One of the first white rock & rollers to record for a major label (Columbia… Read Full Bio ↴One of the first white rock & rollers to record for a major label (Columbia Records), Sid King (born Sid Erwin) was also one of the first young Southern musicians to go from Western swing to rockabilly in the mid-'50s. Erwin grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He sang and played guitar at school, and while still in his mid-teens he began appearing on local radio with a friend, Melvin Robinson. The duo eventually took over the program, and Erwin and Robinson (who also played steel guitar and sax) formed a band, bringing in Erwin's brother Billy Joe on lead guitar, Ken Massey on bass, and David White on drums.
The group, by then known as the Western Melody Makers, stuck to playing country and Western swing in their gigs and radio appearances, but they were listening to lots of records by black artists. They were signed to Starday Records in 1954 and recorded a handful of songs, but these yielded no hits. They subsequently got a contract with Columbia Records and rechristened themselves the Five Strings. Erwin, in turn, changed his name to Sid King, all for the sake of a rhyming moniker, Sid King & the Five Strings.
The Columbia sessions show just how far afield from country the group's listening had gotten. Their harmonies, the high-compression beat of their playing, and their choice of songs, coupled with Jim Beck's hard, up-front mixing of the rhythm section, made them, for a time, one of the hotter rockabilly acts outside of Memphis. They weren't as wild as the Sparkletones, but within Columbia Records' stable of artists, their music (along with that of the Collins Kids) constituted a tiny corner of rockabilly validity. Hearing their stuff today, they could have been fair rivals to Bill Haley & His Comets or Carl Perkins, with a sound midway between the two.
Sid King & the Five Strings were featured on the Louisiana Hayride alongside Elvis Presley and Johnny Horton and inherited "Ooby Dooby" from Roy Orbison (competing head to head with the latter's Sun version), but they never had the success of those whose paths they crossed. Their success was still confined to Texas, and by 1957 their Columbia contract had ended. The group's sound had also softened by that time, and their music no longer had the same edge, so by 1958 the band had called it quits.
King saw recording activity on his own in the early '60s on the Dot Records label through his acquaintance with Pat Boone, a fellow native of Denton whom he'd met years earlier, but by 1965 he was out of the music business. He resumed performing part-time in the 1980s, drawn back to the stage by a new generation of Europeans eager to hear authentic American rockabilly.
He never quite jumped into rock head over heels, nor did he ever break through to a national audience. The only vintage King available on CD domestically is an interesting, but not wholly representative, set of radio broadcasts from the mid-'50s that are closer to hillbilly than rockabilly. His Columbia recordings have been reissued in Germany on Bear Family's Gonna Shake This Shack Tonight. ~ Richie Unterberger & Bruce Eder, All Music Guide[1]
The group, by then known as the Western Melody Makers, stuck to playing country and Western swing in their gigs and radio appearances, but they were listening to lots of records by black artists. They were signed to Starday Records in 1954 and recorded a handful of songs, but these yielded no hits. They subsequently got a contract with Columbia Records and rechristened themselves the Five Strings. Erwin, in turn, changed his name to Sid King, all for the sake of a rhyming moniker, Sid King & the Five Strings.
The Columbia sessions show just how far afield from country the group's listening had gotten. Their harmonies, the high-compression beat of their playing, and their choice of songs, coupled with Jim Beck's hard, up-front mixing of the rhythm section, made them, for a time, one of the hotter rockabilly acts outside of Memphis. They weren't as wild as the Sparkletones, but within Columbia Records' stable of artists, their music (along with that of the Collins Kids) constituted a tiny corner of rockabilly validity. Hearing their stuff today, they could have been fair rivals to Bill Haley & His Comets or Carl Perkins, with a sound midway between the two.
Sid King & the Five Strings were featured on the Louisiana Hayride alongside Elvis Presley and Johnny Horton and inherited "Ooby Dooby" from Roy Orbison (competing head to head with the latter's Sun version), but they never had the success of those whose paths they crossed. Their success was still confined to Texas, and by 1957 their Columbia contract had ended. The group's sound had also softened by that time, and their music no longer had the same edge, so by 1958 the band had called it quits.
King saw recording activity on his own in the early '60s on the Dot Records label through his acquaintance with Pat Boone, a fellow native of Denton whom he'd met years earlier, but by 1965 he was out of the music business. He resumed performing part-time in the 1980s, drawn back to the stage by a new generation of Europeans eager to hear authentic American rockabilly.
He never quite jumped into rock head over heels, nor did he ever break through to a national audience. The only vintage King available on CD domestically is an interesting, but not wholly representative, set of radio broadcasts from the mid-'50s that are closer to hillbilly than rockabilly. His Columbia recordings have been reissued in Germany on Bear Family's Gonna Shake This Shack Tonight. ~ Richie Unterberger & Bruce Eder, All Music Guide[1]
Maybelline
Sid King & The Five Strings Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Maybelline' by these artists:
Babyshambles I don't want your love Bang bang I'm gone But I still…
Chuck Berry Maybelline why can't you be true oh Maybelline why can't…
Datarock (Maybe she's born with it) See her in your face Her lips…
Ella Isaacson Waking up so fucked up every day Micro dosin′ on things…
Elvis Presley Maybelline why can't you be true oh Maybelline why can't…
Foghat Berry / Fratto / Freed - Arc Music Corp. -…
Frog Maybelline, I saw you gleaming in a dairy queen Your eyes…
Gene Vincent Oh, Maybelline Why can't you be true? Oh, Maybelline Why can…
George Jones Oh, Maybelline why can't you be true? Oh, Maybelline why can…
John Hammond Oh, Maybelline Why can't you be true? Oh, Maybelline Why …
Johnny Rivers As I was motivatin' over the hill I saw Maybelline in…
Kevin Kazi Baby, I think I can read your mind Is it real,…
Kevin Kazi & BigBabyGucci Is it real is it make-believe Maybe it's the Maybelline When…
Lil Yachty & Lil Keed Oh yeah, oh yeah (Aye where you get that beat from?…
Marty Robbins Maybelline, why can't you be true Oh Maybelline, why can't y…
Miracle Legion That beautiful memory It's easy to do, but it's hard to…
Rock-Jerry Maybelline why can't you be true oh Maybelline why can't…
The Everly Brothers As I was motivatin' over the hill I saw Maybelline in…
VIVIENNE EASTWOOD Maybe the way she's bored The way she smiled I can'…
Zen Boba She look like Maybelline (Maybelline) Straight outta magazin…
Chuck Berry Maybelline why can't you be true oh Maybelline why can't…
We have lyrics for these tracks by The Five Strings:
Amazing Grace Let's grow together, heal together Find true strength f…
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day I heard the bells on Christmas day. Their old familiar…
It's About Time It's about time to slow down. It's about time that I…
Moment to Live When you can dream a mountain high See the Earth from…
O Come All Ye Faithful O Come All Ye Faithful Joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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graham bull
Where's this gem been hiding?
RockinRedRover
You're very wlecome Graham. And yes it is ! Personally I'm unsure whether we're lucky these days or not. Now, we can listen to virtually anything without leaving our "wallow" chair, and for free, which is great; but when I got hooked in the late 70s and started seeking-out rare rockin records (the only way to hear them except a few radio shows), it was a real voyage of discovery and learning, occasionally so exciting when finally found that elusive record to play back home, sometimes expensive and hard-work too of course, so completely the opposite of browsing the net. But either way, FANTASTIC !
graham bull
RockinRedRover ...appreciate your time Red...right now I'm wallowing in the 706 Union Avenue stuff,isn't it fantastic!
RockinRedRover
Hi Graham, it's been hiding on the Sid King "Rockin on the radio" LP released on Rollercoaster Records in the 80s, and also now on cd too. More country bop / western swing than their later rockabilly stuff, but still v highly recommended ! You'll also find this version of "Flip flop n fly" on the same LP/cd. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaVNY1vKXFs