Rockabilly is music that came out of the south of the US, mixed with elements of rock, blues, country, hillbilly booggie and bluegrass.
It emerged in the early '50’s…waned in the '60’s …and was revived in the late '70’s and early '80’s. Its popularity has managed to endure to the present.
Some of the great rockabilly artists included Buddy Holly, Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Wanda Jackson and Roy Orbison.
While Rockabilly may not have lasted all that long as a mainstream rock subcategory, its influence is still felt today. Several bands such as the Stray Cats have continued to perform in the Rockabilly tradition, while other artists have borrowed from the genre to create their own flavour.
The Rockabilly Revival
Over the past 50 years there's been a legion of bands dedicated to replicating the style and sound of classic '50s rock 'n'roll. While there have always been bands playing Rockabilly, the revival really hit its stride in the post-punk era, when a number of new bands picked up the sounds. Not only did they play the music, but they celebrated and embraced the pop culture that surrounds Rockabilly. The first revival culminated in the success of the Stray Cats in the early '80s. Following their success, a number of Rockabilly bands appeared in the underground scene during the late '80s. The Rockabilly Revival continued to thrive into the '90s with the most notable band to emerge being the Reverend Horton Heat.
Please feel free to tell us what you love about Rockabilly - the old stuff, the new stuff, the rockabilly clothes, the hair, the cars, the rockabilly lifestyle - where you shop - what you wear - who you listen to - if you know of an event coming up - a band we should catch - anything at all.
The '50s are seen as a time of innocence - and of innocence corrupted. It was a period of intense conservatism and the rise of suburbia on the one hand and rock and roll and a new rebellious spirit among the young, on the other.
For Rockabillies it’s an era that’s worth preserving - even if it was way before they were even born.
This site is dedicated to full skirts, big quiffs, red lipstick, peroxide hair, vintage cars, rock’n'roll and tattoos.
