Hot Rod Race
"Hot Rod Race" is a Western swing song about a fictional street race between hot rod customized cars in California, first recorded by Arkie Shibley, and released in November 1950. The comical lyrics relate a night-time race between a custom Ford and a Mercury, from the perspective of the Ford's driver. The race begins outside San Pedro and the drivers race through many towns, evading the police, before both cars are finally overtaken by a faster driver, "a kid in a hopped-up Model A". With its hard driving boogie woogie beat and talking blues vocals, "Hot Rod Race" is sometimes named as one of the first rock and roll songs. It also broke new ground in tapping into hot rod and street racing culture, their terminology and slang. Its popularity inspired a series of hot rod songs and fast car songs from other artists and genres recorded for the car culture of the 1950s and 60s. History The writing of the song was credited to George Wilson, but some sources suggest that it wa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Gilt-Edge (record Label)
Gilt-Edge was a short-lived American record label in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Richard A. Nelson in 1944 and remained active until March 1946 when it was subsumed into 4 Star Records; another record company to which Nelson was attached. Gilt-Edge was primarily a race record company which had a target audience of African-Americans. Artists who made records with them included blues musician Cecil Gant and jazz musician Wingy Manone. However, the record label also had other types of musicians in its roster, including country singer Frankie Miller Francis John Miller (born 2 November 1949) is a Scottish rock singer-songwriter and actor. Miller wrote for and performed with many recording artists and is best known for his 1977 album ''Full House'', the singles "Be Good To Yourself", " D .... Gilt-Edge's artists were transferred to 4 Star Records when it ceased operation. References {{reflist Defunct record labels of the United States Record labels established ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Major Label
"Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing, promotion, and enforcement of copyright for sound recordings and music videos, while also conducting talent scouting and development of new artists, artist financing and maintaining contracts with recording artists and their managers. The term "record label" derives from the circular label in the center of a vinyl record which prominently displays the manufacturer's name, along with other information. Within the mainstream music industry, recording artists have traditionally been reliant upon record labels to broaden their consumer base, market their albums, and promote their singles on streaming services, radio, and television. Record labels also provide publi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Maybellene
"Maybellene" is a rock and roll song by American artist Chuck Berry, adapted in part from the western swing fiddle tune " Ida Red". Released in 1955, Berry’s song tells the story of a hot rod race and a broken romance, the lyrics describing a man driving a V8 Ford and chasing his unfaithful girlfriend in her Cadillac Coupe DeVille. It was released in July 1955 as a single by Chess Records, of Chicago, Illinois. Berry's first hit, "Maybellene" is considered a pioneering rock and roll song. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine wrote of it, "Rock & roll guitar starts here." The record was an early instance of the complete rock and roll package: youthful subject matter; a small, guitar-driven combo; clear diction; and an atmosphere of unrelenting excitement. The song was a major hit with both black and white audiences, reaching number 1 on ''Billboard''s Rhythm and Blues chart and number 5 on the Popular Records chart. It has received numerous honors and awards. Soon after its initial ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into the major elements that made rock and roll distinctive with songs such as "Maybellene" (1955), "Roll Over Beethoven" (1956), "Rock and Roll Music (song), Rock and Roll Music" (1957), and "Johnny B. Goode" (1958). Writing lyrics that focused on teen life and consumerism, and developing a music style that included guitar guitar solo, solos and Guitar showmanship, showmanship, Berry was a major influence on subsequent rock music.Campbell, M. (ed.) (2008). ''Popular Music in America: And the Beat Goes On''. 3rd ed. Cengage Learning. pp. 168–169. Born into a middle-class black family in St. Louis, Berry had an interest in music from an early age and gave his first public performance at Sumner High School (St. Lou ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen were an American country rock band founded in 1967. The group's leader and co-founder was pianist and vocalist George Frayne IV, alias Commander Cody (born July 19, 1944, in Boise, Idaho; died September 26, 2021, in Saratoga Springs, New York). The band became known for marathon live shows. Alongside Frayne, the classic lineup was Billy C. Farlow (b. Decatur, Alabama) on vocals and harmonica; John Tichy (b. St. Louis, Missouri) on guitar and vocals; Bill Kirchen (Kirchen was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, June 29, 1948, but grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan) on lead guitar; Andy Stein (b. August 31, 1948, in New York City) on saxophone and fiddle; "Buffalo" Bruce Barlow (b. December 3, 1948, in Oxnard, California) on bass guitar; Lance Dickerson (b. October 15, 1948, in Livonia, Michigan, died November 10, 2003, in Fairfax, California) on drums; and Steve "The West Virginia Creeper" Davis (b. July 18, 1946, in Charleston, West Virginia) ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Charlie Ryan
