Eddie Cochran – "Somethin' Else" (1959)

My car's out front and it's all mine

Just a ’41 Ford, not a ’59

Eddie Cochran died in a 1960 Ford – a Ford Consul Mark II, to be precise.  

Cochran was being driven to London to catch a flight back to the United States after touring England with fellow rock ’n’ roller Gene Vincent.  Vincent, the tour manager, and Cochran’s girlfriend were in the car with him when the driver lost control and crashed into a concrete lamppost.  Cochran was thrown from the car and suffered severe head injuries 

Cochran was ejected from the left rear
door when this car his a lamppost.

Cochran died the next day in a Bath hospital.  He was only 21 years old.

 *     *     *     *     *

Cochran – who for my money was much cooler than Elvis – is best known for his recording of “Summertime Blues.”  But I think “Somethin’ Else” (which absolutely drips with insouciance) is just as good a record.  

In the first two verses of that song, the singer expresses his admiration for a fine-lookin’ girl and an equally fine-lookin’ convertible – both of which seem utterly unattainable.  (The girl doesn’t notice him when they pass on the street, and he can’t even afford the price of a tank of gas, much less a new car.)

But the song has a happy ending.  In the last verse, we learn that the singer is in possession of both the girl and a car – albeit an old ’41 Ford, not a brand-new ’59 model.

The girl and the car are both somethin’ else – but what’s even more somethin’ else is livin’ the dream!

Click here to listen to Eddie Cochran’s “Something’ Else.”

Click here to buy the song from Amazon.

Eddie Cochran – "Summertime Blues" (1958)

I called my congressman

And he said, quote:

“I’d like to help you, son,

But you’re too young to vote”

Eddie Cochran was 19 years old – which at the time was too young to vote in the United States – when his recording of “Summertime Blues” was released in 1958.  

But even if Cochran hadn’t been too young to vote, I would have advised him not to count on his congressman (or congresswoman) for any help.

*     *     *     *     *

Here’s what you get if you translate I Corinthians 13:13 into 2 or 3 lines-speak:

But now abideth the song’s music and lyrics, the song’s arrangement, and the song’s attitude; and the greatest of these is ATTITUDE. 

When it comes to capturing the typical teenage male’s attitude, “Summertime Blues” hit the nail squarely on the head.  

Eddie Cochran died when he was 21

“Summertime Blues” doesn’t generate attitude by engaging in a lot of histrionics.  To the contrary, the lyrics of the song – which was co-written by Cochran and his manager, Jerry Capehart – and Cochran’s delivery of those lyrics are rather matter of fact.

The situation the singer of the song finds himself in is somewhat mundane: he’s battling to get out from under the thumbs of his pain-in-the-ass parents and boss.  (Who amongst us has not been there?)

His parents tell him that if he expects to use the family car to go on a date, he has to earn some money.  So he goes out and gets a job.  Problem solved, right?  

Nope . . . because when he’s about to punch out and meet up with his girlfriend , his boss informs him that he has to work late.

It’s catch-22 all over again.  (Heads I win, tails you lose.)  

*     *     *     *     *

There are a lot of rock ’n’ roll songs that score A-plus when it comes to attitude – “My Generation” (the Who), “It’s My Life” (Animals), “Satisfaction” (Rolling Stones), “Born to be Wild” (Steppenwolf), and “Oh Well (Part I)” (Fleetwood Mac), to name just a few.

But “Summertime Blues” came first.

*     *     *     *     *

Summer is obviously the best season, of the year . . . which means it’s the worst season to have the blues.

Summer ends at 9:31 am today – Tuesday, September 22, 2020.  That means you’ll have to wait nine months to have the summertime blues again.

But it’s not too early to start feeling the autumn blues.

Click here to listen to Eddie Cochran’s 1958 recording of “Summertime Blues” – a song that was famously covered by Blue Cheer in 1968 and regularly performed live by the Who.

Click on the link below to buy the song from Amazon: