honky tonk man + new jungle fever
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In the 50's, he was one of the people who invented rock'n'roll.In the 80's, he's still inventing and defining it. He seems to have only gotten stranger and more perverse through the years. He baby-talks, chirps, hiccups, moans and gasps his way through a song, 'til it becomes a little separate world on its own. His version of "Roll over Beethoven" is so full of menacing weirdness, it sounds like a song you never heard before. Charlie is a crazy magician and he knows all the tricks. But don't take my word for it. Buy this record ! Music (as far as a fan is concerned) is a game of perpetual searching. Without a trusty guide, it's sometimes hard to find your way to the ultimate buzz. In this little game, the Cramps have pointed many a-path towards any number of unsung heroes, often fairly obscure ones, but pretty much always extravagant characters. It's one reason why we keen on following them so blindly, like a kid behind his big brother. One of the name that have become familiar through their gospel is that of Charlie Feathers's. The Cramps never failed to bring him up and made their reverence even more official by putting two of his songs on records. These numbers, "I can't hardly stand it" and "It's just that song", are respectively from 1956 and 1976. But as you play them, it's quite impossible to say which one is from when. Our Man Feathers is one of a kind. The type of guy that devoted his whole life to the art of Rockabilly, not caring much about what was going on in the outside world. His legacy is a particularly violent one, borrowing a lot from hillbilly music and blues, but even more important, not affected by time. It's a rare thing and that is why the Man is such a Legend, a hidden treasure in the Great History of the Pioneers of White Rock & Roll. A simple section of his resume would be enough to make the most hardcore fans faint. Born on June 12th 1932 in Holly Springs, MA, his family moved to Memphis in 1950. There, he managed to find some work at the mythical Sun Studios where he crossed path with a fellow named Elvis Presley. This cat later recorded a song partially credited to C.F., "I forgot to remember to forget". Feathers made a few singles on his own there but couldn't get along with the owner of the place, Sam Phillips, who only saw him as a country singer. So he moved on and joined other labels of legendary status like King and Meteor, both welcoming his "Devil Music", before giving birth to his own brand, Feathers, in the second part of the 1970's. By that time, he was often touring Europe, but his records were only bought by his very few followers. Even in Memphis, his Home for life, no store was carrying them. Some said you had to go to his own house, listen religiously to the records,chat a bit, beer in hand, inorder to obtain the precious objects..Didn't I say he was one of a kind ? His rockn'roll was primitive,possessed and hot-headed. His voice haunted and his tone always right on..and often embellished by his accomplished hiccup style.Using other people's work, like Carl Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes", Roy Orbison's "Ooby Dooby" or Chuck Berry's "Rool over Beethoven", he delivered sharp readings, even in the middle of those dreadful 80's, when synth pop and rap ruled. Memphis must be under the protection of the God of the Binary Beat. On a fateful night of August 1998, the 29th, the Man screamed his last howl and a heart attack overwhelmed him.Six years later, here, brought back together on CD for the first time, are both of the long players he recorded for the New Rose label, in the second part of the 1980's.New Jungle Fever and Hoonky Tonk Man. The kind of wild rockin' sound that we need around here thezse days. Christian Eudeline Translated by Laurent Bigot |
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Who Da Say Jungle Fever Roll Over Beethoven |