Cliff Gallup
Clifton[1] E. Gallup (June 17, 1930 – October 9, 1988) was an American guitarist. He was the lead guitarist for the rockabilly group Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps throughout the 1950s.
Biography
In February 1956, local radio DJ Sheriff Tex Davis (William Douchette, 1914–2007)
Gallup played on 35 tracks with Vincent, including his biggest hit, "
At the time of his death in 1988, he was the director of maintenance and transportation for the Chesapeake, Virginia, city school system, where he worked for almost 30 years. At the request of his widow, obituaries in local newspapers made no mention of his time with Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps. He is remembered principally for his influence on such guitarists as Eric Clapton, Brian Setzer, and Jeff Beck. The latter recorded an album of Gene Vincent songs, Crazy Legs, in 1993 considered by music critics to be a tribute to Gallup[5][6] and Vincent.[7]
Gallup was ranked 79th by Rolling Stone magazine's David Fricke in his list of "100 Greatest Guitarists."[8] He was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[citation needed]
Guitar technique and equipment
His right hand playing technique is based on a flat pick in conjunction with fingerpicks on his middle and ring fingers, using his little finger to work the vibrato bar. In his short time as lead guitarist in
Discography
Tracks recorded with Gene Vincent in chronological order of the recording sessions.[10]
The recording sessions were all done in three series at Bradley Film & Recording Studio, 804 16th Avenue South, Nashville, Tennessee, and produced by
A) One session on May 4, 1956
B) Four sessions on June 24–27, 1956
C) Four sessions on October 15–18, 1956
Session 1: May 4, 1956
- "Race with the Devil" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:02
- "Be-Bop-A-Lula" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:35
- "Woman Love" (Jack Rhodes), 2:31
- "I Sure Miss You" (Bill Davis, Eddie Bryan), 2:38
Session 2: June 24, 1956
- "Jezebel" (Wayne Shanklin), 2:23
- "Crazy Legs" (Jerry Reed), 2:09
- "Peg o' My Heart" (Fred Fisher, Alfred Bryan), 2:35
- "Wedding Bells (Are Breaking Up That Old Gang of Mine)" (Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, Willie Raskin), 2:30
Session 3: June 25, 1956
- "Waltz of the Wind" (Fred Rose), 2:42
- "Up a Lazy River" (Hoagy Carmichael, Sidney Arodin), 2:20
- "Ain't She Sweet" (Milton Ager, Jack Yellin), 2:29
- "Gonna Back Up Baby" (Danny Wolfe), 2:24
- "Race with the Devil" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), unissued / lost track
Session 4: June 26, 1956
- "Who Slapped John" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 1:56
- "Jumps Giggles and Shout" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:50
- "Bluejean Bop" (Gene Vincent, Hal Levy), 2:21
- "I Flipped" (Bobbie Carrol, Bill Hicks), 2:24
Session 5: June 27, 1956
- "Bop Street" (Cliff Gallup, Bill Davis), 2:24
- "Well, I Knocked Bim Bam" (Bobbie Carrol), 2:14
- "You Told a Fib" (Cliff Gallup, Gene Vincent), 2:20
- "Jump Back, Honey, Jump Back" (Hadda Brooks), 2:00
Session 6: October 15, 1956
- "Teenage Partner" (version 1) (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:13
- "Blues Stay Away from Me" (Alton & Rabon Delmore, Wayne Raney, P. Henry Glover), 2:16
- "Five Feet of Lovin'" (version 1) (Buck Peddy, Mel Tillis), 2:07
- "Cat Man" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:18
Session 7: October 16, 1956
- "Double Talkin' Baby" (Danny Wolfe), 2:12
- "Hold Me, Hug Me, Rock Me" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:14
- "Unchained Melody" (Alex North, Hy Zaret), 2:37
Session 8: October 17, 1956
- "B-I-Bickey-Bi Bo Bo Go" (Don Carter, Dub Nalls, Jack Rhodes), 2:15
- "Pink Thunderbird" (Paul Peek, Bill Davis), 2:32
- "Pretty, Pretty Baby" (Danny Wolfe), 2:27
- "Cruisin'" (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:11
Session 9: October 18, 1956
- "Important Words" (version 1) (Gene Vincent, Bill Davis), 2:21
- "You Better Believe" (Cliff Gallup), 1:59
- "Red Bluejeans and a Pony Tail" (Jack Rhodes, Bill Davis), 2:14
- "Five Days, Five Days" (Jack Rhodes, Billy Willey, Freddie Franks), 2:36
Solo album
- Straight Down the Middle (mid-1960s, Pussy Cat label; recorded as "The Four C's featuring Gallopin' Cliff Gallup")[11]
References
- ^ "Clifton E. Gallup". Rockabillyhall.com. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
Other sources, apparently incorrectly, give his first name as Clifford
- ^ "Sheriff Tex Davis". The Independent. London. September 13, 2007. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
- ^ [1] Archived October 10, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Richie Unterberger. "Cliff Gallup | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^ "Album Reviews and Ratings". Rolling Stone. July 25, 2014. Archived from the original on October 23, 2007. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine (June 29, 1993). "Crazy Legs - Jeff Beck,Jeff Beck & the Big Town Playboys | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^ "Jeff Beck Interview". Djnoble.demon.co.uk. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^ "100 Greatest Guitarists: David Fricke's Picks." Rolling Stone, December 2, 2010. Accessed 2017-01-31.
- ^ a b "Legendary Guitarist Cliff Gallup". Rockabillyhall.com. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^ Book enclosed in Bear Family's Boxset Gene Vincent - The Road Is Rocky, The Complete Studio Masters 1956-1971 (2005), pg. 79-83, discography by Richard Weize, Russell Wapensky and Derek Henderson
- ^ "Cliff Gallup". Endless Groove. Archived from the original on September 28, 2011. Retrieved July 30, 2014.