Sparkle Moore | |
---|---|
Birth name | Barbara Morgan |
Born | November 6, 1936 |
Origin | Omaha, Nebraska, United States |
Genres | Rockabilly |
Years active | 1956–1957 2010-present |
Labels | Fraternity |
Website | www |
Sparkle Moore (born Barbara Morgan on November 6, 1936 [1] in Omaha, Nebraska, United States) is an American rockabilly singer who was influential as a pioneer of female rockabilly. Her name arose because of her similarity to Sparkle Plenty, a supporting character in the Dick Tracy comic strip. Sparkle dressed in men's clothing, often including leather, and sported an Elvis-influenced pompadour. [2]
In 1956, she toured with Gene Vincent and was scheduled to perform on the Grand Ole Opry, which was subsequently cancelled due to illness. In 1957, Sparkle retired from music to concentrate on raising a family. [3]
In 2010, she released a 22 track CD of home recordings Spark-A-Billy.
Robert Gaston Fuller was an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist best known for "Let Her Dance" and his cover of the Crickets' "I Fought the Law," recorded with his group The Bobby Fuller Four.
Vincent Eugene Craddock, known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rockabilly and rock and roll. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, "Be-Bop-a-Lula", is considered a significant early example of rockabilly. His chart career was brief, especially in his home country of the US, where he notched three top 40 hits in 1956 and 1957, and never charted in the top 100 again. In the UK, he was a somewhat bigger star, racking up eight top 40 hits from 1956 to 1961.
Rockabilly is an early style of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blues, leading to what is considered "classic" rock and roll. Some have also described it as a blend of bluegrass with rock and roll. The term "rockabilly" itself is a portmanteau of "rock" and "hillbilly"; the latter is a reference to country music that contributed strongly to the style. Other important influences on rockabilly include western swing, boogie-woogie, jump blues, and electric blues.
Slim Harpo was an American blues musician, a leading exponent of the swamp blues style, and "one of the most commercially successful blues artists of his day". He played guitar and was a master of the blues harmonica, known in blues circles as a "harp". His most successful and influential recordings included "I'm a King Bee" (1957), "Rainin' in My Heart" (1961), and "Baby Scratch My Back" (1966), which reached number one on Billboard's R&B chart and number 16 on its broader Hot 100 singles chart.
Paul Burlison was an American pioneer rockabilly guitarist and a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio. Burlison was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, where he was exposed to music at an early age. After a stint in the United States Military, Burlison teamed up with Johnny and Dorsey Burnette to form The Rock and Roll Trio. The band released several singles, but failed to attain chart success. Paul is sometimes credited with being the first guitarist to intentionally record with a distorted electric guitar on the 1956 recordings, "Lonesome Train on a Lonesome Track" and "Honey Hush." The trio disbanded in the fall of 1957 and Burlison moved back to Tennessee to start a family. There he started his own electrical subcontracting business which he ran faithfully for twenty years, taking a break when the trio reunited in the early 1980s. He released his only solo album in 1997, which received positive reviews. Burlison remained active in the music scene until his death in 2003.
The Rock and Roll Trio were an American rockabilly group formed in Memphis, Tennessee, during the 1950s. They were also known as "Johnny Burnette and the Rock and Roll Trio" and the "Johnny Burnette Trio". The members of the Trio were Dorsey Burnette, his younger brother Johnny, and a friend Paul Burlison. Dorsey and Johnny Burnette were both natives of Memphis, having been born there in 1932 and 1934 respectively. Paul Burlison was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, in 1929, but moved to Memphis with his family in 1937.
"Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So)" is a popular rock novelty song written in late 1954 by the rhythm and blues partnership of Forest Gene Wilson and Eunice Levy, and also credited to Jake Porter. One of the earliest rock and roll songs, it was probably "the most extensively recorded rock 'n' roll song of that time".
The Miller Sisters were an American singing duo of the 1950s.
Ed Dieckmann is a former guitarist and vocalist with Dutch rockabilly band the Crocats and blues outfit Fake Brothers, currently playing with The Bokito Brothers and Big Jake & The Two-Timers.
Billy Lee Riley was an American musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer. His most memorable recordings include "Rock With Me Baby", "Flyin' Saucers Rock and Roll" and "Red Hot".
Ralph Joseph "Jody" Reynolds was an American rock and roll singer, guitarist, and songwriter whose song "Endless Sleep" was a major U.S. top-ten hit in the summer of 1958. His follow-up single, "Fire of Love", peaked at only No. 66 on the Billboard chart, but the song went on to become a blues-punk classic after being covered by the MC5 and the Gun Club.
David Eugene Summers was an American rockabilly singer, songwriter and guitarist. His most famous recordings include the late 50s "School of Rock 'n Roll", "Straight Skirt", "Nervous", "Gotta Lotta That", "Twixteen", "Alabama Shake", "Fancy Dan" and his biggest-selling single "Big Blue Diamonds". Summers was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2005. He still performed worldwide and celebrated his 50th anniversary as a recording artist in 2008 with the release of Reminisce Cafe.
"School of Rock 'n Roll" is a song composed by James McClung in 1958 and published by Song Productions, BMI the same year. It was originally recorded by American rockabilly singer Gene Summers and his Rebels, and was first released in February 1958 by Jan Records #11-100. It was flipped with "Straight Skirt" a teen novelty 45 which became the group's first big regional hit.
Johnny Burnette and the Rock 'n Roll Trio is the 1956 debut album of the rockabilly band The Rock and Roll Trio, fronted by Johnny Burnette. Recorded over three separate sessions in 1956, the album includes a number of the band's singles. 2008's Icons of Rock calls the album "an all-time rockabilly classic". Released as a 10" LP in the UK by Vogue/Coral Records in December 1956 (#10041), it was released again in 12" format in its US debut by Coral Records in 1957 (#57080) and in 1978 by Solid Smoke (#8001). A few years previously, there had also been an unauthorized reissue of the album which featured an exact reproduction of the cover and label, although differences in label and cover formatting noted by collectors reveal it as a reprint. In 1993, it was released on compact disc by Aris Records. 1998's Go Cat Go!: Rockabilly Music and Its Makers characterizes the CD reissue as "legendary and essential."
Jerald Edward Kolbrak, known professionally as Jerry Cole, was an American guitarist who recorded under his own name, under various budget album pseudonyms and as an uncredited session musician.
Allen Richard "Dick" Penner is an American retired professor of English, who, while in college in 1955, co-composed, with Wade Lee Moore "Ooby Dooby," which was recorded and released by Wade Moore and Rod Barkley. The song was later given away and became a rockabilly hit for Roy Orbison. Penner also had been a singer, guitar player, and recording artist.
American rockabilly musician, and author, Chris Giorgio aka Jackslacks adapted his stage name from the Sparkletones 1957 hit song "Black Slacks" and is originally from Valley Stream, Long Island, New York and resides in San Diego, California, United States.
Antoine "Fats" Domino Jr. was an American pianist and singer-songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, More than 65 million records were sold by Domino. He had eleven Top 10 hits between 1955 and 1960. His humility and shyness may be one reason his contribution to the genre has been overlooked.
This article contains information about albums and singles released by of American musician and bandleader Ike Turner.
The Queen of Rock' a 'Billy is a studio album by American recording artist Wanda Jackson. It was released in 1997 via Elap Music and contained eleven tracks of material. The album was a collection of Rockabilly recordings, most of which were new to Jackson's catalog. The disc was the second Jackson recorded with rock group The Alligators. It was released exclusively for the European market.