• Included among the Record Descriptions of Favorite Albums (Part 1).
• Bird-Doggin’ is taken from sessions at Challenge Records in 1966 when Gene Vincent was trying unsuccessfully to restart his career. 

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Gene Vincent – Bird-Doggin’ (1980):  Gene Vincent is one of rock and roll’s original bad boys, with his greasy hair and leather jackets, and also a rockabilly legend of the mid-1950’s.  His big hit, “Be-Bop-A-Lula” – which inspired the Cyndi Lauper hit song “She Bop” (1984) – landed on the Top Ten in 1956; and many mistook the recording artist to be Elvis Presley, although they don’t really sound that much alike.  Further rockabilly hits would follow, and Gene Vincent’s place in rock and roll history is secure, although he would never have another major hit record.  Bird-Doggin’ is taken from sessions at Challenge Records in 1966 when Gene Vincent was trying unsuccessfully to restart his career. 

With help from session heavyweights like Glen Campbell, Al Casey, Jim Seals, Dash Crofts, and David Gates, and having a nice assortment of songs, Bird-Doggin’ is not a rockabilly album but hits more of a folk-rock and garage-rock groove, with rocking songs like “Bird Doggin’ ”, “Ain’t That Too Much”, “Poor Man’s Prison”, and “Love Is a Bird”; slower numbers like “Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo”, “Words and Music”, and “Hurtin’ for You Baby”; and fine covers of three country songs, Carl Belew’s “Am I That Easy to Forget” and “Lonely Street”, and Merle Haggard’s “I’m a Lonesome Fugitive”.  Bird-Doggin’ was released on the German record label Line Records and includes all 12 of the songs listed on Ain’t That Too Much: The Complete Challenge Sessions (1993); this is evidently one of the first compilations of these songs by Gene Vincent.