Link and the Hill

September 18, 2007 4:48 AM

Legendary tremolo guitar king Link Wray discovered him singing gospel with the Mighty Clouds of Joy, and figured he might be the kind of rock'n'roll screamer he was looking for. If he was gonna sing the devil's music, though, he'd need another name, so they came up with a rather unlikely moniker: Bunker Hill. Just listen.

Here's a Bunker Hill discography.

Previously on MeFi: Link Wray obit FPP.

Link Wray timeline (with no mention of Bunker Hill...) from the official Link Wray site.

Link Wray MySpace page, where, as usual, you can hear four tunes, including, of course, the original 'Rumble'.

Link Wray, YouTube clip from 1960: Trail of the Lonesome Pine.

posted by flapjax at midnite (14 comments total)

they came up with a rather unlikely moniker: Bunker Hill.

See? Black people love Boston.
posted by Mayor Curley at 5:23 AM on September 18, 2007

Think Link!
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 5:31 AM on September 18, 2007

I used to have a thing about Link Wray. I used to play him every Saturday.
posted by UbuRoivas at 5:34 AM on September 18, 2007

See? Black people love Boston.

Flagged as dumb.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:36 AM on September 18, 2007

Thanks flapjax at midnite, I can't say I've ever heard of Bunker Hill. Earlier this year I bought a used copy of Link Wray's self titled album from 1971. Good stuff.
posted by Sailormom at 6:52 AM on September 18, 2007

Great post. Thank you.

I've been a Link Wray fan for quite a while but Bunker Hill is new to me. It's on the priority list now.

I can't pass up the opportunity to recommend Three Track Shack to any and all Link Wray fans. His early work is what made him famous and it's great, but Three Track Shack is an out and out masterpiece. Even more solid than the compilation from Rhino.
posted by BigSky at 6:58 AM on September 18, 2007

Whats that guitar in that 1960's clip? Anyone know?
posted by Mach5 at 7:28 AM on September 18, 2007

Wow, that Bunker Hill can scream!! Thanks Flapjax!
posted by SmileyChewtrain at 7:55 AM on September 18, 2007

A friend of mine just asked if I had any Bunker Hill in my collection. Since I didn't, I went searching and found some great stuff (and had missed the Link Wray connection until then), all of which is to say that your post is about a week too late. Please do try to keep up with my schedule, sir. Also, great post. Thanks.
posted by sleepy pete at 8:29 AM on September 18, 2007

That guitar is a Danelectro "Longhorn."
posted by lordrunningclam at 9:11 AM on September 18, 2007

Good find. Thanks flapjax
posted by destro at 9:15 AM on September 18, 2007

Awesome- I had a recording of Red Riding Hood for a while and could never find anything more. Thanks!
posted by Aedoes at 2:25 PM on September 18, 2007

Because of Link Wray, I spent an entire summer looking for a Danelectro Longhorn. It sits beside me right now!
posted by 235w103 at 4:31 PM on September 18, 2007

Definitely a Danelectro, for some reason I kept thinking Sears Silvertone! Thanks for clearing that up lordrc.

Thanks for the post F@M!
posted by snsranch at 4:36 PM on September 18, 2007