The Shakin' Pyramids (also known as Shakin' Pyramids) were a Scottish

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

band formed in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

in 1980. The band consisted of Davie Duncan (

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

) James G. Creighton (acoustic and electric

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, vocals) and "Railroad" Ken McLellan (acoustic guitar, vocals). During the band's recording career from 1980–1983, they released two studio albums, four singles, and three extended plays—the last of which was recorded with the British musician

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the " King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotland and brought ...

. Although the Shakin' Pyramids did not enjoy any major chart successes, their output was well-received by critics and has been described as having helped define the rockabilly revival of the early 1980s. Creighton and Duncan died from

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

s in 2021 and 2024, respectively.

History

Busking

The Shakin' Pyramids formed in Glasgow in 1980, and began busking around the city. The band travelled internationally and were ultimately spotted playing outside a

Virgin Megastore Virgin Megastores is an international entertainment retailing chain, founded in early 1976 by Richard Branson as a record shop on London's Oxford Street. In 1979 the company opened their first Megastore at the end of Oxford Street and Tottenh ...

in London, which led to a deal with Cuba Libre, a subsidiary of

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

Cuba Libre years

The Shakin' Pyramids' first song for Cuba Libre, "Reeferbilly Boogie", was recorded in 1980 on a four-track recorder at the Hellfire club in Glasgow, and was named "Single of the Week" by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

''.Liner notes for '' Reeferbilly Blowout''.

Raucous Records ''Raucous'' was a live, half an hour, RMITV program broadcast on C31 Melbourne featuring youth-oriented segments, arts reviews, comedy skits, interviews, street talks and live music. It was co-hosted by Lyndon Horsburgh and featured segments with ...

. 2001. Also that year the band played the Loch Lomond Festival, alongside

the Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

Stiff Little Fingers Stiff Little Fingers are a Northern Irish punk rock band from Belfast. They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles, which informed much of their songwriting. They started out as a schoolboy band called Highway Star (named after the Deep P ...

and

the Tourists The Tourists were a British rock and pop band. They achieved brief success in the late 1970s before the band split in 1980. Two of its members, singer Annie Lennox and guitarist Dave Stewart, went on to international success as Eurythmics. ...

. The group's first EP, entitled ''Take a Trip'', was released the following year. The title track appeared on their debut album, entitled '' Skin 'Em Up'' (1981), which received 5/5 stars from ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, who also praised the record, described it as having "helped define the short-lived rockabilly revival of the early '80s."Skin 'Em Up review
at

The album was promoted by a single, "Tennessee Rock 'n 'Roll", which was also the title of an EP featuring single

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

"Alright Alnight" and two new tracks. Later in 1981, the band released a third and final EP in collaboration with musician

, who is described by the ''

Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums ''British Hit Singles & Albums'' (originally known as ''The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles'' and ''The Guinness Book of British Hit Albums'') was a music reference book originally published in the United Kingdom by the publishing arm of ...

'' as "Britain's most successful and influential recording artist before

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

." The band's second and final studio album, '' Celts and Cobras'' (1982) – on the cover of which they were billed as "Shakin' Pyramids" – was more diverse in its style but was seen as a departure from the group's original, immediate sound. ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who, Dave Schulps, and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'' declared that "The band still rocks, but they'd better figure out where they're going."Shakin' Pyramids
at ''

'' "Pharaoh's Chant" was released as the album's first single, followed by "Just A Memory". The group ultimately disbanded in 1983, midway through a Canadian tour. The Shakin' Pyramids played to audiences worldwide and made a number of television appearances during their short career. Ken Smith of '' The Herald'' described the band's oeuvre as being composed of "critically-acclaimed but modestly-selling records".

Subsequent releases

'' The Shakin' Pyramids'' (1983), a compilation album, was released shortly after the group's disbandment by Rock 'n Roll Records, a

Scotti Brothers Records Scotti Brothers Records (typically spelled Scotti Bros. Records) was a California-based record label founded by Tony and Ben Scotti in 1974. Their first success was releasing singles and albums from teen pop star Leif Garrett. They later helpe ...

subsidiary. A live set recorded at the Kelvingrove Free Music Festival in Glasgow in May 1981 was released as '' Reeferbilly Blowout'' by

in 2001.The Shakin' Pyramids: Reeferbilly Blowout
at

Post-Shakin' Pyramids endeavours

In the mid 1980s Creighton played with the Fighting Fifty-First. In the 1990s he provided musicianship for the River Detectives and served as frontman of the Buicks. Creighton released two solo albums on Raucous during the 2010s; his third and final album was released via his own website in 2018. Creighton died from a

on 17 February 2021, aged 62. Duncan and McLellan performed as the Véloniños with guitarist Laurie Cuffe and bassist Hugh Jamieson. Duncan died from a stroke in early June 2024, aged 65.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Skin 'Em Up'' (1981) * '' Celts and Cobras'' (1982)

Extended plays

* ''Take a Trip'' (1981) * ''Tennessee Rock 'n 'Roll'' (1981) * ''The Shakin' Pyramids and Lonnie Donegan EP'' (1981)

Singles

* "Reeferbilly Boogie" (1980) * "Tennessee Rock 'n 'Roll" (1981) * "Just a Memory" (1982) * "Pharaoh's Chant" (1982)

Compilation album

* '' The Shakin' Pyramids'' (1983)

Live album

* '' Reeferbilly Blowout'' (2001)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shakin Pyramids, The Scottish rock music groups Virgin Records artists British rockabilly music groups Scotti Brothers Records artists