HONEY DON’T
CARL PERKINS
CARL PERKINS
Written by: Perkins
Recorded by: Carl Perkins (1956)
Recorded by: Carl Perkins (1956)
CARL PERKINS WAS ANOTHER alumnus
of Sam Phillips’ Sun Records
and his greatest hit was the self-
composed ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, a song popularly
associated with his more famous stable mate
Elvis Presley. It was Perkins’ version, though, that
topped the American charts and its B-side was
‘Honey Don’t’, a catchy and unexpected discovery
for many who bought the record. With its
unconventional chord progression ‘Honey Don’t’
became a favourite of The Beatles and in their
early days it was always sung by John Lennon.
After it was awarded to Ringo Starr to sing on
the Beatles For Sale album in 1964, it became his
song and now the only way to hear how Lennon
sang it is to be found on the penultimate track
of The Beatles Live At The BBC. Perkins’ career
was interrupted by a bad automobile accident
just as ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ started to make him
famous; he was able to watch his friend Elvis
Presley perform the song several times on TV
as he lay in hospital recuperating – something
of a mixed blessing, perhaps. Perkins recovered,
became a serious drinker, took the pledge and
then carried on purveying his own straight-ahead
brand of rockabilly without too much regard for
changing musical fashions. In later life he started
to attract the plaudits of famous fans like Paul
McCartney, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Dave
Edmunds, Tom Petty and John Fogerty, sometimes
performing with them in celebratory TV specials
and other concerts. Rehabilitated in every sense,
he ended his career with more recognition than
he had ever enjoyed in his short-lived glory days.
He died in 1998, and a year later Paul McCartney
recorded a surprisingly authentic-sounding
pastiche of Perkins’ early country rockabilly song
‘Movie Magg’ for his album Run Devil Run.
of Sam Phillips’ Sun Records
and his greatest hit was the self-
composed ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, a song popularly
associated with his more famous stable mate
Elvis Presley. It was Perkins’ version, though, that
topped the American charts and its B-side was
‘Honey Don’t’, a catchy and unexpected discovery
for many who bought the record. With its
unconventional chord progression ‘Honey Don’t’
became a favourite of The Beatles and in their
early days it was always sung by John Lennon.
After it was awarded to Ringo Starr to sing on
the Beatles For Sale album in 1964, it became his
song and now the only way to hear how Lennon
sang it is to be found on the penultimate track
of The Beatles Live At The BBC. Perkins’ career
was interrupted by a bad automobile accident
just as ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ started to make him
famous; he was able to watch his friend Elvis
Presley perform the song several times on TV
as he lay in hospital recuperating – something
of a mixed blessing, perhaps. Perkins recovered,
became a serious drinker, took the pledge and
then carried on purveying his own straight-ahead
brand of rockabilly without too much regard for
changing musical fashions. In later life he started
to attract the plaudits of famous fans like Paul
McCartney, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Dave
Edmunds, Tom Petty and John Fogerty, sometimes
performing with them in celebratory TV specials
and other concerts. Rehabilitated in every sense,
he ended his career with more recognition than
he had ever enjoyed in his short-lived glory days.
He died in 1998, and a year later Paul McCartney
recorded a surprisingly authentic-sounding
pastiche of Perkins’ early country rockabilly song
‘Movie Magg’ for his album Run Devil Run.
The so-called million-dollar quartet: Jerry LeeLewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley.
By all accounts a quiet and charming man,Carl Lee Perkins was only fully appreciated
in his later years. In 1985 he starred in a
TV special to mark the 30th anniversary of
‘Blue Suede Shoes’. Fellow performers
included George Harrison, Ringo Starr and
Eric Clapton.