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Vincent Eugene Craddock, 11 February 1935, Norfolk, Virginia, USA, d. 12 October 1971, Newhall, California, USA. One of the original bad boys of rock n roll, the self-destructive Vincent was involved in a motorcycle crash in July 1955 and his left leg was permanently damaged. Discharged from the US Navy, he began appearing on country music radio and came under th
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Albert Burgess, 28 May 1931, Newport, Arkansas, USA. As a child Burgess earned the name Sonny as a result of his father also being called Albert. Inspired by the Grand Ole Opry show transmitted over WSMs airwaves, he set about learning to play a catalogue-purchased guitar. He joined his first country band while at high school, eventually moving from the rol
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Edward Raymond Cochrane, 3 October 1938, Albert Lea, Minnesota, USA, d. 17 April 1960, Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. Recent information states he was raised in Minnisota, but without sight of the birth certificate, it is still possible he was born in Oklahoma City. Although Cochrans career was brief, during which time he had only had one major hit in the USA and topp
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Giovanni Dominico Scafone Jnr., 24 January 1936, Windsor, Ontario, Canada. This distinctive, deep-voiced rock n roll and ballad singer-songwriter moved to Detroit at the age of 10, and began performing regularly with his sister Linda on the WEXL radio station. After changing his name to Jack Scott, he formed the C&W outfit Southern Drifters in 1954. Playing a
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Delmar Allen Hawkins, 22 August 1936, Goldmine, Louisiana, USA. Born into a musical family where his father Delmar, and later. his younger brother Jerry were both musicians. The latter recorded three unsuccessful singles. Dale Hawkins was one of the earliest exponents of rockabilly, and this underrated singer-guitarist was discovered in 1955 by Shreveport record distributor
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Carl Lee Perkins, 9 April 1932, Ridgely, Tennessee, USA (his birth certificate misspelled the last name as Perkings), d. 19 January 1998, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. Carl Perkins was one of the most renowned rockabilly artists recording for Sun Records in the 50s and the author of the classic song Blue Suede Shoes. As a guitarist, he influenced many of the next ge
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Robert Thomas Velline, 30 April 1943, Fargo, North Dakota, USA. Vees first exposure to the rock n roll scene occurred in macabre circumstances when his group, the Shadows, deputized for Buddy Holly after the singer was killed in an air crash in February 1959. Soon after, Vees group were discovered by famed producer Snuff Garrett and saw their indepen
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Robert Ridarelli, 26 April 1942, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Probably the most musically talented of the late 50s Philadelphia school of clean-cut teen-idols, Rydell first performed in public as a drummer at the age of seven. At nine he debuted on Paul Whitemans Teen Club amateur television show and was the shows regular drummer for three years. He attended
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13 March 1939, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. Pianist Sedaka began his songwriting career with lyricist Howard Greenfield in the early 50s. During this high school period, Sedaka dated Carol Klein (later known as Carole King). For a brief period, Sedaka joined the Tokens, then won a scholarship to New Yorks Juilliard School of Music. In 1958, the pianist joine
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20 April 1939, Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Tillotsons father was a country music disc jockey and Johnny himself was appearing on local radio from the age of nine. His parents encouraged his talent by giving him first a ukulele and then a guitar, and he was influenced by the singing cowboys (Gene Autry, Roy Rogers) and country singer Hank Williams. He appeared regularly
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5 October 1933, Pocahontas, Arkansas, USA. One of the unsung members of the early Sun Records roster, Billy Lee Rileys recordings for the label remain among the most uninhibited rock n roll sides to be released during the mid- to late 50s.
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28 October 1941, Yuma, Arizona, USA. Lee was the beneficiary of two great 1961 productions by Phil Spector, Pretty Little Angel Eyes (US Top 10) and Under The Moon Of Love (US Top 50). In the UK, Pretty Little Angel Eyes was a minor hit record, going no higher than 47 in 1961. Lee began his recording career in 1959, and the following year
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Francis Avallone, 18 September 1940, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. This photogenic 50s teen idol started as a trumpet-playing child prodigy. His first recordings in 1954 were the instrumentals Trumpet Sorrento and Trumpet Tarantella on X-Vik Records (an RCA Records subsidiary). In the mid-50s, he appeared on many television and radio shows includin
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