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Topic: 1959 Decca 45-F 11156 Johnny's Boys ... SLEEPWALK ! |
basilh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 19 May 2007 7:08 am |
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Must have been a "COVER" version, who the heck is it on steel ? Sleepwalk
Credits for M.C.P.S. publishing = "Farina. Farina. Farina."
The thing is, 1959 ... never even made the record release lists, but obviously intended as a "Cover" Of Santo & Johnny.
B Side is a cover of "Ciao Ciao Bamabina" sic.
Maybe "Jonhnny's Boy's were a collective name for one of the Decca studio groups !!
_________________
Steelies do it without fretting
CLICK THIS to view my tone bars and buy——> |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 19 May 2007 10:55 am
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Well it's not Santo & Johnny recording under another name, unless it was one of their off days. I don't know whether to blame the performers or the engineer for the tone, which sounds distorted.
If we didn't have the original version to compare it with it wouldn't be too bad. |
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Brint Hannay
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 19 May 2007 8:26 pm
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I wondered if it might be some sort of pressing of a demo by Santo & Johnny (the name Johnny's Boys is interesting), but what's with the seemingly entirely unrelated B-side???
Weird! |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 20 May 2007 3:47 am
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| "Johnny's Boys", who recorded back in the '50s and '60s, was a small group of UK instrumentalists plucked from the much larger "Johnny Howard Band". This is a pretty good cover version (and one of the first) of "Sleep Walk", despite the overdone vibrato and the poor production. Most likely it was made in haste to fill in the time gap until the S&J version could attain full-scale distribution. |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 20 May 2007 11:09 am
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
| "Johnny's Boys", who recorded back in the '50s and '60s, was a small group of UK instrumentalists... |
It was very normal in the 50s for British groups to come out with cover versions of all the American hits. Woolworths even had their own label which sold cover versions at half the price of the genuine article. A friend of mine at school used to record for the Woolworths label. He was an awful singer and a poor guitarist. He ended up slicing part of his finger off while working in a butcher's shop during the school holidays, which somewhat curtailed his playing. 
...but I diverge.  |
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basilh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 20 May 2007 11:21 pm
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Santo & Johnny's version was released in 1959 in the Uk on Pye International 25037 a competitor of Decca's, SO, the cover was intended to COMPETE for sales.
In fact Decca and Philips were at war
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Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI), 1950-1962
In the 1940s, the record business was spread out within Philips — research in the Eindhoven labs, development elsewhere in Eindhoven, recording in Hilversum, manufacturing in Doetinchem, distribution from Amsterdam and exports from Eindhoven. During the late 1940s, Philips combined its various music businesses into Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI), a wholly owned subsidiary.
PPI's early growth was based on alliances. A merger was first proposed with Decca of London in late 1945, but was rejected by Edward Lewis, Decca's owner. (PolyGram finally acquired Decca in 1979.)
In the early 1950s, Philips set itself the goal of making PPI the largest record company in Europe.
PPI's second attempt at a merger was with Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft (DGG). DGG, owned by Siemens AG and well-known for its classical repertoire, had been the German licensee for Decca from 1935. Shortly after PPI was founded it had made a formal alliance with DGG to manufacture each others' records, coordinate releases and not to poach each others' artists or bid against each other for new talent. PPI and DGG finally merged in 1962.
The alliance with DGG still left PPI without repertoire in Britain or the US. But in 1951, after Columbia had failed to renew its international distribution agreement with EMI, PPI agreed to distribute Columbia recordings outside the US and have Columbia distribute its recordings inside the US. This agreement ran until 1961, when Columbia set up its own European network and PPI set out to make acquisitions in the US.
PPI built or bought factories in smaller countries. In 1962, PPI had a large factory in Baarn and factories in France, Britain, Denmark, Norway, Spain, Italy, Egypt, Nigeria and Brazil.
PPI played an important role in the introduction of the long-playing vinyl record to Europe. Columbia introduced their LP record in 1948 and Philips presented its first LP at a record retailers' convention in 1949. Philips' commitment to LP technology was an important factor in its 1951-1961 deal with Columbia |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 21 May 2007 12:50 am
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| Quote: |
Santo & Johnny's version was released in 1959 in the Uk on Pye International 25037 a competitor of Decca's, SO, the cover was intended to COMPETE for sales.
In fact Decca and Philips were at war |
I'm sorry, Baz. I thought you wanted some information on the performing group and the players. I didn't know your main interest was really the label "politics" going on at the time. |
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basilh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 21 May 2007 2:37 am
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Donny, you knowledge of the "Johnny Howard Band" WAS most welcome information.
The politics were only an aside, but interesting nevertheless.
How did you come to know of the "Johnny Howard Band" ?
I supoes we can presume that the steel player was either Billy Bell or Don Sandford, both of whom were session men at the time, or even maybe Rod King, it may even be Gordon Huntley because at the time Gordon WASN'T playing Country but as Gerry Hogan said
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| One of England’s top steel players, Gerry Hogan, recalls first having met Gordon in 1959. Gerry was 15 at the time and his schoolmate Roger Gregory was bassist in J.D. (John Derek) Roberts’ band ‘The Black Stetson Boys’. Gerry auditioned for the guitar spot, but not owning a guitar himself, borrowed Derek’s Hofner ‘President’ electric guitar. Gerry got the job, and the first gig was that very next Saturday at Lambourn village hall. Also on the bill that night were ‘The Hawaiian Serenaders’ who featured Gordon Huntley on steel guitar. This was before pedals were standard, at least, in the U.K., and Gordon was playing a triple-neck Fender non-pedal guitar. Gerry discovered that Gordon lived just down the road in Newbury, and from then on spent every spare moment round at Gordon’s picking up tips. Gordon was already becoming interested in country, and was doing some ‘Speedy West’, ‘Don Helms’ and ‘Jerry Byrd’ type licks. |
Baz |
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Egil Skjelnes
From:
Meland,Frekhaug
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Posted 21 May 2007 12:22 pm
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Hello Basil
Interesting-I feel we are closing in about who the steeler may be,but I come to think of another one too,probably in the same manner.It`s "The Sleepwalkers"!!! also playing Sleepwalk,from the same period maybe.Any clue here??
Label and number is Parlophone 4580.
Santo & Johnny had some of their English releases on the same label!Can it be them,under a different name?
Have not compared the records,and playing.Maybe I should.
Egil.
PS-S & J version of Sleepwalk was on Pye label in England. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 21 May 2007 1:34 pm
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| "The Sleepwalkers" version was also released in the UK in 1959, and I believe the playing on that version was actually done by members of the Dennis Newey orchestra. |
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Egil Skjelnes
From:
Meland,Frekhaug
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Posted 21 May 2007 10:23 pm
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Hi Donny
Do you have any idea of who the steelplayers were in these bands,or did they switch between several players?? I don`t know how many steelers/haw.players that worked the music scene in England at that time,late 50`s-early 60`s.
Best regards,Egil. |
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