THE NATURAL

Last night I turned on the TV, and it happened to be on a channel showing the 1959 film Go, Johnny, Go, and it was at the exact moment that some MC was introducing Eddie Cochran. I was dumbstruck. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would happen onto an Eddie Cochran clip on TV, completely at random. It's really not a sort of planets aligned type miracle, I know, but hear me out. A lot of you monkeys may have grown up with the internet, and YouTube. I did not. I was listening to Eddie Cochran for decades before I saw moving any images of him, and then it was on a gazillionth generation copy of some old clip that had never been released on VHS. All I could think about when I watching the clip was how my teenage self would have absolutely flipped over seeing it. The song was "Teenage Heaven", and is a great song, though not his absolute best (though even the worst Cochran is worth hearing). There is a little bit of weirdness, when he Cochran dances with his guitar during the sax solo (see it at 1:00, full song linked below). It was only about three minutes, but it was another ten minutes of Cochran related memories.

Most of you probably know these songs well. They're really for those less familiar with Cochran. If you don't know him at all, a thumbnail is in order. He was a first generation rocker, expert picker, pals with Gene Vincent, dated a songwriter, died in a car crash and was practically deified by three young brothers in Ocean Beach, California. If you are familiar with Cochran, you still may not have seen him act. Check the first three minutes of the clip from the film Untamed Youth. He's no Brando, but it is novel seeing him play a twitching JD.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues mp3 at Snuhthing Anything
Eddie Cochran - Somethin' Else mp3 at Joe Sotroiano's Blog
Eddie Cochran - C'mon Everybody mp3 at Rocky 52
Eddie Cochran - Nervous Breakdown mp3 at  Mp3 Rockabilly
Eddie Cochran - Jeanie, Jeanie, Jeanie mp3 at Mp3 Rockabilly
Eddie Cochran - Sittin' In the Balcony mp3 at Joe Sotroiano's Blog
Podcast:
Eddie Cochran's Birthday Bash mp3 at Truckers, Shuckers, Freaks and Geeks Over an hour long!
Eddie Cochran's Birthday Bash (streaming) at Truckers, Shuckers, Freaks and Geeks Same as above, streaming
Video:
Eddie Cochran - Teenage Heaven at YouTube  From Go, Johnny, Go!
Eddie Cochran - Twenty Flight Rock at YouTube From The Girl Can't Help It. In color!
Eddie Cochran - In Untamed Youth at YouTube The first three and a half minutes.