Robert Gordon (musician)
 |
This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (October 2010) |
 |
This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (October 2010) |
| Robert Gordon | |
|---|---|
 American rockabilly singer Robert Gordon, 1979 Photo: Jean-Luc Ourlin |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Robert Ira Gordon |
| Born | March 29, 1947 Bethesda, Maryland United States |
| Genres | Rockabilly, rock and roll, alternative rock, punk rock |
| Occupations | Musician, actor |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1976-present |
| Labels | RCA and others |
| Associated acts | Link Wray, Danny Gatton, Chris Spedding |
| Notable instruments | |
| None | |
Robert Gordon (born March 29, 1947) is an American rockabilly musician. Gordon rose to fame performing in several genres including alternative rock, punk rock, and rock and roll.
Contents |
[edit] Early days
Robert Gordon grew up in Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb of the nation's capital of Washington, D.C.. At the age of nine (1956) he was affected greatly by the Elvis Presley song Heartbreak Hotel playing on radio, and decided to attempt a career as a Rock & Roll musician at that young age.[1] His influences included Gene Vincent, Jack Scott, Billy Lee Riley, Eddie Cochran and other notable rock 'n roll music artists of the period. He made his recording debut at age 17 in 1964 with a group called the Confidentials. The Confidentials, with Robert (called Bob at the time) as main singer recorded hit songs including, "Summertime", "Money", and "There is something on your mind". These rare tracks were not released until 2004 on a 40th Anniversary Celebration (a special promotional CD released by Dutch author/collector Arjan Deelen).
While attending Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, Gordon played Tony in a school production of West Side Story.
When asked how he related to the 1960s, Robert replied "I didn't." He didn't care much for the British Invasion but he identified with soul singers such as James Brown and Otis Redding whom he saw, among other great R&B acts, performing at Washington DC's famous Howard Theatre. During the turbulent times of the late 1960s, with the rioting and anti-war protests of the period, Robert served in the National Guard in Washington, D.C. "I didn't want to be sent to Vietnam," he recalls.[1]
[edit] Punk rock
Gordon, referred to by friends and fans as R.G.,[1] moved to New York City in 1970 and a few years later joined a punk rock band there known as the Tuff Darts. During 1976, the Tuff Darts recorded "All for the Love of Rock and Roll", "Head over Heels" and "Slash" for a compilation album called Live at CBGB's, which included a number of other local New York City bands. That year, Robert made a brief appearance in a punk/New Wave style film entitled Unmade Beds by underground filmmaker Amos Poe. Blondie lead singer Deborah Harry also appeared in the film.
[edit] Rockabilly revival
Record producer Richard Gottehrer discovered Robert during a rehearsal one afternoon with the Tuff Darts and soon afterward the two were talking about making a rock and roll record. Gottehrer was impressed with Gordon's baritone[citation needed] voice and his rendition of Elvis Presley's One Night.[1] After some conversation, Robert suggested working with guitar legend Link Wray. Wray was contacted and he agreed to work with them both. "Robert to me sounds a lot like the early Elvis, back when he was at Sun Records," Wray would comment.[1] Robert Gordon with Link Wray on Private Stock Records was the result of this collaboration. Due to Elvis Presley's death, the album picked up some airplay, and the label Private Stock tried to hype Gordon as the only true heir to the greatness of Elvis Presley. In 1978 Gordon made a second album with Wray, on the Private Stock label, called Fresh Fish Special. The record featured The Jordanaires, who had been background vocalists for Elvis Presley, and included the Bruce Springsteen song "Fire", written for Elvis Presley. Springsteen played keyboards on the track. The Pointer Sisters covered the song and their version scored #2 on the charts, becoming more popular than the original recording. During late 1978, RCA records signed Gordon to a contract which he described as "a dream come true" to be on "Elvis' label". In February 1979 Rock Billy Boogie was released, this time without Wray, as Chris Spedding joined Gordon, playing lead guitar. The title track "Rock Billy Boogie", "Walk On By", "It's Only Make Believe" and "The Catman" received plenty of radio airplay and the album sold fairly well. Writer Bruce Eder (AllMusicGuide) hailed Gordon's next album Bad Boy, released in 1980, as one of the best mature rockabilly albums ever recorded. Highlights include the title cut, "A Picture of You," "Uptown," and "Crazy Man Crazy." Guitarist Chris Spedding's virtuosity is also showcased to great effect. The next and last album for RCA was 1981's Are You Gonna Be The One. It is Gordon's best selling album to date, with more than 200,000 copies sold.[1] Danny Gatton played lead guitar on this record and Marshall Crenshaw penned the single "Someday Someway" which went to #76 on the[which?] charts.
During the early 1980s Robert toured briefly with Danny Gatton. One of their gigs was later released on NRG Records as The Humbler and is widely considered[by whom?][citation needed] to include some of Gatton's best performances. By this time, in the early 1980s the MTV cable network was ascending in popularity. Inspired by Robert Gordon, The Stray Cats, with numerous music videos, became very popular along with it, selling millions of albums.
[edit] Album discography
1977 - Robert Gordon With Link Wray - Private Stock PS 2030
1978 - Fresh Fish Special - Private Stock PS 7008
1979 - Rock Bill Boogie - RCA AFL1-3594
1979 - Live From The Paradise, Boston, Mass. 3/22/79 - RCA DJL1-3411 (promo only)
1980 - Bad Boy - RCA AFL1-3523
1995 - All For The Love Of Rock 'N' Roll - Road House 4701-44016-2
[edit] Acting
In 1982 Gordon co-starred with Willem Dafoe in a 1950s-styled motorcycler movie (inspired by Marlon Brando's The Wild One) named The Loveless. This was Dafoe's first feature starring role. Critics generally liked the soundtrack but disliked the film. The Loveless did badly but is now considered a cult favorite. Robert also made numerous TV appearances including a skit on the popular Canadian comedy show SCTV in which he performed with his band including Danny Gatton—after having been "mistakingly" booked on the show as the astronaut Richard Gordon.[citation needed]
[edit] Reunion
In 2005, after years of not working together, Gordon and guitar player Chris Spedding reconnected and toured Europe. Highlights from the shows in Denmark, Sweden and Finland were released on "The Reunion Tour", on their own Climate Control label. The French label Last Call released a DVD from the Amsterdam concert, titled Rockin' The Paradiso. They also recorded an album of 15 Elvis songs with the Jordanaires for the 30th anniversary of Elvis' death, titled "It's Now Or Never" released on the Rykodisc label. In 2009 and 2010 Gordon toured with an allstar lineup "The Gang They Couldn't Hang" that included Chris Spedding, Slim Jim Phantom and Glen Matlock. Notable "Gang" dates included the Byron Bay Blues Festival in Australia, and the Azkena Rock Festival in Spain where Gordon and TGTCH performed on a bill with Kiss and Bob Dylan in front of a crowd of 20,000. In March 2011 Gordon will perform concert dates in France, Switzerland and Norway.
