Matt Lucas (singer)
Encyclopedia
Matt Lucas is an American Rock & Roll, Soul
and Blues
singer, drummer, and songwriter. He is best known for his crazy rocked-up 1963 version of the Hank Snow
country classic "I'm Movin" On". He was inducted into The Rockabilly Hall of Fame
in 1999, The International Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2004 and The Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame
in 2005.
, he grew up in Poplar Bluff, Missouri
. At the age of seven he discovered he was adopted when he found his adoption papers and a letter dated September 6, 1935 signed by the Assistant Superintendent Tennessee Children's Home Society
Shelby County Branch.
His father worked for a theater chain in Poplar Bluff, which had three theaters; The Criterion, The Jewel, The Strand and later The Rogers Theater. This gave him an opportunity to go to the movies for free and watching the great MGM musicals along with attending church services turned him on to music.
At Mark Twain School he played maracas
in The Mark Twain Rhythm Band and soon drums became his passion. One of his favorite musicians at the time was Gene Krupa
who he greatly admired for his solos and showmanship.
At night he listened to the big bands from New Orleans, St. Louis and Chicago
on the radio and pictured himself in those fancy places with the people all dressed up and listening to good music. Several times he tried to run away from Poplar Bluff to pursue his dreams of becoming a great jazz
musician and at age 14 he got into serious trouble when he took a cement mixer truck to run away from home. He was declared a juvenile delinquent and sentenced to a term in the Missouri Reformatory in Boonville, Missouri.
After 14 months he returned home and went back to his musician friends in the black section of Poplar Buff, MO, which was called The Holler. He had a few drinks, talked music and sat in with some of the bands.
As soon as he was off parole he tried his luck in Los Angeles, CA where his musical taste was influenced by frequent visits to Dolphin's Of Hollywood, a record shop which would become world famous in Doo-Wop
circles. The shop, located in Watts, Los Angeles on the corner of Vernon and Central, featured a deejay by the name of Dick Hugg
, a white guy nicknamed "Huggie Boy", who everyone thought was black. He played records like "Gee" by The Crows
, "You're The One” by The Spiders, "Shake a Hand" by Faye Adams
and "Money Honey" by Clyde McPhatter
.
where he worked bars and night clubs including a stint at The Bamboo Key Club in East St. Louis, Illinois
, where Ike Turner
was the house band.
His next stop was The Bar X in Calumet City, Illinois
, a suburb of Chicago
notorious for gangster activity. He worked from 8 at night until 5 or 6 in the morning playing backup for strippers and singing blues
tunes he made up as he went along. The place was wilder than East St. Louis and after a few months he moved back to South East Missouri where he started playing a variety of jobs in jazz trios, country bands and rock & roll bands.
In July 1956, while playing a gig at the El Morocco Club in Gideon, Missouri
, he met a local singer by the name of Narvel Felts
who had started to build himself a reputation as an Elvis type rocker. This meeting turned out to be the start of a lifelong friendship.
In the fall of 1956 they ended up in the same band when Jerry Mercer, leader of the band for which Narvel sang, fired Bob Taylor his drummer and Narvel recommended Matt for the job.
In 1959 he met up with Narvel Felts
again when he was asked to audition for a new trio Narvel was about to form after the breakup of his "Narvel Felts and The Rockets" band. His experience in drumming in a wide variety of musical styles landed him the job and he started 1960 as the drummer for the Narvel Felts Trio, which also featured J.W. Grubbs on stand-up bass and Narvel Felts on lead guitar. The Narvel Felts Trio played all over the Missouri/Arkansas/Illinois area from real dives like the Starlight in Lepanto, Arkansas
to honky-tonks in Missouri
and strip joints in Cairo, Illinois
and Chester, Illinois
.
In the summer of 1961, while Narvel Felts
was serving 6 months in the US Army Reserve, he stayed in Memphis playing drums for Bill Rice
and Jerry Foster as well as doing studio work. Some time during those 6 months he recorded "Trading Kisses / Sweetest One" at the Fernwood Studios in Memphis with Alvy Browning on bass, Bill Rice on piano, himself on drums and Roland Janes on guitar. The latter also produced the record and released it on his Good Records label.
In late 1962 he recorded "I'm Movin' On" in the Sonic Sound Studios in Memphis, at the end of a Narvel Felts
session. The song was initially released on Renay Records, a label owned by Roland Janes. The deejays loved it; the only problem was they liked the B-side "My Heavenly Angel". In an effort to kill the record a "It's Different - It's A Hit - I'm Movin' On by Matt Lucas" stamp was applied to the sleeves and sometimes the record itself. The reaction was swift and devastating "The record is too wild and crazy and we don't want to play this nigger music on our white radio station".
Eventually he visited WDIA
radio, the top black radio station in Memphis at the time, where he played the record for Rufus Thomas
who really liked it and added it to the stations playlist
. A second disc jockey
instrumental in breaking "I'm Movin' On' was Dick "Kane" Cole on WLOK
. The airplay
on the black stations forced white stations like WHBQ
WHBQ to add the song to their playlist
too.
He wanted more than a local hit in Memphis and on recommendation by Rufus Thomas
he went to the number 1 R&B radio station in the world, WLAC
in Nashville, Tennessee. John R.
