Platter Party!

Mike Pedicin Quintet - "Shake A Hand" b/w "The Dickie-Doo" Cameo 1957 Today's platter comes to us courtesy of New Jersey bandleader and early rock 'n' roll adopter, Mike Pedicin. Mr. Pedicin and crew (sometimes a quartet, sometimes a quintet) released a slew of twist, mambo and jazzy popcorn stompers between 1955 and 1962, any one of which could easily fit right in on one of the Twistin' Rumble or Las Vegas Grind compilations.    This particular 45 came out on the Philadelphia label, Cameo, in 1957. Oddly enough the B-side on this disc, the tune we're focusing on today, was released the year prior on Malvern Records as the A-side under a slightly different title, and paired with a completely different tune. Why "The Dickie-Doo", originally dubbed "The Dickie-Doo (The Circle Dance)" was re-released as a backer tune to "Shake A Hand" is a mystery. Maybe Mike and the gang got the Cameo deal and wanted to get a single ...

The Dapps Featuring Alfred Ellis - "There Was A Time" b/w "The Rabbit Got The Gun" King 1968   Oh no! It's Elmer Fudd's worst nightmare! Man this is a fantastically funky fillet of soul instros! As previously stated in other posts, sometimes I'm unable to upload both sides of a single, so while I'm presenting the whole single for your listening consideration, I'm only able to provide the audio for one of the tunes. This is one of those times. It's really just poor time management on my part, more than anything. The Dapps were a Cincinnati-based band that worked with James Brown briefly in the mid 1960s, putting out singles as James Brown And The Dapps. And this Alfred Ellis featured on this single–well that's Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis, James Brown's one-time bandleader. Since I have only one side to share this time around, I chose the B-side, because while the A-side is a great jazzy soul tune, "The Rabbit Got The Gun...

 The Schooners "Viddly Biddly Baby" b/w "Schooners Blues" Ember 1958   This is one hell of a two-sider! Right out of the gate we get a barn busting rock and roll tornado with foot stompin' beat, a bleating saxophone and a great nonsensical call and response vocal like Bill Haley on stimulants! Then we turn this little black disc over and we get a cool-as-hell noir jazz number that sounds like it could have played over the titles of an early Roger Corman creature feature, or as the roadhouse juke box tune from any 1950s crime thriller. Picture if you will, Beverly Garland and Marie Windsor going about their business in some nondescript, small desert town, when suddenly a foam rubber something, larger than life, starts smashing up saloons and flipping over cars! Just imagine Sterling Hayden slowly panning the interior of some roadside dive, scowl on his face, looking for the guy who framed him! I've mentioned my appreciation for label and logo design in prev...