Thursday, April 17, 2014

WHAT MEMO?

Dig that photo. If you know them and their music, you know. That the photo has baddass written all over it. Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent in 1960, shortly before Cochran's death, (He was killed in a car crash. Vincent, who was also in the car, was spared.) I like the fact that it's got this ying-yang thing going on, with Vincent, clad completely in leather, rogue-like features and half a gallon of greasy kids stuff, juxtaposed with Cochran, all handsome and shit, looking like he's going to meet someone's mother. I ran into it yesterday and had to post it, hence the Gene Vincent cuts below (Cochran was posted yesterday). Hey, it's been a couple years since there's been any Gene Vincent posted here, so, you know, what the hell. (A much larger version of the photo can be seen here.) Note to first timers: Vincent reissues are insanely cheap, especially given the caliber of music they contain. I'd start with the first two, Blue Jean Bop, and the self titled Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps, his second album, available together on a two-fer, for a paltry fifteen American dollars. Just consider the price of that fancy beer you're drinking, then make your decision. It's a litmus test, fool.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Blue Jean Bop mp3 at RStrathdee
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Crazy Legs mp3 at RStrathdee
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Rollin' Danny mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Bop Street mp3 at Rocky 52
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Woman Love mp3 at Rocky 52
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - Baby Blue mp3 at Mp3 Rockabilly
Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps - B-I-Bickey-Bi Bo-Bo-Go mp3 at Mp3 Rockabilly

3 comments:

espen e. said...

Telepathy?

Commenting on yesterdays Cochran post, I was going to mention that I had – in previous bands – done "psychobilly" (well, sort of) version of "Nervous Breakdown"… AND, incidentally; Vincent's "Woman Love"!!

Decided not to, and deleted it from my comment. So, when I see Gene posted this morning, I'm wondering about the cyberspace alignment here… Wikileaks?

I know posting Vincent after Cochran follows a natural flow, but still… Felt obligated to let you know.

E.

Tom G. said...

That's uncanny. It's funny, after seeing that photo I was thinking of combining the two on the first post, but decided that Vincent deserved his own. So, it's your telepathy, man.

What do the rodents listen to?

espen e. said...

Re: rodents (aka. Isak and Kiril)

The other day Kiril (6 y.o.) came running (uncanny pt. II, ‘cause this was the day you brought up 2-tone!) with a Best of Specials CD ("On My Radio" is/was a favorite of Isak) and wanted me to play "James Bond – the Killer»…

Anyway, very few «children’s» albums in this home that’s for sure… Of course, I can’t – and shouldn’t – keep out all «outside» musical influences (there’s YouTube at school for one), which leads to some requests that I grudgingly allow, and some that I blankly refuse. Main thing is I’ve always tried to make them aware that there’s more than what the mainstream has to offer, but realize I have to keep it "kid-accessible»… so in that vein, some all-time favorites of theirs would be: Devo, Beastie Boys, The Residents, Wall of Voodoo, any song with «Batman" in the title… stuff like that. And, oh yes – almost forgot – they’ve both had serious hang-ups on Depeche Mode (sole courtesy of their mother)!

Early on (in parenting) I learnt this regarding children and music: visuals are pretty much all-important (although translating weird band-names, lyrics or band-related stories can be little fish-hooks too)… Of course this goes for us as well, but for kids it counts double. Isak (when 3 or 4 years old) was browsing my records, saying «Boring!.. Boooring!» out loud, for every record he pulled out for inspection. Suddenly: «Oooh! ROBOTS! Could you play this one?!»… and there – in his hand – a Man or Astroman? CD – with, you guessed it, ROBOTS on the cover.

Later, a friend of mine, who knew what a big fan of Godzilla (Toho) Isak was, gave him a copy of the Godzilla soundtracks ’56-'73 (or something) for his (4th or 5th) birthday, and Isak listened to that intensively for several years, freaking out a couple playmates in the process (seriously!).

I could go on, but suffice to say they’re pretty patient with what the eclectic house DJ (me) spins, and show impressive resilience – and acceptance – to some of the noise they’re subjected to.

e