THE ROCKIN'EST  -  THE COLLINS KIDS

YEAR:  1997
LABEL:  Columbia/Bear Family
TRACK LISTING:  Hop Skip and Jump,  Hoy Hoy,  Beetle-Bug-Bop,  Just Because,  Whistle Bait,  I'm In My Teens,  Move A Little Closer,  Hot Rod,  Rock Boppin' Baby,  Go Away Don't Bother Me,  The Rockaway Rock,  Rock and Roll Polka,  The Cuckoo Rock,  Sweet Talk,  Hush Money,  They're Still In Love,  Make Him Behave,  Shortnin' Bread Rock,  Heartbeat,  The Lonesome Road,  Mercy,  Party
IMPRESSIONS:  I have never been a fan of "precocious youths"; usually because kid performers are nowhere near as good as they're touted to be.  When described as "remarkable for a kid" that means they're not equal to an adult level of performance.  The Collins Kids could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their adult peers and quite often outdo them.  Little Larry Collins was an acknowledged guitar master by age 10 who played his double-necked Mosrite with lightning dexterity while his older sister (by two years) Lorrie sang with adult-sounding forceful assuredness to match any female singer of her day.  While performing seemingly juvenile songs as "I'm In My Teens", it was only the subject matter that dealt with their ages; the songs were not children's novelty but straight-ahead, solid rockabilly which sounded more "grown-up" then a lot of their "adult" peers.  Larry's guitar mentor was Joe Maphis and the youngster learned his craft well.  Lorrie became the first girlfriend of teen idol Ricky Nelson and allegedly broke his heart when she broke up with him and married another guy.  Regardless of the "gimmick" of their young ages, the Collins Kids were the real deal; knocking out rockabilly belters on the stage of "TOWN HALL PARTY" which, when at their best, blew veteran performers right off the stage.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Hop Skip and Jump,  Hoy Hoy,  Whistle Bait,  I'm In My Teens,  Move A Little Closer,  Hot Rod,  Rock Boppin' Baby,  Rock and Roll Polka,  Sweet Talk,  Shortnin' Bread Rock,  Heartbeat,  The Lonesome Road,  Mercy,  Party
FACT SHEET:  THE ROCKIN'EST is a compilation of the Collins Kids' songs ranging from the years 1955 to 1959.  Lorrie and Larry became regular performers on TOWN HALL PARTY beginning in 1954 and also the show's TV version "TEX RITTER'S RANCH PARTY" from 1957 to 1959.  Larry is also a successful songwriter whose most famous composition is "Delta Dawn".  The duo reunited in 1993 for an English rockabilly concert and have performed together many times since.