45 RPMs 90: Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps – Be-Bop-A-Lula

  ~   

Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps 

with Be-Bop-a-Lula as the "B" side

     

Gene Vincent was born Vincent Eugene Craddock on February 11, 1935, in Norfolk, Virginia; he was an American rock and roll musician who pioneered the style of rockabilly. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, Be-Bop-a-Lula, is considered a significant early example of rockabilly.

 

Vincent dropped out of school in 1952, at the age of seventeen, and enlisted in the United States Navy. He planned a career in the Navy and, in 1955, used his $612 re-enlistment bonus to buy a new Triumph motorcycle. On July 4, 1955, while he was in Norfolk, his left leg was shattered in an auto crash. He refused to allow the leg to be amputated, and the leg was saved, but the injury left him with a limp and pain. He wore a steel sheath as a leg brace for the rest of his life. Most accounts relate the accident as the fault of a drunk driver who struck him.                   

Craddock became involved in the local music scene in Norfolk and changed his name to Gene Vincent. He formed a rockabilly band, Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps (a term used in reference to enlisted sailors in the U.S. Navy). The band included Willie Williams on rhythm guitar (replaced in late 1956 by Paul Peek), Jack Neal on upright bass, Dickie Harrell on drums (died May 31, 2023, at age 82), and Cliff Gallup on lead guitar. He also collaborated with another rising musician, Jay Chevalier of Rapides Parish, Louisiana.         

Originally, Be-Bop-a-Lula was intended to be the "B" side of the record with Woman Love the "A" side; this is reflected in the promo for the record at the top.      

Be-Bop-a-Lula has been covered by The Everly Brothers, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, The Stray Catss and dozens of other musicians.      .          

     

Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps ~ Be-Bop-a-Lula

45 RPM record label

Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps ~ Woman Love

45 RPM record label

        

Tracklist:

Side 1:

A - Be-Bop-A-Lula, written by Gene Vincent, Sheriff Tex Davis - 2:31

Side 2:

B - Woman Love, written by Jack Rhodes, written by [Uncredited] – Dick Reynolds (3) - 2:28

Companies, etc.

    Published By – Lowery Enterprises
    Published By – Central Songs, Inc.
    Manufactured By – Capitol Records, Inc.

 

Notes:

This version:
Small font
Large Capitol logo
A side: Lowery Enterprises
B side: only 1 writer

Barcode and Other Identifiers        

        

    Rights Society: BMI
    Matrix / Runout (A): 45-15230
    Matrix / Runout (B): 45-15231
    Matrix / Runout (A-side runout, etched; "3" is stamped): 45-15230-D1 3
    Matrix / Runout (B-side runout, etched; "3" is stamped): 45-15231-D1 3

 

Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps* – Be-Bop-A-Lula / Woman Love
Label: Capitol Records – F3450
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single, Large Capitol Logo
Country: US
Released: 1956
Genre: Rock
Style: Rock & Roll, Rockabilly        

        

        

        

Viewfinder links:       

         

Dickie Harrell          
Gene Vincent         

Willie Williams        
     
Net links:       

         

Dickie Harrell         

BBC ~ The Gene Vincent Story       

Willie Williams        
     
YouTube links:      
         

Be-Bop-a-Lula ~             

The Drifters           

The Everly Brothers            

Tom Jones & Jeff Beck          

John Lennon        

Jerry Lee Lewis          

Paul McCartney            

Carl Perkins          

The Stray Cats         

Billy Thorp & the Aztecs           

Gene Vincent         

        

      
        
         

        

        

Styrous® ~ Monday, September 7, 2020

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