"…Birth Of The Boogie…"
For something so supposedly throwaway
- our fave genre has sure as Hell gone the distance. December 2015 past was the
60th Anniversary for the release of this extraordinary 12” piece of
vinyl of ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’ mayhem – BILL HALEY and his COMETS giving it some of
that devilish “Rock Around The Clock”. And when you think of it’s cultural
impact – it’s hard to believe that in some – it’s been cruelly forgotten.
This May 2004 American CD
reissue on Universal/Geffen/Decca B0001705-02 (Barcode 602498613627) gives us
all 12-tracks of Bill Haley’s original US Mono album "Rock Around The
Clock" (with his Comets) released just a week before the Christmas
festivities of 1955.
Part of Universal’s “Rock ‘n’
Roll 50th Anniversary” CD Series (see below) - it's remastered to gorgeous
sound quality from 1st generation master tapes by ERICK LABSON of Universal – a
Sound Engineer who has over 1000 credits to his name for audio restoration and
mastering. Its bonus tracks are 3-sides of two singles issued in or around the
release of the vinyl album. Here’s a detailed breakdown of what’s what (39:33
minutes):
1. (We’re Gonna) Rock Around
The Clock
2. Shake, Rattle & Roll
3. A.B.C. Boogie
4. Thirteen Women (And Only
One Man In Town)
5. Razzle-Dazzle
6. Two Hound Dogs
7. Dim, Dim The Lights (I
Want Some Atmosphere) [Side 2]
8. Happy Baby
9. Birth Of The Boogie
10. Mambo Rock
11. Burn That Candle
12. Rock-A-Beatin’ Boogie
Tracks 1 to 12 are the MONO
album “Rock Around The Clock” – released 19 December 1955 in the USA on Decca
BL 8225 and June 1956 in the UK on Brunswick LAT-8117. It peaked at No. 2 in
the UK in August 1956.
BONUS TRACKS:
13. R-O-C-K
14. The Saints Rock ‘N’ Roll
15. See You Later, Alligator
Excepting one track [7/B] -
this CD reissue will allow the listener to sequence all of Haley's eight Decca
7" singles of the time as follows:
1. (We're Gonna) Rock Around The Clock [1] b/w
Thirteen Women (And Only One Man In Town) [4] (1954, Decca 29124)
2. Shake, Rattle & Roll [2] b/w ABC Boogie
[3] (1954, Decca 29204)
3. Dim, Dim The Lights (I Want Some Atmosphere)
[7] b/w Happy Baby (1954, Decca 29317)
4. Mambo Rock [10] b/w Birth Of The Boogie [9]
(1955, Decca 29418)
5. Razzle Dazzle [5] b/w Two Hound Dogs [6]
(1955, Decca 29552)
6. Rock-A-Beatin' Boogie [12] b/w Burn That
Candle [11] (1955, Decca 29713)
7. See You Later, Alligator [15] b/w The Paper
Boy (On Main Street, USA) [not included] (1956, Decca 29791)
8. R-O-C-K [13] b/w The Saints Rock 'n' Roll
[14] (1956, Decca 29870)
It's a bit of an omission
leaving out "The Mail Boy (On Main Street, USA)" (the B-side to
"See You Later, Alligator") - but the fifteen songs provided above
are that rarity - all killer and no filler - every last one of them released on
45 because they were ace crowd pleasers. The 16-page booklet is lovely to look
at with that gorgeous colour cover as the first page and the rear sleeve as the
last. Inbetween you get expert liner notes by noted writer and Grammy winner
BILL DAHL as well as recording credits. But the big news is a fabulous ERICK
LABSON Remaster that makes these 15 slices of musical history - sing as never
before.
