1964, King would perform a show at the Regal Theatre in Chicago. The performance was recorded, and the resulting album, “Live at the Regal,” would be hailed as one of the best live blues or rock recordings of all-time. King had a huge hit in 1970 with the song, “The Thrill is Gone.” The song would appear on both the pop and R&B charts. By 1964, King had signed with ABC Records which would be absorbed into MCA Records and then Geffen Records, his current label.

In addition to Live at the Regal, “Live in Cook Country Jail” (1971) is an excellent live album. “Completely Well” (1969) and “Indianola Mississippi Seeds” (1970) are outstanding studio albums. Several greatest hits collections are also recommended especially for his earliest work. Among these albums are: “The Best of B.B. King” (1973), “The Best of B.B. King Volume One” (1986), “The Best of B.B. King Volume Two” (1986), “The Vintage Years” (2002), “Original Greatest Hits” (2005), and “Gold” (2006).

Creedence Clearwater Revival: Swamp Rock

Creedence Clearwater Revival, often referred to as simply, “CCR,” is among the ranks of the greatest-ever American pop/rock bands. The tremendous commercial success and critical acclaim that the band attracted during their relatively short career places the band among the elite of American rockers.

Emerging from the working-class town of El Cerrito, California, in the mid-Sixties as the “Blue Velvets” and then later, the “Golliwogs,” CCR evolved into the quintessential American band with a sound that rejected the psychedelic fashion of the day in favor of a rootsy, traditional sound heavily influenced by country and blues music. Their sound would be dubbed, “swamp rock” as it was reminiscent of Southern performers such as Dale Hawkins and Lightnin’ Slim and evoked images of the American South.

CCR was comprised of Stu Cook on bass, Doug Clifford on drums, and the Fogerty brothers, Tom and John, on guitar. John Fogerty was lead singer, lead guitarist, sole songwriter and the creative force of the band. It was his creative domination of the band that would eventually lead to resentment by the other members and eventual dissolution of the band.

John Fogerty wrote some of the greatest songs in rock history during CCR’s run and many were released as singles that reached high positions on the pop charts. “Proud Mary,” “Born on the Bayou,” “Fortunate Son”, “Down on the Corner,” “Lodi”, “Green River,” Who’ll Stop the Rain,” “Lookin’ Out My Back Door,” and others cemented John Fogerty’s place in rock history.

CCR’s hit singles are scattered fairly evenly through their studio albums. All CCR’s albums, “Creedence Clearwater Revival”, (1968) “Bayou Country” (1969), “Green River” (1969), “Willie and the Poor Boys” (1969), “Cosmo’s Factory” (1970) and “Pendulum” (1970), are classics, save the last one, “Mardi Gras” (1972), which was an extremely spotty effort..

It was on Mardi Gras that John Fogerty encouraged his band mates, Clifford and Cook, to contribute songs. The result: several good songs by John such as “Sweet Hitchhiker” and “Someday Never Comes” and mediocre ones by the others. This album proved once and for all that CCR was really a one-man show, after all.



Del Shannon: Runaway

Del Shannon was one of the bright lights in the somewhat barren pop musical landscape of the early Sixties that stood in the middle of the creation of rock and roll and the arrival of the Beatles. Shannon was one of the only true rockers in the early Sixties who was singing, playing guitar, and writing his own material.

Shannon was born Charles Weedon Westover in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1937. After a stint in the US Army in Germany, Shannon returned home to Michigan where he formed a band called “The Midnight Ramblers.” By 1961, he was on his own with a recording contract with Big Top Records and a No. 1 hit with the classic single, “Runaway,” one of the greatest rock songs of the decade. The song was highlighted by Shannon’s famous falsetto singing and a legendary solo on the musitron, a high-pitched organ, by Max Crook.

Shannon would score several more big hits during the Sixties with the songs, “Little Town Flirt, “ “Hats Off to Larry,” and a cover version of The Beatles’ “From Me to You” which was a hit for Shannon in America in 1963, a full 6 month before the Beatles had an American hit record.

Following the death of Roy Orbison in 1988, it was rumoured that The Traveling Willburys were considering Shannon, who had fallen on hard times, as a replacement. However, no such undertaking happened, and Shannon died of a self-inflicted rifle wound in early 1990.

The following Del Shannon albums are recommended as essential listening: “Runaway with Del Shannon” (1963), “Little Town Flirt” (1964), and “The Further Adventures of Charles Westover" (1968).

Dion and the Belmonts: Legendary Doo Wop

Dion and the Belmonts, from New York City, was one of the most successful doo-wop groups that emerged during the late Fifties. Their lead singer, Dion DiMucci, was the soulful vocal centerpiece of the band. The band enjoyed a string of hits in the early sixties with songs such as “Lonely Teenager,” “Runaround Sue,” “The Wanderer,” “Ruby Baby,” and “Lovers Who Wander.”

When the Belmonts disbanded in the early Sixties, their leader, Di Mucci, would reemerge as “Dion” and record an excellent self-titled solo album in 1968 which would feature his huge solo hit, “Abraham, Martin and John.” The album was a departure from the doo-wop music of the earlier period.

Dimucci’s life was spared when he opted to not board the ill-fated flight in Clear Lake, Iowa, that took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper following a concert in February, 1959.

Dion Dimucci’s best albums with and without the Belmonts include “Alone with Dion” (1961), “Runaround Sue” (1961), and “Dion” (1968). The best Dion and the Belmonts compilation is likely, “Dion & the Belmonts-20 Greatest Hits” (1985).



Larry Williams :Bad Boy

Larry Williams is one of the almost forgotten fathers of rock and roll. Williams, a pianist, had a number of huge hits during the mid-Fifties as rock and roll was beginning to dominate American popular music. Several of Williams’ songs would be recorded by more famous bands and singers, and become forever associated with them. The Beatles recorded Williams’ songs, “Slow Down,” “Bad Boy,” and “Dizzy Miss Lizzy” during the earliest phase of their recording career.

Williams was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1935. He made his recording debut in 1957 for Specialty Records with a ballad, “Just Because.” Williams’ forte, however, was up-tempo rockers, and he scored a hit later the same year with the rocker, “Bonie Maronie.” A slew of hits would soon follow including, “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” Bad Boy,” and “Short Fat Fanny.”

Williams didn’t enjoy much success after 1957, and he fell back into the underworld life of drug-peddling that consumed much of his time prior to his music career. In the mid-Sixties, he made a comeback with an R&B band which included guitarist Johnny Guitar Watson, and he produced a couple of albums for his friend, Little Richard.

This success would not last as his drug addiction kept dragging him down. In 1977, he pulled a gun on Little Richard and threatened to kill him over a drug debt. Shortly thereafter, Williams was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head, in his Los Angeles home. His death was officially deemed a suicide. He was 44-years-old at the time of his demise.

Williams’ best recordings are found on the albums, “Here’s Larry Williams” (1959), “The Larry Williams Show (ft. Johnny Guitar Watson)” (1965), and “The Best of Larry Williams” (1988).

John Prine: Illegal Smile

John Prine was one of the best of the folk-flavoured singer/songwriters that emerged alongside Neil Young and others in the early Seventies. Prine, who is still active today, is one of the wittiest songwriters of the singer/songwriter clan. When he appeared on the scene in the early Seventies, he was designated by some writers as a “New Dylan,” an up and coming singer/songwriter with talent and integrity reminiscent of the young Dylan.

Prine was born in Maywood, Illinois, in 1946, and following a stint in the US Postal Service, became involved in the Chicago folk scene of the late Sixties. A chance meeting with pop singer Paul Anka led to a chance to record, and his brilliant debut album, “John Prine” was released in 1971. Prine's debut was a superb collection of topical songs that included, “Sam Stone,” a tale of a drug-addicted Vietnam veteran, “Hello in There,” a song about the neglect of the elderly, and “Paradise,” a plea for the conservation of nature.

Prine's sophomore effort, “Diamonds in the Rough” (1972) was another fine work with solid songs such as the title track and “They Ought to Name a Drink after You,” all delivered with spare accompaniment. “Sweet Revenge,” an album that rivals Prine's terrific debut album as his best release, followed in 1973. Sweet Revenge was another superb collection of folk and country-inflected songs, this time with the support of a larger studio band. Highlights from this one include, “Christmas in Prison,” “Please Don’t Bury Me,” “Dear Abby,” and “Mexican Home.”

Prine's next few albums saw him exploring a more rock-oriented sound fleshed out by a backing band that included electric guitar, bass, and heavy drums. The effect was partially-successful on solid releases such as “Common Sense” (1975) and “Pink Cadillac” (1979). “Bruised Orange,” an excellent release from 1978, was a return to his simpler folk sound.

The Eighties was a quiet period for Prine from a recording standpoint. He recorded a few studio albums, but nothing of note.

In 1991, however, Prine was back with a vengeance. With the help of fellow musicians and admirers such as Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt and Tom Petty, he recorded another classic, “The Missing Years,” a brilliant folk-rock album brimming with top notch songs such as “Picture Show,” “Great Rain,” “The Sins of Memphisto,” and the title track.

Despite being recently sidelined with throat cancer, Prine continues to tour and record often brilliant albums. His most recent classics are “In Spite of Ourselves” (1995) and “Fair and Square” (2006).

John Prine

Kate and Anna McGarrigle: Heart Like a Wheel

Kate and Anna McGarrigle are sisters from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, who in 1975 formed a folk duo and went on to write and record some of the best contemporary folk music of the last 30 years. The musical McGarrigle family grew as Kate married folk singer, Loudon Wainwright and bore him musical children, singers Martha and Rufus Wainwright.

The McGarrigles appeared on the music scene in 1976 with the release of their classic debut album, “Kate and Anna McGarrigle,” a superb collection of songs ranging from folk and blues to gospel all sung with the McGarrigle sisters’ trademark tight harmonies. The album’s highlights are the songs “Mendocino” and “Heart like a Wheel,” with the latter tune becoming a hit for Linda Ronstadt. The song, “Go Leave” is for Kate’s husband Loudon Wainwright, with whom she had a famously difficult marriage.

The McGarrigle’s follow-up release, “Dancer with Bruised Knees” (1977), was another fine effort that like the debut album, included several songs sung in French.

The McGarrigles have continued to record fine albums, and the best of their more recent offerings are “French Record” (1981), “Love Over and Over” (1982), “Heartbeats Accelerating” (1990), and “Matapedia” (1996).

Leonard Cohen Songs: I'm Your Man

Leonard Cohen, born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1936, is one of the most enduring of the folk music heroes that emerged during the Sixties. As a songwriter, he is only rivaled by Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and few others in the folk/rock universe. Cohen is noted for his quirky takes on the traditional love song and his use of religious imagery to paint portraits of regret and heartbreak.

Cohen’s debut album was the stark, “Songs of Leonard Cohen” (1967), which features his spare guitar playing and solemn, almost spoken vocals. The album contains the superb songs, “Suzanne,” “Master Song,” “The Strange Song,” and “So Long, Marianne.” Cohen’s guitar and vocals are tastefully supported by the occasional restrained electric guitar, string, reed, horn or woodwind.

Cohen’s debut may well be his masterpiece, but several other contenders were yet to come, including, “Songs of Love and Hate” from 1971. This album is sonically quite similar to his debut and contains somewhat less familiar, although just as memorable songs such as, “Avalanche” and “Dress Rehearsal Rag.” In 1974, Cohen recorded the fine album, “New Skin for the Old Ceremony,” the first of his albums in several years to rival his earliest work. The music here is somewhat sunnier than that on his earlier classics with a somewhat countryish flavor.

Cohen has disappeared from the music scene for long periods during his career to pursue other artistic endeavours such as writing books or poetry, but he has always managed to return with his faculties intact. After a long hiatus, Cohen returned to music in 1988, and recorded another classic with the synth-pop album, “I’m Your Man,” featuring the classic songs, “First We Take Manhattan” and “Take This Waltz.”

Cohen is still active in music today, now well into his seventies. 

Little Feat Dixie Chicken

Little Feat was formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1969, by guitarist/songwriter Lowell George and bassist Roy Estrada. Both men were former members of Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention. The original lineup was completed with the addition of Richard Hayward on drums and Bill Payne on keyboards.  Their first two albums were “Little Feat” (1971) and “Sailin’ Shoes” (1972). The albums were critical successes but failed by commercial standards. 

The band broke up during 1971-72, but reformed with new members, Paul Barrere on guitar and Sam Clayton on percussion. Roy Estrada was replaced on bass by Kenny Gradney. The first album featuring the new lineup is the classic, “Dixie Chicken” (1973). The album is widely-hailed as their best ever and its tighter, funkier sound is thanks in large part to its new members.

The band produced two more excellent efforts with “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now” (1974) and “The Last Record Album” (1975). Apparently Barrere and Payne needed to relieve Lowell George of much of his songwriting duties due to George’s escalating drug use.

Despite their increased popularity, Little Feat would never enjoy broad mainstream success. The concert tours that Little Feat embarked upon in the late Seventies rendered the material for the double live album “Waiting for Columbus” (1978).

Lowell George disbanded Little Feat in 1979 and embarked on a solo career. He died shortly thereafter of a heart attack the same year. Little Feat’s final album with George, “Down on the Farm,” was released after his death, in 1979.

Little Feat Publicity Pic

Carl Perkins: Blue Suede Shoes

Carl Perkins, born in Tipton, Tennessee, in 1932, is one of the fathers of rock and roll music. Perkins started his career playing country music and then became a rockabilly performer when that style gained prominence on the strength of Elvis Presley’s first recordings with Sun Records. Perkins also recorded for Sun Records with Presley, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis as label mates.

Perkins recorded his first single in 1955, and in 1956, he recorded his classics, “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Honey Don’t.” The former tune would become a rock standard and be recorded by a plethora of artists including Elvis Presley. The latter song would be covered by The Beatles in the early Sixties. By the Sixties, Perkins had returned to country music.

Among Perkin’s classics recordings are the following albums and compilations: “Dance Album of Carl Perkins” (1958), “Whole Lotta Shakin’,” (1958), “Original Golden Hits” (1970), and “Original Sun Greatest Hits” (1986).

Perkins, one of the true gentlemen of rock and roll and country music, died in 1998.

Original Yellow Label Sun Single

Little Richard: Tutti Frutti

Little Richard was probably the most flamboyant of the early fathers of rock and roll. Richard’s flamboyance, which usually manifested itself in colorful clothing and animated behavior, also found expression through Richard’s claims that he had invented rock and roll music. Nevertheless, he was a singer, pianist, and songwriter of the highest order, and one of the most influential figures in rock and roll history

Richard was born Richard Wayne Penniman in Macon, Georgia, in 1932. He started his career as an R&B singer/pianist, making his first recording in 1951 with the single, “Taxi Blues,” for RCA. Richard recorded several more singles before he scored his first big hit with “Tutti Fruitti” in 1955. The next year, 1956, would see Richard record a slew of hits including the classic songs, “Long Tall Sally,” “Slippin’ and Slidin’,” “Ready Teddy,” and “Rip it Up.”

In 1957, a full-length album of Richard’s songs would appear, “Here’s Little Richard,” one of the first rock album masterpieces. The album contained all of Richard’s hit singles up to that point and other fine tracks. Another classic album would follow in 1958, with “Little Richard,” featuring the classic songs, “Keep-A-Knockin,” “Good Golly Miss Molly,” “Lucille,” and “The Girl Can’t Help It.” Richard’s popularity and fine piano chops helped to position the piano as an important instrument in early rock and roll.

In the Fifties, Richard disappeared from the pop music scene as quickly as he had appeared, turning to bible studies at a theological college. He would record only gospel music for the next four years. Little Richard eventually returned to rock and roll and is still active today.

Little Richard

David Allen Coe Longhaired Redneck

David Allen Coe, born in Akron, Ohio, in 1939, along with Waylon Jennings and Merle Haggard, helped to pave the way for a country subgenre of music called “outlaw country.” The subgenre featured longhaired, denim-wearing heroes like Coe who embraced and expressed a rule-breaking philosophy of life.

Coe, like Merle Haggard, came by his outlaw image honestly. Both Coe and Haggard did lengthy stretches in prison prior to the start of their music careers. Coe’s debut album, released shortly after his release from prison, is a bluesy masterpiece. The album was titled, “Penitentiary Blues.” With songs like “Cell 33,” Dear Warden,” and “Death Row,” the album is musically and lyrically riveting.

Coe released many fine country albums during the Seventies including, “The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy” (1974), “Longhaired Redneck” (1976), “Texas Moon” (1977), and “Tattoo” (1978). In 1975, Coe scored a major country hit with a cover version of Steve Goodman’s, “You Never Even Call Me by My Name.”

Coe is still alive and well and active in music.

David Allen Coe-Photo by Matthew Woitunski

Beatles Songs and Albums

The Beatles are almost universally regarded as the greatest act in the history of post-war popular music, and that claim is hard to deny when one considers their status as the biggest selling musical act in history, their universal critical acclaim, and the never duplicated hysteria that surrounded the band during the height of “Beatlemania” in the Sixties. The cult of the Beatles is alive and well around the world more than 40 years after the band’s demise.

The group got its start in Liverpool, in the Fifties, as a John Lennon-led skiffle band called the “Quarryman.” Lennon was a rebellious Liverpool youth who had been introduced to rock and roll music from the recordings brought across the Atlantic and into Liverpool by English merchant sailors. It was from these recordings that Lennon and his generation in England were first introduced to the likes of Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Little Richard, Fats Domino, and other early fathers of the music. Eager to emulate his new heroes and make a name for himself, Lennon recruited some schoolmates to join him in his new band. Members would come and go until the band settled with a lineup of Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe, and Pete Best, a drummer.

The band changed their name to the Silver Beetles for a time and then finally settled on “The Beatles.” The band acquired an avid local following in Liverpool and became a fixture at the Cavern Club, where they performed inspired sets on a regular basis. While the band was playing clubs in Hamburg, Germany, Sutcliffe fell in love with a German girl and decided to stay behind, leaving the Beatles a four man outfit. Sutcliffe would die of a brain hemorrhage at age 21 in 1962.

The group made its first recording as the backing band for singer Tony Sheridan on the single, “My Bonnie,” which received airplay in Liverpool area. The popularity of this record inspired Liverpool record shop owner Brian Epstein to attend one of the Beatles’ Cavern shows, and when Epstein witnessed the wild reaction of the audience, he convinced the group to take him on as their manager. Epstein convinced the band to drop drummer Pete Best from the group in favor of Ringo Starr from a rival Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. The final roster of the Beatles was set with Lennon and Harrison on guitar, Paul McCartney on bass, and Ringo Starr on drums. The group would record the moderately successful single, “Love Me Do,” before the end of 1962.

Epstein then began to search for a record label to sign his band. After numerous rejections, the band was finally signed by the Parlophone label. The Beatles recorded their first album for the label, “Please Please Me,” in 1963. The album was recorded in a single day, apparently to capture as close as possible the immediacy of their live shows. Although Epstein had trouble finding a U.S. label to sign the band, he managed to get the Beatles booked on the Ed Sullivan TV Show in April, 1964. New York disc jockey, Murray the K, hyped the Beatles upcoming TV appearance, setting the stage for the birth of Beatlemania. The Beatles appearance on the Sullivan show was a sensation seen by millions of Americans, and the Beatles become international superstars overnight.

The Beatles thus began an exhausting two years of near constant recording and touring. The early Beatles records were released separately in the U.S. and U.K., sometimes with different titles. For example, “Please, Please Me,” the band’s first U.K. album was released in the U.S. as “Meet the Beatles.” The names of the albums don’t matter much as everything this band recorded is essential, and any collection of Beatles music is guaranteed to be of high quality. Titles to look for from the 1964 albums are:” With the Beatles,” “Twist and Shout,” “A Hard Days Night,” “Beatles for Sale,” and “Beatles 65.” The Beatles’ music would soon change from light poppy love songs to darker and more introspective fare as the group attempted to expand its musical horizons.

With the release of the album, “Help” (1965), the Beatles began the process of reinventing themselves. The title track, “Help,”  “Yesterday,” and the very Dylanesque, “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away,” saw the group moving into previously uncharted territory. Their songs were still just as catchy, the harmonies still as sweet, but the material had become darker and more intriguing.

This artistic growth continued on the next album, “Rubber Soul” (1965), and for the next five albums. This string of albums represents the Beatles’ best work and some of the best albums of popular music ever recorded. On Rubber Soul, the band begins to experiment musically with the inclusion of sitar on “Norwegian Wood,” and several songs such as “Michelle,” “If I Needed Someone,” and “In My Life” which could easily be classified as “folk rock.” 

The Beatles’ following studio release, “Revolver” (1966), sees the Beatles at the peak of their powers. Revolver is an astonishing collection of songs representing a myriad of styles from the art rock of “Eleanor Rigby” and “Good Day Sunshine” to the hard rock of “Taxman” and full blown psychedelic experimentation in “Tomorrow Never Knows.”

The release of Revolver coincided with the band’s retirement from live performances. Freed of life on the road, the Beatles would dedicate themselves to experimentation in the recording studio. With the able support of their producer, George Martin, the group would again reach new heights of creativity in the studio with “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (1967). This album’s overt experimentation was an attempt by John Lennon and Paul McCartney to outdo the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson who had raised the studio bar with his work on the Beach Boys’ classic recording, “Pet Sounds,” during the previous year. “Sgt. Pepper,” which is often cited as the Beatles’ magnum opus, is every bit as thrilling as Revolver with epic songs such as “Lovely Rita,” “For the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” “She’s Leaving Home,” and ‘A Day in the Life.”

The Beatles kept rolling with the double album simply titled, “The Beatles” (1968). Its unadorned, solid white cover earned it the nickname, “The White Album,” among fans. The album is amazingly eclectic and contains nary a bad tune amid its myriad of tracks. Among the album’s classic tunes are, “Blackbird,” “Mother Nature’s Son,” “Revolution,” “Back in The USSR,” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”

In 1969, The Beatles would release their last true studio album, “Abbey Road.” Group in-fighting that had lasted for several years was becoming intolerable and Paul McCartney was tiring of holding things together. McCartney would later signal the demise of the band by releasing his first solo album in 1970. Abbey Road was another brilliant effort that contained classic tracks such as “Come Together,” “Here Comes the Sun,” and most impressively, the medley of short, connected songs that finishes the album.

“Let It Be,” which was recorded prior to Abbey Road, would be released in 1970 with the title track, “Let it Be,” and Lennon’s “Across the Universe” as standout tracks.

“A Guide to Essential Popular Music”

The Bobby Fuller Four: I Fought the Law

The Bobby Fuller Four was one of the best American rock and roll bands from the early to mid-Sixties-a time when good rave-up rock and roll was in short supply. The band formed in Baytown, Texas, in 1961, with Bobby Fuller on guitar and lead vocals. Fuller’s brother Randy served as the band’s bassist.

The band started its recording career as a surf rock combo and had the song, “King of the Beach” as its first single. The band found its sound with the fine hit single, “Let Her Dance” in 1965. The band’s next single, “I Fought the Law,” was an instant classic and stands today as one of the all-time greatest rock and roll singles. 

Both of the aforementioned hit singles can be found on the album, “I Fought the Law” (1966). This album and a number of compilation albums are recommended.

Bobby Fuller was found dead in his car outside his Hollywood home during the summer of 1966.Foul play has always been rumoured in Fuller's demise, but no solid evidence has ever come to the fore.

Randy Fuller tried to continue the band after Bobby’s death, but ultimately failed.

Fats Domino: The Fat Man

Fats Domino was one of the most successful of the founding fathers of rock and roll. Domino hailed from New Orleans and started his career as a New Orleans R&B performer. He is forever remembered for the early rock and roll hits, “Blueberry Hill,” “The Fat Man,” I Want to Walk You Home,” “Walking to New Orleans,” “Ain’t it a Shame,” “Blue Monday,” and “I’m in Love Again.” The man was one of the giants of the Fifties, scoring almost three times as many hits as either Chuck Berry or Little Richard.

Domino was born Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. in New Orleans, in 1928. After spending time in the Dave Bartholomew band as pianist, he made his first recordings in 1950 with “The Fat Man” and “Detroit City Blues.” “The Fat Man” was an important recording in the development of what was to become rock and roll. The song was co-written, as were most of Fats' big hits, with trumpeter, Bartholomew. The song became a huge R&B hit, and it is one of the most successful debut singles in pop music history.

By the time rock and roll emerged in the mid-1950s, Domino was already an established R&B star, and his transition to rock and roll was an easy one. In 1955, he scored his first hit on the pop charts with “Ain’t it a Shame,” the song that introduced him to white audiences and turned him into one of the first rock and roll stars.

Domino’s best recordings can be most easily found via compilation. Among the best Domino compilations are “Rock and Rollin’ with Fats Domino” (1956), “Fats Domino Swings 12, 000, 000 Records” (1958), “The Fantastic Fats Domino-20 Original Hits” (1977), and “My Blue Heaven-The Best of Fats Domino” (1990).

Photo by Heinrich Klaffs

Jackie Wilson Lonely Teardrops

Jackie Wilson was among the first soul singers who followed in Ray Charles footsteps after Charles created the music in the mid-Fifties. Wilson, also known as “Mr. Excitement,” for his ebullient performing style, was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1934. Wilson was a boxer and gymnast prior to the start of his music career. Wilson was known for his temperamental nature and willingness to use his boxing skills.

Wilson originally came to prominence in 1953, as a member of the vocal R&B group, Billy Ward and the Dominoes as a replacement for Clyde McPhatter who had left the group to form the Drifters. Wilson would serve as the Dominoes lead singer for the next three years. Upon leaving the Dominoes, Wilson soon found solo success with the hit single, “Reet Petite,” in 1957.

Throughout the remainder of the Fifties and Sixties, Wilson recorded numerous R&B hits and the occasional pop hit. Wilson’s biggest pop hit came in 1958 with “Lonely Teardrops.” In 1967, Wilson would again score a huge hit with the song, “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher.”

Wilson’s best studio albums include “Soul Time” (1965), “Whispers” (1966), and “Higher and Higher” (1967). His best compilations include “The Jackie Wilson Story” (1983) and “The Very Best of Jackie Wilson” (1987). Wilson died in 1984.