While most historians like to keep guitar-driven rockabilly and rock & roll from the mid-1950s to early 1960s confined to its original spawning ground of the Southern U.S., the goal of becoming the next Elvis reached to several far-flung locales, one of them being the New England seacoast. When Freddy Cannon hit national paydirt with "Tallahassee Lassie," the scene suddenly had one of their own, a local hero and a rallying point for keeping hopes and dreams alive, much like Elvis in Memphis. In this three-volume set, we have the first real documentation of that scene during the early days of the big beat, and rock & roll with a crude edge doesn't come much finer than this. Gene Maltais was New England's true rockabilly wild man, and the nutzo energy he pours into his renditions of "Gang War" and "The Raging Sea" is amazing; other highlights include the Satellites ("Rockateen" and "Linda Jean"), the Buccaneers ("Bye Bye Baby") and the Dusters ("Rock at the Hop" and "She's Mine"), all artists on the Massachusetts-based Cupid label. With 18 tracks of raw, unvarnished rockin' aboard, this volume sets the tone for the entire series. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide