Johnny and the Hurricanes

Uno dei più acclamati gruppi strumentali che deve il suo successo alla particolare miscela di sax tenore e organo. Si formano nel 1958 a Toledo, Ohio; i membri originali sono: Johnny Paris (n.1941, USA), Paul Tesluk (n. 1941, USA), David Yorko (n. 1941, USA), Lionel Mattice (n.1941, USA) e Don Staczek. Subito dopo l'incisione di Crossire , Staczek viene sostituito da Bill Savitch. All'inizio del 1959 i 5 firano un contratto con la Warwick e, nel corso dell'anno, appaiono tre singoli; Crossire, Red River Rock e Reveille Rock. Sia questi sia Beatnik Fly (1960) salgono nelle hit parades, portando al successo il nuovo sound degli Hurricanes. Nella primavera del 1960 il gruppo passa alla Big Top; anche qui grandi successi con Down Yonder, Rocking Goose, You're My Sunshine (1960) e Ja-Da (1961). Tra tours negli USA e in Europa la riesce a tirare avanti fino al 1961, quando si sioglie. Come era stato già per Beatnik Fly le incisioni da quel momento vengono effettute da anonimi sessionmen, i quali fanno si che il sound sopravviva alla identità fisica del gruppo che l'ha creato. Fra il 1962 e il 1963 Johnny Paris, che di volta in volta è accompagnato da svariati musicisti, continua ad effettuare tournèes, compreso lo Star Club di Amburgo nello stesso periodo in cui vi appaiono i Beatles. La registrazione di uno di questi concerti appare su LIVE AT THE STAR CLUB, HAMBURG GERMANY (aTILA 1965 USA), pubblicato nel 1965 dall'etichetta che Paris crea a ppositamente. Malgrado la mancanza di successi e di contratto discografico, Johnny Paris continua a suonare anche nei '70 nella zona di Toledo. Nel 1981 l'apparizione di LIVE IN HAMBURG (Strand 1981 GER) live, testimonia l'interesse che Paris continua a suscitare in Europa.

Johnny and the Hurricanes were an American instrumental rock and roll band from Toledo, Ohio, that had a number of hits, especially in the UK, in the 1950s and early 1960s.

Career

They began as the Orbits in Toledo in 1957. Led by saxophonist Johnny Paris (born 29 August 1940 as John Matthew Pocisk, Walbridge, Ohio, died 1 May 2006, Ann Arbor, Michigan), they were school friends who played on a few recordings behind Mack Vickery, a local rockabilly singer.
They signed with Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik of Twirl Records, which led to national engagements in 1959. Johnny and the Hurricanes recorded "Crossfire" in a vacant cinema to provide echo. It became a nationwide U.S. hit, and ranked No. 23 in the U.S. chart in the summer of 1959.
Johnny and the Hurricanes followed with "Red River Rock", an instrumental version of "Red River Valley", on Warwick Records, that became a top ten hit on both sides of the Atlantic (No. 5 in the U.S., No. 3 in the UK), and sold over a million copies. The musicians in the band then were Paris on saxophone, Paul Tesluk on a Hammond Chord organ, Dave Yorko on guitar, Lionel "Butch" Mattice on bass, and Bill "Little Bo" Savich on drums.
They specialised in versions of old tunes with a rock and roll beat. They chose these songs because they were well recognized and easier to accept with the beat. Tunes were credited to 'King, Mack' and usually one other name: King and Mack were in fact pseudonyms for Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik, the band's managers. In 1960, they recorded the United States Army bugle call, "Reveille", as "Reveille Rock", and turned "Blue Tail Fly" into "Beatnik Fly". Both tunes made the Top 40 achieving number 15 and 25 respectively. The band also recorded "Down Yonder" for Big Top Records. In the same year, they recorded "When The Saints Go Marching In" as "Revival", but it ranked in the charts for just one week, peaking at No. 97. The record was flipped over in the UK, where "Rocking Goose" reached No. 3 in the UK Singles Chart.
The band developed a following in Europe. In 1962, they played at the Star-Club in Hamburg, where the Beatles, then a little-known band, served as an opening act. Johnny and the Hurricanes cut records until 1987, with "Old Smokie" (their cover of "On Top of Old Smokey"), and an original tune, "Traffic Jam", both on Big Top Records, being their last releases to chart in America. Johnny Paris, the only constant member of the band, continued to tour with his Hurricanes in Europe and the United States until his death. He had an uncle, a realtor, in Rossford, Ohio, Johnny's home town, who owned a building on the main street and offered Johnny's first wife, Sharon Venier-Pocisk, space for an antique shop. When not on the road he helped out with the antique shop and vending machine business as payment for the store front for his first wife.
Johnny Paris and his band toured Europe occasionally until the end of 2005. He died on 1 May 2006 at the University Clinic of Ann Arbor, Michigan, of hospital-borne infections after an operation. Paris's second wife and widow, the German journalist, novelist and vocalist Sonja Verena (Reuter) Paris, took over his business (Atila Records, Sirius 1 Music and Johnny and the Hurricanes Incorporated) and the rights to his songs and trademarks. Paris claimed that over 300 musicians played in the band in its fifty-year existence.
The band inspired the song "Johnny and the Hurricanes" on the album How I Learned to Love the Bootboys, by the band the Auteurs. They were also namechecked in the Kinks' 1973 song "One of the Survivors", and in "Bridge in Time" on the 1990 Burton Cummings album Plus Signs.
Drummer Bill "Little Bo" Savich died on 4 January 2002. Bassist Lionel "Butch" Mattice died on October 16, 2006. Guitarist David Yorko died on 17 February 2017 at the age of 73.

Singles

Year	Titles (A-side, B-side) Both sides from same album except where indicated	Chart positions				Album
Year		US	US R&B	UK	GER	Album
1959	"Crossfire" b/w "Lazy"	23	—	—	—	Red River Rock
	"Red River Rock" b/w "Buckeye"	5	5	3	18	Red River Rock
	"Reveille Rock" b/w "Time Bomb"	25	17	14	9	Stormsville
1960	"Beatnik Fly" b/w "Sand Storm" (Non-album track)	15	—	8	9	The Big Sound Of Johnny & The Hurricanes
	"Down Yonder" b/w "Sheba" (from The Big Sound Of Johnny & The Hurricanes)	48	—	8	4	Non-album tracks
	"Revival" /	97	—	—	—
	"Rocking Goose"	60	—	3	—
	"You Are My Sunshine" b/w "Molly-O"	91	—	—	—	The Big Sound Of Johnny & The Hurricanes
1961	"Ja-Da" b/w "Mr. Lonely"	86	—	14	—	Non-album tracks
	"Old Smokie" b/w "High Voltage"	—	—	24	—
	"Farewell, Farewell" b/w "Traffic Jam"	—	—	—	—
1962	"Salvation" b/w "Miserlou"	—	—	—	—
	"San Antonio Rose" b/w "Come On Train"	—	—	—	—
	"Minnesota Fats" b/w "The Sheik Of Araby"	—	—	—	—
1963	"Theme From 'Whatever Happened To Baby Jane'" b/w "Greens and Beans"	—	—	—	—
	"James Bond Theme" b/w "The Hungry Eye" (from Stormsville)	—	—	—	—
	"Rough Road" b/w "Kaw-Liga"	—	—	—	—
	"It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" b/w "Shadows"	—	—	—	—
1964	"Money Honey" b/w "That's All"	—	—	—	—
1964	"Rene'" b/w "Saga Of The Beatles"	—	—	—	—
1965	"I Love You" b/w "Judy's Moody"	—	—	—	—
1966	"Wisdom's Fifth Take" b/w "Because I Love Her"	—	—	—	—
1967	"Red River Rock '67" b/w "The Psychedelic Worm"	—	—	—	—
1967	"What Do You Know About Love" b/w "Yes It's You"	—	—	—	—