VA • Rock This Town - Rockabilly Hits

 

VA • Chess Rockabillies

Although Chess Records' reputation firmly rests on their monumental achievements in the blues and rhythm & blues field (and rightly so), the label also recorded -- or leased from other labels -- a fair amount of high-quality rockabilly music. Much of this interest came from Chuck Berry's success in the pop market with "Maybellene," and was followed by the leasing of Dale Hawkins' hit "Susie Q." This 19-track collection gathers up many of the singles that Chess issued during that flurry of activity, with the addition of a couple of unissued sides. "Sugaree" by Rusty York was originally cut for Note and appears here off the stereo master, a surprising audio development for a rock & roll record from 1959. Not many African-Americans were willing to adapt to the new shakin' music, but those that did usually came up with fine results, and West Coast bluesman Johnny Fuller's "All Night Long," and G.L. Crockett's "Look Out Mabel," featuring Earl Hooker on guitar, are prime examples of the form. Later Nashville session stalwart Hargus "Pig" Robbins clocks in with two tracks of piano-pumping rock & roll, as does Russell Bridges (later to reincarnate as Leon Russell) with a very Jerry Lee-like "All Right." Fans of guitar-driven Southern-style rockabilly will positively revel in the inclusion of Bobby Sisco's "Tall Dark Handsome Man" with its fine guitar solos, Billy Barrix's rewriting of "Baby Let's Play House," with his "Cool Off Baby," and "Love Me" by Jimmy Lee and Wayne Walker, the duo that gave the label its first hit in the country field. Other notable tracks include "Roses Are Blooming" by Bob Silva & the Silva-Tones, and Memphis rockabilly man Gene Simmons' bluesy "The Shape You Left Me In." -- Cub Coda, allmusic.com

 

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Aunque la reputación de Chess Records descansa firmemente en sus monumentales logros en el campo del blues y el rhythm & blues (y con razón), el sello también grabó -o alquiló a otros sellos- una buena cantidad de música rockabilly de alta calidad. Gran parte de este interés provino del éxito de Chuck Berry en el mercado pop con "Maybellene", y fue seguido por el alquiler del éxito de Dale Hawkins "Susie Q". Esta colección de 19 pistas recoge muchos de los singles que Chess emitió durante esa oleada de actividad, con la adición de un par de lados no emitidos. "Sugaree", de Rusty York, se editó originalmente para Note y aparece aquí en el master estéreo, una sorprendente novedad sonora para un disco de rock & roll de 1959. No muchos afroamericanos estaban dispuestos a adaptarse a la nueva música shakin', pero los que lo hacían solían obtener buenos resultados, y "All Night Long" del bluesman de la Costa Oeste Johnny Fuller, y "Look Out Mabel" de G.L. Crockett, con Earl Hooker a la guitarra, son excelentes ejemplos de la forma. Más tarde, el incondicional de las sesiones de Nashville, Hargus "Pig" Robbins, se encargó de dos temas de rock & roll con piano, al igual que Russell Bridges (que más tarde se reencarnaría en Leon Russell) con un tema muy al estilo de Jerry Lee, "All Right". Los fans del rockabilly de estilo sureño impulsado por la guitarra se deleitarán positivamente con la inclusión de "Tall Dark Handsome Man" de Bobby Sisco con sus finos solos de guitarra, la reescritura de Billy Barrix de "Baby Let's Play House", con su "Cool Off Baby", y "Love Me" de Jimmy Lee y Wayne Walker, el dúo que dio al sello su primer éxito en el campo del country. Otros temas notables son "Roses Are Blooming", de Bob Silva & the Silva-Tones, y el bluesy "The Shape You Left Me In", del rockabilly de Memphis Gene Simmons. -- Cub Coda, allmusic.com 

VA • London American Rockabilly

 

VA • The Chess Rockabilly Story #1

 

VA • The Chess Rockabilly Story #2