Wesley Karr & the Automobiles

Well I guess it all started in 1928 when I formed a big band. We played together for about 10 years and things were going ok for us but we just couldn’t get that unique sound. Then it occurred to me, why not make the clarinet play a melodic line with a tenor saxophone on the same note, with three other saxophones harmonized within a single octave? Well I reckon that was the turning point and suddenly everyone wanted to book the Wesley Karr Orchestra. However, fame wasn’t what I’d expected being a naturally shy character, and I soon tired of the constant attention, so I decided to return to my home in Tennessee and turn my back on the limelight handing the baton (literally) on to a young trombonist by the name of Glen Miller, and I believe he had some success with my new sound.
Soon war broke out and I was commissioned into the 1st Armoured Division (‘Old Ironsides’) with the rank of Captain. Serving with me was a guitar picker from North Carolina by the name of Doc Sideways. It was the Doc who persuaded me to return to playing, and suggested that maybe we should put a little combo together. This was the early beginnings of what was later to become Wesley Karr & the Automobiles. We served under Colonel Harland Sanders. We got on pretty good with the Colonel and he had originally intended to manage the band when the war was over, but when the time came he decided to pursue his lifelong dream of opening a chicken restaurant.
Some years later (around 1954) the Doc and I were wandering down Union Avenue, when Sam Phillips, owner of the ‘Memphis Recording Service’ comes running out of his studio shouting “Wes, Wes!” So I said “what’s up Sam?” and Sam explained that he had a boy looking for a new sound and that maybe I could help. Well I went in and laid down a couple of ideas, and Sideways sat in on guitar. I decided to sing a blues song that was popular at the time called ‘That’s Alright (Mama).’ However, the Doc wasn’t familiar with the song and laid down some rocking country picking (like he’d been teaching Merle Travis). Well when we finished I said “Sideways, what were you playing?” and we fell about laughing, but Sam comes out and says’ “That was great boys! Do it again with the tape rolling.” So we did just that. We made a new kind of music on that day and we decided to call it ‘Rockabilly’. The tracks we recorded that day were ‘That’s Alright (Mama)’ and ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’. A lot of people think it was Elvis singing on those records, but it was me, and as I stated earlier, being of a naturally shy character, I didn’t desire fame, so I was happy for Elvis to take the credit for these songs.
By April 1955, Wesley Karr & the Automobiles were playing regular gigs throughout the South including The Grand Ole Opry and the Louisiana Hayride. I guess it was around August of ‘55 when the legendary saxophonist ‘Shiny Shoes’ Sherwood joined the band completing the line-up which already consisted of myself (lead vocals and guitar), Doc sideway (lead guitar), ‘Bobtail’ Bob Cody (bass) ‘Slim’ Chance Riverdale (drums) and Blind Bill Jefferson (piano). This allowed us to augment our sound, adding a swing element. Unfortunately Blind Bill never made it to many gigs or recordings as he would frequently get lost on account of being blind.
Elvis was a regular visitor to our performances and would sometimes join us onstage. At these times he’d look over at me and wink before launching into ‘That’s Alright (Mama)’. It was on one of these occasions that a young guy by the name of Buddy Holly was in the audience. He joined us backstage and said that he was “knocked out” by our sound and that he intended to become a Rock ‘n’ Roll singer himself. I don’t mind telling you that I was touched by this, and I told Buddy to feel free to call on me whenever he needed any help or advice. Well, he done just that, and thanks to my advice and guidance Buddy Holly soon became a household name. Although in hindsight, I think that persuading him to get on that plane may not have been my best advice.
We played through the ‘50s touring the whole of the USA, and for the most part they were good times. But by the end of the ‘50s I was again feeling the strain of being in the spotlight, so I talked it through with the Automobiles and we agreed that maybe it was time to take a break.
I realised that there was probably nowhere in the USA that I could settle without being recognised by screaming fans. So I took a plane to England, hung up my guitar and settled into a new life.
Elvis was upset with my departure, and decided to join the army. Without anyone to carry the banner, Rockabilly kind of died out. In 1968 Elvis contacted me and tried to persuade me to appear in his ‘1968 comeback special’, but I declined.
In the late ‘70s Rockabilly gained some popularity in Britain and in September 1977 I got a telephone call from a guy by the name of Smutty Smiff. Apparently he was the bass player for a new band called ‘Levi & the Rockats’ and he wondered if I’d be interested in joining them. Well I tell ya, this boy was so exited that I kinda got caught up in all the excitement myself and before I knew it I had agreed to meet them. So I took a train to a town called Islington and met Smutty who introduced me to Eddie Dibbles (lead Guitar) Don Deveroux (drums) and the band was fronted by one Levi Dexter. We played through a couple of numbers and Levi moved in a way that reminded of good old Elvis when first we met him. ‘Dibbs’ who is now known as Dibbs Preston had a style of playing that I had never before heard. Don was a pretty cool character, but Smutty was just plum crazy! He was able to play any song without hitting a single note related to the key of that song. Something that I hadn’t heard since my early jazz days. So I agreed to play rhythm guitar and sing on a few songs. It was then that I was introduced to the bands manager. A tall American by the name of Leee Black Childers. Leee had quite a history, having managed some high profile performers as well as being respected pianist under the stage name of Liberace. Prior to that he was a professional heavyweight boxer and had won six Golden Gloves championships before he was 18. He could have been a serious contender if it hadn’t been for an injury he sustained whilst sparing with Mohamed Ali in 1969.
Now Leee must have been aware of my extensive musical history and stature, so he asked me if I’d mind changing my name so as not to overshadow the band. I had no problem with this, so I sat down with Smutty, Levi and Leee and asked if they had any suggestions. I believe it was Leee who suggested ‘Rollin’ Mick Barry?” and as I’m sure they will remember, I replied, “That sounds just about perfect”.
Levi & the Rockats made an immediate impression on London’s audiences, playing our debut at The Royal College of Music, supporting a well known reggae band called ‘Steel Pulse’. Many high profile gigs followed, including London’s Marquee, The 100 Club, a residency The Speakeasy and a tour of England, Scotland & Wales. The music we were playing had a raw energy and we were soon established as Britain’s first Neo-Rockabilly band.
In May 1978 Levi & the Rockats relocated to the U.S.A. I remained in England in the guise of ‘Mick Barry’ and formed a Rockabilly band called ‘Red Hot & Blue’. We played a few gigs on the Rock ‘n’ Roll circuit until I was approached by Pete Davenport of ‘The Rhythm Cats’. Pete had been impressed by my performance at one of our gigs and asked if I’d consider joining them. Things had gotten a little heated with my current band ‘Red Hot & Blue’, so I decided to give it a try.
The Rhythm Cats included Neil Rooney (drums) and Ander Janes (Bass), (Pete played lead guitar). We played together for about a year or so and in 1980 we featured on an album called ‘Home Grown Rockabilly’. We also auditioned for a re-working of a television show called ‘Oh Boy’. We played a couple of songs and the producer showed a lot of interest and asked us to play some more. However, at this point, Pete and Neil had a row which quickly escalated into a barroom brawl involving three other bands. I of course immediately jumped in to help my compardres, and with a well aimed right cross I laid out Cliff Richard while Anders took out Phil Collins. We never got the gig. Neil later went on to join ‘The Polecats’ and Pete and Anders formed ‘The Stargazers’. Anders later became known as ‘Clark Kent’ but I suspect that wasn’t his real name.
A little after this I crossed paths with my old friend Doc Sideways. He was on the run from ‘The Mob’ after he suggested to Frank Sinatra that he should “maybe work on his vocal phrasing”. He left the States in a hurry and came to England. He was going by the name of Eric Lyndsey so as not to draw unwanted attention. He was playing in a South London rock n roll band with Johnnie Blunt, one time drummer with a British band called ‘The Searchers’ and they were looking for a Front Man, so I stepped in. The band was called ‘The Stray Dogs’. The ‘Dogs’ never really made it big. Possibly because there was a fairly well known American band with a similar name and eventually the ‘Dogs’ broke up.
Me and the Doc kept in touch for a number of years and played together in numerous bands. I was still going by the name of ‘Mick Barry’ and Sideways was still calling himself ‘Eric Lyndsey’. But we drifted apart and somehow lost touch over the years.
I took it easy through the ‘90s and only picked up my guitar for special occasions. There was some talk of Elvis doing another comeback special, but that was looking increasingly unlikely.
Then one fine day I got a call out of the blue. I picked up the phone and a voice at the other end said “Hey Wesley, great news, Frank Sinatra’s’ dead!” It was my old friend Doc Sideways. He went on to explain that with Sinatra’s’ demise he could go back to using his real name and then he said “I hear that they’re going to close down the foster home if the penguin’ can’t raise five thousand dollars. How’s about put the band back together? Do a few gigs, we get some bread. Bang! Five thousand bucks”. So I said “But we'll never get that fab sound again, we’ll never get Blue Lou and Mr Fabulous”. And the Doc say’s “who are those guys? I’m talking about Wesley Karr & the Automobiles!”
Well I guess that once the music’s in your blood it’s there to stay. So I called Bobtail, Shiny, Slim and Blind Bill. I guess I’ll just have to come to terms with being a celebrity.
Sadly, legendary sax player ‘Shiny Shoes’ Sherwood has recently retired to a mental institution after taking a crash course in mathematics and then insisting that some of the band members were over 100 years old.
Blind Bill is recovering from an automobile accident that he had whilst driving to a recording session.