Eddie Bond • Memphis Rockabilly King

 

Biography by Bruce Eder
Despite never becoming a major national figure, Eddie Bond carved out a place as a rockabilly and country star, as well as a radio personality, for 50 years. A contemporary of Elvis Presley and a fixture in Memphis and on the Louisiana Hayride in the mid-'50s, Bond was one of the best singers of the period, and led the Stompers, one of the hottest bands, but he never broke out the way Elvis did. His records, whether rockabilly, country, or gospel, however, were among the best to come from Memphis from the mid-'50s through the 1960s, and helped Bond remain a much loved country/rockabilly performer into the new millennium.

Born Eddie James Bond in Memphis, he was originally drawn into music by the work of Ernest Tubb and Roy Acuff. By age eight, Bond had saved enough to buy his first guitar, and as a teenager he played at beer joints around Memphis. He drifted through various jobs after finishing school, including furniture factory worker and truck driver, before serving an 18-month hitch in the Navy.

After returning to civilian life, he began putting together his band, the Stompers, whose membership at various times in the years 1952-1954 included Jody Chastain and Curtis Lee Anderson. By 1955, the group's mainstays included Reggie Young on lead guitar, John Hughey on the pedal steel, and Johnny Fine at the drums. Bond led the Stompers on tours across the South and Southwest, billed alongside Roy Orbison, among other future country and rock & roll stars. They failed in auditions for Sam Phillips at Sun and the Bihari brothers' Meteor label, and in 1955 he signed with tiny Ekko Records, which resulted in a pair of singles issued late in the year, "Double Duty Lovin'"/"Talking Off the Wall" and "Love Makes a Fool (Everyday)"/"Your Eyes." These were pleasant, well-played country numbers, but they didn't include the band, only Bond as singer. With Hank Garland on lead guitar, Jerry Byrd on steel guitar, and Marvin Hughes at the ivories, they were OK records and then some, but not representative of Bond's real sound -- "Talking Off the Wall" was a rocker, with a solid beat and lots of tension in the lead and rhythm guitar parts, but it was the B-side to the milder "Double Duty Lovin'." In any case, neither record attracted any notice from the public or the musical world.

Bond and his band managed to get signed to Mercury Records in 1956, and this was where they came into their own. From their first Mercury session in February of 1956, Eddie Bond & the Stompers cooked, with a lean, hard rockabilly sound that rocked with the best of them. The band in those days featured Young, Hughey, and Fine, with Bond playing rhythm. The single "I Got a Woman"/"Rockin' Daddy" from that session is testimony to the excitement they could generate. That Mercury debut sold well in the spring of 1956, and they were getting lots of gigs and broadcast exposure at the time. Bond played the Louisiana Hayride alongside Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Johnny Horton, and it was around this time that he started his own radio show, an activity that was to loom ever larger in his career. His second Mercury session produced still more rockabilly gold, including "Slip, Slip, Slippin' In" and "Flip, Flop Mama," and they sold respectably, if not spectacularly.

Bond didn't stay with rockabilly music, however, and his later Mercury sessions produced country sides, although "Love Love Love" rocks pretty well. His Mercury contract ended in 1957, and for his next sessions, Bond was back doing rockabilly again, followed by more country music and even a foray into gospel in the early '60s. Bond's biggest success in the years that followed came on radio, where his show achieved huge ratings; this, in turn, helped sustain his record sales, as he recorded or licensed various songs to different labels, mostly in a country vein.

Eddie Bond was never going to be another Elvis Presley -- he wasn't going to be turned into a movie star as easily, or branch into other, heavily produced sounds, and he was too successful early on as a radio personality to abandon that activity. But he made a more than fair rival to Conway Twitty (whom he played with around 1955, when the latter was still known as Harold Jenkins), with a pleasing tenor voice, understated in its sweetness and dramatic nuance, and a good sense of how to deliver a song, whether ballad, rocker, or gospel number. He continued performing through the 1990s and into the new century. His broadcasting career was especially successful and assured him of a wide country audience, while his classic rockabilly sides from the '50s helped make him a living legend among enthusiasts, especially in Europe. Five decades into performing, he remained true to his country and rockabilly roots. 
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/eddie-bond-mn0000793441#biography

///////

Biografía de Bruce Eder
A pesar de no convertirse nunca en una figura nacional importante, Eddie Bond se labró un lugar como estrella del rockabilly y el country, además de personalidad de la radio, durante 50 años. Contemporáneo de Elvis Presley y figura habitual en Memphis y en el Louisiana Hayride a mediados de los 50, Bond fue uno de los mejores cantantes de la época y lideró a los Stompers, una de las bandas más populares, pero nunca alcanzó el éxito como Elvis. Sin embargo, sus discos, ya fueran de rockabilly, country o gospel, se encontraban entre los mejores de Memphis desde mediados de los 50 hasta los 60, y ayudaron a Bond a seguir siendo un intérprete de country/rockabilly muy querido en el nuevo milenio.

Nacido como Eddie James Bond en Memphis, se sintió atraído inicialmente por la música a través de la obra de Ernest Tubb y Roy Acuff. A los ocho años, Bond había ahorrado lo suficiente para comprarse su primera guitarra, y de adolescente tocaba en cervecerías de Memphis. Tras terminar la escuela, pasó por diversos trabajos, incluyendo obrero en una fábrica de muebles y camionero, antes de cumplir un servicio militar obligatorio de 18 meses en la Marina.

Tras regresar a la vida civil, comenzó a formar su banda, los Stompers, cuyos miembros, en diversos momentos entre 1952 y 1954, incluían a Jody Chastain y Curtis Lee Anderson. Para 1955, los pilares del grupo incluían a Reggie Young en la guitarra principal, John Hughey en el pedal steel y Johnny Fine en la batería. Bond guio a los Stompers en giras por el sur y el suroeste, junto a Roy Orbison, entre otras futuras estrellas del country y el rock & roll. Fracasaron en las audiciones para Sam Phillips en el sello Sun and the Bihari Brothers, Meteor, y en 1955 firmó con la pequeña discográfica Ekko Records, lo que dio lugar a un par de sencillos publicados a finales de año: "Double Duty Lovin'"/"Talking Off the Wall" y "Love Makes a Fool (Everyday)"/"Your Eyes". Eran temas country agradables y bien interpretados, pero no incluían a la banda, solo a Bond como cantante. Con Hank Garland a la guitarra principal, Jerry Byrd a la guitarra de acero y Marvin Hughes a las teclas, eran discos aceptables y algo más, pero no representaban el verdadero sonido de Bond: "Talking Off the Wall" era rockero, con un ritmo sólido y mucha tensión en las partes de guitarra principal y rítmica, pero era la cara B del más suave "Double Duty Lovin'". En cualquier caso, ninguno de los dos discos atrajo la atención del público ni del mundo musical.

Bond y su banda consiguieron firmar con Mercury Records en 1956, y fue entonces cuando alcanzaron su máximo potencial. Desde su primera sesión con Mercury en febrero de 1956, Eddie Bond & the Stompers arrasaron, con un sonido rockabilly, ligero y duro, que vibraba con los mejores. La banda en aquel entonces estaba formada por Young, Hughey y Fine, con Bond tocando el ritmo. El sencillo "I Got a Woman"/"Rockin' Daddy" de esa sesión da testimonio del entusiasmo que podían generar. Ese debut con Mercury se vendió bien en la primavera de 1956, y por aquel entonces conseguían muchos conciertos y difusión en radio. Bond tocó en el Louisiana Hayride junto a Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash y Johnny Horton, y fue por esa época cuando empezó su propio programa de radio, una actividad que cobraría cada vez mayor importancia en su carrera. Su segunda sesión con Mercury produjo aún más éxitos de rockabilly, incluyendo "Slip, Slip, Slippin' In" y "Flip, Flop Mama", que vendieron de forma respetable, aunque no espectacular.

Sin embargo, Bond no se limitó a la música rockabilly, y sus posteriores sesiones con Mercury incluyeron versiones country, aunque "Love Love Love" suena bastante bien. Su contrato con Mercury finalizó en 1957, y para sus siguientes sesiones, Bond volvió al rockabilly, seguido de más música country e incluso una incursión en el gospel a principios de los 60. El mayor éxito de Bond en los años siguientes llegó en la radio, donde su programa alcanzó una audiencia altísima; esto, a su vez, contribuyó a mantener sus ventas de discos, ya que grabó o licenció varias canciones a diferentes sellos discográficos, principalmente de estilo country.

Eddie Bond nunca iba a ser otro Elvis Presley: no iba a convertirse en estrella de cine con la misma facilidad, ni a explorar otros sonidos de gran producción, y tuvo demasiado éxito al principio como personalidad radiofónica como para abandonar esa actividad. Pero se convirtió en un rival más que justo para Conway Twitty (con quien tocó alrededor de 1955, cuando este último aún era conocido como Harold Jenkins), con una agradable voz de tenor, discreta en su dulzura y matices dramáticos, y un buen sentido de la interpretación de una canción, ya fuera balada, rock o gospel. Continuó actuando durante la década de 1990 y entrado el nuevo siglo. Su carrera en la radio fue especialmente exitosa y le garantizó una amplia audiencia country, mientras que sus clásicos del rockabilly de los años 50 lo convirtieron en una leyenda viva entre los aficionados, especialmente en Europa. Tras cinco décadas de actuaciones, se mantuvo fiel a sus raíces country y rockabilly.

Tracks:
1 - Slip, Slip Slippin' In
2 - Boppin' Bonnie
3 - Rockin' Daddy
4 - Here Comes The Train
5 - Flip Flop Mama
6 - Big Boss Man
7 - I've Got A Woman
8 - Talking Off The Wall
9 - Baby Baby Baby
10 - The Monkey & The Baboon
11 - Juke Joint Johnnie
12 - Double Duty Lovin'
13 - Can't Win For Losing
14 - Boo Bop Da Caa Caa
15 - Love Makes A Fool (Every Day)
16 - Look Like A Monkey
17 - You Nearly Lose Your Mind
18 - This Old Heart Of Mine
19 - Country Shindig
20 - When The Juke Box Plays [alt. take]
21 - One Way Ticket
22 - Blue Blue Day
23 - Gonna Rock My Baby Tonight
24 - Monkey Business
25 - Hey Joe
26 - My Bucket's Got A Hole In It
27 - Winners Circle
28 - Standing In Your Window
29 - Stomping At The Ranch
30 - Someday I'll Sober Up
31 - Your Eyes
32 - Memphis Tennessee
33 - I'm Satisfied
34 - Tank Town Boogie
35 - Tore Up
36 - Don't Tear Me Up
37 - Candy Kisses
38 - The Cliff Finch Train
39 - Watch Old Cliff Finch
40 - A Mid-South Motor

Label:    Stomper Time Records – STCD 23
Country:    UK
Released:    Mar 26, 2007
Genre:    Rock
Style:    Rockabilly, Country
https://www.discogs.com/release/4381387-Eddie-Bond-Memphis-Rockabilly-King?srsltid=AfmBOooT_VUii-czy4qMsRo-ODoUI6oy0GTPFkG5upRKsfCVFPlVwTLA

This file is intended only for preview!
I ask you to delete the file from your hard drive or device after reading it.
thank for the original uploader