Gene Vincent, one of the original and enduring rock 'n roll stars, would perhaps be unheard of today if it wasn’t for a Triumph motorcycle.
Vincent Eugene Craddock dropped out of school at 17 and enlisted in the US Navy in 1952. Planning on a career in the military, he took the $612 bonus he got for re-enlistment and bought a new 1954 Triumph Tiger T110.
In 1955, while still in the Navy, he was involved in a collision with a car that severely damaged his left leg. Doctors considered amputation but he begged his mother not to allow the operation. Vincent was released from the Navy and was to spend the rest of 1955 in and out of the hospital. His leg would be fitted with a steel brace that would be a source of pain for the rest of his life.
Vincent Craddock became involved in the local music scene in Norfolk, Virginia. He changed his name to Gene Vincent and formed a rockabilly band called “Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps”
In 1956 he wrote “Be Bop A Lula”. Originally released as a B-side it got picked up by national radio stations and became the hit that launched Vincent as a rock ‘n’ roll star.
Gene Vincent died on this day in 1971, aged just 36. In London (his second home), the Ace Cafe holds an annual “Gene Vincent Night”.