Nobody triedharder thanBillyRiley.He could andprobably shouldhavebeen abig star
and the realisationof this fact remainedwithhim for all of his adult life. As a youngmanhe
rubbed shoulderswith JohnnyCash, JerryLee Lewis andCarl Perkins and for a brief period
matched thempunch forpunchat theexact timewhen theywereeachcreating theverymusic
onwhich their reputationswere built.
Whenhisownclassicrockabillyrecordings failed to takeoffandcommercial considerations
forced him to look elsewhere, he moved confidently between rock ‘n’ roll, blues, hillbilly
boogie, country, blue eyed soul, funk, pop, instrumentals, indeed anywhere thatmight lead
to that elusive hit record.Happily he appeared to stop short of disco or rapmusic but could
probably have turnedhis hand in those directions aswell, had the opportunity arisen.
When variations of his own name fell short of the jackpot, he adopted a scattergun
approach, recording under aliases such as Darren Lee, theMegatons, SkipWiley, Lightnin’
Leon, PrinceAlbert, the Jivin’ Five, theResolutions, Sandy and the Sandstones, theRockin’
Stockings and theSpitfires,while effortsbyGood JellyBess,Bill andWill andTommyHawk
wereat various times thought tohavebeenRiley. Indeed it is abravediscographerwhowould
claim the complete dossier of his recordings.
Ultimatelyhowever,he failed toachieve the stardom thathecraved for so longandmissed
out on the financial rewards that accompany such success. He had tomake dowith amore
localised form of stardom in Europe where for more than 30 years he was revered as a cult
hero to rockabilly enthusiasts and although such recognitionwas verywelcome, itwas still a
gooddeal less thanhe deserved.
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