RICKY NELSON, a disciple of Elvis, is the only derivative member of the first rank, but his place is assured by the bulk of his work and the single detached, cool style in which he approaches all his material, be it the affirmative I Believe, the despondent Lonesome Town, the hopeful I Got a Feeling, or the philosophical A Teenager's Romance. When his fortune is good in Travelin' Man or bad in Poor Little Fool, when he's successful in Be Bop or luckless in Stood Up, Rick's archetypal voice reveals no emotion --just the casual sneer of his autobiographical masterpiece, Teenage Idol.
The Second Line
BILL HALEY
GENE PITNEY
NEIL SEDAKA
FREDDY CANNON
ROY ORBISON
DUANE EDDY
JERRY LEE LEWIS
BIG BOPPER
EDDIE COCHRAN
BILL HALEY is the earliest rock auteur (which chronologically places him somewhere between Johnny Ray and Elvis Presley). Not only did Haley accomplish rock's conquest of the pop charts with Rock Around the Clock, he molded a cheerful, sincerely synthetic style that brought him hits like Shake, Rattle, and Roll and See Ya Later, Allgiator, and enabled him and his Comets to appropriate any old song for rock's use--remember, for instance, Rockin' Through the Rye. (While speaking of Haley, we might note the best successor to his practices, Johnny and the Hurricanes. Though not properly belonging to this study, this instrumental group ranks high in the auteur ratings for their inspired and practically identical rockifications of Red River Valley, Jimmy Crack Corn, and Reveille.)
GENE PITNEY'S consummate technique, characteristic double-tracking, and nasal strength make unforgettable experiences out of It Hurts To Be In Love, I Must Be Seeing Things, I'm Gonna Be Strong, and above all, Town Without Pity. His noticeably sharp notes and inimitably high range have marked all his songs from I Want to Live My Life Away through three volumes of "Greatest Hits" to his chef-d'oeuvre, Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart, which climaxes the recently released Gene Pitney Story.
NEIL SEDAKA'S credentials hardly need airing. With a style closely related to Pitney's Sedaka has created a sound--from The Diary through Carol, Little Devil, Stairway to Heaven, Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen, World Through A Tear--that inevitably blends his whole work into a single medley with scarcely detectable demarcations.
FREDDY CANNON'S position has been lifted to the top of the second rank only in recent years, as students have come to appreciate the Boom-Boom's husky, 150 per cent voice, the kind that anyone can imitate if he doesn't mind being hoarse the rest of the day. Cannon's best song, Palisades Park, is extra-auteur; he owes his place to the "whoooo" of Way Down Yonder in New Orleans, Talla-hassie Lassie, and Transistor Sister.
ROY ORBISON has long been a favorite for his bull voice. While many of his big songs--Pretty Woman, Sweet Dreams, Baby, Pretty Papers--work against his strength, the full-throttle heftiness of Running Scared, Crying, and most especially Leah, cannot be gainsaid.
DUANE EDDY is an unusual inclusion, but his twangy guitar conveys an individual expressiveness the equal of any voice. The rocking guitar of Rebel Rouser and Movin' and Groovin' is one thing, but the isolated echo that haunts The Lonely One and Because They're Young is an instrumental experience.
JERRY LEE LEWIS is a vibrating keyboard, flouncing golden locks, and shining Southern teeth. Great Balls of Fire, Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On, and Breathless sound just alike--but unlike any other music in the world.
The BIG BOPPER is the ultimate example of style triumphing alone, unsupported. Chantilly Lace, Big Bopper's Wedding, and Little Red Riding. Hood formed a merry trilogy, a song-chronicle; but how much further style would have carried the Big Bopper if he hadn't died with Holly and Richie Valens is open to question.