David Michael "Mickey" Hawks (July 17, 1940 – August 31, 1989) was an American

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

Rockabilly singer and pianist, whose best remembered record, "Bip Bop Boom", has been included on many compilations of the genre after years as a collectible record. He was born in Thomasville, North Carolina, moving with his family as a child to High Point. He learned piano as a child and listened to

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and

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

records, before discovering the music of

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in 1956. With his school friends, he formed a band, the Rhythm Rockers, and came to the attention of local

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...

Moon Mullins, who had his own band, the Night Raiders. Hawks joined the Night Raiders as vocalist and pianist in 1958; the other members were Mullins (guitar, saxophone, vocals), Bill Ballard (guitar, vocals), John Owens (bass, vocals), and Bob Matthews (drums). Color Radio: Mickey Hawks
Accessed 2 February 2012 Influenced by Gene Vincent's " Be-Bop-A-Lula", Hawks wrote "Bip Bop Boom", which they recorded in a Greensboro

studio A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial design ...

owned by Eddie Robbins. It became the B-side of their first single, "Rock and Roll Rhythm", a song Hawks co-wrote with Matthews, and was released on two local labels, Robbins Red (owned by Robbins) and Mart, before being picked up by the Profile label in

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. The label remixed the record, and moved "Bip Bop Boom" to the A-side. The single was credited to Mickey Hawks with Moon Mullins and his Night Raiders. It reportedly sold 50,000 copies in the Chicago area, but failed to reach the national charts; however, it did become a hit in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Mickey Hawks at Black Cat Rockabilly
Accessed 2 February 2012 The follow-up, "Cottonpickin'", was an instrumental, with "Hidi Hidi Hidi" featuring Hawks on the B-side. However, the record was not a hit. Hawks continued to record with Mullins and the Night Riders through to 1960, without repeating their early success, and the group stayed together playing in local clubs until splitting up in 1968. Hawks then recorded a duet with Gwynn Kellum. After "Bip Bop Boom" became popular among

audiences in Europe, Hawks performed several times there at festivals, and recorded an album, ''Invites You to Go Back in Time with Mickey Hawks & the Sounds of the 50s''. He continued to perform occasionally until his death in 1989 at the age of 49.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawks, Mickey 1940 births 1989 deaths American rockabilly musicians People from Thomasville, North Carolina People from High Point, North Carolina 20th-century American musicians Country musicians from North Carolina