Freddy Cannon - Palisades Park (1962)

PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads between multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your browser for instant access to an index with links to all of John1948's oldies classics. LINK: http://tinyurl.com/Channel-Index/

In looking back over the history of rock & roll, the sad fact remains that very few of its original practitioners stayed true to its original big beat vision. Some made a handful of brilliant sides before broader horizons -- television or the movies -- beckoned. Others were rockers in name only, pop singers who couldn't wait to shimmy into a tuxedo, trading in stomp'n'shout hysteria for the more "respectable" future of dispensing supper club schmaltz. But Freddy Cannon was a true believer, a rocker to the bone. Freddy Cannon made rock & roll records; great noisy rock & roll records and all of them were infused with a gigantic drum beat that was an automatic invitation to shake it on down anyplace there was a spot to dance. Freddy Cannon remained true to the beat and made some really great fun rock & roll records in the bargain. Because of the time frame he enjoyed his biggest successes in -- the late '50s to the mid-'60s -- Cannon is wrongly lumped in with the "Bobbies and Frankies" that proliferated during that era. But a quick listen to any of his finest records -- all to be found on Rhino's The Best of Freddy "Boom-Boom" Cannon collection -- quickly dispels any preconceived notions of him being a pretty-boy teen idol no-talent.

Cannon could genuinely rock and on two of his very best records -- "Talahassee Lassie" and "Buzz-Buzz-A-Diddle-It" -- Freddy Cannon supplies his own electric rhythm guitar, with his scrappy work on the latter record being particularly effective. His records were masterminded by producers Bob Crewe and Frank Slay, all well-constructed discs with every thump of the big beat and every vocal "woo" out of Cannon perfectly placed and timed for maximum impact. Hits like "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans," "Action," and "Palisades Park" may be "slicker" records than the two mentioned above, but they still possess an enormous vitality and commitment to rock & roll; few others could bring an old chestnut like "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans" into the modern age with a straight face. "Cannon"'s immense energy and contagious style make these noisy, very exciting records well worth investigating.

He was born Frederico Anthony Picariello in 1940 and grew up in the nearby Boston suburb of Lynn, MA. He got hit by the big beat early, but it helped having parents who had more than a passing interest in music; his dad blew trumpet, sang, and fronted local combos as Freddy Karmon while his mother's penchant for amateur songwriting would hand him the genesis of his first hit. Young Freddy soaked up the rhythm & blues of Big Joe Turner and the jump blues of bands like Buddy Johnson on the radio. But it was the guitar music of Chuck Berry that made the most lasting impression. As Cannon once said, "Give me four of five guys who can play hard and in the pocket and to me, you've got a rock & roll show." This stripped, down-to-basics motto became his credo, even when surrounded by big, brassy bands, singing old tunes his father had sung; in a time frame full of phony baloney teen idols, Freddy Cannon always remained a true rock & roller.

~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide

Category:

Education

Tags:

• rock

[momac71]

Hey john1948Five Love your posts to bits but what does bookmark, multiple channels etc mean? Allow for us 70+

[John1948Five]

@momac71 I have over 20 channels. That tells you how to find the others.

[barbj7121]

wow/ this is classic and classy :)

[John1948Five]

@barbj7121 No one could out-rock Freddy!

[johndaly13909]

Cannon holds the record for most appearances on American Bandstand, just ahead of Bobby Rydell.

[John1948Five]

@johndaly13909 I didn't know that. I did know that he wrote the Bandstand theme song.

[hrpman]

Freddy Cannon - a true blast from the past! An excellent posting!

[007shifty]

freddy is the man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[my2cents2u]

Visited the park many times before ir closed in '71. What a place. Wish I could bring my entire family back in time just for one day there.

[peterinthout]

in the '60 he was also in the Kurhaus , Scheveningen Holland.

[dannyvanore]

He's the man and he's Italian!!!!

[johndaly13909]

@John1948Five I didn't know that.We're even.