The Rock and Roll Trio

The Rock and Roll Trio

I'm going to have to explain this one. The group nor the individuals qualify under the rules I've set up to keep myself from writing a million stories.

Johnny Burnette

The Rock and Roll Trio

But.....They were so influential on later generations of musicians I am having a hard time not including the Rock and Roll Trio.  I am not going to try to tell the individual stories. Instead, I will give you pictures and links so the reader might explore at will.

Paul Burlison

The Rock and Roll Trio

Johnny Burnette, his older brother Dorsey and their fellow Memphis golden glove boxer, Paul Burlison, formed the rockabilly group in 1952 or 53.  They had some local success but failed to land anything on the charts.  They changed the name to The Rock and Roll Trio and moved to New York.

The Rock and Roll Trio

A contract with Coral records got them several recording sessions and a couple of good releases. But despite some really great television appearances the recording failed to chart. It was back to Tennessee and on with life away from the music business for Paul.


 The Burnette Brothers went to California and had a modicum of success between 1957 and 1960. Each of the brothers had a couple of decent pop hits. Johnny hit with "Dreamin" and "You're Sixteen", while Dorsey charted with "Tall Oak Tree and "Hey Little One". By 63 the hits had stopped coming.

Dorsey Burnette

While in California, Johnny, drowned in a boating accident. Dorsey never got over his brother's death. Eventually, Dorsey found a bit of success in the Country and Western market.


Opinion....Paul Burlison was way ahead of his time. The Memphis electrical contracting industry may have gained a good contractor but

Paul Burlison


 the music industry lost a hell of a pioneer. Who knows why, but it could have been the best for Paul and his family.

     Paul'sl Info    Paul's Rockabilly  


  Paul's Videos   Paul's Train


    
     Dorsey's Info    Dorsey's Rockabilly      Dorsey's Videos




  
   Johnny's Info   Johnny's Rockabilly  Johnny's Videos

I have marked one of the links above as Paul's Train. He was light years ahead.