Search - Tibby Edwards :: Play It Cool Man, Play It Cool - Gonna Shake This Shack Tonight

An Obscure Artist Nationally - But Well-Known Among Rockabil

05/21/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Bear Family has this penchant for compiling songs of some of the most obscure artists of the C&W/Rockabilly genres, and in Tibby Edwards, born in 1935 in Garland, Louisiana, they have come up with one of the least known. That is, outside that genre of collector devoting themselves to those who gave us raw Rockabilly, that primary component of what would soon become Rock `n' Roll in the mid-1950s.



When you hear his voice and style of delivery you will see instantly that this one-time member of the KWKH Louisiana Hayride (he joined that group in 1952 and stayed through to 1957) in that era was, like many of his generation, greatly influenced by the likes of Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzell and Carl Smith and, indeed, when he was all of about 15 or 16 Edwards became a protege and eventually a close friend of Lefty, touring with him for several years before settling in Beaumont, Texas..



He did have a recording career as well, including a long stint from late summer 1953 to early 1957 with one of the giants, Mercury, cutting most of the discs presented here at the legendary Owen Bradley Studio in Nashville and backed by some of the biggest names in the industry, including pianist Floyd Cramer, rhythm guitarist Chet Atkins, and members of Hank Williams' Drifting Cowboys - steel guitarist Don Helms, fiddler Jerry Rivers, Hillous B. Butrum on bass and guitarist Bob McNett. But in spite of that array of talent, not one of his records (some of which were hugely popular on a local basis) ever cracked any of the national charts.



His first with Mercury was If You Love Me, Let Me Know It b/w Walkin' And A-Cryin' With The Blues (Mercury 70236), followed by Too Proud To Wear My Name b/w That's How I Was Lost on Mercury 70314, and Cry, Cry Darlin (which would become Jimmy Newman's first hit in 1954) b/w Mine Forever. Others of his Mercury releases presented here are: I'm Still In Love With You b/w If You Lose, You'll Understand (Mercury 70408), Try To Understand b/w Uninvited (Mercury 70454), Just A Few More Tears b/w What Has Become Of You? (Mercury 70518), a cover of Joe Turner's Flip Flop And Fly b/w There Ain't No Better Time (Mercury 70590) in 1955; Play It Cool Man, Play It Cool b/w Shift Gears (Mercury 70640), You Made A Believer Out Of Me b/w I Can't Face The Future (Mercury 70816), C'est Si Tout b/w It'll Be A Long, Long Time (Mercury 70719), Fool That Was (I Asked For More) b/w (I Don't Want To Say I Love You (But I Do) on Mercury 71036, and Long Time Gone b/w I'd Come Running (Mercury 7113).



A stint in the army starting in 1958 effectively ended his Mercury recording career although, upon discharge, he did have a few more releases, including one on Starday 278 which re-issued Fool That I Was (I Asked For More)/But I Do. He also had one on the legendary D label in Texas, Memory Of A Lie/One More Night, on D-1081, one for Jin Records - Forever Is A Long, Long Time/Congratulations To You (Jin 138), and one for Todd Records - Teenage Troubles/Day Dreaming (Todd 1065).



Apparently, heavy drinking and smoking caught up to Tibby Edwards on September 21, 1999 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where he passed away from cancer at age 64. If you like the raw driving power of Rockabilly, you'll love this album. Just don't look for hits."