Sad news, Link Wray has died.
Rolling Stone says
Is this true? What was the rationale? Was it used in a movie that was considered objectionable, or in some other way linked to objectionable material?
I used to love playing “Ain’t that loving you baby?” in a rock-a-billy gig I was in for a while.
It was thought to glorify youth gang violence, based on the title and that it sounded wicked cool.
Rolling Stone is wrong about it being the only instrumental to face censorship, though. Hell, it’s not even the only Link Wray instrumental to be banned from radio stations – Jack the Ripper was also widely banned because of it’s “gruesome” title.
From here:
“There are those who claim that Link Wray invented heavy metal, an accusation based on his 1958 million-seller “Rumble”, an intense, moody guitar instrumental intended to capture the feel of a gang fight… The only problem was that this was the only instrumental hit ever which was banned as too suggestive!”
My, how times have changed…
From back in May: Marching Band prohibited from playing “Louie Louie”.
I had the pleasure of seeing the late, great Mr Wray in a very small bar in Newport, South Wales in about 1992 or 3. There were about 30 people there (if you include me and my mate Clarkie, the barman and Link’s missus) and it was perhaps the most tremendous gig I have ever been to. Clarkie rates it in his top 10, and that’s saying something!
What’s a power chord anyway? Is it the same as a bar chord?
Nah, a power chord is specifically meant to sound good with heavy distortion.
Power chords are (usually?) two notes separated by an interval of a fifth. I’m not a music guy, and this was related to me nearly twenty years ago, so I might have that wrong.
I think of* Rumble* as the prototype for surf music.
Rumble is the precurser to heavy metal??
Hardly.
Wray’s forte was the blues and rockabilly.
Listen to Boppin’ the Blues sometime.
For the record, I’ve never even heard the song, I was just quoting what that site said. Of course, they also called starting heavy metal an “accusation”, so what do they know?
Long-time guitarist here.
Wray’s Rumble fully exploited the tone potential for an overdriven amp. The fact that he took power chords - essentially simple chords with the tonic and fifth emphasized, per Larry Mudd (although with the advent of metal, the definition has morphed, but this captures the essence) - and just let them ring out was revolutionary. He was playing the amp at least as much as he was playing the guitar. If you listen to Rumble, right when he does the signature “bah bah BAH” you can really hear the “beats” of the harmonics as the chords decays - a classic example of an old tube amp being overdriven and clipping the complex harmonics, leaving the simpler-order harmonics (the beats you hear) and distortion. Ahhh, bliss.
Was it a precursor to Heavy Metal? Only in that it was simple, focused on the beat, focused on exploiting the tone of an overdriven amp and, most importantly, was cool - all of these could be thought of proto-metal.
I think Hoodoo Ulove and Lonesome Loser are probably closer. His playing has a real surf feel - emphasizing riffs on the lower strings - some reverb - lots of letting chords ring out on instrumental tunes - very Dick Dale to me.
And Wray’s roots are clearly rockabilly - he just slowed it way down and made it sound wicked.