Stray Cats ‘Built For Speed‘ (1982) 4.0/$$$
The Greatest Hits from the Soul of Texas (compilation 1984) 3.5/$
Chess Rockabillies (1984 compilation) 4.0/$$$
I’m going to do a three-for-one here as I wander back and forth from R’s and S’s to continue the, more or less, alphabetical countdown of my 678 records.
Rockabilly is the collision in the latter half of the 1950s of country and R&B. With a twang and a beat, it was hillbilly music with a touch of soul. The Stray Cats hit the scene in the 1980s introducing a new generation to rockabilly, retrofitted for the 1980s. Songs like Rock this Town and Stray Cat Blues managed to sound current even though the group retains authenticity.
The Cat’s version of rockabilly was quite a success with Brian Setzer’s blazing guitar leading the way. My other two albums I’m introducing to you contain real rockabilly from the time before it even had the ‘rockabilly’ tag.
The 1984 compilation Chess Rockabillies is a wonderful record. A compilation of the genre by artists you don’t know with the possible exception of Dale Hawkins who kills it with Suzy Q, a soul-based ‘billy number notably covered by Credence Clearwater Revival.
The third record is an odd sort of compilation album: ‘The Greatest Hits of the Soul of Texas’ has a smiling cheesecake photo of a woman — who looks like she comes frpm the HeeHaw TV show — on the cover, and features artists such as The Traits, Roy Head, and Sunny and the Sunliners. The album is one in a series (I think) from Scepter Records.