Vintage Rock – September-October 2019

Graham Fenton has been, for nearly half a century

now, the frontman of Brit rockabilly revivalists

Matchbox. Formed in Middlesex in 1970, the band

notched up a string of hits in the following decade,

including Rockabilly Rebel, Midnite Dynamos, a cover of

The Crickets’ When You Ask About Love and

Over The Rainbow...

Graham Fenton

Bill Haley And His Comets

ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK

1954

When I was about four years of age

my family would listen to Radio

Luxembourg most of the time due

to us not having a TV. My father

was a big Johnnie Ray and Bing

Crosby fan at the time and he loved

up-tempo music so much that he

decided to buy a copy of Rock

Around The Clock. Unfortunately,

one day I trod on it and broke it

into three pieces. Being an

industrious man my father didn’t

let that deter him from playing it

again as he glued it back together

and, to our amazement, it

played beautifully.

Lonnie Donegan

DON’T YOU ROCK ME DADDY-O

1957

I was about seven years old when

I became interested in Lonnie

Donegan and the fi rst time I saw

Lonnie sing it on the Six-Five Special

TV show I became hooked and

would always be singing “Don’t You

Rock Me Dadd-o” as I walked

around the house or anywhere else

I could sing it without being told to

shut up. I think it was frustration on

my brother’s part that due to me

singing around the house so much

that he bought me a 78rpm

recording of it. One of the biggest

thrills of my life was to meet Lonnie

and a nicer guy you couldn’t wish

to meet.

AS^ TOLD^ TO^ VINCE^ E

AGER

Dav

id^ C

orio

/Re

dfe

rns/

Get

ty

Soundtrack of my life