I have been reviewing the That’ll Flat Git It series for five years, and have always enjoyed the eclectic selection featured in each one. Each edition focuses on rockabilly and rock ‘n’ roll from the vaults of one label or two connected companies. The focus on primarily obscure recordings in these sets is what makes Bear Family Records’ venture so thrilling as a music connoisseur.
The 47th volume of the series takes a dip into the back catalogue of Starday Records, a label founded in 1953 in Beaumont, Texas by Jack Starns Jr and Harold “Pappy” Daily. Originally focused on producing Traditional Country, Starday diversified in the mid-1950s with the rise of Rockabilly. The album contains 33 tracks originally released between 1954 and 1960; Is this edition worth picking up?
The album begins with Rocky Bill Ford’s Have You Seen Mabel, a genre transition track that has key elements of Rockabilly but with Country vibes from a steel guitar.
Personal highlights include Rudy Grayzell’s exceptional vocals on You’re Gone, the production on Arnold Parker’s Find a New Woman and Sonny Fisher’s Little Red Wagon. Glenn Barber’s Ice Water was recorded before the rocking genre explosion, but it still has an addictive energy that matches the rest of the material.
This album not only serves as a document for Starday Records but also where the rockabilly genre was in the mid to late 50s. The compilation ends on Sleepy LaBeff’s simple but addictive I’m Through, his voice dominating proceedings as the repetitive guitar riff twangs along.
Sound Quality
The quality of these recordings is excellent. Bear Family Records have ensured the highest quality, most sounding like they derive from original masters. As with other titles in the series, an occasional track may sound rougher than the rest, but I find a certain charm in that case.
A Little Something Extra…
Consistent with the rest of the That’ll Flat Git It! series, the album is presented in a nicely printed digipak. The leopard print artwork with a stylistically cutout vintage photograph never fails to catch the eye. The disc features a print of a Starday Records vinyl label, primarily King of the Ducktail Cats by Larry Nolen and His Bandits.
The 38-page booklet is attached to the inside of the digipak, which may seem a slight inconvenience to some. The liner notes, featuring label background and details on each artist, were written by Bill Dahl.
Conclusion
Bear Family Records is pitching this album as the first of two volumes dedicated to Starday. If this first dip into their archives is anything to go by, the second volume will be even more interesting.
Some casual fans of the genre may find this collection difficult to grasp, given the obscurity of much of the material. However, enthusiasts will relish the chance to discover these rare rockabilly tracks that don’t often get airtime. Roll on more Starday material! That’ll Flat Git It! Vol 47 is available to order from Bear Family Records
Tracklisting:
- Rocky Bill Ford – Have You Seen Mabel
- Sonny Fisher – Sneaky Pete
- Rudy ‘Tutti’ Grazell – You’re Gone
- Sleepy Labeef – I Ain’t Gonna Take It
- Amos Como & His Tune Toppers – Hole In The Wall
- Buddy Shaw – Don’t Sweep That Dirt On Me
- Larry Nolen & His Bandits – King Of The Ducktail Cats
- Glenn Barber – Ice Water
- Thumper Jones – How Come It
- Arnold Parker & The Southernairs – Find A New Woman
- Eddie Skelton – My Heart Gets Lonely
- Rock Rogers – That Ain’t It
- Hal Payne – Honky Tonk Stomp
- Lou Walker – Rock And Roll (Tennessee Style)
- Lucky Wray with Link & Doug Wray – Teenage Cutie
- Bill Mack – It’s Saturday Night
- Bill Browning – Down In The Hollow
- Slim Watts – Tu-La-Lou
- Truitt Forse – Doggone Dame
- Link Davis – Sixteen Chicks
- Johnny Tyler – Lie To Me Baby
- Sleepy Jeffers and The Davis Twins – My Blackbirds Are Bluebirds Now
- Cousin Arnold & His Country Cousins – Sweet Talking Daddy
- Jimmy Johnson – Woman Love
- Sonny Fisher – Little Red Wagon
- Link Davis – Don’t Big Shot Me
- Ruddy ‘Tutti’ Grayzell – Ducktail
- Glenn Barber – Feeling No Pain
- Lloyd McCollough – Half My Fault
- Al Runyon – Baby Please Come Home
- Bill Mack – Kitty Kat
- Tommy Castle – Wanderlust
- Sleepy LaBeff – I’m Through
That'll Flat Git It! Vol 47
