Carl Perkins Re-kicks It

Yes, I'm resurrecting the Corn Pone at my web site, so will pick up where I left off here. Last week of November, 2009, with link to page at bottom of text.

11-23-09... The thoughts and beliefs that fill our minds ultimately make their way into our life experience. I suppose you can see how important it is to choose wisely which thoughts you care to entertain, and which ones you should quickly cast out.

Here's a good song with lyrics for a quick history lesson in country music. Add to this the skilled vocals of Hank Locklin, and you've got a tune worth a couple minutes of your time. Country Hall of Fame



11-25-09... Do you wisely choose the foods you eat? Do you ingest information intelligently, or accept whatever you hear without critical thinking? Do you choose intelligently the words used while raising your children, or performing your function at work? The world needs more intelligence. There is plenty of will power, but without an intelligent plan, actions can take us to places we don't want to go, which creates a need for much more effort to get where we need to go.

Carl Perkins is smart. He wants to take his woman to a picture show so he can get her out of her house. That way, he avoids the man living there he doesn't like. Avoids conflicts. Lessens stress. Gives him a better chance of getting lucky with Mag. Movie Mag



11-27-09... I don't know, Patsy, seems to me you'd be better off with his records. If she's got him, then he wants her and not you, Patsy Cline. I suspect the records will be worth more to you after a few months have passed. Maybe you'll find some man who loves the other guy's taste in music, and your new guy will peform for you like a Trojan warrior. Patsy Cline will swoon, but for now, her brilliant voice is emotionally shook up. She's Got You



11-30-09... Knowledge that you do not actually use is only intellectual knowledge, which is barren and will fade away from lack of use.

Today's song features a melody which is far from barren. It has been used in many different songs through several decades, a fact made clear by Johnny Bond and Cowboy Copas when they sing Thinkin' Tonight.

Links to mp3 audio samples (free to hear) for these songs is here:

HERE

Carl Perkins

In 1954. Sam Phillips knew he had something hot, something new, a heart-pounding blend of Southern black boogie rhythm and country/western pluck.

Carl Perkins further developed the sound he'd created for the next year, playing honky-tonks and dance halls throughout the south, and in December 1955 he came back to the Sun studios with a couple more songs, Honey Don't and one written on a brown paper bag called Blue Suede Shoes. His electric guitar was rocking, and Blue Suede Shoes quickly became Sun's first million seller in 1956. Not only that, it topped all charts: pop, country and R&B, the first record to accomplish the feat.

Carl was primed for national stardom, but on the road to New York for an appearance on television's Perry Como Show, the automobile Carl and his band rode in slammed into the back of a truck, seriously injuring all of them. Carl's skull was fractured, and while he laid for many months in the hospital, Elvis Presley, who'd left Sun and signed with RCA Victor, picked up and recorded Blue Suede Shoes. Carl's chance of fame was taken from him, the song for many years indentified with Elvis, not its creator, Carl Perkins.

Not until 1964 did he get his second chance at stardom, not in the U.S., but in England. There, his guitar style and songs were cherished and mimicked by the Beatles, who were the new sensations in Britain at the time. Carl's tour was a huge success, as he met and hung out with members of the band. Carl's music was reintroduced to American audiences when the Beatles toured the states. The Beatles recorded more Carl Perkins songs than they did any other songwriters' other than themselves, including Honey Don't, Everybody's Tryin' to Be My Baby and Matchbox.

He never achieved the superstar status of Elvis, but Carl Perkins' contributions are rightly recognized and he was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame mid-1980's. His funeral in 1998 saw a who's-who list of the famous in attendance, such as George Harrison, Wynona Judd, Garth Brooks and Jerry Lee Lewis. The building was so packed other stars watched the services on moniters in an adjacent building: Eric Clapton and Elton John, along with video tributes sent by Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan.

Carl Perkins - Blue Suede Shoes - go HERE and scroll down to today's date.