, the station's top disc jockey
, took one listen to the Renay single and immediately referred Matt to Zenas Sears of WAOK radio in Atlanta, Georgia
. Bob McKee, a disc jockey
at that station, played it over the phone for a contact at Mercury Records
in Chicago
which resulted in the release on Smash Records
and a monster hit.
The record sold 50,000 copies in Detroit alone. It was a big hit in Canada
as well and it was released in Europe
on Smash, Belinda, Philips and several other labels. In August 1963 the Belgium Teen magazine "Juke Box" listed the single as "promising" and one month later it entered the Belgium hitparade at #10. In October it moved to #8 and in November it peaked at #6. The November 1963 Juke Box Hitparade reveals an even higher listing (#4) in the French speaking Southern part of Belgium. All in all it was a genuine worldwide smash pop hit. Stateside it officially peaked at 56 in Billboard
and 45 in Cashbox but locally it was much bigger especially in the Southern markets.
The Narvel Felts Trio now became the Matt Lucas Trio with Matt as the featured vocalist occupying front center stage with his drum set and Narvel Felts on lead guitar and J.W. Grubbs on bass standing behind him on the sides.
Roy Orbison
's "Ooby Dooby" was selected as the follow-up single. He gave the Orbison rocker the "I'm Movin' On' treatment starting it with the classic line "Hey baby this is Matt Lucas, come on out on this dance floor I want to tell you about something that is brand-new and I made it up baby and I am doing it just for you and here it is…Hey Baby”.
The record came out on Smash Records
and it started off the same way as "I'm Movin' On". Radio stations were reluctant to play it and the single never attained the success of "I'm Movin' On".
A second attempt at a follow-up hit involved Chuck Berry
’s “Maybellene”. The recording took place at the Roland Janes studio in Memphis, Tennessee with Travis Wammack
on guitar, Jamie Isonhood, a talented Jerry Lee Lewis
type piano pumper from Jackson, Mississippi
on keyboard and Fred Carter on bass. It was released on DOT
Records and basically went nowhere.
and an offer from Harold Kudletts, the man responsible for bringing Rock & Roll to Canada, sealed the deal. The move meant the end of the Matt Lucas trio since the other members had too many roots in Southern Missouri.
For his next record he left the formula of taking an established song adding his own drum beat to it and throwing in some extra lyrics. "Turn on Your Lovelight" a Bobby Blue Bland hit from 1961 was recorded in Memphis with the same people as "Maybellene" with the organ at the end dubbed in by . The record basically saw no chart action, and was largely ignored by both black and white radio.
In 1965 he briefly returned to the States when he was contacted by Ollie McLaughlin, producer/manager of Dell Shannon, Barbara Lewis
and later The Capitols
. Ollie had taken a liking to him when he visited Detroit during the promotion of "I'm Movin' On” and he was asked to come up with a song to hook in on a dance craze, which was big in Detroit. The dance was called The Twine and a single by Alvin Cash
& The Crawlers called "Twine Time" was a big hit.
He wrote “The Motor City Twine” and recorded Part 1 & 2 of the song at United Sound in Detroit with the finest Motown players. The single topped the R&B charts in Detroit but remained a local hit. A second release on Karen, "Baby You Better Go-Go" was also recorded at United Sound but it failed to chart and he moved back to London, Ontario
. (Note: the record later became a Disco hit in England
).
and boogie woogie thrown in.
When the hippy movement started to happen he realized it was not his thing and he slipped back into drinking. He approached the lowest point in his life and many times he did not get to eat because what little money he had, he spent on booze. One guy who still tried to help him occasionally was Ronnie Hawkins
. Ronnie added him as a second drummer to his band for several one nighters where he shared the stage with regular drummer Levon Helm
.
In the early seventies he started rebuilding his career with some success. In 1971 he made the cover of the prestigious Toronto Globe & Mail Magazine and appeared on the Pierre Burton Show, while CBC TV did a special on him called "Return of a Singer". At the same time he married a girl who owned three massage parlors and then he turned around and became involved with Xavier Hollander, also known as The Happy Hooker. They remain close friends.
In 1972 Gene Lees, a Canadian composer and editor of the jazz magazine Down Beat
, who had just started a new record label called Kanata Records, offered to cut a blues album on him and his band. Recorded at Sound Canada Studios the album, "I Paid My Dues", produced the single "I'm Movin' On" / "The Old Man" which became a double sided hit in Canada
, reaching just below the Top 20.
In 1974 he returned to Ollie McLaughlin in Detroit and recorded "You've Gotta Love" backed with a song called "I'm So Thankful". Musicians on the session included Minnie Ripperton, Donnie Hathaway, and Phil Upchurch
. The single was released in 1974 or 1975 on Quality Records
, Canada's largest independent record company. The record became a hit in Canada
, and also appeared on an album called "Disco mania" with songs by acts like Van McCoy
, Gloria Gaynor
and The Ohio Players.
He received an offer to go on tour with Buck Owens
, starting at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Toronto
. The same day he also received a call from Sid Rudeau in Tampa, Florida
. Sid had The Bellamy Brothers and Jim Stafford
and he offered him a job at the Rodeway Inn in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
. Hoping the move to a warmer climate and different surroundings would enhance his chances of making a full recovery from his heart attack, he left Canada
and started spreading his brand of Rock & Roll and Blues
music amongst the cajuns.
