Rockabilly music lives and well after nearly 60 years on the scene. Modern rockabilly fans keep the music alive by supporting the bands that play it. These fans do not just purchase rockabilly records and go to rockabilly shows. A lot of them live the rockabilly way of life. They wear vintage clothing. Embellish their homes with classic furniture, art work, and color pattern. They drive classic cars and trucks. And obviously, they listen to their preferred music on classic hi-fi equipment. These fans are typically described as The Rockabillies.
The rockabillies utilize the features of 1950s fashion to reveal their love for rockabilly music and the excellent parts of the rockabilly way of life. They're not attempting to forget that the 1950s had its share of troubles and worries . They're not pretending that the atomic bomb scare never ever existed or that the widespread worry and hatred of communists wasn't distasteful. They do not pretend that the bigotry that infected 1950s America wasn't every bit as disgraceful as we all know it was. Since they are rockabillies does not mean that they live in a world of delusion, just.
Instead, their love for the 50s culture and look is more an attempt to commemorate what seems excellent about that period. It represents what appears to us recalling now to have been a simpler, more carefree time. Whether it truly was or not isn't actually the point. It seems that method. Sporting the 50s look is its own unique brand of cool. It's an easy way to announce to other rockabillies that you are one of them-- that you share similar interests and a love for the fantastic art type of rockabilly.
Obviously, you don't have to noticeably be a rockabilly to delight in and enjoy rockabilly music. I personally don't live as a rockabilly to any fantastic extent. I do tend toward a rockabilly haircut and I like classic cars and trucks as much as the next guy. I don't go out of my method to gown in 50s styles (aside from my phase clothes when I'm carrying out.) Still, I like rockabilly music and (as evidenced by this, my other posts, and my blog site) invest a great deal of time thinking of it, composing about it, and in general simply sharing the joy of the music with anybody who will listen.
However the rockabillies are a special type. They reveal their love for the music and the category outwardly in vibrant 1950s colors. You know instantly what kind of music they love when you see a rockabilly. It's a neighborhood. Rockabillies are siblings and sisters in a typical mission to keep rockabilly and the 1950s alive. The clothes they wear, vehicles they drive, and the furnishings in their houses simply augment the soundtrack of their lives: The rockabilly music that binds all of us fans together. Whether you are a full-out rockabilly or, like me, merely a fan who likes the music despite typically non-rockabilly appearances, a fan is still a fan. In the end, it's the music that offers all of us common ground. The music is our king, we fans are the rockabilly army, and the rockabillies are our happy flag bearers!
In one of my posts I confessed that when I first started playing in a rockabilly band years earlier, I didn't even understand enough about rockabilly to understand that my bass guitar wasn't "authentic" rockabilly equipment. Cliff Gallup, who played for Gene Vincent's Blue Caps utilized a solid Gretsch DuoJet guitar and most rockabilly fans consider his guitar work as some of the outright best rockabilly playing of all time.
Robert Gordon was doing straight-out rockabilly and having a bit of success while click here bands like The Blasters were utilizing rockabilly impact heavily to form a new "roots rock" sound.
These fans don't just purchase rockabilly records and go to rockabilly shows. The rockabillies use the features of 1950s fashion to express their love for rockabilly music and the excellent parts of the rockabilly lifestyle.