Rocky Sharpe & The Replays - Rama Lama (1979) LP

It's 25 years since Rama Lama Ding Dong hit the UK charts and launched the recording career of Rocky Sharpe and the Replays. While drawing on a wide catalogue of doo wop and rock'n'roll Rocky, Johnny, Helen and Eric found a sound that was modern and individual enough to gain chart success yet authentic enough to share an 80s billing with Del Shannon, Jess Conrad, Karl Denver and Screamin' Lord Sutch and not seem out of place. With covers of the Earls, the Moonglows, the Skyliners, the Velvets, the Stereos, the Orlons and more it seems hardly surprising.

Rama Lama Ding Dong was the song that underpinned the commercial success that allowed the Replays to revive some of the classiest 50s/60s doo wop that lay buried in record company and collectors' vaults. It sold more than a quarter of a million records and, although a modest #17 in the tough and competitive UK chart, was Top 5 in Spain and a highly respectable #1 in Bavaria, Catalunia and the Canary Islands, ensuring frequent visits by the band to Madrid, Munich, Hamburg and Berlin for TV appearances. ...