Top row: Ricky Fataar, Steve Fataar (from The Flame) Middle row: Aynsley Dunbar, Gene Vincent, Bruce Johnston, Del Shannon Front row: Rodney Bingheimer, Kim Fowley, Gram Parsons Photo from the Bruce Johnston Archives
The Beach Boys' Bruce Johnston sent over this great vintage shot (probably circa 1970) as he's flanked by among others, Gene Vincent and Del Shannon, both of whom have sadly passed away. One can only imagine the conversation that happened then.
Intro- Link Wray- "Jack The Ripper" Voice Over- Rob "Cool Daddy" Dempsey Johnny Kidd & The Pirates- "Shakin' All Over" Mickey Hawks with Moon Mullins & His Night Raiders- "Bip Bop Boom" Music bed- Los Straitjackets- "Crime Scene" Nick Waterhouse- "This Is A Game" Levi Dexter & Magic- "Go Go Go" Vintage RCA Color TV spot The Beatles- "Lonesome Tears" Music bed- Johnny & Dorsey Burnette- "Rockin' Johnny Home" Imelda May- "Tribal" Polecats- "Big Green Car" Cliff Richard- "Move It" Instrumental Breakdown- Jimmy Sutton's Four Charms- "6 String Boogie" Mickey Baker- "Milk Train" Music bed- Duane Eddy- "Rumble" Dr. Rubin's Pomade! Traveling Wilburys- "Rattled" Buck Owens- "I Don't Care (Just As Long As You Love Me)" Music bed- The Ventures- "Memphis" Dave Edmunds- "The Wanderer" The Rolling Stones- "Not Fade Away" Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band- "You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover" Music bed- Kenny Vaughan- "Mysterium" Elvis Presley- "Guitar Man" Robert Gordon- :60 Album Spot- Lanark Records Johnny Horton- "The Battle Of New Orleans" Scene from Dirty Harry The Cramps- "Uranium Rock" Little Richard- "Good Golly Miss Molly 1970 album spot- Little Richard- The Rill Thing Little Richard- "Dew Drop Inn" Outro- Dick Dale & The Deltones- "Misirlou"
The Rockats on the Lanark Records stage at Saturday's Car Show at Viva Las Vegas 17! Dibbs Preston (vocals), Quentin Jones (guitar)
Viva Las Vegas 17 artists get the focus on this week's episode of the Rockabilly N Blues Radio Hour!! Plus, hear another brand new Robert Gordon track from his upcoming I'm Coming Home album!
Intro bed- Johnny Ramone, Danny B. Harvey & Slim Jim Phantom- "Viva Las Vegas" Sonny Burgess- "We Wanna Boogie" Music bed- Duane Eddy- "Twistin' N Twangin" Lloyd Price- "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" Lloyd Price- "Personality" Music bed- Kenny Vaughan- "Mysterium" BurliQ's- "Conundrum" My Darling Clementine- "No Heart In This Heartache" The Trashmen- "Surfin' Bird" Kim Lenz & Her Jaguars- "Pay Dearly" Music bed- Johnny Ramone, Danny B. Harvey & Slim Jim Phantom- "Viva Las Vegas" The Reach Around Rodeo Clowns- "I'm Obsessed" The Reach Around Rodeo Clowns- "Wild, Crazy & Out Of Control" Music bed- Johnny Ramone, Danny B. Harvey & Slim Jim Phantom- "Viva Las Vegas" Los Straitjackets- "Space Mosquito" Los Straitjackets- "Bobsleddin'" Imelda May- "Mayhem" Imelda May- "Johnny's Got A Boom Boom" Jeff Mason from Gold & Silver Pawn Shop
With Jeff Mason (left) of Gold & Silver Pawn Shop
Crazy Cavan & The Rhythm Rockers- "Rockabilly Rules Ok" The Polecats- "John, I'm Only Dancing" The Polecats- "Make A Circuit With Me" Music bed- Link Wray- "Rumble" The Rockats- "Make That Move" The Rockats- "Pink And Black Cadillac" Music bed- Link Wray- "Jack The Ripper" Robert Gordon- "It's Only Love" Robert Gordon- "Fire" Outro bed- The Rockats- "Kitten With A Whip" www.vivalasvegas.net www.lanarkrecords.net www.gspawn.com
Robert Gordon rockin' the Lanark Records stage at Viva Las Vegas 17!!
