Johnny Carroll

Johnny Carroll

Johnny Carroll (* 23. October 1937 in Cleburne , Texas as John Lewis Carrell ; † 18th February 1995 ) was an American rockabilly musician. Carroll is considered one of the most typical representatives of the genre. Well-known titles by him include Hot Rock , Wild Wild Women and Crazy Crazy Lovin ' .

Life

Childhood and youth

Johnny Carroll grew up in the small community of Godley, Texas. Carroll's father, William, was a farmer and teacher. But he got the musical talent from his mother Ina Mae. Unlike in most regions of the south, Carroll did not experience any racist prejudice against the Afro-American inhabitants, as black people often worked for his father. When Godley was plugged in in 1947, Carroll often heard the blues on the radio . He made his first appearance on the radio station KCLE at the age of nine, shortly after he started playing guitar . In 1952, while in high school, he formed his own band, which performed at local events.

Career

In 1955 the group, which had initially consisted of Carroll (guitar, vocals), Bill Buntin ( bass ) and Bill Hennen ( piano ), was expanded to include guitarist Jay Salem. When Hank Snow and Ferlin Husky gave a show in town that same year , Carroll managed to chat with Husky for a while, who offered to support his band. The performance caught the attention of studio owner John Goldman, who brought Carroll and his group, now called The Hot Rocks , to Decca Records , who signed Carroll, but not his band. Here he also got his stage name. Decca had misspelled his last name in the contract and from then on his name was changed from Carrell to Johnny Carroll.

For his first recording session, Carroll traveled to Nashville , Tennessee , where on April 25th he played his first three tracks Crazy Crazy Lovin ' , Trying To Get To You and Rock'n'Roll with well-known session musicians such as Hank Garland and Bob Moore Ruby played. The day after, more titles were recorded. His first single was released on May 19, 1956 with rock and roll Ruby . However, his debut record, like his other singles, could not place in the Billboard charts . His manager TG Tiger gave Carroll a role in the movie Rock Baby, Rock It , in which he played four pieces with his band. But even the appearance in the film and his tour did not bring the desired success and after Carroll had fallen out with his manager because he had embezzled him, Decca Carroll terminated the contract. The following year Carroll became a member of the KWKH Louisiana Hayride and the KRLD Big D Jamboree , where he had previously made guest appearances. Backstage at the Hayrides, Carroll met Scotty Moore and Bill Black , who had just broken up with Elvis Presley ; the three quickly became friends. Moore suggested that Carroll audition for Sam Phillips , owner of Sun Records . Phillips was interested in Carroll and gave him the opportunity to work on his Phillips International Label, but when Phillips landed a hit with Bill Justis, interest in Carroll had vanished, even after the first recordings had been made. In 1959 he signed a contract with Warner Bros. Records , which ran out after two singles with his band The Spinners .

Carroll continued his career anyway and recorded records until the early 1960s. For Gene Vincent , with whom he was also friends, the song Maybe , which appeared on Vincent's fifth album. In the late 1960s, Carroll retired from the music business and worked as an accountant in a nightclub. There he was shot once but recovered from the injury. It was not until the late 1970s that Carroll tried to gain a foothold in the music business again as part of the rockabilly revival. From then on he recorded albums and singles with Ronnie Weiser's Rollin 'Rock label and made appearances in Europe. He traveled a total of eleven times across the Atlantic to perform at various rock and roll and rockabilly festivals.

Johnny Carroll died in 1995 as a result of a liver transplant that had complications. He was posthumously inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame .

Discography

Singles

year	title	Record company
1956	Rock'n'Roll Ruby / Trying To Get To You	Decca Records
1956	Wild Wild Women / Corrine, Corrine	Decca Records
1956	Hot Rock / Crazy Crazy Lovin '	Decca Records
1956	EP Hot rock Corrine, Corrine Crazy Crazy Lovin ' Wild Wild Women	Decca Records
1957	That's The Way I Love / I'll Wait	Phillips International
1959	The Swing / Bandstand Doll	Warner Bros. Records
1959	Sugar / Lost Lost Without You	Warner Bros. Records
1959	Rag Mop / Little Otis	Warner Bros. Records
1960	Run Come See / Trudy	WA Records
1962	Run Come See / The Sally Ann	Duchess Records
1975	Rock baby, rock it / ?	Sun Records
1983	Screaming Demon Heatwave / Rattle My Bones	Seville Records
Unpublished titles
1955	Crazy Little Mama Cut out Hearts of Stone Love Is A Merry-Go-Round Sexy ways Stingy Thing Why Cry
1957	Rock it	Sun Records
	Be-Bop-A-Lula Is Back On The Scene Cat With The Skin Havana Nights Lonesome boy Sugar Lips

Albums (selection)

• 1978: Johnny Carroll
• 1979: Special Requests - Johnny and Judy Live At Hilton (with Judy Lindsey)
• 1980: Texabilly
• 1983: Creamin 'Deamon Heatwave
• 1985: Crazy Hot Rock
• 1986: Shades of Vincent (with Judy Lindsey)
• 1996: Rock Baby, Rock It ( Bear Family )

Web links

• Entry into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame
• Johnny Carroll at Discogs (English)
• Johnny Carroll in the All Music Guide
• Discography with audio samples