Guest Post - Caravan

Here's a special treat from fellow London DJ around town G the P, who regularly posts up old records on his Get Involved blog and can be found spinning discs at his Gerry’s Joint night and also at Shing-A-Ling. Be sure to check them all out, I have and was duly impressed. Impressed enough to request his services as a Diddy Wah guest poster, please make him feel very welcome.



Johnny & Santo - Caravan

I can’t remember why I bought this as I’d never head it before I played it at home – but I do remember where I got it from: the regular, fortnightly record fair at London’s Spitalfields Market. I also don’t know exactly when this was recorded although I’m guessing it’s about 1959 / 1960. Johnny & Santo were brothers hailing from Brooklyn - yet you’d never guess it from the sound of this track... It sounds more like it was cooked up by The Shadows on a surfing trip to California! It’s totally rockin’ and features some pretty awesome steel guitar virtuosity but, for me, the real beauty of it is that it manages to avoid easy musical categorisation... I could imagine it featuring in a Spaghetti Western movie soundtrack (the opening guitar lick reminds me of the work of Ennio Morricone) – or on a surf instrumental album or even on an out and out rockabilly compilation. Actually, I think that’s why I like this record so much - I haven’t got another record quite like this... G the P