Difference between revisions of "Eddie Cochran" - New World Encyclopedia

From New World Encyclopedia
Line 1: Line 1:
 +
{{Infobox musical artist 
 +
| Name                = Eddie Cochran
 +
| Img                = Eddiecochrane.jpg
 +
| Img_capt            =
 +
| Img_size            = 154<!-- Only for images narrower than 220 pixels —>
 +
| Landscape          =
 +
| Background          = solo_singer
 +
| Birth_name          = Raymond Edward Cochran
 +
| Alias              =
 +
| Born                = {{birth date|1938|10|3|mf=y}}<br/><small>[[Albert Lea, Minnesota|Albert Lea]], [[Minnesota]]</small>
 +
| Died                = {{death date and age|1960|4|17|1938|10|3}}<br/><small>[[Bath, Somerset|Bath]], [[Somerset]], [[England]]</small>
 +
| Instrument          = [[Guitar]]
 +
| Genre              = [[rock and roll]], [[rockabilly]]
 +
| Occupation          = [[Singer-songwriter]], [[Guitarist]]
 +
| Years_active        = 1953 - 1960
 +
| Label              = [[Liberty Records|Liberty]]
 +
| Associated_acts    =
 +
| URL                =
 +
| Notable_instruments = [[Gretsch 6120]]
 +
}}
  
 +
'''Raymond Edward "Eddie" Cochran''' (October 3, 1938 — April 17, 1960) was an [[United States of America|American]] [[rock-and-roll]] musician and an important influence on popular music during the late 1950s, early 1960s, and beyond.
 +
 +
== Early life and career ==
 +
Cochran was born in [[Albert Lea, Minnesota]], as Ray Edward Cochran. He took music lessons in school, but quit the band to play drums. Also, rather than taking piano lessons, he began learning guitar, playing the country music he heard on the radio. In 1955, Cochran's family moved to [[Bell Gardens, California]]. As his guitar playing improved, he formed a band with two friends from his [[junior high school]]. During a show featuring many performers at an [[American Legion]] hall, he met [[Hank Cochran]] (later a [[country-music]] songwriter). Although they were not related, they began performing together and recorded as The Cochran Brothers.<ref>[http://www.rockabillyhall.com/EddieCochran.html Rockabilly HoF]</ref> Eddie Cochran also worked as a session musician, and began writing songs, making a "demo" with [[Jerry Capehart]], his future [[music manager|manager]].
 +
 +
== Guitars==
 +
When playing with Hank Cochran, Eddie Cochran played a [[Gibson Guitar Corporation|Gibson]] electric-acoustic guitar with a single florentine cutaway. This guitar featured a pair of Gibson [[P-90|P90 pickups]], sometimes called 'dog ear' pickups due to their shape.
 +
 +
Later, Cochran moved to a 1956 [[Gretsch 6120]] [[Chet Atkins]] Western model, which Eddie had modified. He replaced the neck position De Armond Dynasonic pickup with a black covered Gibson P-90 pickup. He also used acoustic guitars.
 +
 +
==Solo success==
 +
In 1956, [[Boris Petroff]] asked Cochran if he would appear in the musical-comedy film ''[[The Girl Can't Help It]]''. He agreed and sang a song called "[[Twenty Flight Rock]]" in the movie. In 1957, Cochran starred in his second film, "''[[Untamed Youth]]''" and also had his first hit, "[[Sittin' in the Balcony]]," one of the few songs he recorded that was written by another songwriter ([[John D. Loudermilk]]). "Twenty Flight Rock" was written by AMI staff writer Ned (Nelda) Fairchild. AMI granted Cochran a co-writer credit, but no royalties, a common arrangement by which publishers move songs from demos to commercial recordings.
 +
 +
However, his most famous hit, "[[Summertime Blues]]" (co-written with [[Jerry Capehart]]), was an important influence on music in the late 1950s, both lyrically and musically. (The song, released on [[Liberty Records|Liberty]] recording #55144, charted number eight on August 25, 1958.) Cochran's brief career included only a few more hits, such as "[[C'mon Everybody]]," "[[Somethin' Else (Eddie Cochran song)|Somethin' Else]]," "My Way," "Weekend," "Nervous Breakdown," and his posthumous [[United Kingdom|UK]] number-one hit "[[Three Steps to Heaven (song)|Three Steps to Heaven]]."
 +
 +
==Death==
 +
On Saturday, April 16, 1960, at about 11:50 p.m., while on tour in the [[United Kingdom]], 21-year-old Cochran died in a traffic accident in a taxi (a [[Ford Consul]], [reg. no. RBO 869],  not, as widely quoted, a London [[Hackney carriage]]) traveling through [[Chippenham, Wiltshire]], [[England]] on the [[A4 road|A4]]. The taxi crashed into a lamp post on Rowden Hill, where a plaque now commemorates the event (no other car was involved). He was taken to St. Martin's Hospital, [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]], but died at 4:10 p.m. the following day.<ref name="death-cert">{{cite web|url = http://web.archive.org/web/20040914095418/http://members.cox.net/gpugh1/Documents/Death+Cert.jpg|title = Certified copy of an entry of death: Edward Ray Cochran|publisher = County Borough of Bath|date = 1960-07-02|accessdate = 2008-02-20}}</ref> Songwriter [[Sharon Sheeley]] (Cochran's fiancée) and singer [[Gene Vincent]] survived the crash.
 +
 +
The taxi driver, George Martin, was convicted of dangerous driving, fined £50, disqualified from driving for 15 years, and sent to prison for six months.<ref>[http://www.eddiecochran.info/biography_DarkLonelyStreet.htm Remember Eddie Cochran's Dark Lonely Street on www.eddiecochran.info<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>
 +
 +
The car and other items from the crash were impounded at the local police station until a coroners' inquest could be held. At that time, [[David Harman]], later known as Dave Dee of the band [[Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich]], was a police cadet at the station. He taught himself to play guitar on Cochran's impounded [[Gretsch]]<ref>{{cite web|title= SEANCE WITH A GRETSCH G 6120 | url = http://www.gadflyonline.com/9-10-01/music-eddie-cochran.HTML|author = Ian Kimmet|date=9 Oct 2001}}</ref>.
 +
 +
Eddie Cochran is interred in the [[Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries|Forest Lawn Memorial Park]] in [[Cypress, California]].<ref>{{cite web|title = Forest Lawn Cypress: Stars' Graves|url = http://www.seeing-stars.com/Buried2/ForestLawnCypress.shtml|author = Gary Wayne|accessdate = 2008-02-20}}</ref>  A posthumous album, ''[[My Way (Eddie Cochran album)|My Way]]'', was released in 1964.
 +
 +
==Legacy==
 +
One of the first rock-and-roll artists to write his own songs and overdub tracks, Cochran had an innovative technique of aligning the bass and guitar to the same [[harmonic frequency]]. Artists such as [[The Who]], [[The Beach Boys]], [[Blue Cheer]], [[Led Zeppelin]], [[The White Stripes]], [[The Sex Pistols]], [[Rush (band)|Rush]], [[Tiger Army]], [[Paul McCartney]], and [[Alan Jackson]] have covered his songs. Glam-rock artist [[Marc Bolan]] had his main [[Gibson Les Paul|Les Paul]] model refinished in an transparent orange to resemble the Gretsch 6120 guitar played by Cochran, who was his music hero.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bacon |first=Tony |title=50 Years of the Gibson Les Paul |publisher=Backbeat Books |isbn=0-87930-711-0 |pages=71}}</ref>. He was also a heavy influence on the nascent rockabilly guitar legend Brian Setzer from Stray Cats who plays a 6120 just like his hero.
 +
 +
Cochran was a prolific performer, and the British Label [[Rockstar Records]] has released more of his music posthumously than had been released during his life. The company is still looking for unpublished songs.
 +
 +
One of his posthumous releases was "[[Three Stars (song)|Three Stars]]," a tribute to J.P. Richardson, better known as [[The Big Bopper]], and Eddie's friends [[Buddy Holly]] and [[Ritchie Valens]], who had all died together in a plane crash just one year earlier. Cochran's voice breaks during the lyrics about Valens and Holly.
 +
 +
In 1987, Cochran was inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]]. His pioneering contribution to the genre of [[rockabilly]] has also been recognised by the [[Rockabilly Hall of Fame]]. Several of his songs have been re-released since his death, such as "C'Mon Everybody," which was a number-14 hit in 1988 in the [[United Kingdom|UK]].
 +
 +
===Discography===
 +
====Singles====
 +
http://www.hotshotdigital.com/artist/eddie_cochran/discography/
 +
 +
====Albums====
 +
*''[[Singin' To My Baby]]'' (1957)
 +
*''The Eddie Cochran Memorial Album'' (1960)
 +
*''[[Never To Be Forgotten]]'' (1962)
 +
*''Cherished Memories'' (1962)
 +
*''Greatest Hits'' (1990)
 +
*''[[The Very Best of Eddie Cochran]]'' (2008)
 +
 +
== Notes==
 +
{{reflist|2}}
 +
 +
==References==
 +
*Cochran, Bobby, and Van Hecke, Susan. ''Three Steps to Heaven: The Eddie Cochran Story''. Milwaukee, Wisc.: Hal Leonard, 2003. ISBN 978-0634032523
 +
*Collis, Joan. ''Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran: Rock 'n' Roll Revolutionaries''. London: Virgin Books, 2004. ISBN 978-1852271930
 +
*Muir, Eddie, and Scott, Tony. ''Somethin' Else: A Tribute to Eddie Cochran''. Prescot, Merseyside, UK: V.R.R.A.S., 1979. OCLC 20730118
 +
*Mundy, Julie, and Higham. ''Don't Forget Me: The Eddie Cochran Story''. New York: Billboard Books, 2001. ISBN 978-0823079315
 +
*Padua, José. ''The Eddie Cochran Story''. Washington, D.C.: P.O.N. Press, 1990. OCLC 45892191
 +
*Williams, Dave. Rock and Roll Memories: Eddie Cochran. London: D. Williams, 2000. OCLC 45307997
 +
 +
 +
 +
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cochran, Eddie}}
 +
 +
[[Category:music]]
 +
[[Category:musicians]]
 +
[[Category:biography]]
 +
{{credit|230606252}}

