Lee Rocker Comes to Modesto
Intro by Chris Murphy
Modesto and the roots of Rock and Roll.
ModestoUSA is the birthplace of Rockabilly music, tracing the roots of Rockabilly, originally dubbed “Hillbilly Boogie” and Rock‘n Roll and roll to the clickety-clack-bass-slappin’ sounds of Fred Maddox and the Maddox Brothers and Rose in 1938. After WWII, broadcasted live on KTRB, Maddox’s bass playing influenced musicians across the USA, in particular Bill Black, who played bass with a young Elvis Presley. Following the release of That’s All Right Mama in 1954, Rock and Roll was born. In the early years, Elvis would be the opening act for Maddox Brothers and Rose shows. Lee Rocker and his band mates in the Stray Cats lead a huge worldwide Rockabilly revival in the 80s as the chart topping sounds reached a new generation and still runs strong today. Brian Setzer has brought his Rockabilly sounds to Modesto a few times and Lee Rocker played the State Theater. Now in the middle of a Stray Cats reunion tour, Lee comes to the Gallo Center on June 8. Middagh Goodwin connected with Lee to chat about his music and upcoming performance. Get your tix at www.galloarts.org
Learn more about the birth of Rockabilly at www.modestomusichistory.com
