Rocks

by Eddie Cochran

Overview

With his good looks, energetic stage presence, and intense love of electric guitar (not to mention the talent to use it as more than a prop), Eddie Cochran was the prototypical early rocker in the mid- to late '50s, and he foreshadowed, perhaps even more than Elvis Presley, the shape and form the nascent rock genre would take in the following decade. His recording career was brief, lasting only a little over four years, and his life was tragically short as well -- he died in 1960 and was only 21 years old -- but his legacy is a large one, topped by his near-perfect rock teen anthem "Summertime Blues," a song that continues to resonate and ring true 50 years after its original release in 1958. This fine 35-track single-disc sampler set from Bear Family Records collects the best rockers from Cochran's stay at Sylvester Cross' Crest Records and his later run at Liberty Records, covering Cochran's complete studio career from 1956 to 1960. These sides crackle with joy and energy, even if some of them, particularly the early Crest ones, are really little more than song demos. That Cochran loved what he was doing is obvious in tracks like "Skinny Jim," "Am I Blue," "Twenty-Flight Rock" (his second studio version is presented here), the immortal "Summertime Blues" (in the U.S. single version), and his final studio recording, "Cut Across Shorty," which is presented here at its original and intended speed -- for some reason the 1960 single was speeded up, raising everything nearly a full pitch. Simply put, in the parlance of the day, this guy was a cool cat -- the evidence for that is here. ~ Steve Leggett

Product Details

Release Date:	04/26/2013
Label:	Bear Family Records
UPC:	4000127171368
Rank:	68037

Tracks

1. Pink-Peg [Version 1]
2. Blue Suede Shoes
3. Long Tall Sally
4. Twenty Flight Rock [Version 1]
5. Completely Sweet [Version 1]
6. Pink-Peg Slacks [Version 2]
7. Mighty Mean
8. Skinny Jim
9. One Kiss
10. Mean When I'm Mad
11. Am I Blue
12. Twenty-Flight Rock [Version 2]
13. Completely Sweet [Version 2]
14. Stockings and Shoes
15. Cradle Baby
16. Sweetie Pie
17. Pretty Girl
18. Jeannie, Jeannie, Jeannie
19. Teenage Cutie
20. Little Lou
21. Cruisin' The Drive-In
22. Nervous Breakdown [Version 1]
23. Summertime Blues [US Single Version]
24. Ah, Pretty Girl [Guitar Overdub]
25. Nervous Breakdown [Version 2]
26. Let's Get Together
27. Teenage Heaven [Movie Version]
28. C'mon Everybody [Speeded Up]
29. My Way
30. Teenage Heaven [Version 2]
31. Weekend
32. Somethin' Else
33. Jelly Bean
34. Don't Bye, Bye Baby Me
35. Cut Across Shorty

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Eddie Cochran   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals,Drum Overdubs,Guitar (Rhythm)
The Johnny Mann Chorus   Primary Artist,Choir/Chorus
Connie "Guybo" Smith   Bass (Electric)
Gene Riggio   Drums
Jim Stivers   Piano
Conrad Smith   Bass
Guybo Smith   Bass (Electric)
Jewell Grant   Saxophone
Sonny Curtis   Guitar
Jesse Sailes   Drums
Irving Ashby   Guitar
Jackie Kelso   Saxophone
Earl Palmer   Drums
Jerry Allison   Drums
Plas Johnson   Saxophone,Sax (Tenor)
Ray Johnson   Piano
Hank Cochran   Guitar (Rhythm)
Conrad "Guybo" Smith   Bass,Standup Bass,Bass (Electric)
Warren Crosby   Bass (Vocal)
Perry Botkin   Guitar (Rhythm)
Dave Shriver   Bass (Electric)
Ray Stanley   Piano
Jewell L. Grant   Saxophone

Technical Credits

R.A. Andreas   Illustrations,Photography
Robert "Bumps" Blackwell   Composer
Mario Roccuzzo   Composer
Grant Clarke   Composer
Maurice McCall   Composer
Sharon Sheeley   Composer
Ricky Page   Composer
Eddie Daniels   Composer
Enotris Johnson   Composer
Doree Post   Composer
Bill Post   Composer
Carl Perkins   Composer
Eddie Cochran   Leader,Composer,Guitar Overdubs
Richard Weize   Discography
Hank Cochran   Composer
Richard Penniman   Composer
Juergen Crasser   Mastering
Antoon Van Olderen   Discography,Photography,Illustrations,Reissue Producer
Simon Jackson   Producer
Russ Wapensky   Discography
Ned Fairchild   Composer
Andreas Merck   Photo Scanning
Wayne Walker   Composer
Jerry Capehart   Composer
Stuart Colman   Discography
George Mottola   Composer
Harry Akst   Composer
Marijohn Wilkin   Composer
Terry Fell   Composer