Revision as of 03:40, 6 February 2009

Eddie Cochran
File:Eddiecochrane.jpg
Background information
Birth name Raymond Edward Cochran
Born October 3 1938(1938-10-03)
Albert Lea, Minnesota
Died April 17 1960 (aged 21)
Bath, Somerset, England
Genre(s) rock and roll, rockabilly
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, Guitarist
Instrument(s) Guitar
Years active 1953 - 1960
Label(s) Liberty
Notable instrument(s)
Gretsch 6120

Raymond Edward "Eddie" Cochran (October 3, 1938 — April 17, 1960) was an American rock-and-roll musician and an important influence on popular music during the late 1950s, early 1960s, and beyond.

Early life and career

Cochran was born in Albert Lea, Minnesota, as Ray Edward Cochran. He took music lessons in school, but quit the band to play drums. Also, rather than taking piano lessons, he began learning guitar, playing the country music he heard on the radio. In 1955, Cochran's family moved to Bell Gardens, California. As his guitar playing improved, he formed a band with two friends from his junior high school. During a show featuring many performers at an American Legion hall, he met Hank Cochran (later a country-music songwriter). Although they were not related, they began performing together and recorded as The Cochran Brothers.[1] Eddie Cochran also worked as a session musician, and began writing songs, making a "demo" with Jerry Capehart, his future manager.

Guitars

When playing with Hank Cochran, Eddie Cochran played a Gibson electric-acoustic guitar with a single florentine cutaway. This guitar featured a pair of Gibson P90 pickups, sometimes called 'dog ear' pickups due to their shape.

Later, Cochran moved to a 1956 Gretsch 6120 Chet Atkins Western model, which Eddie had modified. He replaced the neck position De Armond Dynasonic pickup with a black covered Gibson P-90 pickup. He also used acoustic guitars.

Solo success

In 1956, Boris Petroff asked Cochran if he would appear in the musical-comedy film The Girl Can't Help It. He agreed and sang a song called "Twenty Flight Rock" in the movie. In 1957, Cochran starred in his second film, "Untamed Youth" and also had his first hit, "Sittin' in the Balcony," one of the few songs he recorded that was written by another songwriter (John D. Loudermilk). "Twenty Flight Rock" was written by AMI staff writer Ned (Nelda) Fairchild. AMI granted Cochran a co-writer credit, but no royalties, a common arrangement by which publishers move songs from demos to commercial recordings.

However, his most famous hit, "Summertime Blues" (co-written with Jerry Capehart), was an important influence on music in the late 1950s, both lyrically and musically. (The song, released on Liberty recording #55144, charted number eight on August 25, 1958.) Cochran's brief career included only a few more hits, such as "C'mon Everybody," "Somethin' Else," "My Way," "Weekend," "Nervous Breakdown," and his posthumous UK number-one hit "Three Steps to Heaven."