After working the club circuit in Louisiana
for a while he received a call from his agent asking him if he would be interested in playing at "Frenchmen's Reef", the number one resort hotel in St. Thomas
on the Virgin Islands
. He took the offer and ended up spending a little over 2 years there working 6 nights a week. Eventually he moved back to St. Petersburg, Florida
where he had bought a home and started working hotel chains like Holiday Inn
s and Supper Clubs always working 6 nights a week.
Around 1980 he accepted an offer for a job on a cruise ship
. This turned out to be an excellent career move because even though he was not nearly as wild as he used to be, he knew exactly how to work the crowds who took to the seas to have a good time. He mixed old Rock & Roll songs from his Memphis days with new 12 bar blues tunes which he had been writing about his own experiences and the audiences loved it.
He re-released several albums/cassettes with titles that clearly reflect two musical personalities. There were two volumes of "The Memphis Rock & Rollin' Rock-A-Billy" filled with old rockers like "Memphis", "Blue Suede Shoes", "Don't Be Cruel" and "Breathless". Then there were "Matt Lucas Sings for Lovers" and "Matt Lucas Sings Duke Ellington
" featuring standards like "Solitude", "Caravan", "Try A Little Tenderness" and "When I Grow Too Old To Dream". (Most of this material had originally been recorded in the late sixties).
Other cruise lines started offering him engagements giving him a long steady period of employment while making good money. A few years earlier he had fallen in love with a girl in Pittsburgh and after some arm-twisting he convinced her to join him on the cruise lines as a tour director. Together they worked several cruise ships out of Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Cape Canaveral, Florida
.
In 1990 he became Steamboat Director for the Delta Queen
Steamboat Company, and his wife tour manager, together they cruised the Mississippi river
from New Orleans to Minneapolis/St. Paul and the Ohio river
from St. Louis to Pittsburgh, PA on the Mississippi Queen
.
spread north to the Canadian border.
He has continued performing starting with a trip to Scandinavia
in 2000 followed by appearances at The Rockabilly Hall of Fame Introduction Show in Jackson, Tennessee
(2000), The Hemsby Rock 'N' Roll Weekender in Hemsby, Norfolk England (2001), The Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans, Louisiana (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007), American Music Magazine Show, Sweden
(2005) and various other small festivals.
Recording wise there were new CDs in 2001 "Shockabilly", "I'm Movin' On & Other Timeless Rockers" on Redita Records of The Netherlands and "Back In The Saddle Again" on Ten O Nine Records out of Chicago
. The Redita release features all his old Rock & Roll songs as well as some interesting tracks from the sixties/seventies. "Back In The Saddle Again" features all new songs and was recorded with the James Burton
on guitar and Charlie Musselwhite
on harmonica. One of the new songs is a new recording of his biggest hit, now titled "I'm Still Movin' On" :
"It was back in 63 when the great Hank Snow inspired me to start movin' on, start rolling on.
He said they can do you no wrong, if you don't stay too long, keep moving on.
Well you know Hank now he is dead and gone, Carl Perkins and Elvis well they sang their songs,
they've all moved on, yes they've all moved on.
But old Matt's having fun and keeps rocking along 'cause I'm still movin on."
1963
1964
1965
1972
1975
1977
1981
1982
2011
1973
1979
1983
2000
2001
2002
2006
2007
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and Blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
singer, drummer, and songwriter. He is best known for his crazy rocked-up 1963 version of the Hank Snow
Hank Snow
Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow was a Canadian-American country music artist. He charted more than 70 singles on the Billboard country charts from 1950 until 1980...
country classic "I'm Movin" On". He was inducted into The Rockabilly Hall of Fame
Rockabilly Hall of Fame
The Rockabilly Hall of Fame was established on the internet on March 21, 1997, to present early rock and roll history and information relative to the artists and personalities involved in this pioneering American music genre....
in 1999, The International Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2004 and The Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame
The Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame
The Southern Legends Association along with its subsidiaries is a diversified non-profit entertainment company with operations in four business segments, Hall of Fame inductions, artist promotions, musical recordings and various entertainment operations. It was founded in 2005 by Widmarc Clark,...
in 2005.
Early life
Born on July 19, 1935 in the General Hospital in Memphis, TennesseeMemphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, he grew up in Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Poplar Bluff is a city in Butler County located in Southeast Missouri in the United States. It is the county seat of Butler County and is known as "The Gateway to the Ozarks" among other names. As of the 2000 U.S...
. At the age of seven he discovered he was adopted when he found his adoption papers and a letter dated September 6, 1935 signed by the Assistant Superintendent Tennessee Children's Home Society
Tennessee Children's Home Society
Tennessee Children's Home Society was an orphanage operated in the state of Tennessee during the first half of the twentieth century, and is most often associated with its Memphis branch operator Georgia Tann as an organization involved with the kidnapping of children and their illegal adoptions....
Shelby County Branch.
His father worked for a theater chain in Poplar Bluff, which had three theaters; The Criterion, The Jewel, The Strand and later The Rogers Theater. This gave him an opportunity to go to the movies for free and watching the great MGM musicals along with attending church services turned him on to music.
At Mark Twain School he played maracas
Maracás
Maracás is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...
in The Mark Twain Rhythm Band and soon drums became his passion. One of his favorite musicians at the time was Gene Krupa
Gene Krupa
Gene Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer and composer, known for his highly energetic and flamboyant style.-Biography:...
who he greatly admired for his solos and showmanship.
Musical influences
The first band he played with was the Ray Chilton Band which featured five saxophones, an upright bass, a piano and drums and included four members of the Chilton family; Don (Chan), Glenn, Ray and Bill.At night he listened to the big bands from New Orleans, St. Louis and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
on the radio and pictured himself in those fancy places with the people all dressed up and listening to good music. Several times he tried to run away from Poplar Bluff to pursue his dreams of becoming a great jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician and at age 14 he got into serious trouble when he took a cement mixer truck to run away from home. He was declared a juvenile delinquent and sentenced to a term in the Missouri Reformatory in Boonville, Missouri.
After 14 months he returned home and went back to his musician friends in the black section of Poplar Buff, MO, which was called The Holler. He had a few drinks, talked music and sat in with some of the bands.
As soon as he was off parole he tried his luck in Los Angeles, CA where his musical taste was influenced by frequent visits to Dolphin's Of Hollywood, a record shop which would become world famous in Doo-Wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
circles. The shop, located in Watts, Los Angeles on the corner of Vernon and Central, featured a deejay by the name of Dick Hugg
Dick Hugg
Dick "Huggy Boy" Hugg was a radio disc jockey in Los Angeles, California. He was married to Sandy Hugg and had a son and three daughters.-Rock and Roll:...
, a white guy nicknamed "Huggie Boy", who everyone thought was black. He played records like "Gee" by The Crows
The Crows
The Crows were an American R & B singing group who achieved commercial success in the 1950s. The group's first single and only major hit, "Gee", released in June 1953, has been credited with being the first Rock n’ Roll hit by a rock and roll group...
, "You're The One” by The Spiders, "Shake a Hand" by Faye Adams
Faye Adams
Faye Adams is an American vocalist.-Early years:She was the daughter of David Tuell, a gospel singer and a key figure in the Church of God in Christ...
and "Money Honey" by Clyde McPhatter
Clyde McPhatter
Clyde McPhatter was an American R&B singer, perhaps the most widely imitated R&B singer of the 1950s and 1960s, making him a key figure in the shaping of doo-wop and R&B. He is best known for his solo hit "A Lover's Question"...
.
Rock and Roll
In 1955 when Rock & Roll started to happen he went back to Poplar Bluff where people immediately started calling him names because of his love for black music. He decided to move to St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
where he worked bars and night clubs including a stint at The Bamboo Key Club in East St. Louis, Illinois
East St. Louis, Illinois
East St. Louis is a city located in St. Clair County, Illinois, USA, directly across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri in the Metro-East region of Southern Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 27,006, less than one-third of its peak of 82,366 in 1950...
, where Ike Turner
Ike Turner
Isaac Wister Turner was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, arranger, talent scout, and record producer. In a career that lasted more than half a century, his repertoire included blues, soul, rock, and funk...
was the house band.
His next stop was The Bar X in Calumet City, Illinois
Calumet City, Illinois
Calumet City is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 39,072 at the 2000 census. The ZIP code is 60409.Calumet City was founded in 1892 when the villages of Schrumville and Sobieski Park merged under the name of West Hammond, since it lies on the west side of the...
, a suburb of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
notorious for gangster activity. He worked from 8 at night until 5 or 6 in the morning playing backup for strippers and singing blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
tunes he made up as he went along. The place was wilder than East St. Louis and after a few months he moved back to South East Missouri where he started playing a variety of jobs in jazz trios, country bands and rock & roll bands.
In July 1956, while playing a gig at the El Morocco Club in Gideon, Missouri
Gideon, Missouri
Gideon is a city in New Madrid County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,113 at the 2000 census.-History:The first hotel was built in Gideon in 1900, the first store was opened in 1901, the first doctor's office and first school were opened in 1903, and the first post office was opened...
, he met a local singer by the name of Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts is an American country music singer. Known for his soaring tenor and high falsetto, Felts enjoyed his greatest success during the 1970s, most famously 1975's "Reconsider Me."-Career:...
who had started to build himself a reputation as an Elvis type rocker. This meeting turned out to be the start of a lifelong friendship.
In the fall of 1956 they ended up in the same band when Jerry Mercer, leader of the band for which Narvel sang, fired Bob Taylor his drummer and Narvel recommended Matt for the job.
