Most instrumental fans of a certain age will recall a strange chap who used to perform unnatural bodily contortions on TV to the String-ALongs’ hit Wheels. It’s an image that’s tricky to shift, and that tune leads off this 26-track collection of instro and vocal selections for Norman Petty’s Clovis studios.
Petty’s overall involvement, however, proved to be the key to The String-A-Longs’ limited career. Enamoured with the then-new Magnatone amp, which gave a sweeter guitar sound, he penned the group in a largely clean-toned, brushed-drums environment that grew to define most of their work. Vocalist Keith McCormack’s vocals, under a number of aliases, are largely pleasant but undistinguished, and some way away from what could be expected from Tex-Mex. Link Wray they were not. Though this is for the hardcore, The String-A-Longs do have a place within the grand scheme of early 60s instro-pop, and the sleevenotes cover all you need to know.
