Tracks:
Susie-Q
La-do-dada
Back to School Blues
Teenage Dolly
Boogie Woogie Teenage Girl
Sweetie Pie
Cross- Ties
My Babe
Lonely Nights
Yea-yea (Class Cutter)
Grandma's House
I Want to Love You
Boy Meets Girl
Superman
One Dozen Roses
Caldonia
Convicted
Lifeguard Man
Liza Jane
Hot Dog
Someday, One Day
Lovin' Bug
Four Letter Word (Rock)
Wild Wild World
Heaven
Little Pig
Mrs Merguitory's Daughter
See You Soon, Baboon
Don't Treat Me This Way
Tornado

Performer Notes:

• Contains 30 tracks.
• Liner Note Author: Bill Millar.
• Arranger: Dale Hawkins.
• At first glance, this 30-track compilation of Dale Hawkins' late-'50s and early-'60s Checker sides might seem like a preferable collection to MCA's briefer (18-song) best-of. Actually, however, this only repeats 11 of those 18 tracks, with the emphasis on some cuts that haven't been on CD before, as well as no less than eight previously unreleased songs. It's hard to figure if this was meant as a best-of compilation or just a disc that mixes some of his biggest and best singles with obscure items; the omissions of "Ain't That Lovin' You Baby" (which is on the MCA collection) alone prevents this from being definitive. It does include a couple of songs that should be on any Dale Hawkins collection, "Yea-Yea (Class Cutter)" and "Mrs. Merguitory's Daughter," that do not appear on the MCA anthology. As for the more obscure material that's only on Rock & Roll Tornado, it's largely respectable, but not so essential that you would compare it to "Susie Q," "La-Do-Dada," or others considered among Hawkins' best performances. Sometimes it's heavily derivative -- "Boy Meets Girl" sounds like it's trying very hard to imitate Jerry Lee Lewis, and "Someday, One Day" is quite Buddy Holly-like -- and some of the unreleased cuts, like the cover of "Caldonia" and the country-soul ballad "Convicted," show him trying styles removed from rockabilly. In all, a good compilation that Hawkins fans should get even if they have the one on MCA. But if you just want one, it's a pretty tough call, each disc containing worthy selections not on the other, though each has his most essential recordings (i.e., "Susie Q," "Liza Jane," "La-Do-Dada"). ~ Richie Unterberger

Professional Reviews: Living Blues (1-2/99, p.78) - "...the most ambitious collection of [Hawkins'] late 50's Check catalog yet....the obscurities make this CD essential."

Format: CD (1 Disc); Mixed

Country: USA

Studio/Live: Studio

Release Date: 1 October, 1998

Label: Ace (UK)

Dimensions: 12.5 x 14.2 x 1 centimeters (0.04 kg)