Ronnie Hawkins, Rockabilly Legend, Dead at 87

Ronnie “The Hawk” Hawkins, the Canadian rockabilly singer known for his rollicking early rock n’ roll hits died on Sunday May 29th, 2022 at age 87. A cause of death was not immediately available, only that he was battling a long term illness.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Hawkins played with a backing band called the Hawks, which included Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, and Richard Manuel. In 1963, The Hawks split from Hawkins. They went on to become Bob Dylan’s backup band and then, just The Band.

In the early days of rock n roll, Hawkins had hits with high energy covers of Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love?” and Chuck Berry’s “Thirty Days” (Hawkins renamed his cover “Forty Days”).

Hawkins was born in Huntsville, Arkansas in 1935 and his family relocated to Fayetteville when he was a child. He was interested in music at a young age and began playing in local bars in 1953. Local musician Levon Helm—who would go on to play drums and sing in the Band—joined Hawkins’ group The Hawks five years later.

Around that time, Hawkins left the US and relocated to Hamilton, Ontario on the recommendation of country singer Conway Twitty. Hawkins played local bars and achieved a hit with his version of “Hey, Bo Diddley.” He cut his first full-length, self-titled record for Roulette Records. It included covers of “Forty Days” and “Mary Lou.” One of his biggest singles was a cover of Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love?”. Hawkins’ energetic live shows earned him the nick names “Mr. Dynamo” and “Rompin’ Ronnie” due in part to his dancing which included his “camel walk.”

In his later years, Hawkins developed pancreatic cancer and then recovered. He attributed the recovery to visiting psychic healers and taking native herbal medicine. His miraculous recovery was featured in the 2012 documentary film Ronnie Hawkins: Still Alive and Kicking.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Wanda, their two sons, Ronnie Jr. and country singer Robin Hawkins, who had served as his guitarist since the 1980s, and daughter Leah Hawkins, an aspiring songwriter who had been his backup singer.

Nashville Boogie Cancelled For 2022!

rockabilly show event cancelled

The Nashville Boogie Vintage Weekender for 2022 has been cancelled. Various artists who were set to perform took to their social media pages today and broke the news to their fans. Jason Galaz, the promoter of the event, confirmed via a Facebook post that he had to cancel the weekender due to health issues. The event was to take place May 20th thru the 22nd.

Galaz went on to say on his post that everyone who bought tickets will be refunded but it will take time as he is currently hospitalized. Other promoters are planning shows during the same dates (May 20th thru 22nd) for people that are still making the trip to Nashville. However, many of the originally scheduled artists will not be performing at these shows.

An Instagram page has been created by East Side Bowl which will be posting info on the new events/shows. Click on the link below to follow the account!

www.instagram.com/not_nashville_boogie/

Viva Las Vegas Update - Masks Are Not Required!

Via the Viva Las Vegas Newsletter, February 10th, 2022

YES!!! You have read it right. The Governor of Nevada announced yesterday that the mask mandate for indoors is at an end. As we are guided by the state rules it means that masks are not required at Viva Las Vegas #25. We realize that there may be mixed reactions to this but this does not mean you cannot wear one. If you want to still wear a mask at Viva, please go ahead. There is nothing wrong with that. We are all there for the music, dancing, cars, burlesque, and fun with friends. We have all had a tough 2 years. Let's try and put all of our different opinions behind us and let's have a great weekend. That is why we go to Vegas.

TOM INGRAM

Shirts Now Available!

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Unisex tees are sold in standard men's sizes. Women will usually need to order one size down in these tees. A guide is posted below. (These are suggestions only and will give you a loose/relaxed fitting tee.)

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Unisex Small = Women's M
Unisex Medium = Women's L
Unisex Large = Women's XL
Unisex XLarge = Women's 2X

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Each shirt is screen printed in Southern California. These unisex t-shirts feature a crew neck, neck ribbing, double needle sleeves and bottom hem plus are preshrunk to minimize shrinkage. They are made from 100% Ring Sprung USA Cotton.

(Update: 1/02/2018) Stray Cats Reuniting?.....Strutting To Viva Las Vegas?

@briansetzer59 - Letting the cat out of the bag on Jan 2nd...

