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Mean Cat Daddies

Riverside Rockabillies

V/A – Riverside Rockabillies

riverside rockabillies

Raucous Records RAUCLP 014 [1995]
The Crawdads – Girl Is Late / Al Holden – Tomorrow Night / The Ricardos – Whiplash / Deuces Wild – Teresa / The Riverside Trio – Love Me, Hold Me, Squeeze Me / Billy Adams – You’re The Girl / Mean Cat Daddies – Sign Of The Times / The Crawdads – Evil Thinkin’ Woman / Al Holden – Red Hot / The Roadrunners – Jailhouse Bound

This excellent compilation, recorded and produced by Chris Cummings of the Riverside Trio, features some of the very best British bands of the mid-80s/ early 90s.
Formed in the eighties, The Crawdads gained a new life at the turn of the 90s with a brand new album on Raucous. Their songs on this 10″ compilation are two superb Rockabilly. This excellent band deserved to be rediscovered.
Al Holden proposes one cover and one self-penned song. His version of Tomorrow Night is more inspired by Elvis than Lonnie Johnson. Red Hot is an excellent Carl Perkins inspired Rockabilly with Cummings on double-bass.
Whiplash is a stripped-down Rockabilly interpreted by the Ricardos with a Sun feel. The Deuces Wild gives a faithful rendition of Cochran‘s Teresa, helped by Lorraine and Shirley, on backing vocals.
Side A closes with the ever-excellent Riverside Trio and their brand of hillbilly bop.
Billy Adams’ You’re the Girl leans more toward Rock’n’roll while the Mean Cat Daddies, with a slight neo feel, are the more modern band on the platter. This version of Sign of the Times is different than the one that you can find on their Nervous album.
The Roadrunners depart from their usual rocking’ blues style to record an uptempo hillbilly.


V/A – More Riverside Rockabillies

Raucous Records RAUCLP 022 [1996]
The Crawdads – Whiskey And Gin / Jesse James & The Outlaws – Raging Sea / The Slingshots – The Pain Has Gone / Al Holden – Baby Let’s Play House / The Riverside Trio – Peach Pickin’Time In Georgia / The Slingshots – Blue Eyed Country Girl / The Rhythmaires – Wildcat Tamer / The Ricardos – Don’t Bug Me No More / Walt Mitchinson – Sugar In My Coffee / Jesse James & The Outlaws – Who Do You Love

The second volume of this series is as good as the first.
The slap-bass propelled Rockabilly of the Crawdads, similar to Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee opens the ball. Next is the cover of Gene Maltais’s Raging Sea by Jesse James and the Outlaws (a very appropriate name for a wild band.) They also deliver a wild cover of Who Do You Love on side B.
The excellent Slingshots play a superb bluesy ballad (the Pain has Gone) and a Carl Perkins-tinged number (Blue Eyed Country Girl.)
Al Holden, whose version of Tomorrow Night was terrific on the first volume, returns with a hillbilly bop version of Baby Let’s Play House. This guy also released one album on Vampirette that I warmly recommend.
You can expect the best in terms of Hillbilly with The Riverside Trio, and Jimmie Rodgers’ Peach Pickin’ Time in Georgia makes no exception.
The Rhythmaires are on the blues side with Tarheel Slim’s Wildcat Tamer while the Ricardos deliver a desperate Rockabilly with Don’t Bug Me No More.
The last artist to be featured on this compilation is Walt Mitchinson, whom I don’t know much about. Sugar In My Coffee shows a strong Mystery Train influence and is just plain great.


V/A Riverside Rockabillies

Raucous Records ‎– RAUCD054
The Crawdads – Girl Is Late / Al Holden – Tommorow Night / The Ricardos – Whiplash / Deuces Wild – Teresa / The Riverside Trio – Love Me, Hold Me, Squeeze Me / Billy Adams – Sugar In My Coffee / The Ricardos – Eight Wheel Driver / Lorraine & Shirley – Baby / Riverside Trio – Freeborn Man (Alt. Take) / Russ Be-Bop’s Roadrunners – Bottle Up & Go / Billy Adams – You’re The Girl / Mean Cat Daddies – Sign Of The Times / The Crawdads – Evil Thinkin’ Woman / Al Holden – Red Hot / The Roadrunners – Jailhouse Bound / Deuces Wild – Pretty Girl / Lorraine & Shirley – It’s Too Late / The Crawdads – Lover’s Rock / Mean Cat Daddies – Ghost Of Your Love / Riverside Trio – San Francisco Bay Blues

This compilation is more than just the cd version of the two 10″ records (Riverside Rockabillies and More Riverside Rockabillies.) Though you find some songs that appeared on both albums, there’s plenty of unissued stuff from the same artists (including a different version of the Mean Cat Daddies’ Ghost Of Your Love than the one featured on their album.)
Icing on the cake, there are two songs by Lorraine and Shirley. These two sisters, who previously sang backing vocals on the Deuces Wild’ Teresa, finally have their own release. Both songs are great, in the purest hillbilly sibling tradition with superb harmonies. Baby is a fast tempo while It’s Too Late is a slow version of the Riverside Trio song.
These two songs are worth the price of this compilation alone. But the rest is fantastic too, you’d be warned.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Mean Cat Daddies (the)

Mean Cat Daddies
Mean Cat Daddies

The Mean Cat Daddies – Ghost of your Love

Nervous Records NERDCD 079 [1994]

Sally-Ann – Sign Of The Times – (She’s) Just A Memory – Why Do I Cry? – Drivin’ All Night – I Can Tell – Decision Time – Tell Me – Am I The One? – Ghost Of Your Love – Midnight Cruise – Losing Game – Waitin’ For You – This Is The End

The Mean Cat Daddies were a Rockabilly quartet from the North West of England; They took their name from Harold Jackson’s song of the same name.

They released their one album titled “Ghost of your love” on Nervous Records in 1994. The Mean Cat Daddies were Tony Huyton on vocals and acoustic guitar, Andy Bolton on lead guitar, Gary Maguire on double bass and Johnny Gribbin on drums.

The opening track is a solid modern Rockabilly tune. The next song shows a strong Buddy Holly influence to it complete with the appropriate drum pattern and a bit of Joe Meek production. “Sign of the Time” is a very interesting number, being a Rockabilly number with a social comment about the difficulty of finding a job in Great Britain. “Why Do I Cry” is another highly melodic song with strong double bass and a bit of country and western influence. “I Can Tell,” the sole cover of the album is pretty good. Andy Bolton sings both “Decision Time” a very modern song, and “Am I the One” that brings a touch of blues with slide guitar.

They sure know how to write melodic tunes as prove “Tell Me.” In a similar vein, you’ll find and the title track. It’s described by Roy Williams of Nervous Records as a song that “would have worked well in a French art-sex film of the mid-Sixties.” Why not, Roy? They’re also more than able to rock, with the hard-hitting Rockabilly of “Midnight Cruise.”
“Losing Game” is more classic Rockabilly with powerful slap bass while “Waitin’ for You” is another highlight sounding like Johnny Cash meets Chris Isaak.
It’s too bad that the Mean Cat Daddies only released this one album. They knew how to craft highly melodic songs and were very originals.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Mean Cat Daddies
Mean Cat Daddies