Release Date: 11 March 2022
Label: Jasmine Records
Packaging Type: Jewel Case
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 604988111422
Genres: Rock 'N' Roll Pop-Rock
Description
Originally a childhood prodigy violinist, Philadelphia-born Frank Virtue took up guitar and double bass as a teenager, in the mid-1940s, his musical roots were based on the sound and style of the immediate pre-WWII Big Bands, and his earliest line-ups of The Virtues, who were formed initially as The Virtuoso Trio, reflected these influences.
But by the mid-1950s they'd expanded to a quintet and were playing Big Beat and embryonic R&R, vying for popularity with local heroes Bill Haley & The Comets. In 1959 they registered a hit with "Guitar Boogie Shuffle", a revival of Arthur 'Guitar Boogie' Smith's 1940s hit, which made the U.S. Top 10 and sold a couple of million copies.
This compilation is built upon the subsequent 'Guitar Boogie Shuffle' LP, also issued in 1959, plus assorted 45rpms issued between 1955-62, credited variously to The Virtues, Frank Virtuoso, Frank Virtuoso & His Men Of Virtue, and Jimmy Vespe (i.e. the band's lead guitarist).
Tracklisting
The Mudlarks
The Goofers
Slim Willet
Sleepy LaBeef
Marty Wilde
June Carter
Jimmy McCrackin
Gene Vincent
Frank Virtue & The Virtues