Update: 1/03/2018 - 12 pm

Tom Ingram has announced that The Stray Cats will be reuniting for their first North American performance in 10 years on Saturday, April 21st as part of Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend! They will take the stage at 7 pm. If you have purchased a 4 Day High Roller Pass then access to the Car Show is included. The Hot Rodder Ticket is $40 and gets you in on Saturday only. The Classic Ticket ($50) gets you into the Car Show Area ONLY on Thursday, Friday & Saturday. 

During December the three members of the Stray Cats have posted a few pictures on their social media accounts with captions that seem to hint at some big news for 2018. The first post from mid-December is captioned with "Letting the cat out of the bag on January 2nd". This has led many of their fans to believe that they will be reuniting once again in 2018. Other folks are guessing a reunion and an album of new music is in the works in the new year.

If the news turns out be the announcement of a 2018 tour that would be great news for fans of the band who have never seen them perform live or just want to see them rockin out again. This would also mark their first reunion since 2009.

Here's where things get interesting. Viva Las Vegas creator Tom Ingram also promised an announcement on his weekly radio show (Show #103) on Rockabilly Radio. Ingram stated that "there will be a "special Viva Las Vegas announcement on the 2nd of January" and "I think (VLV) tickets are going to sell a little bit quick that day".

Ingram went on to alert his listeners to tune in on January 2nd for the special announcement on rockabilly-radio.net at 12 pm Pacific, 3 pm Eastern, 8 pm UK time and 3 pm European time.

@officialslimjimphantom - "You Don't Believe Me".... keep your ears open on Jan. 2nd!

So both the band and Tom are promising big announcements on the same day so my theory is that The Stray Cats will finally be playing The Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender which might be part of a larger tour. All three members have played VLV over the years separately but for whatever reason not together as The Stray Cats. This is just my guess so I will just have to wait like everyone else to see what the actual news turns out to be.

Make sure to keep an eye on The Stray Cats social media accounts for their announcement.

Brian Setzer - Instagram: @briansetzer59 , Facebook: briansetzerofficial

Slim Jim Phantom - Instagram: @officialslimjimphantom , Facebook: officialsjp

 Lee Rocker - Instagram: @straycatleerocker , Facebook: thestraycatleerocker

Wanda Jackson Autobiography 'Every Night Is Saturday Night' Due Out In November

Wanda Jackson, The Queen Of Rockabilly, will be releasing her autobiography Every Night is Saturday Night: A Country Girl’s Journey to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Nov. 14. The book is co-written by Jackson and Scott B. Bomar. The forward is written by Elvis Costello and will also have photos from her own personal collection.

The book will feature Jackson's rise to popularity following her discovery by Country Music Hall of Famer Hank Thompson and will go into the details of many aspects of her life and performing career including:

-her childhood and later life when she switched to performing country and gospel before returning to rock n roll

-performing with rock n roll greats Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley

-her memories of Elvis Presley whom she briefly dated and how she ultimately found the love of her life in her husband Wendell Goodman

-why she refused to return to the Grand Ole Opry after more than 50 years

-landing a 2009 "Early Influence" induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Jackson’s first single “You Can’t Have My Love” gave the Oklahoma born performer her first Top 10 country hit when she was 16 years old and still in high school. Shen then went on to have many more hits such as "Let’s Have a Party,” “Right or Wrong”, "Funnel Of Love" and "Riot In Cell Block No. 9". Even at age 79 she is still performing and is currently recording an album which is being produced by Joan Jett.

Jackson will be making appearances at book signings and performances later this fall in support of Every Night is Saturday Night including events at the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles on Nov. 14 and on Dec. 2 at Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Pre-Order on Amazon: www.amazon.com

Sonny Burgess, former Sun Records Artist, Dead at 86

American rockabilly singer/guitarist Sonny Burgess passed away on August 18th, 2017 at the age of 86.

He was an Arkansas native, born on a farm near rural Newport and was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2002. Burgess passed away Friday night at Baptist Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas about a month after taking a fall at his home, according to a Facebook post by band mate Bobby Crawford.

Sonny launched his career after his Army discharge in 1954, with his band The Moonlighters opening some dates for Elvis Presley.

