Raucous Records RAUC 003 [1987]
Last Breath / Nightmares
Spellbound, a psychobilly band from Ireland, released their debut single in 1987 for Raucous. Five hundred copies were pressed. If not flawless, especially in terms of singing, this single is quite enjoyable. Paradoxically, this is their singer’s voice that gives the band its personality. Their drummer is a bit chaotic, but the songs are good and originals.
The Radioactive Kid
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.
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.
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
ID Records – NOSE 16 [1987] / Reissue Raucous Records RAUCD 212 [2007]
Four To The Bar – I’m On Fire – Right Behind You Baby – Am I Blue? – I’m Uneasy – No Show Dole Cheque Blues – What I Got For You – China Town – Little Pig – Broken Heart – Wanna Know – True Love
Four to the Bar is one of those album that changes the face of Rockabilly back in the mid 80’s. The Sure Shots were at the time of this recording Gary Allen on vocals, Joe Guillan on guitar, Colin Mee on drums and Pete Hardy on double bass. They recorded this album in 1987. Produced by Pete Gage who also worked with Restless, Fractured, Frenzy and later Rusti Steel, and the Rattlers, it became an instant classic.
It opens witht Four to the Bar, the title track, penned by Allen, a highly melodic tune with a strong jazz feel, courtesy of Guillan’s amazing guitar solo.
I’m On Fire, not the Springsteen tune but another original by drummer Colin Mee, is a hot blues bopper in the same vein than Sure Like the Look in your Eyes by Red Hot’n’Blue.
Their cover of Right Behing You Baby, made popular by Ray Smith is pure Rockabilly gold. It also shows Guillan’s versatility, this time you can hear him in fiull Cliff Gallup mode.
Their version of Am I Blue is modeled around Cochran’s version though slighlty (too much?) faster. They calm down with the jazzy ballad I’m Uneasy co-written by Allen and Guillan. Allen is equally at ease with cool stuff than he is with mean number or hot boppin’ rockabilly like What I got for you. Truly a great singer.
Chinatown, the old jazz standard is another guitar tour de force. After a short intro and one verse that sounds as a launch pad, Guillan jumps into three amazing and inventive solos. The production serves the song well with a solid work on the rhythm section and the acoustic guitar.
Back to solid Rockabilly with Little Pig (Dale hawkins and later Buzz and the Flyers and the Polecats) and the Moonlighters’ Broken Heart. After all these years and to my ears, the Sure Shots still hold the title of best cover of this song, despite many attemps by other bands. Mee’s Wanna Know brings a bit of Diddley beat and Perkins’ Your True Love concludes the album in beauty.
The cd reissue by Raucous records features No Show Dole Cheque Blues as a bonus, a Rockabilly / blues number recorded for the compilation album the James Dean of the Dole Queue.
Skip Records – SKCD-06
Jump Baby Jump – SOS – Baby Got No Time For Me – You Don’t Care – Broken Heart – Somebody’s Been Rockin’ My Boat – Fire Engine Baby – Don’t Make Me Wait Too Long – Worried Bout You Baby – You’re My Baby – I’m On Fire – Little Pig
Released by Colin Mee who played drums for the Sure Shots between 1984 and 1993, on his own Skip label, the early years digs deep into the archive of the band.
The first four tracks come from a 1984 demo with Ian Rhodes on guitar. The sound is raw and a bit young at places but all the elements that will make constitute the Sure Shots are already here. Two songs are originals and the other two are covers of Harry Carter and Narvel Felts.
Next are two songs by the same line-up recorded three months later for a compilation album. It includes an early verson of Broken Heart that will later be re-recorded for their debut album and Norman Witcher’s Somebody’been Rockin My Boat.
Both Fire Engine Baby and Don’t Make Wait Too Long were recorded for a French ep they shared with the Jokers. I still remember the first time I held it in my hands and it’s still in good place in my record collection. By the time these songs were put on wax, Joe Guillan had replaced Rhodes on lead guitar bringing a touch of Jazz to their brand of Rockabilly.
Four live tracks complete the set. The first two, featuring the first line-up, are pretty.
If you dig the Sure Shots, you’ll sure want to listen to this early recordings. The cover reads Volume 1, but to my knowledge no Volume has been released yet.
Buy it here.
Raucous Records RAUCD165
Saint & A Sinner – Rockabilly Girl These Boots Are Made For Walking Rockabilly Rebel – Rebel Yell – This Little Girl – His Latest Flame Folsom Prison Blues – Insane – Big Fat Stella – If Only You Knew – Memories Keep On Haunting Me – Pink & Black – Crazy Kid – C’mon Johnny 501 – Crazy Love – Blue Suede Shoes Tutti Frutti – Nutbush City Limits Run Rudolf Run – Don’t EverTrust A Girl
Very good compilation of totally new material from this Danish neo-rockabilly combo. Tracks 1 to 6 are taken from a radio show and are recorded unplugged. These six songs worth the price of this album alone. Do you remember Restless’ unplugged songs on their “Rarities” cd, these ones are as good. Acoustic guitar, slap bass and brushed snare. Great version of Matchbox “Rockabilly Rebel” and even better is Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”. Idol seems to be a favourite of rockabillies and psychobillies as he was heavily covered troughout the years. Lost Souls did “Dancing With Myself”, The Ricochets did “King Rocker” and recently Union Avenue played a fine version of “White Wedding”. “Saints & Sinners” is not The Long Tall Texans one but a Taggy Tones original. The second part are unreleased and alternate takes from the “Rockin’” album. They kept the same tempo for “Memories Keep On Haunting Me” but this version has no whistling and the voice is different. Hard to choose between the two versions, I’m afraid you’ll have to buy both. Tracks 13 to 17 are demos of songs from “Viking Attack” album and are produced by Kim Nekroman. It’s no wonder to hear on “Crazy Kid” a typical Nekromantix backing vocal. A few live songs complete the set, with various guest on saxophone, trumpet (great rendition of Tutti frutti à la Sonny Burgess) and various guest singer. The last song on this cd is a beautiful piece of rockabilly with just the voice, a light guitar and a strong slap bass. And, according to the liner notes, it’s only a rehearsal. A very well crafted record with various moods, sounds and stuff that will delight every Taggy Tones fans and gain them lot of new supporter.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
The origin of the Niteshift trio can be traced when Gary Venn started to learn double bass in the early 1980s. His teacher was Boz Boorer from the legendary Polecats (and now Morrissey’s main man). He soon teamed up with a school friend called Steve Lovett on guitar and they started to practice in his mum and dads garage. It all seemed to fall into place and they quickly found their own sound. Their drummer at that time was a guy called Carl.
Things went well and the trio played lots of gigs at various rockin’ clubs around the country.They gained a good reputation and one evening after a gig they met Dell Richardson from Fury records who asked them to do some recordings for him on a couple of compilation albums (Gipsy Girl, I Love My Car, She’s Just Rockin’, Taken By Force).
Then Carl left to emigrate to California. By chance they knew Keith Bailey a fan of the band who also played drums. He was proposed the place. This line-up recorded their unique album “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” still for Fury. Using the lp as a card the Niteshift Trio gained more gigs abroad, including Germany which they toured twice with the Guana Bats, Demented Are Go the Deltas and various other top name and is remembered as a fantastic experience.
Unfortunately Steve decided to quit the band to become a solo country and western singer, which he still does now. Gary went on to form a new band called Loveless, a wild rock n roll band doing various rock n roll with a trashy sound, for which he switched from double bass to guitar and vocals enjoying playing and writing songs. Loveless toured Germany and went down a storm and it remains like a great experience for Gary.
Fury / Raucous RAUC 237
You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet – One More Day – Leave ‘Em Cold – Venus – See My Body – Super Jet Rumble – Rockin’ In The Graveyard – Cadillac Ranch – Train Don’t Stop Here – Don’t Let It Fade Away – Slide – Taken By Force / Life Could Be Easy – Don’t Need Nobody – Taken By Force – What D’Ya See Now.
After numerous apparitions on compilation albums (one of their track even gave its name to “Taken By Force”), the Niteshift Trio finally made it on long distance.
“You AIn’t Seen Nothing Yet” is a typical 80’s neo-rockabilly album. The ingredients are all here (light guitar and snare, slap bass to the fore) and the result is rather pleasant. They have good originals and like many rockabilly bands of this era they also cover rather unusual material like Venus (made famous by Bananarama) and Bruce Springsteen’s Cadillac Ranch. This cover is the only weak point of this platter, using and abusing of a repetitive riff, but to their discharge this boring riff was also present on the Boss’ version.
The original album is rounded by bonus material coming from the aforementionned compilations
This is a must have album for any true neo-rockabilly fans and a good reissue from Raucous.
© Fred “Virgil” Turgis
The Griswalds – Nighthawk / Spellbound – Last Breath / Full Moon Freaks – Surfboard Song / Frantic Flintstones – Hot Head Baby / Termites – Let Me In / Grovelhog – Times Gotta Change / Long Tall Texans – 900 Miles / Full Moon Freaks – Swamp Rockin’ Baby / Go-Katz – Real Gone Demented Hillbilly Kat / Sugarpuff Demons – Weedin’ / Griswalds – Psycho Tendencies / Termites – I Can’t Wait / Shakin’ Bones – Deviltown USA / Frantic Flintstones – Alley Cat King / Go-Katz – Nightmare / Griswalds – Robbie Robot / Sgt Fury – Cold Cold Sunday / Radium Cats – Haunted By Your Love / Cosmic Voodoo – Old Man In The Woods / Frantic Flintstones – Let’s Go Somewhere
This compilation is a good snapshot of the Psychobilly scene in the second half of the 80’s. The original vinyl was the first long player released on Raucous, a label that has made a long way since. It covers a variety of styles and proves if needed that this music isn’t that easy to pigeonhole. It ranges from the up-tempo skiffle/rockabilly of the Long Tall Texans to the punkish sound of the Grovelhogs. In between you find excellent bands like the Frantic Flintstones, the Go-Katz (with an excellent psycho-hillbilly number), the Griswalds (Robbie Robot sounds like a psychobilly version of Devo!) and Spellbound. Less essential are Full Moon Freaks, Shakin’ Bones and Cosmic Voodoo.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis