Cece Bell

Hey y’all! Only 9 Wednesdays to go before ANIMAL ALBUMS FROM A TO Z comes out! ROCK ’N’ ROLL, baby! Literally! Because today’s song is the rambunctious “Rhapsody for a Rogue Rodent” by Rascal Ratt and the Rockabilly Rabbits. Woo!

Do you remember Teen Beat and Tiger Beat? Well, before those glossy tabloids captivated youngsters everywhere, there was today’s featured memorabilia: the 1950s periodical Rock ’N’ Roll Rendezvous. I borrowed this 1956 winter edition (featuring Rascal and a host of other performers who are now forgotten) from a Rascal Ratt super fan, the fabulous illustrator, LeUyen Pham (@uyenloseordraw). (LeUyen’s pet rabbit is the great nephew of the band’s saxophonist, Ed Pham, and so LeUyen is an avid collector of all things Rascal.) LeUyen would not part with the magazine, but has graciously allowed me to share it with you here.

Also featured: a few sneak peeks of the album art, and a few process pictures, too.

You’ll be able to hear this song in its entirety—plus 25 other silly songs—when ANIMAL ALBUMS comes out on March 26, via a QR code linked to the book. Woo!

Lyrics: Cece Bell
Composer/Arranger/Engineer: Edgar Crockett
Drums, Lead Vocals: Manuel Lopez III
Piano: Corey Kendrick
Guitar: Steve Grismore
Bass: Ron Wilson
Tenor Saxophone: Peter Hart
Background Vocals: Edgar Crockett

Join me next week for the soaring harmonies of California’s own Sensational Sloth Boys!

ANIMAL ALBUMS A TO Z. Copyright © 2024 by Cece Bell. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.

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