CRAZY, CRAZY ROCKIN' : JOHNNY CARROLL's DECCA YEARS ON PAUL VIDAL's BIG V JAMBOREE

When I look back, I recall that I first heard of Johnny Carroll more than a decade after having played my first records by Gene Vincent. In the '70s, Johnny was rediscovered largely thanks to his three Decca singles and after Ronny Weiser signed him to his Rollin' Rock label, he enjoyed a fabulous comeback. The July 1980 issue of GOLDMINE Magazine carried the best piece ever written on Johnny - from the pen of noted collector & musician, John Blair.
One of Carroll's best-known compositions, 'Black Leather Rebel', was a vibrant homage to Gene Vincent - an influence already palpable in previous recordings such as 'The Swing' (WB F 5042, 1959) on which former Blue Caps, Grady Owen (bass) and Howard Reed (lead guitar), played.

.However, much to my surprise, I discovered that Johnny Carroll had begun recording before his Virginian hero ! Gene cut his first Capitol session in Nashville on May 4, 1956, at Owen Bradley's Studio, exactly one week after Johnny's two Decca sessions at the same location ! Did the two men meet down there ? I don't know but I don't think so. As a result, Johnny showed as much originality in the studio as Gene would show a few days afterwards - quite a feat since Johnny had to rely on studio musicians he didn't even know. But producer Paul Cohen (not a huge R'n'R fan, though) called the right guys. Harold Bradley was on rhythm guitar, Bob Moore on double bass and Farris Coursey on drums - plus Grady Martin on lead guitar, who, having almost nobody to copy at the time, literally invented a plethora of licks that still resonate 46 years later !! Sadly, Grady passed away on December 3, 2001.

On April 25, 1956, Johnny laid down 'Crazy, Crazy Lovin', 'Tryin' To Get To You' and 'Rock'n'Roll Ruby' ; the next day, he recorded the ultra-frantic 'Hot Rock', 'Corrine, Corrina' (the best version, according to Yours Truly) and 'Wild, Wild Women'. Johnny's vocal was way over-the-top but that was precisely what was needed for that stuff. He didn't like the kind of pseudo Sun-style echo that Cohen achieved during the sessions ; in retrospect, it wasn't bad at all ! Grady Martin largely contributed to shake up Bradley's Barn (as the studio was then known) with his astonishing breaks played - that's interesting - on a double neck Bigsby guitar, most probably derived from the famous Paul Bigsby-Merle Travis solid body axe designed by both men in '47/'48. At the same time, on the West Coast, Joe Maphis was using his double neck Mosrite on Rockabilly recordings by Skeets Mc Donald, The Collins Kids and Wanda Jackson.

I'm sure that many of you will delight at the sight of the above photos - five of which appeared ONLY in the November 1956 issue of 'Folk & Country Songs' (US mag). These five (colorized) shots constitute the only visual counterpart to Johnny Carroll's Decca recordings. One can feel the tension and the urgency of the music created that day (we simply don't know if it was the April 25 or April 26 session). Grady Martin and Paul Cohen can be seen : the former seated, the latter trying to keep time while Johnny's cutting loose ! If you look closely (and I know you will), you'll notice the two mikes that Paul Cohen put together in front of Johnny Carroll, probably in order to create that echo effect. You'll also find that Johnny's likeness to Gene Vincent is absolutely striking. And we can safely state that Johnny used his own rhythm guitar on some tracks. One of the original captions read : 'mussed hair and pained expression indicate a 'give all' session by Johnny'. And the accompanying article was adamant that the executives up at Decca Records were really buzzin' about their new discovery' ; alas, Carroll's three '45s sank without trace in 1956.

Next, all you have to do is dip into your collection and pull out those Johnny Carroll Decca singles (or the Bear Family CD which featured his Decca, Sun & WB sides) : they represent rockabilly at its best.