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Rick Derringer may be the perfect artist for his own IN THE MIX compilation.  

Who else achieved world-wide fame in their teens, hit another career highlight a few years later as a member of one of the hottest live acts in history, and had solo success to boot?  

Rick’s first big hit with The McCoys; Hang On Sloopy landed at the top slot on the charts—holding The Beatles’ Yesterday at #2.  Never one to hold a grudge, Ringo later hired Rick as part of his All-Starr Band, & The McCoys supported The Rolling Stones’ on their first U.S. tour.

Rick also played guitar on several Steely Dan tracks, beefed up KISS records with his sizzling licks, and graciously backed Barbra Streisand & Cyndi Lauper (two of the biggest female artists of their respective generations) onstage and on record.  And lets not forget that he’s also a great vocalist, songwriter, & producer who helmed gold & platinum albums for Edgar & Johnny Winter, as well as The WWF’s The Wrestling Album!  Speaking of producers... Rick also played guitar on three Todd Rundgren albums.

I’m surprised it's all but forgotten that Derringer was instrumental in getting Weird Al Yankovich signed, and he produced every Weird Al album up to Off The Deep End—six in all.  He also supplied guitar on Al’s Beat It parody EAT IT which invited side-by-side comparison to Eddie Van Halen—a comparison Derringer was certainly up to.

It wasn’t until I was fact checking this post that I realized how Rick Derringer got involved with Weird Al.  Rick’s manager Jake Hooker had been in a band called The Arrows, and had co-written I Love Rock & Roll, which later became a hit for Joan Jett.  When Al parodied it as; I Love Rocky Road, he had to get permission from Jake.  Jake loved it & played it for Derringer who also loved it, and Rick convinced Cherokee Studios to give them studio time on spec.

I really enjoy Fil of Wings Of Pegasus’ YouTube channel, & he gave me an even greater appreciation for Derringer--he called Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo “one of the best hard rock performances I’ve ever seen”.  Check it out:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgJPVFbeYes.

The world owes Rick Derringer a lot more respect for his guitar playing than he gets.  And I’ll fight any man who says different on two conditions: my opponent has to be in the same weight class as myself, & they have to listen to this compilation in front of the crowd before we enter the ring.

“Did somebody say: ‘Keep on rockin’?’”