Fred Lincoln 'Link' Wray, Jr. (May 2, 1929 – November 5, 2005), was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and vocalist who first came to popularity in the late 1950's.
Building on the distorted electric guitar sound of early records, his 1958 instrumental hit "Rumble" by Link Wray and his Ray Men popularized "the power chord, the major modus operandi of modern rock guitarists", making possible "punk and heavy rock". Rolling Stone placed Wray at No. 45 of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. In 2013 he was announced as a nominee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His musical style primarily consisted of rock and roll, rockabilly and country.
The kids of 1958 loved the Ray Men, and their first single for Cadence Records shot up the charts like a label owner's dream. This is the fantastic and fiery album that was supposed to have been released as a follow-up to one of the all-time great instrumental classics, the ultra-menacing "Rumble." But faster than you can say "Drag Race," everyone--Cadence label-owner Archie Bleyer included--was talking about this new threat to the morals of American youth. That's why Link and his boys were off the imprint, and this album of prime distorto-guitar-crunch cool remained unreleased for nearly 50 years. Well here it is, and it's every bit as dirty and dangerous as you would expect!
Reviews:
"This rocks forwards and backwards. That it took so long to be released is borderline criminal. It's refreshing to hear the power chord from a new-old view."
"Raucous instrumental twangy guitar rock! As raw and tough as the 50's has to offer. This stuff will blow your mind!"
See also: Link Wray, The Original Rumble
No comments:
Post a Comment