Single:
Hey, Sheriff entered the Australian singles chart* on 29 November 1958 and peaked at #23.
Songwriters:
Felice Bryant, Boudleaux Bryant
Record label of Australian release:
Leedon
*Kent Music Report / Australian Chart Book. See About.
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BONUS SONG BELOW – scroll down for the A-side, Noelene
Johnny Rebb (real name Don Delbridge) was a country & western singer who was converted to rock & roll, inspired by Rock Around the Clock in the film Blackboard Jungle.
Pop Archives:
Officially the B-side of this single, Hey, Sheriff is the side that charted and is remembered as the classic Johnny Rebb track. The A-side was an original, Noelene.
Johnny Rebb, known as “The Gentleman of Rock’n’Roll”, was signed by EMI for one single on Columbia in 1958 before joining Sydney entrepreneur Lee Gordon’s Leedon and Lee Gordon labels. Noelene/Hey Sheriff was Johnny’s first Leedon single, released at the end of 1958, and gave him his first charting single. It was their second biggest hit.
A string of records followed, including their most popular hit song, Pathway to Paradise, in 1959.
Johnny Rebb became a regular on Johnny O’Keefe’s Six O’Clock Rock, even filling in as host in JO’K’s absence.
Read more: poparchives.com.au/johnny-rebb-and-his-rebels/hey-sheriff/
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BONUS SONG – Noelene
While Hey, Sheriff got all the attention, it was actually the B-side of this single. The A-side was Noelene, written by Johnny Rebb, John Charter and band manager Sid McDonagh. It is believed to have been dedicated to Noeleen Batley, an Australian pop star in the 1960s and early 1970s, known as “Australia’s Little Miss Sweetheart”.
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