| Amazing (Royal) Crowns | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Providence, Rhode Island, USA |
| Genres | Rockabilly |
| Years active | Early 90s–2000 |
| Labels | Monolyth Records, Velvel Records |
| Members | |
| Jason "King" Kendall J.D. Burgess Jack "the Swinger" Hanlon Judd Williams |
|
The Amazing Crowns (formerly Amazing Royal Crowns) are a rockabilly band that began in Providence, Rhode Island in 1994. It was composed of vocalist Jason "King" Kendall, bassist Jack "the Swinger" Hanlon, guitarist J.D. Burgess, and drummer Judd Williams.
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In 1999, two years after gaining notoriety by winning the WBCN Rock & Roll Rumble in Boston, the band was forced to change their name mid-tour in response to pressure from lawyers representing Royal Crown Revue.
During the quartet's heyday, they were nominated for seven Kahlua Boston Music Awards, toured extensively with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, signed with Velvel Records and released a 1998 album entitled The Amazing Royal Crowns.[1]
The band's song, "Mr. Fix-it" is featured as a playable track in the hit video game Guitar Hero II.[2]
Rolling Stone magazine described their personal style in the following passage:
King and the Swinger saunter into the exalted Middle East nightclub, their gabardine shirtsleeves creased and their coiffures slightly greased. One part retro and three parts cool...[3]
According to an Allmusic reviewer:
If you can't get enough of retro sounds and styles, the self-titled debut by Rhode Island's Amazing Royal Crowns is for you. Equal parts punk (a la X), rockabilly (Reverend Horton Heat), and swing (Brian Setzer Orchestra), the Crowns successfully capture the excitement of their live act on their debut, undoubtedly due to the fact that it was recorded in only two days. And impressively, not one overdub was used during the debut's recording. The only criticism is that the songs tend to sound similar after a while, but it doesn't spell disaster for the group, since their energetic, party-hearty performances save the day. Highlights include the guitar-fest instrumental "Gretschy" (named after Johnny Maguire's Gretsch guitar), the "dedicated to Johnny Cash" "Rollercoaster," and the opening rocker "Shiverin' In the Corner." Horns are used to great effect on "Do the Devil," while the music included in "Scene of the Crime" is pure Duane Eddy. The Amazing Royal Crowns should have no problem breaking through in the retro-heavy '90s.[4]