Cargo Records

Hipbone Slim Verses Sir Bald Didley

Sir Bald Diddley is one of the most ubiquitous men in rock’n’roll, with his numerous surf, rock’n’roll, garage, blues, R&B and rockabilly bands. He’s been described as “Britain’s string king” in reference to his wild and fiery guitar style, influenced by Bo Diddley, Link Wray, Chuck Berry, Dick Dale and the like. His singing, meanwhile, has been said to sound like “Ricky Nelson gone very wrong”! For your aural delectation, we have assembled no less than four of the Bald Bomber’s top notch musical combos on this 40 track long set, which runs the full gamut of rock’n’roll styles.

On the first of this two-CD set you will find 20 cuts, previously unreleased on compact disc format, by Hipbone Slim & the Kneetremblers, a band that plays proper rock’n’roll! Alongside Sir Bald (aka Hipbone Slim) is Bruce ‘Bash’ Brand (drums), one of Britain’s if not the world’s finest rock’n’roll drummers, a veteran of such bands as the Milkshakes and Headcoats, alongside Billy Childish, as well as Holly Golightly’s band, the Masonics, and more.

Gastus Receedus (bass/harmonica), has played in many a band (Big Wigs, Arousers, Playboys, etc) and worked with many a rock’n’roll legend – Billy Meanwhile, on the other disc in this super-deluxe set, you will find Louie and the Louies, The Kneejerk Reactions and The Legs. This really is a true battle of the bands! Albeit in a somewhat schizophrenic’ manner! The Louies, as the name might suggest play frat rock type tunes and surf instrumentals. The band features one of Britain’s most dynamic rhythm sections, Matt “Sleepy Louie” Radford on bass guitar and Brian “Ramblin’” Louie Nevill on drums.

Between them they have worked with many celebrated, fantastic and influential rhythm’n’blues and rock’n’roll acts. Louie & the Louies have a couple of 45s and can also be heard on “Sir Bald’s Hairy Guitar” on Beast Records. The Kneejerks Reactions are sworn enemies of Hipbone Slim and, in fact, all rockabillies, greasers, cats andteddy boys. The two bands’ bitter rivalry and relentless antagonism regularly threatens to spill over into some quite unsavoury scenes, with a number of bank holiday rumbles and punch-ups being witnessed in the seaside towns of the England and beyond.

Arch hipsters and beatsters, dare I say it modsters the dandified Kneejerk Reactions feature the East End savy of Les Lerrard on bass and general “heavy” duties, plus Ronnie Drand on drums and general “light” duties. The Kneejerk Reactions have one “sold out” album ‘The Electrifying Sounds Of...’ on Screaming Apple Records (Germany) and an EP “The Un-beatable Sounds Of” on Vinyl Junkie Rekkids (Spain). You will no doubt have realised, as have countless disappointed punters coming to see the two bands in live “battle”, that they are in fact one and the same, and probably demand your money back! In The Legs the “shiny-headed one” is joined by two of Spain’s finest beat merchants.

Both Jorge Explosion and Mr Pibli are more regularly seen in the notorious Doctor Explosion, Spain’s top garage-punk band. The Legs really mix it up, playing a hotch-potch of freakbeat, punk, garage, blues and more. Here we have included a wide variety of such offerings. If you are a fan of raw and wild guitar rock‘n’roll, surf, garage and beat music of the late ’50s and ’60s, you are sure to enjoy this marvellous record. Fifty years too late, maybe, but still, you can’t have everything! Forty pulsating, toe tappin’, leg shakin’, keg shakin’, kneetrembin’ rockers! Thuddin’drums, throbbin’ bass, yelpin’ vocals and very, very hairy guitar!