American. Rockabilly label Ripsaw was formed in 1976 by Jim Kirkhuff and Jonathan Strong. It issued several records into 1980 and others very sporadically afterwards until 1990 - the partnership had been over by some eight years or so at that point, with Strong remaining in charge. A report from contributor 'Teabiscuit' on the 45Cat site says that 'Record Collector' magazine for December 1979 contained the information that Rock 'n' Roll / Rockabilly specialist firm Vintage Records (q.v.), of London, had gained the sole UK distribution rights for a couple of Ripsaw singles (presumably through a licensing agreement). For my money those 'sole distribution rights' separate the records from common-or-garden imports and qualify Ripsaw for a place here. The singles in question were both by Billy Hancock with The Tennessee Rockets. They were 'Rootie Tootie' b/w 'I Can't Be Satisfied' (Ripsaw 211), and 'The Boogie Disease' b/w 'Knock Kneed Nellie' (Ripsaw 213). I assume that both were issued here at the same time, in 1979; 'Rootie Tootie' had come out in the States the previous year. All four sides were '70s recordings rather than reissues.
Copyright 2023 Robert Lyons.