I know nothing of Beauregard And The Tuffs (who were probably a one-ff, studio concocted group), other than that this is probably the version of "Ramblin' Rose" (originally cut by Ted Taylor) that influenced the MC5's version. While it's very possible that the soul fans that made up the 'Five heard the Ted Taylor record (which is brilliant and a past 45 of the day), this one ups the ante...
My guess is that this was cut after June '65, as the fuzztone intro definitely takes a cue from the Rolling Stones "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" which was released in June of '65 and of course a massive hit. The catalog number puts this as being around September or October of '65.
So while this song/ version wasn't a huge hit, in my speculation the aggresive, hard r&b sound was a pungent ingredient in the stew that made up the sound of the MC5, making this a very important proto-punk record. All this and easy to dance to.
from 1965...
BEAUREGARD AND THE TUFFS - RAMBLIN' ROSE
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6 comments:
Fantastic! I'd never heard it before. Thanks Derek!
Amazing find!
Thanks for this gem, Derek. Without your post I would've never thought of digging out the history of ramblin rose.
Now that I have, I tend to think MC5 probably was probably primarily familar with the original. The Ted Taylor version certainly vibes the same way.
By coincidence, just a coincidentally similar band also had the same idea of covering after hearing ted taylor.
OR
They know both versions. Happens when youŕe fascinated by a song.
Ever heard the primal scream version by the way? Really soars.
great song!
greez from europe
I noticed the Decca matrix numbers (111,777 for "Ramblin' Rose" and 111,779 for the B side "Big Bad Guitar"), which seemed old for a record from mid-July 1965, when it was released according to the catalogue number (Decca 31820). The Decca matrix series had reached approximately 116,300 by that point.
And a little research resulted in the discovery that this was recorded in Nashville... as far back as 8 February 1962!
The guitarist is Grady Martin, and both sides were leftover recordings already more than three years old. The other two tracks from this session, "Good, Good, Good" (111,780) / "Twist And Turn" (111,778), were released on Decca 31381 already in April 1962 under Grady Martin's name. Martin had already used fuzz on Marty Robbins's "Don't Worry" (December 1960), as well as a B side of his own titled simply "The Fuzz" (January 1961), so he was well acquainted with it by 1962.
So much for the fuzz being influenced by "Satisfaction", or Ted Taylor's 1965 version of the song being the original recording.
Unbelievable... this all solves a mystery that until today had been bugging me since early 1963. I heard this song on the radio early that year (this was in New Zealand) and it was announced as being by Grady Martin’s Slewfoot Five. I could never find the song online because I had misremembered the lyric as “your love is like a mockingbird” and not “rambling rose.” Thank you Boursin!! Terrific song, great to hear it again after, what, 55 years. Tim
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