Hector

The Village Callers - Hector

Today I bring you a record that's been in my collection for a while and is not often out of my DJ box. Recorded live in 1968 at The Plush Bunny nightclub in Pico Rivera, California, Hector is a marvellous laid back funky organ groove driven piece of Latin rock. I always play this when I'm looking to change the pace a little -- it's a good starter and a good palate cleanser, like a tasty musical sorbet. The Hector referred to is Hector Riviera, The Village Callers' manager. What a bloke he must have been, I can't even imagine.

Snorcavage Surf

The Rebel Rousers - Peter Gunn Twist
The Rebel Rousers - Cat's Den

A couple of great surf-rock instrumentals from a group I can't find any information about. Nothing indicates that this is the UK group that Cliff Bennet sang with. Peter Gunn Twist by The Jesters was the record I was looking for when I came across this, more than passable, version. The flip side, Cat's Den, is more of the same and also well worth a listen. It came out in 1963 on Hit records, which was based in Nashville and specialised in sound-alike cover versions of hit records. Cat's Den is credited to Owen, Mith, Williamson and Snorcavage. The name Snorcavage only had one entry when I Googled it -- if I achieve nothing else with this post, I'll change that.

I'm going to tell you a story

Young Jessie - Mary Lou

Now, here's another artist I'm looking forward to seeing play in New Orleans come September. The often covered, Mary Lou, is the best known recording from Young Jessie, who also spent some time singing with the Flairs and the Coasters. It was released in 1955 on the Modern label. Interestingly, Young Jessie's younger brother played Otis Day, the quintessential frat rock lead singer, in Animal House.

Tweet Tweet Tweet

Bobby Day - Rockin' Robin

Here's Bobby Day's perennial good-time hit from 1958, Rockin' Robin. As mentioned in a previous post, I ventured out to the Glastonbury festival this year. The weather was brilliant and I had an incredible time, all day and all of the night. One of many memorable moments was seeing in the sunrise at the Stone Circle on Monday morning, which I think is something of a Glastonbury tradition. Some folks had dragged up a small sound system and it was loads of fun to join the revellers gathered closely around them, hopping and a-bopping to this joyous tune.

Caravan Fever

Maureen Evans - Fever
Bobby Christian - Caravan

I thought it would be appropriate to post these two tunes together since they are both interesting-but-not-essential covers of a couple of my favourite standards. From 1958, Maureen Evens, a Welsh pop singer, gives us Fever. And, from just one year later, master percussionist Bobby Christian shines upon Caravan.

Lola Gets

Abbe Lane - Whatever Lola Wants

Abbe Lane was a showbiz type; a singer, dancer and actress. She once said "Jayne Mansfield may turn boys into men, but I take them from there". Great quote. She also has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame and was once married to Latin bandleader Xavier Cougat, who she often sang with. In 1958 she recorded an album with Tito Puente, which is where today's tune comes from. Whatever Lola Wants was originally written for a 1955 musical called Damn Yankees. I hadn't heard of it before but Wikipedia tells me that it's a modern retelling of the Faust legend. I also gather it has something to do with baseball. I'm not totally convinced that it would be my cup of tea but I am a big fan of sassy big band musical numbers like this, so you never know.

Congo Twist

Twistin' Kings - Congo Part I
Twistin' Kings - Congo Part II

The Twistin' Kings are actually Motown's house band, the Funk Brothers. They -- or, more likely, Berry Gordy -- invented the moniker for the purpose of recording an album that cashed in on the popular twist craze. The album missed the mark but, late in 1961, Gordy released Congo Twist as a single anyway. He brutally split it into two parts so it fit onto a seven inch record. Gordy also cut a shout-out to murdered Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba from the beginning of the track. Still, this record retains a wild sound, driven by drummer Benny Benjamin's relentless rhythms, which incite the African vibes alluded to in the title. The second part contains various hollers and mimicked tribal vocal sounds interspersed with the heavy drumming, tambourine and piano playing. Needless to say, this ain't your typical twist record.

Nobody

Dee Clark - Nobody But You

Here's a beautiful love song sung by Dee Clark in the very early days of soul music. Although born in Arkansas, Delecta Clark Jr. grew up in Chicago, where he started making records from a young age with a group called the Hambone Kids. Complete with unlikely but brilliant back-up vocals from The Anita Kerr Singers, Nobody But You was released on the Vee-Jay subsidiary, Abner Records in 1958. Clark was just twenty years old when it climbed to number three on the R&B chart and number twenty-one on the Billboard chart.

Move Little Man

Fred Darian - Strong Man

Fred Darian was one of the many young and hopeful folks lured to Hollywood by the promise of stardom. He served as a singer, songwriter, composer and manager, and in 1961 released the flip slide to today's offering onto the world. It didn't make much impact but some years later Strong Man became an in-demand spin on the Belgian popcorn scene. The song fits somewhat into the country genre but there's also plenty of Western style Hollywood drama built in.