The Gas House Gorillas combine a variety of styles (including Jump Blues, Cajun and Punk) for one unforgettable sound! They just completed a music video for "Find A Little Boogie" that will get you up and moving...and searching to purchase their album, Punk Americana!
Viva Las Vegas is happening this weekend, April 17-20th. Stay tuned next week for a special edition of the Rockabilly N Blues Radio Hour as we will focus on interviews and music with artists appearing at the event.
Hear teaser of the show:
As always, you can download our shows for FREE on iTunes...click HERE.
Artists on the show next week include Lloyd Price, Imelda May, Robert Gordon, Kim Lenz & The Jaquars, Los Straitjackets, The Rockats, The Trashmen, The Reach Around Rodeo Clowns, Crazy Cavan & The Rhythm Rockers, Sonny Burgess and more!!
The band name alone will tell you that these guys aren't going to lull you to sleep. A quick glance at their bio will further help you understand the full-on rockabilly assault you're about to hear. They describe their style as, "a little bit country, a little bit punk, a little bit crazy, and a little bit drunk." Rockabilly Deluxe is their 6th album and they aren't slowing down! My advice is to open the windows and step back after you hit "play" to start the disc...not too unlike lighting fireworks and running for cover. "King Of The Slot Car Track" blasts out of the speakers and doesn't let up. It's such a high-energy punkabilly attack that you might have difficulty getting to track 2 for wanting to play it again! Once you do make it to "Long Gone Daddy", the Cash meets Clash slow rockin' groove shows off the bands aforementioned style variance. They throw in some tasty horns and lock into a groove. A fun, tongue-in-cheek delivery of "Wild, Crazy and Out Of Control" shows not only their humor but how the band can throw down a groove that will draw you in combined with Wendell Jones' almost Robert Gordon-like attack. The band also features Wendell's brother Quentin on the twangy lead guitars that are sometimes Duane Eddy, sometimes Carl Perkins and all the time solid...perhaps through a punk filter. You'll be amazed by the rhythm section of Dave Ferrara on drums and Crusher Carmean slappin' the upright bass. They keep it moving like like a freight train coming right at you. Get out of their way and enjoy the show!
Welcome to next level of rockabilly/roots. It has a name. It's The Reach Around Rodeo Clowns!
Left to right: Dave Ferrara, Wendell Jones, Crusher Carmean, Quentin Jones
The great Carl Perkins was born this day in 1932. He's been referred to as the "King Of Rockabilly". Perkins' style helped fuel the Rockabilly sound in the early 50's. Enjoy some videos of some classic Carl Perkins-
This episode is a hepcat lover's blend of legends like Everly Brothers, Chuck Berry, Wanda Jackson, Dion and surprising covers by Los Straitjackets (covering Nirvana), Jerry Lee Lewis (covering Led Zeppelin), Di Maggio Connection (covering Talking Heads) and Micky Dolenz (covering Chuck Berry). Lots more too including something new from The Rockats, a live classic from Bruce Johnston and our 2 weekly features of an "instru-mental breakdown" and our "double shot" (this week it's Chris Isaak) to close out the show.