Charles Ryan (December 19, 1915 – February 16, 2008) was an American country music and rockabilly singer and songwriter, best known for writing and first recording the rockabilly hit single " Hot Rod Lincoln". Biography Ryan grew up in Polson, Montana and moved to Spokane in 1943. He served in the United States Army during The Korean War. After the war, he worked as a musician and songwriter, touring with artists such as Jim Reeves and Johnny Horton. In 1955, he wrote "Hot Rod Lincoln", and Ryan recorded the first version of the song (as "Charley Ryan and The Livingston Brothers"). Ryan released a remake in 1959 as "Charlie Ryan and The Timberline Riders"; the song was later covered by Johnny Bond (1960) and Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen (1972) (#9 U.S., #7 Canada), among others. Discography Albums Singles References External links Obituary Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Hot Rod Lincoln
"Hot Rod Lincoln" is a song by American singer-songwriter Charlie Ryan, first released in 1955. It was written as an answer song to Arkie Shibley's 1950 hit "Hot Rod Race" (US #29). It describes a drive north on US Route 99 (predecessor to Interstate 5) from San Pedro, Los Angeles, and over " Grapevine Hill" which soon becomes a hot rod race that ends with serious consequences. Song details The car race is described between two hot rod cars, the narrator's Ford Model A (with a Lincoln motor) and a Cadillac. The song says the Ford's "got 12 cylinders", overdrive, a four-barrel carburetor, 4.11:1 gear ratio, and safety tubes. The narrator ends up being arrested by the police for his high-speed driving, and is thrown into jail, where the narrator calls his father to bail him out, and describes the exasperation of his father: "He said, 'Son, you're gonna drive me to drinkin' / If you don't quit (or "Stop") drivin' that hot rod Lincoln!'" Ryan's original rockabilly version of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Answer Song
An answer song, response song or answer record is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer songs were also popular in country music in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, sometimes as female responses to an original hit by a male artist or male responses to a hit by a female artist. The original " Hound Dog" song sung by Big Mama Thornton reached number 1 in 1953, and there were six answer songs in response; the most successful of these was "Bear Cat", by Rufus Thomas which reached number 3. That led to a successful copyright lawsuit for $35,000, which is said to have led Sam Phillips of Sun Records to sell Elvis Presley's recording contract to RCA. In ''Rock Eras: Interpretations of Music and Society'', Jim Curtis says that "the series of answer songs which were hits in 1960 ... indicates the dissociation of the singer from the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. The current number-one song on the chart as of May 31, 2025, is " What I Want" by Morgan Wallen featuring Tate McRae. History ''Billboard'' began compiling the popularity of country songs with its January 8, 1944, issue. Only the genre's most popular jukebox selections were tabulated, with the chart titled "Most Played Juke Box Folk Records". For approximately ten years, from 1948 to 1958, ''Billboard'' used three charts to measure the popularity of a given song. In addition to the jukebox chart, these charts included: * The "best sellers" chart – started 15 May 1948, as "Best Selling Retail Folk Records". * An airplay chart – started 10 December 1949, as "Country & Western Records Most Played By Folk Disk Jockeys". The juke b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released rock, funk, R&B, doo wop, soul music, blues, pop, rock and roll, and jazz records. In the United States, it is operated through Republic Records; in the United Kingdom and Japan (as Mercury Tokyo in the latter country), it is distributed by EMI Records. Background Mercury Records was started in Chicago in 1945 and over several decades, saw great success. The success of Mercury has been attributed to the use of alternative marketing techniques to promote records. The conventional method of record promotion used by major labels such as RCA Victor, Decca Records, and Capitol Records was dependent on radio airplay, but Mercury Records co-founder Irving Green decided to promote new records using jukeboxes instead. By lowering promotion ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Tiny Hill
Harry Lawrence "Tiny" Hill (July 19, 1906 – December 13, 1971) was an American band leader of the big band era. During the height of his career, Hill was billed as "America's Biggest Bandleader" because of his weight of over . His signature song was "Angry", which he first recorded in 1939 on the Vocalion label. He used sandpaper blocks and a to generate a double shuffle "beat that makes the listener itch to dance". Early life Hill was born in Sullivan Township, Moultrie County, Illinois. His parents were William Fred Hill (1880–1915) and Osa Crowdson Ault (1890–1982). His parents separated when he was seven years old and he went to live with an aunt. He was active in high school sports and was president of his senior class. He graduated from Sullivan High School in 1924. Hill then attended Illinois State Normal School for two years. Financial difficulties forced him to leave college to go to work. He went to Detroit, where he worked in a produce warehouse. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Decca Records
Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which became an independent company just before the Second World War. The American spin-off became a subsidiary of MCA Inc. in 1962. Known for its technical innovations, the British parent company grew to become the second most successful recording company in Britain and celebrated fifty years of existence in 1979, shortly before being sold to PolyGram. Both Decca and its former subsidiary were subsequently acquired by Universal Music. Decca and its American spin-off both built up strong catalogues of popular music. In their first two decades their artists included Gertrude Lawrence, George Formby, Jack Hylton and Vera Lynn in Britain and Bing Crosby, Al Jolson, the Andrews Sisters and the Mills Brothers in the US. Later performers in their popular ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |