Back In the Day, 2008

Luke McDaniel is Jeff Daniels

Mississippi Honky Tonk Rockabilly Man

(Stomper Time Records)

Mississippi-born Luke cut numerous regionally marketed singles for minor labels like Trumpet and Syd Nathan's King, and appeared on the Louisiana Hayride radio show. Per lore, friends Elvis and Carl then advised him to submit a demo to the Sun label at which they'd found success. 

Songs recorded during Luke's ensuant two sessions for Sam Phillips weren't issued until decades later, when England's Charly made them available to vinyl collectors.

Subsequently, Luke assumed the nom de guerre "Jeff Daniel." Despite that reinvention, singles he cut for Big Howdy failed to sell appreciably. He was undaunted, though and, according to chroniclers, continued recording into the 1970s. They observe that several of Luke's songs were covered by Buddy Holly, George Jones, and Jim Reeves.

Obviously, given their vintage, songs compiled on this Stomper Time retrospective can be located elsewhere. And that is to the good, as the label may no longer be in operation. (It's most recent release was a 2020 Hayden Thompson collection.) Luke McDaniel is Jeff Daniels features songs waxed under each name and may today be located where collectors' discs turn up, including on online auction sites.

Luke was among the South's many singer-songwriters inspired by the iconic Hank Williams. (A Wikipedia entry asserts that he opened for a 1950 New Orleans Hank show.) Numerous of these cuts reflect that. But also evident is the jumped-up approach increasingly found in Hillbilly offerings of the day, one which soon bloomed under Elvis, Scotty, and Bill.

Naturally, the sound is primitive by contemporary measures. His vocals enjoy embellishment by the twang indiginous to his home region. Material is, at turns, tearfully pensive and of rudimentary Hillbilly aspect, and (later) representative of the hot-rodded Rockabilly that inflamed first its birth precinct and, soon after, all of popular culture.

Though he never realized massive sales, Luke did display substantial capacity. His efforts in Rockabilly's formative years are today recognized by afficianados who dig more deeply into the music than the marquee names.

Recommended: "Switch Blade Sam," "Daddy-O-Rock," "Go Ahead Baby," "Huh Babe," "My Baby Don't Rock," "Automobile Song," "Uh-Huh-Huh," "High, High, High," "Go Ahead Baby," "That's What I Tell My Heart," "Let Me Be a Souvenir," "I'm Tired Of These Country Ways," "You're Still On My Mind"

Video: "Switch Blade Sam"