Death

On Saturday, April 16, 1960, at about 11:50 p.m., while on tour in the United Kingdom, 21-year-old Cochran died in a traffic accident in a taxi (a Ford Consul, [reg. no. RBO 869], not, as widely quoted, a London Hackney carriage) traveling through Chippenham, Wiltshire, England on the A4. The taxi crashed into a lamp post on Rowden Hill, where a plaque now commemorates the event (no other car was involved). He was taken to St. Martin's Hospital, Bath, but died at 4:10 p.m. the following day.[2] Songwriter Sharon Sheeley (Cochran's fiancée) and singer Gene Vincent survived the crash.

The taxi driver, George Martin, was convicted of dangerous driving, fined £50, disqualified from driving for 15 years, and sent to prison for six months.[3]

The car and other items from the crash were impounded at the local police station until a coroners' inquest could be held. At that time, David Harman, later known as Dave Dee of the band Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, was a police cadet at the station. He taught himself to play guitar on Cochran's impounded Gretsch[4].

Eddie Cochran is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Cypress, California.[5] A posthumous album, My Way, was released in 1964.

Legacy

One of the first rock-and-roll artists to write his own songs and overdub tracks, Cochran had an innovative technique of aligning the bass and guitar to the same harmonic frequency. Artists such as The Who, The Beach Boys, Blue Cheer, Led Zeppelin, The White Stripes, The Sex Pistols, Rush, Tiger Army, Paul McCartney, and Alan Jackson have covered his songs. Glam-rock artist Marc Bolan had his main Les Paul model refinished in an transparent orange to resemble the Gretsch 6120 guitar played by Cochran, who was his music hero.[6]. He was also a heavy influence on the nascent rockabilly guitar legend Brian Setzer from Stray Cats who plays a 6120 just like his hero.

Cochran was a prolific performer, and the British Label Rockstar Records has released more of his music posthumously than had been released during his life. The company is still looking for unpublished songs.

One of his posthumous releases was "Three Stars," a tribute to J.P. Richardson, better known as The Big Bopper, and Eddie's friends Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens, who had all died together in a plane crash just one year earlier. Cochran's voice breaks during the lyrics about Valens and Holly.

In 1987, Cochran was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His pioneering contribution to the genre of rockabilly has also been recognised by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Several of his songs have been re-released since his death, such as "C'Mon Everybody," which was a number-14 hit in 1988 in the UK.

Discography

Singles

http://www.hotshotdigital.com/artist/eddie_cochran/discography/

Albums

  • Singin' To My Baby (1957)
  • The Eddie Cochran Memorial Album (1960)
  • Never To Be Forgotten (1962)
  • Cherished Memories (1962)
  • Greatest Hits (1990)
  • The Very Best of Eddie Cochran (2008)

Notes

  1. ↑ Rockabilly HoF
  2. ↑ Certified copy of an entry of death: Edward Ray Cochran. County Borough of Bath (1960-07-02). Retrieved 2008-02-20.
  3. ↑ Remember Eddie Cochran's Dark Lonely Street on www.eddiecochran.info
  4. ↑ Ian Kimmet (9 Oct 2001). SEANCE WITH A GRETSCH G 6120.
  5. ↑ Gary Wayne. Forest Lawn Cypress: Stars' Graves. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
  6. ↑ Bacon, Tony. 50 Years of the Gibson Les Paul. Backbeat Books, 71. ISBN 0-87930-711-0. 

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Cochran, Bobby, and Van Hecke, Susan. Three Steps to Heaven: The Eddie Cochran Story. Milwaukee, Wisc.: Hal Leonard, 2003. ISBN 978-0634032523
  • Collis, Joan. Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran: Rock 'n' Roll Revolutionaries. London: Virgin Books, 2004. ISBN 978-1852271930
  • Muir, Eddie, and Scott, Tony. Somethin' Else: A Tribute to Eddie Cochran. Prescot, Merseyside, UK: V.R.R.A.S., 1979. OCLC 20730118
  • Mundy, Julie, and Higham. Don't Forget Me: The Eddie Cochran Story. New York: Billboard Books, 2001. ISBN 978-0823079315
  • Padua, José. The Eddie Cochran Story. Washington, D.C.: P.O.N. Press, 1990. OCLC 45892191
  • Williams, Dave. Rock and Roll Memories: Eddie Cochran. London: D. Williams, 2000. OCLC 45307997

Credits

New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:

Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.

Retrieved from https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/p/index.php?title=Eddie_Cochran&oldid=920259

Content is available under Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details.
Copyright Logo
Powered by MediaWiki