Johnny And Hurricanes - Beatnik Fly - 1960 |
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Johnny and the Hurricanes was a rock and roll band that began as The Orbits in Toledo, Ohio in 1957. Led by saxophonist Johnny Paris (born John Pocisk, 1940, Walbridge, Ohio - died 1 May 2006, Ann Arbor, Michigan), they were school friends who played on a few recordings behind Mack Vickery, a local rockabilly singer. They signed with Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik of Twirl Records, which led to national engagements in 1959. Johnny and the Hurricanes recorded "Crossfire" in a vacant cinema to provide echo. That became a nationwide U.S. hit, and ranked No. 23 in the U.S. chart in the summer of 1959. Johnny and the Hurricanes followed with an instrumental version of "Red River Valley" on Warwick Records, that became a Top Ten hit on both sides of the Atlantic (No. 5 in the U.S., No. 3 in the UK), and sold over a million copies. The musicians in the band then were Paris on saxophone, Paul Tesluk on hammond organ, Dave Yorko on (guitar), Butch Mattice on bass), and Bill "Little Bo" Savich on drums. Many recordings were cover versions of old tunes with a rock and roll beat. They chose these songs because they were well recognized and easier to accept with the rock and roll beat of the accordion which then led to the Hammond Chord Organ. Johnny Paris and the Hurricanes were the first rock and roll group to introduce these instruments to the rock and roll world. Tunes were credited to 'King, Mack' and sometimes one other name. In 1960, they recorded the United States Army bugle call, "Reveille", as "Reveille Rock" (No. 25 in the U.S.), and turned "Blue Tail Fly" into "Beatnik Fly" (No. 15 in the U.S.). Both tunes made the Top 40. The band also recoded "Down Yonder" for Big Top Records. Still in 1960, they recorded "When The Saints Go Marching In" as "Revival", but it ranked in the charts for just one week, and peaked at No. 97. The track fared better in the UK as the B-side of "Rocking Goose", which reached No. 3 in the U.K. chart. [1]
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