Elvis later urged Sun Records owner Sam Phillips to record the group, known then as The Pacers. His band were one of the most exciting to watch live, according to their fans - they would throw themselves around the stage, smash up their instruments and even jump off the stage at the end of their shows without caring how far they would fall. Their two-sided first single, “We Wanna Boogie” and “Red Headed Woman,” fared well but the band never achieved the success of Sun’s other stars.

Burgess retired from performing in 1974 and became a salesman for a decade until accepting an invitation to reunite with fellow Sun artists — including Presley drummer D.J. Fontana — in a touring band. He continued to release new music over the next few decades, ending with his Live At Sun Studios album in 2012. His last live performance came on July 15.

Sonny was previously married to Joann Adams. He leaves behind sons Peyton and John.

Sonny Burgess - Red Headed Woman (VLV 2017)

 

 

 

The Bellfuries Breaking Up?!!!

In case you haven't heard it yet. Joey Simeone, singer of The Bellfuries, announced on November 20th via social media that the band is breaking up....sort of. They will be playing their last US tour dates this year and a few European dates in 2017 and that will be it for a while. However, Simeone did say that they will still be performing at events from time to time. The bands last US tour dates are listed on our West Coast events page. The official statement is below:

"I didn't want to make a big deal out of this (because it ISN'T a big deal) but while we were overseas a handful of people asked me if The Bellfuries were breaking up, so I figured it was time to make a formal announcement, so there you have it. We aren't quite finished yet, so get out to one of the shows if you can. We will be finishing out our existing bookings (still a few US dates and then a short Euro tour next year) then basically calling it quits. Though we wont technically be an active band, we hope to play various types of engagements from time to time. We all remain the best of friends and,speaking for the rest of the guys, I want to thank all of our fans for their support."

Much love and gratitude,
Joey Simeone
 

Win VLV #20 Tickets!

Want a chance at winning 4 day High Roller tickets for Viva Las Vegas 2017? Tom Ingram, the creator of VLV, is giving away 50 4 Day High Roller tickets. All you have to do is go to www.rockabilly-radio.net during his weekly radio show Saturday at 6 am to 8 am Pacific time (USA). You must listen via the website, not on the TuneIn app or any other radio apps. If he gets to 500 live listeners then he will give out an email address where the first 50 people to reply will win tickets to the 20th Anniversary of Viva Las Vegas. If the number is not reached then he might do it again the next week. Tell your friends and spread the word!!!!

Viva Las Vegas #20 - Update

Viva Las Vegas #19 was just a couple of weeks ago but news regarding the 20th Anniversary of the event has started to be put out by show runner Tom Ingram.

Tickets will go on sale on June 1st, 2016 at Midnight Pacific time. Since this will be the 20th anniversary of the event they are sure to sell out faster than usual so make sure to get yours so you don't get left out!

First off The Orleans Hotel is already sold out so don't even try it. From what I heard the waiting list is huge but you can try getting on there if you call the hotel directly.

The good news is that The Gold Coast still has rooms but they are selling fast. This hotel is owned by the same company who runs The Orleans and they have a shuttle between both hotels that runs 24 hours a day.

You can look for other smaller hotels near The Orleans but the following hotels are doing special rates for VLV20 for 2017:

THE PALMS (free shuttle to The Orleans, check hotel for hours) - Rooms available - Group Code: CHROC17

THE GOLDEN GATE (Downtown Vegas) - Rooms available - Group Code: GVLV20

THE D HOTEL (Downtown Vegas) - Rooms Available - Group Code: DVLV20

THE TROPICANA (The Strip) - Rooms available - Group Code: WG0153A

More info at: www.vivalasvegas.net

First Post: Please Let Us Know About Your Events!

Hi folks! It's the first news post. Just a little background on the website. This event blog was created because a few times I missed shows by some of my favorite bands when they would come to town. Now that sounds like it shouldn't happen in this day and age of social media but it does. You could have Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and so on but if you miss a few posts by your favorite bands or your news feed is not set up properly and you could find out about it after the fact. That's where we come in. We are trying to post as many shows as possible in one place so you don't have to muddle through a ton of posts to find a live show or records hop in your town.

If you are a band or promoter and would like have your event posted please email us at: letsgorockabilly@gmail.com