In 1959 he met up with Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts is an American country music singer. Known for his soaring tenor and high falsetto, Felts enjoyed his greatest success during the 1970s, most famously 1975's "Reconsider Me."-Career:...
again when he was asked to audition for a new trio Narvel was about to form after the breakup of his "Narvel Felts and The Rockets" band. His experience in drumming in a wide variety of musical styles landed him the job and he started 1960 as the drummer for the Narvel Felts Trio, which also featured J.W. Grubbs on stand-up bass and Narvel Felts on lead guitar. The Narvel Felts Trio played all over the Missouri/Arkansas/Illinois area from real dives like the Starlight in Lepanto, Arkansas
Lepanto, Arkansas
Lepanto is a city in Poinsett County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 2,133 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Jonesboro, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area...
to honky-tonks in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
and strip joints in Cairo, Illinois
Cairo, Illinois
Cairo is the southernmost city in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the county seat of Alexander County. Cairo is located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. The rivers converge at Fort Defiance State Park, an American Civil War fort that was commanded by General Ulysses S. Grant...
and Chester, Illinois
Chester, Illinois
Chester is a city located on the bluffs of the Mississippi River Valley in Randolph County, Illinois, United States. The population was 8,400 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Randolph County and is located south of St. Louis, Missouri.-History:...
.
"I'm Movin' On"
Lucas was soon asked to sing a couple of songs during each set in order to broaden the trio’s repertoire and he reverted to the blues and R&B he had learned during his years as a drummer in the clubs of East St. Louis and Calumet City. In addition to songs like "Annie Had A Baby" and "Hoochie Coochie Man" he started playing around with Hank Snow's 1950 country hit "I'm Movin' On" changing some of the lyrics and adding lines like "wind it up baby" and "shake it for your daddy" and " I wanna ride that thing tonight". The song became a crowd favorite and convinced him he had a potential hit on his hands.In the summer of 1961, while Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts is an American country music singer. Known for his soaring tenor and high falsetto, Felts enjoyed his greatest success during the 1970s, most famously 1975's "Reconsider Me."-Career:...
was serving 6 months in the US Army Reserve, he stayed in Memphis playing drums for Bill Rice
Bill Rice
Wilbur Steven "Bill" Rice is an American country music singer and songwriter. Rice charted six singles between 1971 and 1978, including the Top 40 hit "Travelin' Minstrel Man", but is better known for his songwriting...
and Jerry Foster as well as doing studio work. Some time during those 6 months he recorded "Trading Kisses / Sweetest One" at the Fernwood Studios in Memphis with Alvy Browning on bass, Bill Rice on piano, himself on drums and Roland Janes on guitar. The latter also produced the record and released it on his Good Records label.
In late 1962 he recorded "I'm Movin' On" in the Sonic Sound Studios in Memphis, at the end of a Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts
Narvel Felts is an American country music singer. Known for his soaring tenor and high falsetto, Felts enjoyed his greatest success during the 1970s, most famously 1975's "Reconsider Me."-Career:...
session. The song was initially released on Renay Records, a label owned by Roland Janes. The deejays loved it; the only problem was they liked the B-side "My Heavenly Angel". In an effort to kill the record a "It's Different - It's A Hit - I'm Movin' On by Matt Lucas" stamp was applied to the sleeves and sometimes the record itself. The reaction was swift and devastating "The record is too wild and crazy and we don't want to play this nigger music on our white radio station".
Eventually he visited WDIA
WDIA
WDIA is an AM radio station in Memphis, Tennessee, in the United States of America. Its radio frequency is 1070 kHz. In 1962 it became the first U.S. radio station programmed by African-Americans, though its ownership was white.-History:...
radio, the top black radio station in Memphis at the time, where he played the record for Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas, Jr. was an American rhythm and blues, funk and soul singer and comedian fromMemphis, Tennessee, who recorded on Sun Records in the...
who really liked it and added it to the stations playlist
Playlist
In its most general form, a playlist is simply a list of songs. They can be played in sequential or shuffled order. The term has several specialized meanings in the realms of radio broadcasting and personal computers.-In radio:...
. A second disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
instrumental in breaking "I'm Movin' On' was Dick "Kane" Cole on WLOK
WLOK
WLOK is a radio station broadcasting a gospel music format. Licensed to Memphis, Tennessee, USA, the station is currently owned by WLOK Radio, Inc....
. The airplay
Airplay
* Airplay is the amount of time a song is played on the radio.It may also refer to:* AirPlay, an audio & video streaming technology from Apple Inc.* Airplay , Foster & Graydon music project from 1980* Citroën C1, Citroën C1 Airplay...
on the black stations forced white stations like WHBQ
WHBQ (AM)
WHBQ is an AM radio station in Memphis, Tennessee, in the United States of America. Its frequency is 560 kHz. Although today it broadcasts sports news exclusively, the station became famous in the 1950s for playing rhythm and blues....
WHBQ to add the song to their playlist
Playlist
In its most general form, a playlist is simply a list of songs. They can be played in sequential or shuffled order. The term has several specialized meanings in the realms of radio broadcasting and personal computers.-In radio:...
too.
He wanted more than a local hit in Memphis and on recommendation by Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas, Jr. was an American rhythm and blues, funk and soul singer and comedian fromMemphis, Tennessee, who recorded on Sun Records in the...
he went to the number 1 R&B radio station in the world, WLAC
WLAC
WLAC is a clear channel radio station based in Nashville, Tennessee, operating at 1510 kHz on the AM dial.-Early history:Its first broadcast took place on November 24, 1926. The call letters were chosen to contain an acronym for the first owner of the station, the Life and Casualty Insurance...
in Nashville, Tennessee. John R.
John R.
John R. was an American radio disc jockey who attained fame in the 1950s and 1960s for playing rhythm and blues music on Nashville radio station WLAC...
, the station's top disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
, took one listen to the Renay single and immediately referred Matt to Zenas Sears of WAOK radio in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
. Bob McKee, a disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
at that station, played it over the phone for a contact at Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
which resulted in the release on Smash Records
Smash Records
Smash Records is an American record label. It was founded in 1961 as a subsidiary of Mercury Records by Mercury executive Shelby Singleton and run by Singleton with Charlie Fach. Fach took over after Singleton left Mercury in 1966...
and a monster hit.
The record sold 50,000 copies in Detroit alone. It was a big hit in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as well and it was released in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
on Smash, Belinda, Philips and several other labels. In August 1963 the Belgium Teen magazine "Juke Box" listed the single as "promising" and one month later it entered the Belgium hitparade at #10. In October it moved to #8 and in November it peaked at #6. The November 1963 Juke Box Hitparade reveals an even higher listing (#4) in the French speaking Southern part of Belgium. All in all it was a genuine worldwide smash pop hit. Stateside it officially peaked at 56 in Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
and 45 in Cashbox but locally it was much bigger especially in the Southern markets.
The Narvel Felts Trio now became the Matt Lucas Trio with Matt as the featured vocalist occupying front center stage with his drum set and Narvel Felts on lead guitar and J.W. Grubbs on bass standing behind him on the sides.
Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
's "Ooby Dooby" was selected as the follow-up single. He gave the Orbison rocker the "I'm Movin' On' treatment starting it with the classic line "Hey baby this is Matt Lucas, come on out on this dance floor I want to tell you about something that is brand-new and I made it up baby and I am doing it just for you and here it is…Hey Baby”.
The record came out on Smash Records
Smash Records
Smash Records is an American record label. It was founded in 1961 as a subsidiary of Mercury Records by Mercury executive Shelby Singleton and run by Singleton with Charlie Fach. Fach took over after Singleton left Mercury in 1966...
and it started off the same way as "I'm Movin' On". Radio stations were reluctant to play it and the single never attained the success of "I'm Movin' On".
A second attempt at a follow-up hit involved Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
’s “Maybellene”. The recording took place at the Roland Janes studio in Memphis, Tennessee with Travis Wammack
Travis Wammack
Travis Wammack in Walnut, Mississippi, is an American rock and roll guitarist from Memphis, Tennessee. He began his professional music career when he wrote and recorded his first record at the age of eleven...
on guitar, Jamie Isonhood, a talented Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
type piano pumper from Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
on keyboard and Fred Carter on bass. It was released on DOT
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label and company that was active between 1950 and 1977. It was founded by Randy Wood. In Gallatin, Tennessee, Wood had earlier started a mail order record shop, known for its radio ads on WLAC in Nashville and its R&B air personality Bill "Hoss" Allen...
Records and basically went nowhere.
Blue Eyed Soul wonder
Frustrated by the lack of success he started thinking about moving North to CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and an offer from Harold Kudletts, the man responsible for bringing Rock & Roll to Canada, sealed the deal. The move meant the end of the Matt Lucas trio since the other members had too many roots in Southern Missouri.
For his next record he left the formula of taking an established song adding his own drum beat to it and throwing in some extra lyrics. "Turn on Your Lovelight" a Bobby Blue Bland hit from 1961 was recorded in Memphis with the same people as "Maybellene" with the organ at the end dubbed in by . The record basically saw no chart action, and was largely ignored by both black and white radio.
In 1965 he briefly returned to the States when he was contacted by Ollie McLaughlin, producer/manager of Dell Shannon, Barbara Lewis
Barbara Lewis
Barbara Lewis , is an American singer and songwriter whose smooth style influenced rhythm and blues.-Career:Lewis was born in Salem, near Ann Arbor, Michigan...
and later The Capitols
The Capitols
The Capitols were a Detroit, Michigan-based soul trio widely known in the late 1960s for their Billboard hit single "Cool Jerk".-Formation and Disbandment:...
. Ollie had taken a liking to him when he visited Detroit during the promotion of "I'm Movin' On” and he was asked to come up with a song to hook in on a dance craze, which was big in Detroit. The dance was called The Twine and a single by Alvin Cash
Alvin Cash
Alvin Cash was an American pop singer and actor.-Biography:Born Alvin Welch in St. Louis, Missouri, and a graduate of St. Louis's Sumner High School , he and three brothers moved to Chicago, where they sang and danced while in search of a recording contract...
& The Crawlers called "Twine Time" was a big hit.
He wrote “The Motor City Twine” and recorded Part 1 & 2 of the song at United Sound in Detroit with the finest Motown players. The single topped the R&B charts in Detroit but remained a local hit. A second release on Karen, "Baby You Better Go-Go" was also recorded at United Sound but it failed to chart and he moved back to London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
. (Note: the record later became a Disco hit in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
).
Canada
By this time he had developed a serious alcohol problem. He tried to stop drinking, worked as a printer for a while but eventually started a new band and called Harold Kudlets to put him back on the road. The newly formed band played all the old Rock & Roll stuff but with more bluesBlues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and boogie woogie thrown in.
When the hippy movement started to happen he realized it was not his thing and he slipped back into drinking. He approached the lowest point in his life and many times he did not get to eat because what little money he had, he spent on booze. One guy who still tried to help him occasionally was Ronnie Hawkins
Ronnie Hawkins
Ronald "Ronnie" Hawkins is a Juno Award-winning rockabilly musician whose career has spanned more than half a century. Though his career began in Arkansas, USA, where he'd been born and raised, it was in Ontario, Canada where he found success and settled for most of his life...
. Ronnie added him as a second drummer to his band for several one nighters where he shared the stage with regular drummer Levon Helm
Levon Helm
Mark Lavon "Levon" Helm , is an American rock multi-instrumentalist and actor who achieved fame as the drummer and frequent lead and backing vocalist for The Band....
.
In the early seventies he started rebuilding his career with some success. In 1971 he made the cover of the prestigious Toronto Globe & Mail Magazine and appeared on the Pierre Burton Show, while CBC TV did a special on him called "Return of a Singer". At the same time he married a girl who owned three massage parlors and then he turned around and became involved with Xavier Hollander, also known as The Happy Hooker. They remain close friends.
In 1972 Gene Lees, a Canadian composer and editor of the jazz magazine Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
, who had just started a new record label called Kanata Records, offered to cut a blues album on him and his band. Recorded at Sound Canada Studios the album, "I Paid My Dues", produced the single "I'm Movin' On" / "The Old Man" which became a double sided hit in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, reaching just below the Top 20.
In 1974 he returned to Ollie McLaughlin in Detroit and recorded "You've Gotta Love" backed with a song called "I'm So Thankful". Musicians on the session included Minnie Ripperton, Donnie Hathaway, and Phil Upchurch
Phil Upchurch
Phil Upchurch is an American jazz and R&B guitarist and bassist.Upchurch started his career working with The Kool Gents, The Dells, and The Spaniels before going on to work with Curtis Mayfield, Otis Rush and Jimmy Reed. He then returned to Chicago to play and record with Woody Herman, Stan Getz,...
. The single was released in 1974 or 1975 on Quality Records
Quality Records
Quality Records is a Canadian entertainment company which released music albums in Canada on behalf of American record labels, and also released recordings by Canadian artists...
, Canada's largest independent record company. The record became a hit in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and also appeared on an album called "Disco mania" with songs by acts like Van McCoy
Van McCoy
Van Allen Clinton McCoy was an accomplished musician, music producer, arranger, songwriter, and orchestra conductor. He is known best for his 1975 internationally successful song "The Hustle", which is still played in dance halls and on radio to this day more than thirty years since his death...
, Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits; "I Will Survive" , "Never Can Say Goodbye" , "Let Me Know " and "I Am What I Am" .-Early career:Gaynor was a singer with the Soul...
and The Ohio Players.
Caribbean
In 1975, his wild life caught up with him. He had a heart attack, almost died and he decided to make some drastic changes in his life style.He received an offer to go on tour with Buck Owens
Buck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
, starting at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. The same day he also received a call from Sid Rudeau in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
. Sid had The Bellamy Brothers and Jim Stafford
Jim Stafford
James Wayne "Jim" Stafford is an American comedian, musician, and singer-songwriter, prominent in the 1970s. Stafford is self-taught on guitar, fiddle, piano, banjo, organ and harmonica....
and he offered him a job at the Rodeway Inn in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
. Hoping the move to a warmer climate and different surroundings would enhance his chances of making a full recovery from his heart attack, he left Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and started spreading his brand of Rock & Roll and Blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
music amongst the cajuns.
After working the club circuit in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
for a while he received a call from his agent asking him if he would be interested in playing at "Frenchmen's Reef", the number one resort hotel in St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
on the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
. He took the offer and ended up spending a little over 2 years there working 6 nights a week. Eventually he moved back to St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...
where he had bought a home and started working hotel chains like Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
s and Supper Clubs always working 6 nights a week.
Around 1980 he accepted an offer for a job on a cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
. This turned out to be an excellent career move because even though he was not nearly as wild as he used to be, he knew exactly how to work the crowds who took to the seas to have a good time. He mixed old Rock & Roll songs from his Memphis days with new 12 bar blues tunes which he had been writing about his own experiences and the audiences loved it.
He re-released several albums/cassettes with titles that clearly reflect two musical personalities. There were two volumes of "The Memphis Rock & Rollin' Rock-A-Billy" filled with old rockers like "Memphis", "Blue Suede Shoes", "Don't Be Cruel" and "Breathless". Then there were "Matt Lucas Sings for Lovers" and "Matt Lucas Sings Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
" featuring standards like "Solitude", "Caravan", "Try A Little Tenderness" and "When I Grow Too Old To Dream". (Most of this material had originally been recorded in the late sixties).
Other cruise lines started offering him engagements giving him a long steady period of employment while making good money. A few years earlier he had fallen in love with a girl in Pittsburgh and after some arm-twisting he convinced her to join him on the cruise lines as a tour director. Together they worked several cruise ships out of Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Cape Canaveral, Florida
Cape Canaveral, Florida
Cape Canaveral is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 8,829 at the 2000 census. As of 2008, the estimated population according to the U.S. Census Bureau was 10,147...
