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The Barnshakers

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The Barnshakers ‎– Whiskey River / Hollow Grave 

Goofin’ Records ‎– GRSI 224 [2012]

Another excellent single released by the Barnshakers. The A-side is a cover of Johnny Bush’s Whiskey River, also a hit for Willie Nelson. They deliver a superb muscled-up version with powerful slap bass and intense vocal by Vesa.
The flip is an excellent Rockabilly with harmony vocals, typical of the style of the band.

the Barnshakers - Twenty one
the Barnshakers – Twenty one

The Barnshakers – Twenty One

Goofin Records GRCD6130
Twenty-One – Come On – Bop Bop Ba Doo Bop – Have A Ball – Knock Knock Rattle – Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby – Yah! I’m Movin’ – Wiggle Like A Worm.

Very good mini cd from the Barnshakers, one of the best, if not the best european band in activity made of one studio track and seven live recording. The studio track “Twenty One”, a Vesa Haaja’s own, is an immediate addictive song with its great vocal and lead guitar part and the piano support. This song proves how right they were to add a piano in their line-up. The live show, with the exception of “Wiggle Like A Worm” is made of covers and songs that were never recorded in the studio by the band. This gives another interest to this record to hear them playing classic songs by Wynn Stewart (Come On), Lew Williams (Bop Bop Ba Doo Bop) and Carl Perkins (Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby). The set ends with a frantic Vesa singing and screaming on “Yah! I’m Movin’” and “Wiggle Like A Worm” with Lester playing Burlisonnian licks. By far the best cut of this record. An advice, if you want it, you should hurry as the cover states it’s a limited release…

The Barnshakers - the single album
The Barnshakers – the single album

The Barnshakers – The Single album

Goofin Records GRCD6126 {2004}
She Done Quit Me – So Doggone Blue – Big Sandy – Ooh’ Baby -Complicated Fool – Who’s Gonna Be The Next One Honey – When I Take My Sugar To Tea – Take One – Wiggle Like A Worm – Choo Choo’s Coming Back – Desperate Santa – Santa’s Got A Brand New Steel Pedal – Hocus Pocus – Gone A-Rockin’ – You’re The Cause Of It All – Tell My Baby I Love Her – Move On – What’cha Gonna Do – Boppin’ In Roswell – Raining In My Heart – What’cha Doin’ To Me – Lotta Lotta Women

It’s a good idea to issue all the Barnshakers singles on one cd as some are not that easy to find. You can also see the evolution of the band through the years from the rockabilly of the beginning to the addition of a piano player and the touch of boogie of today. The first single shows what a good songwriter Jussi Huhtakangas (aka Lester Peabody) is, too bad he doesn’t write more songs. Vesa, the lead singer and main writer wrote my two favourite songs on the cd issued from the Xmas single «Desperate Santa» and the great «Santa’s got a brand new pedal steel». You got some covers too and a song penned by Shaun Young. So what could you ask for more ? Unissued material ? You’ve got it, two new songs recorded in 2004. So I guess you understood this record is a must have for all Barnshakers and rockabilly fans everywhere.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis

The Barnshakers
The Barnshakers (left to right: Mike Salminen, Vesa Haaja, Mika Liikari, Lester Peabody).

Wildfire Willie and the Ramblers

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Wildfire Willie and the Ramblers – Blues, Boogie and Rhythm

Wildfire Willie and the Ramblers

Goofin’ records GOOFY 557 [1995]
My Gal From Kokomo – Crazy ‘Bout You Baby / Honky Tonk Baby – A Bottle Of Loneliness

The A-side opens with My Gal From Kokomo that opens, initially recorded by Roy Brown. The band turns this jump blues into a frantic Rockabilly tune, during which Jan Svenson seems close to asphyxia.
Things calm down a bit with the next song, Crazy Bout You, an original, a mid-tempo rocka-ballad with a country feel.
Hardrock Gunter’s Honky Tonk Baby, the second cover of the EP, is more on the boppin’ hillbilly side. The last track, and for me the best, is Bottle of Loneliness. It’s a great country Rockabilly song with a Carl Perkins feel. I guess that Sam Phillips would have been proud to record this one.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Teukka & the Rhythm Aces

