A name familiar to vintage rock'n'roll aficionados via his brace of novelty-tinged Specialty 45s like 'Hiccups', Roddy Jackson was in actual fact a raw, piano-pounding screamer whose most rocking material was banished to the vault. "Central Valley Fireball" aims to correct that injustice by compiling for the first time Roddy's complete 1950s recordings Much of what is heard on this disc is unissued and far fiercer than Jackson's three sought-after Specialty singles. The singer was groomed as a white Little Richard by the label's Art Rupe and Sonny Bono, but only on throat-tearing gems like 'Juke Box Baby' and 'I Love Her Just The Same' can we hear the true Roddy in action. An added bonus is the original demo of rock standard 'She Said Yeah', written by Roddy with Bono, recorded by Specialty labelmate Larry Williams and subsequently covered by the likes of the Rolling Stones and the Animals. Taken as a whole, "Central Valley Fireball" archives the small but perfectly formed legacy of a quintessential 50s wildman............ 1. Love At First Sight 2. I've Got My Sights On Someone New 3. Hiccups 4. There's A Moose On The Loose 5. Any Old Town 6. Gloria 7. I Love Her Just The Same 8. Juke Box Baby 9. I Found A New Girl 10. Until The End Of Time 11. Cherry Pie 12. Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On 13. Lend Me Your Comb (Fragment) 14. I've Got My Sights On Someone New (Alternate Take) 15. Johnny's Last Ride (Demo) 16. She Said Yeah (Demo)
