(Rock n' Roll / New Zealand Rock) Johnny Devlin - Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On - 1998, MP3 (tracks), 128 kbps

The biggest '50s rock & roll star to come out of New Zealand, Johnny Devlin was a major player in the early Australian rock & roll scene. Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On is a 31-track Australian retrospective of his career, which largely consists of faithful covers of American hits like Jimmie Lloyd's "I Got a Rocket in My Pocket" and Eddie Cochran's "Twenty Flight Rock." Some of the most fascinating tracks marry rock & roll with a regional sensibility, resulting in the excellent "Koala Bear" and the impenetrably slangy "Got a Zack in the Back of My Pocket." There is plenty of exciting vintage rock & roll here alongside teen-oriented novelties and pop/rockers. The collection concludes with "Rock and Roll (I Gave You the Best Years of My Life)," a late, nostalgic recording on which Devlin recalls his rockin' glory days.

Johnny Devlin was New Zealand's first true superstar of the rock & roll era, a teen idol whose national fame and revolutionary impact made him a Kiwi counterpart to Elvis Presley. Born May 11, 1938 in the small town of Raetihi, Devlin was raised in nearby Wanganui, where in 1951 he made his solo performing debut yodeling at the local opera house. After graduating high school, he spent two years as a bank clerk, occasionally playing country and western music with his brothers in a band called the River City Ramblers. Then, in mid-1956, Devlin heard Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel"; overnight he became obsessed with rock & roll, snatching up Presley singles and performing Elvis songs on the amateur talent quest circuit. Complete with ducktail, loud suits and hepcat lingo, he assimilated himself completely in the culture portrayed in American teen movies of the era, earning something of a reputation as the town eccentric.
Although Devlin regularly appeared in talent contests, he at first enjoyed little success, but in early 1957 he was spotted by Johnny Cooper, who two years earlier cut the first-ever New Zealand rock record, a cover of Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock." Cooper became Devlin's mentor, and his career surged, regularly winning top honors at talent shows and playing to increasingly enthusiastic crowds. After settling into a regular gig at Auckland's Jive Centre, Devlin's fame grew, and his nightly sets of dead-on Presley imitations were the stuff of massive teen hysteria; finally, in mid-1958, he recorded his debut single, "Lawdy Miss Clawdy." It was a massive hit, selling over 2000 copies in Auckland alone during its first month of release on its way to passing the unprecedented five-figure mark; trumpeted in the press as "New Zealand's Elvis Presley," Devlin was a true phenomenon, mobbed by fans wherever he went.
Between November 1958 and May 1959, Devlin's label Prestige released some eight singles, three EPs and an LP, amounting to total sales of over 200,000 copies; with his backing band the Devils in tow, he toured the country, playing everywhere to capacity crowds. However, more conservative quarters were outraged over the hysteria and destruction left in Devlin's wake, and as more and more theatre managers became wary of booking the band, his career began to slip. For his part, Devlin was becoming increasingly disillusioned, with backstage bickering and record label trickery leaving him more and more disgusted by fame; in May 1959 he and the Devils toured Australia as part of a package tour including the Everly Brothers and Tab Hunter, and by the time they returned home, the ballyhoo had died down. Still, Devlin remains the benchmark by which all New Zealand phenoms are judged; no one was ever bigger among Kiwi teens except the Beatles, whose opening act during their 1964 NZ tour was none other than Johnny Devlin himself.