Album Notes

Shane, Colin, and Jim traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to record the first King Cadillac album at the legendary Sun Studio – the birthplace of rock’n’roll. (After all, if you’re going to do an album, you might as well do it right.)

The album features remakes not only of old Sun Record favorites, but also of other 50’s and early 60’s American roots rock’n’roll records. A French reviewer has described the song selection on Sessions at Sun as an “ingenious or perplexing” state of affairs, depending on your personal tastes. But such variety is to be expected from the self-styled “Kings of Popabilly,” who mix rockabilly and more mainstream 50’s and early 60’s American pop rock’n’roll songs in their live shows -- all to the unwavering appreciation of the band’s audiences, who do not seem to be perplexed in the least with the band’s admixture of great roots rock’n’roll songs. Thus, the listener can be left with only one conclusion -- that the album is indeed ingenious. More than that, it’s a lot of fun. King Cadillac puts its own high-octane stamp on classic rockabilly and rock’n’roll hits and succeeds in channeling the spirit of many of the old legendary Sun recording artists.

King Cadillac’s Sessions at Sun has 18 tracks – way too many to give a complete blow-by-blow review of the album, but some noteworthy notables follow. The album kicks off with “Ready Teddy” – letting the listener know that the band is indeed ready, ready, ready to rock and roll, and you best be too. The bands version of “Ring of Fire” takes an early 60’s Johnny Cash hit and throws it almost a decade back to the Sun Studio origins of its author – and renders it more rockabilly than rock’n’roll. No Mexicali trumpets needed for this trio. “Honey Don’t” is stone cold rockabilly at its best and would make Papa Perkins a proud grandfather to these young hillbilly cats. If you don’t want to uncork a bottle of wine after “Drinkin’ Wine Spo-dee-o-dee,” then there is no pleasing you.

One of the more “perplexing bits” from the point of view of the French reviewer undoubtedly is “It’s Now or Never.” Admittedly, the Elvis version is a long way from Sun Studio, but when you’re a roots rock/rockabilly trio with a lead singer (Shane Hamilton) who can actually carry a tune, it’s not that surprising that you would put a vocal showcase song on your album. What’s more, each rhythm section member takes lead vocal on a song – the drummer (Colin Diemer or “CD”) on “Chantilly Lace,” and the bass player (Jim Lampert or “Jimbo”) on “Oh Boy!” Each does a superb job as a lead vocalist on their respective tunes as well as on backing vocals throughout the album. In fact, their backing vocals are so good, they make an impression even on songs where they are absent: according to the French Reviewer, the band demonstrates a nice “doo-wop touch” on Earth Angel, even though there are absolutely zero backing vocals. Now that’s talent!

The French reviewer did get one thing right: “there isn’t a false note” on the entire album. So pick yourself up a copy of the album. To borrow the sales pitch of a true master -- Bernard Lansky, Clothier to the King -- “Why not? You deserve it.!

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King Cadillac would like to point out that no French reviewers were harmed in the making of this promotional material. The band appreciates Bernard Boyat’s support, and his full review follows. So enjoy … if you can read French!

Comme pas mal d’autres artistes recentes, Shane Hamilton (gtr, vo) Colin Diemer) (bat) Jim Lampert (cbss) se sont rendus dans le legendaire studio Sun pour enregistrer. Ils ont choisi de reprendre un certain nombre de classiques du R’n’R/rockabilly, pas forecement en rapport avec le son Sun, ce qui pourra paraitre paradoxal ou ingenieux suivant les gouts personnels. En tout cas, leur composition en trio les met plus a l’aise dans le rockabilly leger (qu’ils appellant popabilly) soit sur un classique comme Honey Don’t, soit sur les titres qu’ils revisitent ainsi (Ready Teddy, I Fought the Law, Rave On, Drinkin’ Wine Spo-De-o-De, Maybellene) que dans le R’n’R qui necessite un son plus etoffe, la guitar en particulier: Somethin Else, Not Fade Away ou Chantilly Lace. En revanche, ils demontrent de belles capacities de doo-woppeurs avec Earth Angel. Pas de fausse note, mais un peu de perplexite a propos d choix de certains morceaux.

-- Review by Bernard Boyat, appearing in Le Cri Du Coyote No. 99 (June – July 2007), and in Country Music Attitude No. 111 (August 2007).