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Teukka & the Rhythm Aces – Soitan Että Tuun

teukka and the rhythm aces

Goofin Records – GRS-608
Soitan, Että Tuun – We’re Gonna Move – Pocketful Of Rainbows

The first song, “Soitan, että tuun” is a Charlie Rich cover with a melody very close to “Mona Lisa” (sorry I wasn’t able to find out the English title for that one) with finnish lyrics. It could be surprising at first but it works rather well. The band does a nice job on this upbeat rocker with nice piano breaks and a short guitar chorus from Eino Rastas (from Hal Peters’band). Teukka’s fine voice suits Elvis material too as “We’re Gonna Move” shows with some hiccups (but not too much). This mini cd ends with a ballad, another demonstration of the good balance between the band and the singer.
.Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Ballroomers (the)

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Ballroomers
Ballroomers

Ballroomers (the) – Sway

Goofin records – Goofy 504 [1985]
Sway – Don’t Push Me Away – Louisiana Boogie – 99 Sweathearts

The Ballroomers appeared on the Finish scene in the mid-’80s and came from Martinlaakso, Vantaa. The members of the band were three schoolmates: Jussi Huhtakangas aka Lester Peabody (Hal Peters, Barnshakers) on lead vocals and guitar, Timo Uimonen (Hal Peters) on double bass, and Pete Hakonen (founder of Goofin’ Records) on drums. A fourth member, Markku Immonen joined in on piano.
Two songs are covers (Sway and Louisiana Boogie) while the other two are from the pen of Jussi Huhtakangas. He sure is not the greatest singer on earth but the single is nonetheless pleasant with sparkling guitar and boogie-woogie piano.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Sean Mencher

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Sean Mencher
Sean Mencher

Sean Mencher – Sean mencher Plays Guitar

Swelltune Records – SRCD-002
Mystery Train – Saturday Night Shuffle – Sing Me Back Home – Someone To Watch Over Me – The Mensch – Mister Sandman – Comanche Moon – Your New Flame (Is Burning Me) – Stagecoach Comin’ – How High the Moon – Betina – Buckaroo – Hey Good Lookin’ – Sir Swish – Walkin’ the Strings – America the Beautiful

Sean Mencher is well known for being the lead guitarist of High Noon, the Rockabilly trio. With his style, a mix of Merle Travis and Scotty Moore with some jazz thrown in for good measure, and with his sure taste he gained a well deserved reputation on the scene. He also played with Wayne Hancock and Dig Wayne (Buzz and the Flyers) and with his deep knowledge of Rockabilly and other related genres, he also produced bands like Croonin’ Kurt, the Gin Palace Jesters, the Starline Rhythm Boys and the Twilite Ranchers. And of course he recorded a couple of records under his own name (see below).
His new album, recorded for Swelltune records, is an instrumental one, featuring just Sean and his guitar. No effects, no tricks, no heavy production… just one man, his guitar, a microphone, his fingers and most of all, his soul.
I don’t play guitar so don’t expect me to tell you things like “Oh that E9b5 chord is amazing”. I can’t and if I could I wouldn’t. It would miss the point. Of course I bet that guitar players will freak out when they hear Sean’s skills, but the beauty of the thing is that regular guys like me will also enjoy it because this music speaks directly to your heart.
The songs come from guitar greats like Merle Travis (of course), Chet Atkins, Les Paul as well as Junior Parker, Hank Williams, Buck Owens and some jazz standard like Someone to Watch Over Me. I particularly enjoyed this one on which his guitar softly sings, almost like a lullaby.
Also included are four Mencher’s original like Comanche Moon (previously released on a solo single and also with High Noon), Your new Flame, Betina and Sir Wish.
A truly great and sensitive album.

Sean Mencher
Sean Mencher

Sean Mencher – self titled

Goofin Records GRCD6136
Rock Rock Jump And Jive – Settin’ The Woods On Fire – Right Or Wrong – Crying The Blues Over You – Bayou Beauty – All The Time – Tummat Silmät (Dark Eyes) – Don’t Big Shot Me – Hot Rod Man – Vamos A La Playa – Down The Line – Little Baby Doll – Honky Tonk Gal – Hit Git And Split
After two singles – one on Deke Dickerson’s Eccofonic and one on Goofin, it’s good to finally see a long player from High Noon’s ace guitar player : Sean Mencher. It’s a solid rockin’ album mainly made of classic covers which is a bit odd when you know Sean’s ability to write songs. This album sounds like Mencher wanted to play every genre he likes and sometimes mixing them together. You’ve got plenty of rockabilly of course (Rock’n’Roll Jump And Jive, Hot Rod Man, Go Cat Go’s Little Baby Doll) with Zach Ovingtons’ fiddle giving an original and nice country flavour. Some other songs are plain country like Hank Williams’ Settin The Wood On Fire or jazz / western swing Right Or Wrong, one of the highlight of this album, with a great swingin’ fiddle and as usual Sean guitar play is superb. You’ll also find a beautiful blues, Bill Neely’s “Crying The Blues Over You”, with just Sean’s fingerpicking and a harmonica. Mencher’s self penned “Bayou Beauty”, previously played by Ronnie Dawson and High Noon, is done this time with a full Cajun instrumentation with accordion, triangle and Matthew Doucet a native of South Louisiana on fiddle. A trumpet player is present on Link Davis’ Dong Big Shot Me, a not so different from the original version that suits Mencher’s vocal very well and also on the Mexican flavoured “Vamos A La Playa” provided by ex-Asylum Street Spankers Josh Arnson. The musicians show their skills on their interpretation of the classic instrumental Dark Eyes which sounds like a mix between jazz and rockabilly. This very good and versatile album shows all of Sean Mencher’s influences and is a pleasure from start to finish.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Sean MencherSean Mencher

Ecco-Fonic EF1007 [1996]
Jumpin’ Track – Your New Flame (Is Burnin’ Me)

Once again Mencher nails it with two brilliant instrumentals recorded in Maine.
Side one features a band (Cartwright Thompson on rhythm guitar, Lesie Freda on string bass and Mark Cousins on drums) and is a rocka-boogie that comes complete with train sounds while the flip side sees Sean going solo for a Travis thumb-picking rendition of High Noon’s Your New Flame.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

sean mencherSean Mencher and his Rockin’ Guitar

Goofin Records GOOFY554 [1995]
When You Smile/Comanche Moon

Side one is a superb rock’n’roll song, highly melodic. Side Two allows Mencher to show all his skills on guitar with a amazing instrumental with Travis and Atkins influences.
Must have single.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Read our interview with Sean Mencher here.

Hank Edwards

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Hank Ewards - In the silence of the Night

Hank Ewards - In the silence of the NightHank Edwards With Hal Peters And His Trio – In the Silence of the Night

Goofin Records GOOFY 533 {1992}
In the Silence of the Night – I Wish I Has a Nickel
Another case of « wrong time, wrong place ». Had Hank Edward come from the USA and been active in the late 40’s/early 50’s, he would have shared the stage of the Opry or the Hayride with Hank Williams or some other great names of the time. Instead he comes from Sweden and began releasing records in the 80’s for an audience of fine connoisseurs.
This honky tonk single released for Goofin seems to come straight from the 50’s. Everything here is close to perfection the songs (one original on side A and a cover of Hank Williams that certain discovered under the name of Tell Me Little Darlin on the Riverside Trio debut album – on the side B), the voice and the backing provided by the always excellent Hal Peters and his trio.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis