Rock 'n' Roll 264 Items

Recorded live at Hitsville, Passaic, NJ on December 25, 1981.

Helsinki Surf City - Mary Ann Hawkins' second album out in February 2025

Finnish surf rock sultans Mary Ann Hawkins are back with another wave hitting the shores around the world next February. Riding the mighty new wave of Finnish Surf Rock, Mary Ann Hawkins are the No. 1 surfing group in the country. Equally comfortable surfing the arid spaghetti western desert as well as the thousand lakes of Finland, these sweaty but impeccably dressed young men present you with twelve tunes just right for surf-dancing.

For many moons now the Helsinki-based quintet has driven audiences wild across the old continent, especially in their native land of Finland. Having self-released two EP records and the debut self titled album in 2022 via Svart Records, the group are now preparing for the release of their sophomore album Helsinki Surf City in February 2025. With the new album the band has added their twist to their instrumental, dynamic surf sound they are known for by adding renowned Finnish vocalists to feature on some of the tracks. Stepa, Marko Haavisto, Maria Stereo and Minja Koski known as M add the cherries on top of the whitecaps making this album a joyous, beautiful, dangerous, action-packed and even a bit of a frightening trip. Ride the big one, ride the Helsinki Surf City!

Helsinki Surf City - Mary Ann Hawkins' second album out in February 2025

Finnish surf rock sultans Mary Ann Hawkins are back with another wave hitting the shores around the world next February. Riding the mighty new wave of Finnish Surf Rock, Mary Ann Hawkins are the No. 1 surfing group in the country. Equally comfortable surfing the arid spaghetti western desert as well as the thousand lakes of Finland, these sweaty but impeccably dressed young men present you with twelve tunes just right for surf-dancing.

For many moons now the Helsinki-based quintet has driven audiences wild across the old continent, especially in their native land of Finland. Having self-released two EP records and the debut self titled album in 2022 via Svart Records, the group are now preparing for the release of their sophomore album Helsinki Surf City in February 2025. With the new album the band has added their twist to their instrumental, dynamic surf sound they are known for by adding renowned Finnish vocalists to feature on some of the tracks. Stepa, Marko Haavisto, Maria Stereo and Minja Koski known as M add the cherries on top of the whitecaps making this album a joyous, beautiful, dangerous, action-packed and even a bit of a frightening trip. Ride the big one, ride the Helsinki Surf City!

LOS Riscos, Spanish band who released a few 7" from 1971 to 1976, get the Madmua treatment. This 7" includes their two best tracks, including the underground classic "Sombras" from their highly collectable, ultra hard to find 1971 EP. 500 copies only, with insert and two postcards.

Discodelic and Groovie Records present two incredible singles / amazing finds of musical archeology. Four recordings made in Panama in the 70s and lost in time, we finally managed to license these Latin Psych Funk gems through Tamayo Records in a deluxe limited edition. These four groups Conjunto Raza, The Meditators, The Scepters and Los Misticos, were groups that barely recorded a single, which were only used for radio stations and forgotten in warehouses, they represent the most underground and forgotten Panama!

Los Mambo Jambo return with their second album as Los Mambo Jambo Arkestra, which sees the Barcelona quartet backed by 12 extra musicians, including two horn sections and one extra guitarrist. ‘El Gran Ciclón, arranged by their own Ivan Kovacevic (bass) and produced by Dani Nel•lo (sax), includes 11 tracks from the band’s different eras with a new twist.

Formed in 1961, Los Jets are one of the essential bands in the emergence of rock & roll music in Argentina. They were the first group (and possibly the only one) to include two drummers, they sang and did three-part choruses before The Beatles appeared on the scene, and were also pioneers in fusion as they recorded Argentine and Latin American folk songs with a rock beat. This compilation gathers tracks from their two LPs, singles and their only surviving live recording, registered in January 1966. Includes CD with 15 bonus tracks.

LOS Cirros are one of the most obscure Spanish rock bands from the late 60s. Coming out of a tiny village in one of the smallest provinces of the country sure helped them being fully ignored, but how cool those guys proved to be when discovered in compilations such as “Viñedos” or “Pentecostés Vibrations”!!! They released two seven inches (1969 and 1970), both very very rare and featuring pretty cool songs in a blend of garage, light psychedelia and pop. Now, these two 45s are reissued (marketed together, not to be sold separately!), including an unreleased bonus track and with the usual attention to detail of the Madmua label, with the addition of an insert and two postcards. Limited to 500 copies.

With his rawboned and ravaged instrumentals from the early ’60s, Link Wray single-handedly made the guitar the ultimately cool instrument of choice for a whole new generation. Wielding a Danelectro Longhorn, Link Wray—who created the blueprint for everyone from the Kingsmen to the Cramps with his flame-throwing sound—proceeded to outdo himself with this rare LP from 1963, now corralled on this Sundazed exact-repro, in crunchily perfect sound courtesy of the original Swan mono master tapes!

Linda, you already know her, without really knowing her. Because in 2002, she piloted The beat goes on, DJ Bob Sinclar's house hit. because she directed Gospel pour 100 voix, an XXL choir that filled Bercy several times. It's a big difference, in keeping with the way she embraces music: a matter of emotions and feeling, not labels. A deep love that goes back to the childhood of this American native of North Carolina. When her father's amateur gospel group rehearsed at home, when the microphone was a hairbrush in front of a mirror reflecting a little girl imitating Aretha, Otis and Michael. As a young adult, winning a singing contest in a Pennsylvania club gave her confidence. Linda is gifted at embodying songs and drawing audiences along with her. Word of mouth opened doors for her. Under her spell, several bands recruited her in the seventies, until she set up her own band in 1980. And then she was hired by a musical that ran for several years in Atlantic City. A few years on the Caribbean island of Saint-Martin followed, before a guardian angel extricated her from a nightlife that was beginning to burn her wings. Off to Paris. In June 1991, Linda settled in for good. A godsend for France, its studios and touring artists. Nino Ferrer, Bernard Lavilliers, Gloria Gaynor, Percy Sledge, Ray Charles and many others called on Linda's expertise. As did Ben l'Oncle Soul in 2013 for Hallelujah!!! (J'ai tant besoin de toi), the lead single from his second album "À Coup de Rêves". Ben knew that this treasure of a voice deserved a new light. He introduced her to his great guitarist & accomplice Christophe Lardeau. The collaboration is immediately crystal-clear, naturally fruitful, and the compositions are deep and meaningful. For the first time, Linda has her own album. Drawing on the rich roots of Afro-American music and her own personal experience, "Spirit & Soul" encapsulates all the vitality of a hidden gem that we are at last truly discovering. With a repertoire like this, upcoming concerts promise to be particularly intense moments.

Les Dynamites make a jubilant return to Batov Records" Middle Eastern Grooves series of vinyl 45s with two irresistible instrumentals capturing the spirit of the Mediterranean surf rock renaissance, "Uzi Kinrot" and "Sea Gull".

Infectious rock&roll, surf, beat, girl group and ye-yé sounds by LAS Mosquitas, the first female beat band from Argentina.

Including their rare album from 1965 for the Music Hall label plus bonus tracks from singles and their impossible to find split EP with Los Gatos Salvajes.

Las Mosquitas (“The Little Flies”) consisted of Stella Maris Conde (Pupé) on vocals and guitar, María Cristina Medina (Nita) on bass, Ana María Millán (Nené) on vocals and guitar and Beatriz Cabrera (Dina) on drums. They performed their original compositions as well as Spanish sung covers of hits from the era. Producer Ricardo Romero of pioneering rock&roll Argentinean band Los Cinco Latinos took them under his wing and secured a deal with the Music Hall label.

They toured nationally and internationally, sometimes supporting Los Cinco Latinos, other times as the main act. Not only that, but they conquered every city they performed in, they were received by fans, ambassadors, presidents and their daughters, all eager to see Las Mosquitas on stage. Tours through Panamá, the Dominican Republic, Peru, Puerto Rico, Chile, Uruguay, Brasil, Curazao and Argentina were completed with fantastic public response and TV appearances.

The “Mosquitamania” was born and a string of singles and a full album on the Music Hall label followed. All of them are compiled here for the first time.

“Their music was a mix of ye-yé and beat and they dressed how you would expect the Beatles to dress if they had been women” - Gareth Wynne (Ugly Things)

Goner Records is honored to release Harahan Fats, an extraordinary posthumous album by King Louie Bankston (December 18, 1972 - February 12, 2022). The collection showcases an American artist at the pinnacle of his musical and personal identity. An aural roadmap to South Louisiana that’s imbued with personal mythologies and blurry, beer-soaked and drug-skewed memories, Harahan Fats was recorded over a four-year period that culminated in mid-October 2021.

As co-founder and drummer of the Royal Pendletons, Bankston recorded with power-pop legend Alex Chilton. He picked up a Gibson Flying V for his work in Bad Times, a garage rock supergroup that Bankston helmed alongside Eric Oblivian and Jay Reatard. In the 1990s, Bankston channeled his energy into bands like the Persuaders, Intelligenitals, the Clickems, Harahan Crack Combo, and Gerry And The Bastard Makers. At the dawn of the new century, he founded the legendary King Louie One Man Band.

In 2000, Louie pulled up stakes in New Orleans and moved to Portland, Oregon, where he joined the power-pop punk band The Exploding Hearts. Bankston wrote many of the songs and played keyboards on their only album, the highly acclaimed Guitar Romantic, released mere weeks before three members of the band were killed in a van wreck, and recently reissued by Third Man Records. Bankston then landed in Memphis, where he formed the Loose Diamonds, a ramshackle bar band, with Jack Oblivian, Harlan T. Bobo, and Gary Wrong. With guitarist Julian Fried, he formed Missing Monuments and Black Rose Band, founded a New Orleans biker-rock band called Kondor with Mr. Quintron, and reconnected with Exploding Hearts guitarist Terry Six for Terry And Louie.

Julissa, the Woman Who Was Censored in Mexican Rock! Rock and Roll in Mexico had an impact practically all over the world, yet it was never free from censorship. Several songs made it to the radio, and among them was the track "Ven Cerca," performed by Los Spitfires and their singer Julissa. Julissa entered the entertainment industry at a very young age, as she was only 13 years old when she started singing with The Spitfires, a rock and roll group formed by her brother Luis on bass, Juan Ramón Sordo on drums, José Luis de la Huerta, and Manuel González Galindo, better known as Johnny Dynamo, on guitars. Los Spitfires, a band originating from Mexico City and formed in 1960, were one of five winning groups in a contest organized by CBS Columbia and the Radio Éxitos station, held in November of that same year. Los Escupefuego were the runners-up, as first place went to Los Hooligans, who, in addition to recording an album, would also appear in a movie. The other groups that won the opportunity to record an album with CBS were: Los Loud Jets, Los Blue Caps, and Los Sparks. Los Spitfires only recorded two tracks: "Loco Amor" and "Ven Cerca," Spanish versions of Paul Anka's "Crazy Love" and Johnny Restivo's "Come Closer." Although these songs are not widely known, except among true fans, they serve as a reference to the early rock being made in Mexico during that time. At the time, all rock musicians were copying foreign hits, including the musical arrangements, and simply translating the lyrics into Spanish. For Julissa, this task wasn't difficult, as she was fluent in English. "Ven Cerca" ("Come Closer") with its highly suggestive lyrics, was the first song she recorded with her group. She translated the lyrics exactly as Johnny Restivo sang them in English. It began like this: "Come closer, just a little bit closer, because I want to hug and kiss you, come closer." Julissa sang it with whispers and sighs, and with the microphone so open, all her breaths and gasps sounded like genuine moans. Very soon, the record was pulled from the market. Interestingly, she had no idea what those suggestive expressions implied, as she was almost still a child. That record 45s it is very difficult to find and is a rare piece sought after by collectors from around the world!

Joyce Harris was born in Kentucky in 1939 and moved to New Orleans with her family when she was 13 years old. Harris learned to play guitar, write songs and was soon performing duets with her younger sister Judy. They released three singles – ‘He’s The One’ / ‘Hey Pretty Baby’, ‘Washboard Sam’ / ‘Nursery Rock (Beedle De Bop)’ and ‘Hey Little Baby’/ ‘Rock And Roll Kittens’ – as Judy and Joyce in 1958. When her sister got married, Harris spent a year singing in restaurants in Mexico and a first solo single ‘It’s You’ / ‘The Boy In School’ was released on New York’s U.T. Records at the end of 1959. A talent spotter saw her in Mexico and was impressed enough to secure her an audition with the Austin, Texas-based Domino label. Harris was soon in the studio with Tommy Kaspar and Don Burch of Domino’s vocal quartet, the Slades, to record ‘I Cheated’ / ‘Do You Know What It’s Like To Be Lonesome?’ (r-903) in October 1960. ‘No Way Out’ / ‘Dreamer’ (r-905) followed in January 1961 and sold strongly enough to be licensed to Infinity Records. On 7 April 1961, Harris performed ‘No Way Out’ live on TV on American Bandstand. Three more singles would be issued on different labels between 1963 and 1966.

The legendary Jackie and the Sedricks, a veteran Tokyo rockin' garage band that has been active since the early 1990s and boasts worldwide popularity through releases and tours in Europe and the United States, has unearthed a legendary live performance from 1996 at the now-defunct Shinjuku Jam! The band's impressive live stage performance, which is sure to be popular not only in the garage world but also in the punk world, strikes at the essence of rock 'n' roll and human instincts! The band members were all in their twenties, and their crisp, full performance and the extraordinary yellow cheers conveyed the excitement of the garage scene in Japan at that time. This is a valuable piece of historical record.

The ‘vocalist’ series, a collection of cover albums featuring famous songs by female artists, was originally released between 2005 and 2015. To mark the 10th anniversary of the final album ‘vocalist 6’ (released on January 21, 2015), all six titles from the series will be reissued on vinyl over the course of three consecutive months starting January 21, 2025. Notably, ‘vocalist 4,’ ‘vocalist VINTAGE,’ and ‘vocalist 6’ will be available on vinyl for the first time.

The ‘vocalist’ series, a collection of cover albums featuring famous songs by female artists, was originally released between 2005 and 2015. To mark the 10th anniversary of the final album ‘vocalist 6’ (released on January 21, 2015), all six titles from the series will be reissued on vinyl over the course of three consecutive months starting January 21, 2025. Notably, ‘vocalist 4,’ ‘vocalist VINTAGE,’ and ‘vocalist 6’ will be available on vinyl for the first time.

The ‘vocalist’ series, a collection of cover albums featuring famous songs by female artists, was originally released between 2005 and 2015. To mark the 10th anniversary of the final album ‘vocalist 6’ (released on January 21, 2015), all six titles from the series will be reissued on vinyl over the course of three consecutive months starting January 21, 2025. Notably, ‘vocalist 4,’ ‘vocalist VINTAGE,’ and ‘vocalist 6’ will be available on vinyl for the first time.

The ‘vocalist’ series, a collection of cover albums featuring famous songs by female artists, was originally released between 2005 and 2015. To mark the 10th anniversary of the final album ‘vocalist 6’ (released on January 21, 2015), all six titles from the series will be reissued on vinyl over the course of three consecutive months starting January 21, 2025. Notably, ‘vocalist 4,’ ‘vocalist VINTAGE,’ and ‘vocalist 6’ will be available on vinyl for the first time.

The ‘vocalist’ series, a collection of cover albums featuring famous songs by female artists, was originally released between 2005 and 2015. To mark the 10th anniversary of the final album ‘vocalist 6’ (released on January 21, 2015), all six titles from the series will be reissued on vinyl over the course of three consecutive months starting January 21, 2025. Notably, ‘vocalist 4,’ ‘vocalist VINTAGE,’ and ‘vocalist 6’ will be available on vinyl for the first time.