Intro bed- Link Wray- "Jack The Ripper" Voice Over- Rob "Cool Daddy" Dempsey Chuck Berry- "Johnny B. Goode" Wanda Jackson- "Fujiyama Mama" Robert Plant- "You Can't Buy My Love" Johnny Burnette & The Rock N Roll Trio- "Rock Therapy" Vintage Coke commercial- The Everly Brothers Everly Brothers- "Gone, Gone, Gone" Di Maggio Connection- "Road To Nowhere" Bruce Johnston- "Surfer Stomp" Charlie Feathers- "One Hand Loose" INSTRU-MENTAL BREAKDOWN: Los Straitjackets- "Smells Like Teen Spirit" Duane Eddy- "Rebel Rouser" Music bed- The Travelers (Johnny & Dorsey Burnette)- "The Big House" The Rockats- "Why Do You Love Me (If I Don't Treat You Right)" Eddie Cochran- "My Way" Music bed- The Ventures- "Memphis" Jerry Lee Lewis (w/ Jimmy Page)- "Rock & Roll" Vintage Kellogs commercial- The Monkees Micky Dolenz- "Johnny B. Goode" Howlin' Wolf- "Smokestack Lightning" Ronnie Hawkins- "Who Do You Love" Dion- "Tank Full Of Blues" Music bed- The Ventures- "Caravan" DOUBLE-SHOT OF ROCKABILLY N BLUES: Chris Isaak- "Speak Of The Devil" (live) Chris Isaak- "Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing" Outro- Scotty Moore- "My Baby Left Me"
McKinley Morganfield (known as "Muddy Waters") was born this day in 1913. He is often considered the "father of modern Chicago Blues" and was ranked #17 on Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time. His influence is impossible to measure. Quite simply, he was one of the most important figures in blues history.
Ronnie Tutt (right) was our guest on the Rockabilly N Blues Radio Hour!
Legendary touring and studio drummer, Ronnie Tutt, was our guest on the Rockabilly N Blues Radio Hour. He shared stories of his time with Elvis, Neil Diamond, Jerry Garcia, Billy Joel, Elvis Costello, Roy Orbison, Johnny Rivers and more! Check out the podcast to hear the interview along with songs from these great artists that feature Ronnie on the drums (and his bass vocal part...hear the podcast to discover which one)! For being such an "animal" behind the drums, Ronnie has such a nice and soft-spoken manner about him. Take a listen to hear just a portion of some of the projects he's worked on.
You can download the podcast for free HERE. Stream it on this page-
Check out some highlights from the podcast interview:
You switched from the trumpet to the drums in high school.
I was pretty much considered a child prodigy tap-dancer. I always wanted to express myself rhythmically. I was hearing rhythm patterns and all of that. Trumpet was kind of boring to me. A friend had it in his closet. It was his dad's trumpet. I was wanting to get away from the violin and that shiny trumpet looked kinda nice. I was frustrated because I wanted to be a drummer (laughs).
I found that you always reminded me of "Animal" from the Muppets while watching you play drums.
Well, that's another story. Some say people think Jim Henson got that idea from watching. I've never had it confirmed or denied (laughs).
Elvis- "Polk Salad Annie"
Do you think that's what got you the job with Elvis?
I think what got me the job with him is the eye contact. The visual...being able to read what he was doing. DJ Fontana and I have always talked about how working with Elvis is like working with a pseudo-stripper. Because every move he made with his body, he always wanted little hits and pushes and things like that.
Do you remember how you felt the very first show you did with Elvis?
Total fear (laughs)! Total panic. He was like a panther pacing back and forth in his black outfit. He had nothing to worry about but he was a very insecure guy when it came to those sort of things.
We're recording this on March 28th. You guys recorded "Burning Love" this day in 1972. Did he hear the original version by Dennis Linde or Arthur Alexander?
I honestly don't remember the whole situation other than the fact that it was played for us...I don't remember if it was a demo or whatever it was. We were trying to encourage him to do more rock & roll. We heard it and thought, "man, this is going to be great!". Unfortunately, his producer, Felton Jarvis, was very, very ill that particular night. He was so sick he had to lay down in the control room. So, I basically took the session over and produced the record. That record still sounds good today. Somebody played it for me not too long ago. I was very surprised it sounded so good.