More of a compilation of hits
that a pre-planned ‘album’ per say – that doesn’t really hold truck. Right from
the off - the joy of the band is audible in every song and you can feel why
people went nuts for "Rock 'n' Roll". You can just imagine the new
teenagers of the USA (and everywhere else for that matter) sitting down in
their local movie theatre glued to the opening credits of "Blackboard
Jungle". Then Bill Haley's irresistible and infectious "Rock Around
The Clock" comes out of the speakers and literally blows away the cobwebs
of a hurting decade after the Second World War. It must have seemed like a
cultural Atom Bomb - and best of all - scared the living crap out of their
parents. A sense of sly fun pervades the whole record (dancing in the aisles).
Songs like his cover of Big
Joe Turner’s “Shake, Rattle & Roll” and the witty “Thirteen Women (And Only
One Man In Town)” took Britain by storm too - mobbed at Waterloo Station in
London in 1957. The audio quality on “ABC Boogie” (a teacher up from Basin street)
and “Razzle Dazzle” (it’s the hipsters dance and square cats too) is shockingly
good. That irresistible trademark double bass backbeat, the miked-up and
in-your-face drums all bolstered by zippy guitar licks – the whole combines to
make your feet tap and your hip replacements swing (daddy-o). Other gems on
there are “Burn That Candle” and the smash single “See You Later, Alligator”
which along with Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” - must be one of the most
copied songs ever…
So why then is Haley seen by
some as 'Uncle Bill'? Haley was 30 when the album was released and yet somehow
he seemed older (some even felt he was a pretender). The album came out in
December 1955 - but two months later a kid from Tupelo would make it in early
1956 and make Bill seem redundant overnight. Given his good looks, his voice
and his sheer animal magnetism - it's easy to see why Elvis would be adopted as
the true "King of Rock 'n' Roll" by the teens only months after Haley
broke down the door. Elvis was cool - Haley was your Dad.
Yet although Elvis ripped the
entire fabric of the known Universe apart in 1956 - this extraordinary album is
where it all really started for Rock 'n' Roll and Bill Haley should be loved
for that. Haley laid the groundwork and Elvis, Little Richard, Gene Vincent,
Eddie Cochran, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers - they all followed in his
footsteps - and all prospered because of him.
You can't help but think that
this album and Haley himself are forgotten - and they shouldn't be. A fantastic
listen and an important and timely CD reissue - "Rock Around The
Clock" is surely one of the great debut albums and a catalyst for so much
joy to come (that we now take for granted).
Start your journey to the
dark side here children - and swear to your parents you'll only look at Elvis
and Bill from the waist up...
PS: It should also be noted
that this issue is part of the 'ROCK 'n' ROLL 50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION' Series
issued in 2004 by Universal in the USA.
'Rock 'N' Roll 50th Anniversary
Edition' is a secondary series title and is displayed vertically on the side
inlay beneath the see-through tray of each release, but unfortunately, if you
try to search databases for ANY titles under this moniker, it doesn't recognize
the name at all. For those interested - the series includes:
1. After School Session by
CHUCK BERRY (1958 debut LP on Chess)
2. St. Louis To Liverpool by
CHUCK BERRY (1964 STEREO LP on Chess)
3. The Chirping Crickets by
THE CRICKETS (1957 debut LP featuring BUDDY HOLLY)
4. Bo Diddley Is A Gunslinger
by BO DIDDLEY (1960 STEREO LP on Checker)
5. Rock Around The Clock by
BILL HALEY & HIS COMETS (1955 LP on Decca)
6. Buddy Holly by BUDDY HOLLY
(1958 1st solo LP on Coral)
7. Rock, Rock, Rock! Original
Soundtrack by VARIOUS (Chuck Berry, The Flamingos and The Moonglows) (1956
Chess 'Rock'n'Roll Movie Soundtrack LP)
I bought all 7 of these
titles and I can't recommend them enough - each album remastered, colour
artwork lovingly restored and each bolstered up with 3 to 5 relevant releases
from the time (many previously unreleased). Fans of Haley, Holly, The Crickets,
Berry, Diddley and Rock'n'Roll in general should quickly acquire all of these
exemplary CDs. They make for the best basis of a collection in a minefield of
lesser compilations…and it’s dirt-cheap too…
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