Raucous Rabbit Hole 22 September

Some dates in music history are surprisingly well connected. 22 September is one of them. Let’s climb down the rabbit hole...

1954

Elvis Presley was still very much the young bloke from Memphis when Sun Records released his version of “Good Rocking Tonight”, originally recorded by R&B pioneer Roy Brown.

It became Elvis's first record to enter the Billboard pop chart.

And behind the kit on several of Elvis's Sun recordings was Johnny Bernero, born on this day in 1931. His drumming can be heard on records including “Mystery Train” and “I Forgot to Remember to Forget.”

1955

Bill Haley & His Comets were in New York recording more ammunition for the rock 'n' roll revolution, including “Burn That Candle” and “Rock-A-Beatin' Boogie.”

1956

In Dallas, Johnny Cash was appearing at the Big D Jamboree at the Sportatorium.

And look at some of the company appearing with him... Sonny James, Charline Arthur, Warren Smith and Hank Locklin.

The Sportatorium would go on to host Elvis, Wanda Jackson and plenty more. Quite a building!

1957

The rock 'n' roll explosion was now firmly embedded in popular culture.

On this date Bobby Helms appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, while elsewhere the American charts were doing their usual bit of rockin' musical misbehaviour, with high positions for:

• Jerry Lee Lewis – Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On
• The Crickets – That'll Be the Day
• Elvis Presley – (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear

Whilst parents of teenagers were insisting that all this noise would never last.

1958

The R&B department joins the party.

The Fiestas recorded “So Fine”, which would become a Top 20 hit and a Top 5 R&B hit.

And Marvin Rainwater was also in the studio, recording duets with his sister Patty.

Meanwhile, Pee Wee King was making his final RCA session, surrounded by a ridiculous collection of Nashville talent including Hank Garland, Floyd Cramer, Boots Randolph, Buddy Harman and The Jordanaires, with Chet Atkins producing.

2018

Chas Hodges died on this day, aged 74.

Long before Chas & Dave and Rabbit, Hodges was part of The Outlaws, Joe Meek's instrumental group, and became a highly respected session musician who played with the likes of Gene Vincent, Jerry Lee Lewis and Bill Haley.

AND THEN...

22 SEPTEMBER 1984

At the Klub Foot, at the Clarendon Hotel in Hammersmith, four bands took to the stage:

RESTLESS
THEE MILKSHAKES
GUANA BATZ
THE STING-RAYS

And somebody had the bright idea of recording the whole thing!

The result was Stomping At The Klub Foot, the first volume of what became one of the defining live documents of the British psychobilly scene.

Four bands. Sixteen tracks. One very sweaty room.

And a record that captured a moment when rockabilly wasn't sitting politely in a museum. It was alive, fast and very loud.

The lovely thing about this date....

Back in 1954, Elvis was taking R&B and turning it into something new.

Thirty years later, a bunch of British kids who had grown up on that music were taking it somewhere else entirely.

Different decades.
Different clothes.
Different hair.

Same disease... ROCK 'N' ROLL. 🎸