Gus Backus

Gus Backus occupies a rarefied place in the history of rock & roll. Having said that, it probably comes as a surprise to almost any reader that Backus occupies any place whatsoever in rock & roll. His chart presence in America was minimal, and not one in 100 Americans would even know who he was. In Germany during the late '50s and early '60s, however -- a period when even second-rate English rock & roll bands could earn a decent living -- Backus was virtually the flesh-and-blood embodiment of American rock & roll. Along with skiffle star Johnny Duncan, Backus is one of those odd American music stars who found their stardom far from home. Home for Donald "Gus" Backus was the village of Southampton on Long Island, in New York, where he was born on September 12, 1937. He had a fairly typical childhood growing up during and after World War II. Like millions of other young Americans of the period, he discovered rhythm & blues and rock & roll during his teens as it got onto the radio