.
In 1990 he became Steamboat Director for the Delta Queen
Delta Queen
The Delta Queen is an American sternwheel steamboat that is a U.S. National Historic Landmark. Historically, she has been used for cruising the major rivers that constitute the drainage of the Mississippi River, particularly in the American South. As of June 2009, she is docked in Chattanooga,...
Steamboat Company, and his wife tour manager, together they cruised the Mississippi river
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
from New Orleans to Minneapolis/St. Paul and the Ohio river
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
from St. Louis to Pittsburgh, PA on the Mississippi Queen
Mississippi Queen
"Mississippi Queen" is a song by the American rock band Mountain. Considered a rock classic, it was their most successful single, reaching #21 in the Billboard Hot 100 record chart in 1970...
.
21st century
Today, he and his wife Barbara make their home in North Central Florida during the winter while summers are spent in their RV on the roads of the USA. As avid motorcyclists and RVrs they take to the roads as soon as the warmer temperatures of FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
spread north to the Canadian border.
He has continued performing starting with a trip to Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
in 2000 followed by appearances at The Rockabilly Hall of Fame Introduction Show in Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson is a city in Madison County, Tennessee, United States. The total population was 65,211 at the 2010 census. Jackson is the primary city of the Jackson, Tennessee metropolitan area, which is included in the Jackson-Humboldt, Tennessee Combined Statistical Area...
(2000), The Hemsby Rock 'N' Roll Weekender in Hemsby, Norfolk England (2001), The Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans, Louisiana (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007), American Music Magazine Show, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
(2005) and various other small festivals.
Recording wise there were new CDs in 2001 "Shockabilly", "I'm Movin' On & Other Timeless Rockers" on Redita Records of The Netherlands and "Back In The Saddle Again" on Ten O Nine Records out of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. The Redita release features all his old Rock & Roll songs as well as some interesting tracks from the sixties/seventies. "Back In The Saddle Again" features all new songs and was recorded with the James Burton
James Burton
James Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 , Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
on guitar and Charlie Musselwhite
Charlie Musselwhite
Charlie Musselwhite is an American electric blues harmonica player and bandleader, one of the non-black bluesmen who came to prominence in the early 1960s, along with Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Though he has often been identified as a "white bluesman", he claims Native American heritage...
on harmonica. One of the new songs is a new recording of his biggest hit, now titled "I'm Still Movin' On" :
"It was back in 63 when the great Hank Snow inspired me to start movin' on, start rolling on.
He said they can do you no wrong, if you don't stay too long, keep moving on.
Well you know Hank now he is dead and gone, Carl Perkins and Elvis well they sang their songs,
they've all moved on, yes they've all moved on.
But old Matt's having fun and keeps rocking along 'cause I'm still movin on."
Singles
1962- Tradin' Kisses / Sweetest One (Good 003)
1963
- I'm Movin' On / My Heavenly Angel (Renay 304)
- I'm Movin' On / My Heavenly Angel (Smash 183)
- Ooby Dooby / No One Like You(Smash 1840)
- Maybellene / Put Me Down (Dot 16564)
1964
- Turn On Your Lovelight / Water Moccasin (Dot 16614)
1965
- The M.C. Twine Pt 1 / The M.C. Twine Pt 2 (Karen 321)
- Baby You Better Go-Go / My Tune (Karen 2524)
1972
- The Old Man / I'm Movin' On (Kanata 1008)
- The Old Man / Bathtub Blues / I'm Movin' On (Kanata Kan 9)
1975
- You Gotta Love / I'm So Thankful (Quality 2129)
- I Need Your Lovin' / Zoo Blues (Quality 2159)
1977
- Put Me Down / Tom Cat Blues (CJG 504)
1981
- I'm Movin' On / Maybellene (Underground 3001)
1982
- Peepin' Tom Blues / Newsman Blues (Underground 3002)
2011
- Shake It (3246) (one sided single on blue vinyl)
Albums, cassettes and CDs
1968- The Memphis Rock & Rollin' Rock-A-Billy Vol. 1 (Memphis Legends 1931) CST
- The Memphis Rock & Rollin' Rock-A-Billy Vol. 2 (Memphis Legends 1932) CST
1973
- Matt Lucas Sings Duke Ellington (All Star 1015) LP
- Matt Lucas Sings For Lovers (All Star 1016) LP
1979
- The White Blues Wonder (Bluejam BJS 1001) LP
1983
- A Legend In His Time : Back With The Blues (Bluejam BJS 1002) LP (CD 401)
- The Chicago Session (Congo CS 1935) LP
- Sings The Hits (Bluejam 2020) LP
- Ride That Train Tonight (Charly 30222) LP
2000
- Paying My Dues (Bluejam 7777) LP
- Original Hits (Bluejam 7797) CD
- Rockabilly 2000 Vol 1 (Bluejam CD 100)
- Rockabilly 2000 Vol 2 (Bluejam CD 200)
2001
- Shockabilly
2002
- I'm Movin' On & Other Timeless Rockers (Redita 146) CD
2006
- Back In The Saddle Again (Ten-O-Nine TN8379) CD
2007
- Music To My Momma's Ears (Ronjen SKU070827) CD