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| 1938-2024 |
Guitarist Duane Eddy became an early rock and roll star solely on the strength of his electrifying guitar instrumentals. As Eddy himself once said "One of my biggest contributions to the music business was not singing."
In the above interview, Eddy mentions a big swordfish he had caught, but I bet it wasn't as big as the one caught by....jpg)
Composer Henry Mancini fit in with both the 1950s and 1960s, mainly because his audience wasn't composed primarily of teenagers. After all, parents were still spending money on records, if not quite as much money as were their kids. Yet as someone whose music would one day be categorized as "easy-listening", Mancini was one of the more forward-looking composers of his era. No more so than when he came up with the opening jazz-and-rock-tinged theme to the 1950s TV detective show Peter Gunn. Duane Eddy must have taken notice, as he recorded his own version in 1960 that charted at #27. However, the story doesn't end there. In 1986, he re-recorded the song with the British alternative synth-pop band Art of Noise, and that version was a worldwide hit. Watch and listen as Eddy and his advant-garde friends perform the Gunn theme in front of a live audience in Nashville:
He wasn't much of a talker either:
In the above interview, Eddy mentions a big swordfish he had caught, but I bet it wasn't as big as the one caught by...
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...Jerry Lewis.
But I digress. Here's one of Eddy's biggest hits:
Eddy came out with "Rebel-Rouser" in 1958, yet the above video looks like it's from about ten years later, if that one girl whose hair is dancing as much as her feet is any indication. Shows you just how well Eddy's sound fit into a musical era quite different from the one in which he emerged. I mean, I can't imagine Bill Haley or Carl Perkins in such a raucous 1960s setting.
Composer Henry Mancini fit in with both the 1950s and 1960s, mainly because his audience wasn't composed primarily of teenagers. After all, parents were still spending money on records, if not quite as much money as were their kids. Yet as someone whose music would one day be categorized as "easy-listening", Mancini was one of the more forward-looking composers of his era. No more so than when he came up with the opening jazz-and-rock-tinged theme to the 1950s TV detective show Peter Gunn. Duane Eddy must have taken notice, as he recorded his own version in 1960 that charted at #27. However, the story doesn't end there. In 1986, he re-recorded the song with the British alternative synth-pop band Art of Noise, and that version was a worldwide hit. Watch and listen as Eddy and his advant-garde friends perform the Gunn theme in front of a live audience in Nashville:
Noir rocks!
I really enjoyed this today. And oh that version of Peter Gunn — a song I’ve always loved.
ReplyDeleteMakes you want to open up your own private eye agency, doesn't it, Mitchell?
DeleteHi, Kirk!
ReplyDeleteI didn't want to vanish back into the woodwork without thanking you for remembering twangy guitar legend Duane Eddy. As is often the case, I first learned the news of his death right here at SOAD. The Duane Eddy sound was an important part of the soundtrack of my boomer youth. I remember "Rebel Rouser" because I had the tune on a volume of the Cruisin' album series. Another volume of Cruisin' contained my favorite recording by him, the top 3 charting hit "Because They're Young," the theme from the 1960 movie that starred Dick Clark in the role of a high school teacher trying to make a difference in the lives of his students. That Dick Clark interview with Duane was one of the best I've ever seen Clark do. It lacked the word salad that often came out of Clark's mouth when interviewing musical guests. You are right about that appearance by Duane Eddy on the music TV series Hollywood A Go-Go. it aired Nov. 6, 1965. It was not uncommon for veteran artists to perform their old hits on HAGG and similar TV shows, then appear a second time during the same episode to introduce their latest release.
I remember The Art Of Noise. The MTV station where I worked in the 80s played in heavy rotation the video for the band's international hit "Dragnet," theme from the 1987 movie adaptation starring SNL's Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks.
Thanks for paying tribute to The Reaper's latest conquest, Duane Eddy. Have a great month until we reconnect a few weeks from now, good buddy Kirk!
Peter Gunn, Dragnet. Shady, it sounds like Art of Noise got much of its inspiration from old American TV crime shows.
DeleteI must confess the name "Duane Eddy" meant nothing to me but I recognize those songs. And I didn't know that Mancini wrote the "Peter Gunn" theme. Live and learn!
ReplyDeleteDebra, Mancini's most recognizable tune is arguably the Pink Panther theme.
DeleteIt's been a while since I've heard "Rebel-Rouser". I didn't realize what simple song it is for all the instruments.
ReplyDeleteGuitar god simple, Mike.
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