Hot-rods and hot riffs

Denver's rockabilly scene: 10 years and going strong

By Megan Carneal
mcarneal@mscd.edu

Smokey bars, tattooed greasers, guitars and girls. The Denver rockabilly scene is coming back.

Rockabilly is a genre with roots deep in the past. It is one of the very few genres of music that has lasted over five decades and, despite a few alterations, has managed to stay true to its original sound.

"It started back in the early '50s with Bill Hailey and the Saddle Men, when they, like Elvis and countless others, combined hillbilly music with rock and roll," said Bobby Smith of the band 18 Wheeler.

It was a very exciting time in the early 1950s; the country was about to see a huge change with the start of the black civil rights movement. Even bigger revolutions were being made in music. White country acts started to combine-or steal-their sound from black artists. Eddie Clendening from Eddie Clendening and the Blue Ribbon Boys said, "Rockabilly started out as a term used by the country singers to make fun of the guys playing the more 'black' sounding stuff."

Somewhere along the way, rockabilly was devoured by punk rock. "The spirit of the (rockabilly) music and what it stands for is the same as the '70s punk movement, it's just a middle finger to whatever people think you should be doing," Clendening said.

Once again rockabilly fused with another style of music. Punk rock made rockabilly darker, louder and faster and out of that fusion came psychobilly. Clendening said the difference between rockabilly and psychobilly is "about five turns on the volume knobs ... a take-off from neo-billy," (the '80's revival of '50's rockabilly).

Perhaps the reason rockabilly has endured half a century is its incomparable sound. Jason Gardener of Ghost Blood said, "Since rockabilly has such diverse influences, it allowed musicians to really be unique with it." It may have different sub-genres, but one thing almost all "-billy" has in common is the use of an upright bass. The defining quality that separates rockabilly from other genres Smith said "is the combination of the upright bass slap playing style with the finger-pickin' style guitar playing. You can't find that upright slap bass style on other forms of music."

The upright bass is the key ingredient, but all other instruments have their place. Many rockabilly acts like to use older instruments. Smith, who uses a 1958 Gretsch 6120 and a 1960 Gretsch double anniversary, said, "We like to use vintage gear, not because it fits the part, but because they just can't reproduce the sound of the old, cool gear."

The rockabilly scene has had a very welcoming home in Denver. "It started getting big in Denver around the mid '90s, kind of when swing was also getting popular," said Smith. 18 Wheeler and Eddie Clendening and the Blue Ribbon Boys are two bands that were at the start of the rockabilly explosion in Denver. Some other bands responsible are Paul Galaxy and the Galactix, The Dalhart Imperials, Halden Wofford and the Hi-Beams, GT and the Sidewinders, and The Hillbilly Hellcats.

The rockabilly scene has been alive in Denver for some time now, but always coming in waves of popularity. Right now, the scene is on the up-swing. In recent years there have been major label rockabilly acts such as Tiger Army, The Nekromantixs, and The Horrorpops gaining in popularity.

Denver is still a great place to catch local rockabilly acts. With a slew of different venues, there is a different rockabilly band to see every day of the week. Some great venues to go to are The Skylark Lounge, Benders 13th Ave. Tavern, Cricket on the Hill, The Lions Lair, and The Hornet.