This collection gathers together the 1950s singles from rock and roller Benny Joy along with demos, many of whom were used to sell his songs to other artists. There is quite a range of stuff here. I can’t say everything completely works for me, but some of it is very strong, and very little of it falls seriously short. Since this is from Bear Family, you know the  packaging is nice, and in this case, it includes a cool booklet.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2025  Volume 4. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2025.

The set up opens with a driving rock and roller. It has some hints of country music along with blues vibes.

Another solid rocker, both the piano and saxophone lend some real charm to the tune.

This tune has a lot of style built into it. It’s a bit more of a driving country tune along the lines of Johnny Cash. It also has some cool saxophone. There is a tasty guitar solo, too.

More of a surf guitar tune, the title does appear in the track as a mostly spoken thing. Saxophone and piano bring their own charms.

I know the times were different, but this song just feels dirty and creepy – and only part of that is the lyrics. Either way, I feel like I need a shower after this one. It does have some cool guitar soloing, though.

The recording on this leaves a little to be desired. The tune isn’t bad, though. It’s also not special. It does get pretty driving and rocking later, though.

Here we get another driving rock and roller. This is a step up from the last one but not really a standout. It’s too repetitive for my tastes.

This stripped back guitar and vocal track has a lot of country in the mix. Even the vocals make me think of Johnny Cash. In fact, I might be convinced that this was a track from that artist I had never heard if I didn’t know better.

Here we get a driving rocker that works really well. This is one of the standouts here. It has some great hooks and a lot of energy. The guitar solo is classy, too.

If “Dark Angel” channeled Johnny Cash, this one is in Elvis Presley territory. I’m not as sold on it as I am some of the rest. Then again, I’m not a big Elvis fan, and I don’t care for the backing vocals.

More of a pop rock and roll tune, I’m not really a fan of this one.

Now, this is a big change. It’s a soulful kind of grind. It’s a strong tune. In fact, this is one of my favorites here. It has some funk in the mix.

More traditional rock and roll is on the menu here.

This is a solid vintage rock and roller. It sounds a little like Elvis.

This is a bouncy rock and roller. It’s nothing Earth shattering, but it works pretty well.

This instrumental has some wailing saxophone and some cool guitar. It’s a standout of the set.

Built around acoustic guitar, this is much more of a rockabilly tune.

This is a pretty standard rock and roller. Still, it works pretty well.

Elvis is a valid reference point on this tune. It’s a solid rock and roll song.

I really don’t care for the vibrato type vocals on this ting. The start and stop vibe of the cut isn’t all that great to me, either. This is just not one that works well for me.

Wow! This song sounds even more like Johnny Cash. I bet you could convince a lot of people that it’s him. Then again, this was a demo recorded with the intent of getting Cash to do the song.

This rock and roller works pretty well. The backing vocals are a little absurd, but they don’t really detract that much.

Some drumming with the sounds of cheerleaders gets us going here. The track has a doo-wop vibe to it. It’s sort of more contemporary pop than rock and roll, but it works well...

I think I like this version of the album opener better than the other one. It seems a little more intense somehow.

I think I prefer this version of the tune. It’s a little on the rawer side. It just rocks out really well.

Another energized vintage rock and roller, this is classy stuff.

More of a crooner meets rock and roll ballad tune, I’m not crazy about this one. 

This is sort of an “also ran” rocker.

There is an exotic vibe to this tune. The dramatic guitar on this tango is so cool.

This is another effective rock and roller. It’s one of the better cuts here, really.