T
he epitome of 50s style and rockabilly swagger, a songwriter of soaring stature, and armed with a supple baritone the likes of which few could muster, Jack Scott was up there with his generation’s finest – and yet somehow he remains in many ways a cult figure.
Born in Canada of Italian-American parents, Scott relocated with his family to Detroit and was soon tuning the dial to the hillbilly and country sounds of the Louisiana Hayride and The Grand Ole Opry. Taught guitar by his father as a boy, Jack quickly found his calling, performing at high school and appearing on local radio, before cutting his teeth with his country band The Southern Drifters. In 1957, at 21 years of age, Jack inked his first record deal with ABC-Paramount, and his first 45s Two-Timin’ Woman and Baby, She’s Gone both exhibited a country-rockabilly sound that suggested a bright future for the young singer.