Ronnie Hawkins

Born (January 10, 1935) and raised in Arkansas, unrepentantly rockabilly Ronnie Hawkins may go down in history as a footnote for his band, the Hawks, having once included the musicians who became as legendary as the Band. (Some no doubt will recall him as the cousin of Dale Hawkins, whose 1957 Top 30 single, "Susie-Q," has been overshadowed by Creedence Clearwater Revival's cover version.) He had but one chart hit in the States -- 1959's indelible, incendiary "Mary Lou," one of the great one-hit smashes -- but carved out a substantial niche for himself in Canada, where he has lived since 1958. It's a shame that had it not been for "Mary Lou" and the Band connection he might have been forgotten, because the recent reissue of four of his late '50s-early '60s studio albums makes it clear that Canada picked up on something the U.S. had overlooked.

Hawkins didn't have a great vocal instrument in terms of range, but his voice was loaded with per-sonality and feeling. Plus he had a sure sense of phrasing and nuance, and knew how to twist a lyric just so to express futility, anger, exasperation, heartbreak, or tender-hearted yearning. Throw in some good original songs -- most of which he cowrote with others, including Hawks (and the Band) drummer Levon Helm -- along with some flawless, spirited band support, and attention must be paid.

Rhino's Best of is the best place to start, because it offers a thorough overview of Hawkins through the years, concluding with a 1970 cut, "Down in the Alley," that shows the artist in a peak performance. In "Mary Lou" he can lay legitimate claim to being among the artists who carried the rockabilly banner into the '60s even as its leading practitioners from the '50s, hoping to remain commercially viable, were moving on to mainstream rock & roll or country. All of the '50s sides here showcase to good effect in other contexts the trademark Hawkins growl heard most effectively on "Mary Lou." The hot stuff on this disc has stood the test of time: the driving rewrite of Chuck Berry's "Thirty Days," retitled as "Forty Days"; the moody "One of These Days"; a taste of the honky-tonk in "Odessa." Any one or all of these songs could have been as big as or bigger than "Mary Lou," but none even made it to the Top 40. So goes the luck of the draw in show bidness. (DAVID MCGEE)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide