commonwombat
|
More background re Cliff 24-Jan-2023 02:56:42
| CorrsClub Time: 04-Dec-2023 19:21:10 |
Whilst never a major fan of his; the longevity of his career has to be respected and, whilst only really noted in the States mid-career (late 70's-early 80s); he had significant success at various points outside the UK in AUS/NZ/RSA/IRE/CAN as well as Western Europe.
His first big hit was Move It (1959) which was probably one of the first genuine rock numbers NOT originating in the US. For the next few years until the emergence of the Beatles and later the harder rock sounds, he and his backing band The Shadows were the biggest names in the UK market.
His label did steer him more down a pop rather than rock path and this did see ventures into the movie sphere (ala Presley); some quite good (Summer Holiday), some .... less so. Whilst his dominance was eclipsed by those who followed, he never really "went away" and his ability to reinvent himself/adapt has to be acknowledged.
A note about his backing band, The Shadows; who whilst backing him from 1959 through to @1968, became major international successes in their own right. Originally known as the Drifters and made up of Richard's mates; they soon made way for more accomplished players and changed their name due to issues with the better known US group. After a few vocal numbers that made no impact; their first hit was the guitar instrumental Apache in 1960 and this "recipe" of guitar based numbers proved to be a winner for a number of years.
| (This message has been read 67 times.) |