Roots-rockers are seldom as purist as Dave Edmunds. Throughout his career, he stayed true to '50s and '60s rock & roll -- for Edmunds, rock & roll history stopped somewhere in 1963, after the Beach Boys' first singles but before the Beatles' hits. After establishing himself as a hotshot lead guitarist in the blues-rockers Love Sculpture, he... [+] Read More

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Chicago singer/songwriter/violinist Andrew Bird updates the traditions of small group swing, German Leider and New Orleans jazz, mixing gypsy, folk and rock elements into his distinctive style. Bird's projects include his group the Bowl of Fire (which also includes drummer Kevin O'Donnell, bassist Josh Hirsch and guitarist Colin Bunn) and... [+] Read More

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There's been considerable discussion about whether Bobby Darin should be classified as a rock & roll singer, a Vegas hipster cat, an interpreter of popular standards, or even a folk-rocker. He was all of these and none of these. Throughout his career he made a point of not becoming committed to any one style at the exclusion of others; at the... [+] Read More

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One of the best and most original rockers of the early '60s, Del Shannon was also one of the least typical. Although classified at times as a teen idol, he favored brooding themes of abandonment, loss, and rejection. In some respects he looked forward to the British Invasion with his frequent use of minor chords and his ability to write most of... [+] Read More

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The leader of a first-class jazz-oriented dance band for over 60 years, Les Brown's music was never innovative but was generally quite pleasing. While attending Duke University in 1935, he put together his first big band, the Duke Blue Devils. After the group broke up in 1936, Brown worked as an arranger before forming a permanent orchestra in... [+] Read More

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NRBQ (the New Rhythm and Blues Quartet) have amassed a fanatical cult following over more than two decades of recording and touring with their incredibly versatile eclecticism; their music might veer from country to rockabilly to pop to bar-band R&B to blues to free jazz, all in the same album. The group's wacky, sometimes corny sense of humor... [+] Read More

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Retro-swingers the Royal Crown Revue comprised vocalist Eddie Nichols, guitarist James Achor, bassist Veikko Lepisto, tenor saxophonist Mando Dorame, baritone saxophonist Bill Ungerman, trumpeter Scott Steen and drummer Daniel Glass. Debuting in 1991 with the LP Kings of Gangster Bop, the group was almost the first to catch the wave of swing-era... [+] Read More

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Conjuring a fiendish witches' brew of primal rockabilly, grease-stained '60s garage rock, vintage monster movies, perverse and glistening sex, and the detritus and effluvia of 50 years of American pop culture, the Cramps are a truly American creation much in the manner of the Cadillac, the White Castle hamburger, the Fender Stratocaster, and... [+] Read More

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A crazed psychobilly quartet which later fragmented into the Workdogs and '68 Comeback, the Gibson Bros. formed in Ohio during the mid-'80s, playing barely competent yet totally energetic bluesy roots-rock which later became a staple of indie-rock through groups like the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Mule and the Delta 72. Vocalist/guitarists Don... [+] Read More

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