The purpose of this page is to try ( and I mean TRY ) to define Rockabilly music to people, who otherwise have never come in contact with this style of music. First of all I would like to stress the fact that Rockabilly is in no way a sub-genre of Rock'n'Roll, Country or Blues - it is more of a hybrid of the three individual styles. Now I know that a lot of purists will scream murder at this definition, that is why I must again emphasize that this is MY INTERPRETATION of the Rockabilly style.
Rockabilly did not just 'pop up' out of nowhere, it was in the air long before Elvis Presley ever laid a foot in the SUN Studio, but was never referred to as Rockabilly until later years - actually, as is clearly obvious on The Johnny Burnette Trio's 'Rock Billy Boogie', it was originally called the way this song's spelled, omitting the 'a'. That makes me think the definition was taken as a derivative from Hillbilly - Hillbilly -> Rockbilly - sounds plausible, doesn't it ?!
What actually happened on that fateful day in 1954, when Elvis, Scotty & Bill cooked up the most energetic ( again MY opinion ) hybrid of music ever created, has been elaborately written about, thus I will refrain from citing it again here. However, I will take this track, 'That's All Right Mama', as an example to try to explain how this musical style works.
The basic arrangement of the instrumentation remains the same on ALL Rockabilly records - you have a rhythm guitar, mostly acoustic, an electric lead guitar with a good portion of echo and the most important feature, an upright string bass. Now, whether you want to call it a doghouse bass, just plain upright or bull fiddle, I think the best name for it is slap bass !
That brings me to the technique utilized by most bass players in Rockabilly bands, also by KEVIN SMITH, the 'slap'. This actually describes the hand of the bassist striking the neck of the instrument ( slapping it ), creating a clearly audible thumping sound. Next, the string is pulled away from the neck with one or more forefingers and released shorty thereafter. The clicking sound of the string snapping back onto the wooden neck makes up the second part of the pattern. From there it's just repeat steps one to three. This 'Ta-click-ta-clack-ta-click-ta-clack ....' sound is the most important ingredient to Rockabilly, which is also why I didn't mention an electric bass earlier - you just can't make Rockabilly records with an electric fender bass, as it lacks the percussive rhythm clicking noise.
This, of course, most certainly does not go for the drums. You can either use them or not ( as is the case in HIGH NOON ), it works great both ways. As for the guitar sound, there is no optimal setting I could explain here, you'd have to listen to some classic Rockabilly recordings to get the idea - or to SEAN MENCHER's guitar sound, which grabs the two parts of the word 'Rock' a 'Billy' by the root and combigns open string solos, single and double string licks with ample use of Travis-style guitar picking.
The vocal is another important aspect in Rockabilly. It should be rough cut and edgy, but also sweet enough to milk the honey from a honey comb at times. Elvis could span several octaves with his voice, thus leaving almost no desires left towards the key of the song. The same applies to SHAUN YOUNG. When he cuts loose, you can not withstand his charisma, you just have to listen. Ample use of slap-back echo on the voice also adds to the mood.
So, by putting together these instruments and interpreting a Blues song by Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup in a Hillbilly-like fashion, speeding it up and running the whole recording through the 'echo-chamber', Sam Phillips recorded some of the earliest Rockabilly records. All in all, these were just white country boys doing music that was declared 'black' in those days. Elvis was thought to be a black kid before a radio interviewer saw Elvis in person for the first time, shortly after 'That's All Right Mama' has been released. Legend has it that Buddy Holly & The Crickets were booked to an early Rock'n'Roll show only because the promoter thought they were black. Imagine his shock, when he found out the oposite .....
Well, I hope this brought the term Rockabilly a little closer for all of you, to end I would like to mention a couple of all-time favorites of mine, so that you'll have something to look for when you go and buy yourself a Rockabilly record -
ROBERT GORDON -
Driving Wheel ( 1981 )
Personnel :
Robert Gordon - vocal
Danny Gatton - guitar
Lance Quinn - guitar
Tony Garnier - acoustic bass
Shannon Ford - drums
Available on BCD15446 ( Bear Family Records ) 'Robert Gordon - Is
Red Hot'
JAMES INTVELD - King
Cry-Baby ( 1990 )
Personnel : unknown
Available on MCA 2292-57183-2 'Cry Baby - Motion Picture
Soundtrack'
BATMOBILE - S.P.O.C.K.
( 1991 )
Personnel :
Jeroen Haarmers - vocal, guitar
Eric Haamers - slap bass
Jonny Zuidhof - drums
Available on C.O.C.K. IX ( Count Orlok Records ) 'Batmobile - Sex
Starved'
GENE VINCENT - Be Bop
A Lula ( 1956 )
Personnel :
Gene Vincent - vocal
Cliff Gallup - lead guitar
Willie Williams - rhythm guitar
Jack Neal - upright bass
Dickie Harrell - drums
Available on EMI CDS 94593 2 'The Gene Vincent Box Set' ( 6 CDs )
CARL PERKINS - Honey
Don't ( 1956 )
Personnel :
Carl Perkins - vocal, guitar
James 'Buck' Perkins - rhythm guitar
Lloyd 'Clayton' Perkins - upright bass
W.S. Holland - drums
Available on BCD 15494 ( Bear Family Records ) 'The Classic Carl
Perkins' ( 5 CDs )
BUDDY HOLLY - I'm
Gonna Set My Foot Right Down ( 1956 )
Personnel :
Buddy Holly - vocal, guitar
Sonny Curtis - rhythm guitar
Don Guess - bass
Jerry Allison - drums
Available on NORVAJAK CD 855 'Buddy Holly - The Stereo Versions'
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