Tell me about "Always On My Mind". That was a difficult time for Elvis.
I did know it was a period where he was going through a lot of changes. His life was in upheaval. We were all trying to encourage him and keep going because it would have been easy to kind of fold.
Elvis- "Always On My Mind"
Comparing Elvis and Neil Diamond on stage, it feels different in their approach. What's Neil like?
I think the main difference in those guys is...and I've learned this over a period of time...Neil is pretty much a perfectionist in the sense that his philosophy is to do things in repetition over and over so that you feel completely comfortable under all circumstances. It helped me learn that. With Elvis, it was either really up or sometimes really down. Part of that was his problem with prescription drugs. We didn't really understand it at the time. It makes a lot of sense in retrospect. But, on the other hand, Elvis' up performances were about as great as you can imagine. Just like Neil's are when they're really, really up. There's not that much variance in Neil's performance. It's almost like you've got a well-coached team and you're going out there to win and you know you've got the capability of winning every time you go out.
Neil Diamond- "Holly Holy"
How was the experience working on Roy Orbison's "Black & White Night" special?
Well, it was really exciting. We took about a week out of our schedule to do this. It consisted of going through a huge stack of his songs. T. Bone Burnett had put us all together. Our band had been doing quite a bit of work with T. Bone at that time. We all felt comfortable together even though I had never worked with Roy before and hadn't even met him until that particular point in time. I had a lot of respect for songs he had written. I had a stack on a music stand over by the drums...it was about 2 inches thick. We'd go through one song and they'd say, "yeah, that was good...let's go on to the next one". I'd turn the songs over and go "wow, did he write that? wow, he wrote that too!". I was flabbergasted that he had written so many wonderful, wonderful songs. Of course, that's how he was able to attract so many of these great artists that were willing to come along and support him to be a part of it. It was a great challenge to put that many together. It was very rewarding! We weren't trying to do a heavy rock & roll version of all of these, we were just trying to do what we do at the same time have respect for what was done before.
Roy Orbison- "Pretty Woman"
You played on Billy Joel's Piano Man!
Yeah, I did 2 albums with Billy. The first album was Piano Man and the second was called Streetlife Serenade. Both of those albums had some really good tracks.
Hear many more stories about Elvis, Johnny Rivers, Jerry Garcia, Elvis Costello, Cat Stevens and Delaney & Bonnie in the audio podcast above or at iTunes.
Songs heard in the podcast:
Voice over- Rob "Cool Daddy" Dempsey Intro bed- Elvis Presley- "Tiger Man" Elvis Presley- "Way Down" Elvis Presley- "Blue Suede Shoes" (live) Music bed- Duane Eddy- "Road Trip" Elvis Presley- "Mystery Train/Tiger Man" (live) Music bed- Kenny Vaughan- "Mysterium" Elvis Presley- "That's All Right" (live) Elvis introducing Ronnie Tutt on stage Music bed- The Ventures- "Walk Don't Run" Elvis Presley- "Patch It Up" (live) Music bed- Link Wray- "Rumble" Elvis Presley- "Burning Love" Music bed- Duane Eddy- "Franklin Town" Elvis Presley- "Always On My Mind" Music bed- The Ventures- "Memphis" Elvis Presley- "Polk Salad Annie" (live) Music bed- The Ventures- "Raunchy" Neil Diamond- "I'm A Believer" Music bed- Duane Eddy- "The Attack Of The Duck Billed Platypus Roy Orbison- "Claudette" (live) Elvis Costello- "The Big Light" Cat Stevens- "Peace Train" (snippet) Billy Joel- "Piano Man" Jerry Garcia- "Catfish John" (snippet) Johnny Rivers- "Rockin' Pneumonia- Boogie Woogie Flu" Delaney & Bonnie- "Soul Shake" Outro- Joel Paterson- "Mable's Rock"
