Song of the Week: Gene Vincent and his Blue Caps - Race With the Devil/Gonna Back Up Baby

Race With The Devil

Gonna Back Up Baby

[originally published on 8/20/13. Reposted today in honor of Cliff Gallup's birthday]

For my money, Gene Vincent's second single, was the best he and the Blue Caps ever did. Race With The Devil was written by Gene Vincent (I discount all cases of the manager being given equal writing credit, as is the case on this disc) and recorded in Nashville on May 1st, 1956. This was the same inaugural session that provided yesterday's double sided gem, Be-Bop-A-Lula and Woman Love.

Race With The Devil is well named. This song sounds just like one would think a race with a devil would sound. If those races had soundtracks, that is. The highlight of the song is without question the two guitar breaks by Cliff Gallup. The tone, attack and stylings of his two solos typify Rockabilly perhaps better than any other song. Gallup used a 1955 Gretsch Duojet played through his Standel 25L15 amp and his home made echo box to create the delicious tone.

We're also giving you the Flip-Side, Gonna Back Up Baby, which showcases Gallup's Bigsby vibrato in great form. 

Until next time, we'll see you On The Flip-Side!

Song of the Week: Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps - Be-Bop-A-Lula/Woman Love

Be-Bop-A-Lula

Woman Love

These early Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps singles are just amazing. Gene Vincent was a crazed rockabilly rebel before there were ever crazed rockabilly rebels. Gene Vincent grew up in Norfolk Virginia and served in the US Navy until 1955 when a motorcycle accident crushed his leg and left him unfit for service. He turned to his old love, music, and started performing around the tidewaters of Virginia where a local DJ, Sheriff Tex Davis, took note. Davis took over management and assembled a new, better band, for Vincent. One of those musicians was an older gentleman by the name of Cliff Gallup. His guitar work on these early Blue Caps singles (he was only in the band for the first 18 months) lift these songs from great to spectacular. 

We listen today to both sides of Gene Vincent's first single, released in May of 1956 for Capitol Records. It's the well known Gene Vincent penned tune, Be-Bop-A-Lula with the less well known Flip-Side, Woman Love.

Until next time, we'll see you On The Flip-Side!

Song of the Week: "Summertime", Gene Vincent

And now for something completely different. Here is perhaps the most unique arrangement of Summertime I have ever heard. And considering the Billy Stewart scat-version posted just two days ago, that is really something. It's by rockabilly legend Gene Vincent and it was released on the album A Gene Vincent Record Date in 1958. (Me thinks Vincent did NOT choose the name on the album). I'm not even sure what genre or style this would be? It's not rockabilly is it? Rumba with Jazz influences? All I know is that it is an absolutely fab version of the song that owes parentage to know one but Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps. Guitarist Johnny Meeks -- who spent a career being referred to as the lesser guitarist in the Blue Caps (to guitar recluse Cliff Gallup) -- is absolutely brilliant here on his out-of-phase Telecaster. Meeks' guitar work is a constant shiv to the ear and it gets a well deserved lead in the middle, the highlight of which is the single note stutter stop in the middle right before he switches pickups. Listen for the second guitar on this. It's got a cool little budda-dump-bum-bum-bump-dee-dum-dum riff played throughout that is buried deep into the mix. It can be heard best in the background during the guitar lead. Rumor has it that Eddie Cochran played on some tracks of this album. Could that be him on second guitar? The piano work, which also gets a nice little lead, is spritely and tips its hat to jazz influences. The drumming propels the song along with a wicked little Caribbean backbeat. Back up vocals (done perhaps by the Jordanaires) give a creamy smooth feel to the song. And Gene Vincent himself, drenched in echo -- croons through the song with complete confidence. Bottom line -- this is not the dark brooding version done by so many others (see the Zombies' take on Summertime). I absolutely love this version of the song and am willing to bet that you will too. Click here to listen to Gene Vincent's radical take on Summertime. Until tomorrow, enjoy your Summertime.