Rock-A-Ballads - Various Artists

johnaalex
Jun 30, 2025
5 min read

Rock-A-Ballads - Flipside Dreams And Loving Schemes Vol.1 – Various Artists

Released May 2025 on Bear Family records - https://www.bear-family.com/various-bear-family-records-rock-a-ballads-flipside-dreams-and-loving-schemes-vol.1-cd.html

The glorious architects of rockabilly and rock 'n' roll did not consistently accelerate to 100 miles per hour. They knew when it was time to slow down the tempo and shape a song in such a way that even slow dancers could rave about eternal romantic devotion or broken hearts.

The 32 tracks on this CD provide goosebumps instead of leaving the listener breathless. And yet, in a subtle way, they are just as nasty as these hot-blooded house rockers. The expert on these topics, Bill Dahl from Chicago, has written extensive biographies. In addition, there is discography information, illustrations and rare pictures in the 36-page booklet.

Review

The collection opens with a track from 1958, Gene Dunlap and The Jokers with “What Do I Want”. The vocal is mostly spoken over drums and guitars. The second track is also from 1958, country singer Sonny James with “I Can See It In Your Eyes” a pleasant ballad. “A Thousand Guitars” by Tracy Pendarvis and The Swampers was issued on the Sun label in 1960, that is after the rockabilly explosion and a time when teen ballads were much more common. Tommy Labeff (aka Sleepy LaBeef) has a sparse guitar backing to his voice on track four, “Lonely” the flip side to his rockabilly classic “All The Time”. Although recorded in 1958, Tommy Hill’s “Can’t Help It” was not released at the time. It’s another mostly spoken lyric with piano, sax and drums providing the backing. Rockabilly wild man, Ronnie Self, shows his gentler side with a poppy ballad, “I Ain’t Going Nowhere” for track six. Another wild rocker, Ronnie Hawkins also proves he can sing a ballad wih his “Someone Like You” which has some nice guitar work too. The flip side of Rudy Grayzell’s Sun single “Judy” is track eight. “I Think Of You” has Rudy singing with just a guitar to back him on this ballad that is a big contrast to the A side. Sanford Clark reminds a bit of Ricky Nelson. Instead of James Burton Sanford had the talented Al Casey on guitar. His sombre vocal is superbly complemented by Al’s guitar. This was a minor hit in 1956 as the follow up to “The Fool”. Track ten, “My True Love”, was released on the Carlton label and reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 18, 1958. It became a gold record; Jack Scott's first. The B-side of the record, "Leroy", reached No 25 in the same chart. Patsy Cline had her first hit with the now classic, “Walkin’ After Midnight” in 1957.

Weldon Rogers gives a haunting vocal on his version of the Roy Orbison composition, “Trying To Get To You”. At track thirteen we have Warner Mack backed by the Anita Kerr singers with “Since I Lost You”, the B side of “Roc-A-Chicka”. Ritchie Valens reminds us of his talent and makes us wonder what he could have achieved had he not perished in that horrible plane crash on February 3rd, 1959. His posthumous release, “We Belong Together” is a lovely ballad. Ric Cartey recorded “Crying Goodbye” for RCA in 1957 but the company decided not to release this angst ridden ballad with heartfelt vocals and minimal backing. Track sixteen is one of the hits on this compilation “Poor Little Fool” by Ricky Nelson, became the first number one song on Billboard magazine's then-new Hot 100 chart on August 4, 1958. It’s a classic piece of pop with backing vocals from the Jordanaires. “Breeze” was a B side for Vernon Taylor when he had a brief time with Sun records. It’s OK song made better with some nice guitar in the background. Track eighteen is the classic instrumental to smooch to, “Sleep Walk” by Santo and Johnny from 1959. “The Grave” is typical of some of the more morbid recordings of the late 50s and early 60s and is preformed by one time friend of Ritchi Valens, Tony Casanova.

Tooter Boatman is at track twenty with the B side of his rockabilly classic “The Will Of Love”. The song has a slight honky tonk feel to it thanks to the piano work. Robin Luke’s “My Girl” maybe be deserved to be more than a B side. It’s good example of the pop ballads of the late 50s. It’s well produced has nice vocals and good musicians all doing their bit to make it good to listen to. A compilation like this has to have at least one song from The King. “Anyway You Want Me (That's How It Will Be)” is as good as any of the songs from Elvis Presley. It made number one on the U.S. Billboard's Most Played in Jukeboxes chart (as a double A-side with "Love Me Tender"). Les Vogt hails from Canada and admits he did his best to imitate Elvis and this is evident with a better than average teen ballad “Most Of All” at track twenty-three. Rockabilly legend, Mac Curtis, shows he can do ballads to with his Felsted recording from 1960, “Come Back Baby”. Ral Donner is one of the better-known Elvis copiers “Turn Back The Clock” definitely has a strong Elvis influence. Track twenty six is another excellent example of the songs primarily concerned with premature death from this period. What better title for the recording by Thomas Wayne with The DeLons than “Tragedy”? Rodney Scott’s vocal works well to convey sadness with his lament, “Bitter Tears”. Ray Vernon was actually Link Wray’s brother. “I'll Take Tomorrow (Today)” is a ballad that served as the B side to Ray’s debut pop rock single “Evil Angel” in 1957. Track twenty-nine “You Don't Owe Me A Thing” by Marty Robbins is a ballad with a country feel and some lovely guitar playing. Released in 1960 “Cold North Wind” is country/folk song from Lonnie Dee that tells of the death of a girlfriend. The penultimate track comes from Marvin Rainwater in a more reserved mood than his rockabilly records as he sings “nothing needs nothing like I need you”. Closing the set is Carl Perkins singing his hillbilly love song “Sure To Fall”

Summary and Recommendation

There’s a lot of death and heartbreak here, but nonetheless I found it an interesting compilation of quality recordings that may often be neglected. Bear Family have put together another excellent package, well worth the purchase price.

Track Listing

Track – Title - Artist

01 - What Do I Want - Gene Dunlap and The Jokers

02 - I Can See It In Your Eyes - Sonny James

03 - A Thousand Guitars - Tracy Pendarvis and The Swampers

04 - Lonely - Tommy LaBeff

05 - Can't Help It - Tommy Hill

06 - I Ain't Goin' Nowhere - Ronnie Self

07 - Someone Like You - Ronnie Hawkins

08 - I Think Of You - Rudy Grayzell

09 - A Cheat - Sanford Clark

10 - My True Love - Jack Scott