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Virtues  

“GUITAR BOOGIE SHUFFLE”

(Arthur Smith)

Hunt 228

No. 5    April 27, 1959

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Good timing was not one of the Virtues’ virtues.  Created  by Frank Virtuoso in 1946, nearly a decade

before the official birth of rock’n’roll, the band waited 13 years for their first record and only hit, “Guitar

Boogie Shuffle.”   By the time their classic cut was on the charts, the Golden Age of Instrumentals (created

in large part  by Johnny & the Hurricanes, Duane Eddy, and the Bill Black Combo) was just about to

peak…and so was the band’s low-keyed career.

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Frank Virtue  (ne Virtuoso) was born and raised in South Philadelphia, PA and hD attended Thomas Jr.

High and the Southern School For Boys.   Violin studies began at age nine, followed in 1942 with an

interest in guitar and the stand up bass.   His music studies continued at Temple University, where  he was

taught arranging by Bernard Morgan.  In 1945, he enlisted in the US Navy.   Given  his musical back-

ground, he was given a position with the Regular Navy Dance Band–a unit that included Arthur “Guitar

Boogie” Smith–stationed at Bainbridge, Maryland.   A year later, Frank was discharged from the Navy to

care for his  mother, brother and father, who were suffering from cancer.

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It was at this point that Virtue decided to form a group–the Virtuoso Trio–modeled on that of the Nat Cole

trio.  Within months of their formation Frank, Jimmy Bruno (who was to remain with the group through

its sixteen year career) and another recorded “Lime House Blues” and “Bye Bye Blues.”   Neither song was

ever released.   For the next twelve years, the unit stayed close to home playing local clubs, radio and

television programs.

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In 1956, Frank remembered a tune that his former NAVY buddy, Arthur Smith had created.   “I had Arthur

Smith in my NAVY Band,” Frank explained to a Goldmine writer. “I had heard his guitar boogie and liked

it.   I went one step further and made a rock record of it by using a different jazz ad-lib in between the

boogie thyme and adding a shuffle rock beat to it.   To this day, people tell me that the song was different

enough that we should have had the original copy write to the song, but I felt as a friend that I should give

Arthur the credit.”

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Released in early 1959, “Guitar Boogie Shuffle” shot to Billboard’s number five position.  Eventually, two

million copies were sold, but Frank (bass) and crew (Jimmy Bruno (guitar), Dave Raplin (vocal), John

Renner (sax) and Joe Vespe (drums) despite all efforts and a few fine releases as their initial follow-

up,“Flippin In,” never could quite connect.   With each subsequent release the Virtues recordings sounded

increasingly dated.

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In 1962, the year the band disbanded, they tried with some success to update their boogie with a twist beat.

“Guitar Boogie Twist” lasted a week on the charts (#96) before vanishing.   Since then Frank Virtue

recorded under various solo name, as The Frank Virtue Orchestra, Combo, or Quintet.   Frank also

produced “Who Stole The Keeskha” for the Maties Bros. (#55), “That’s Life” for Gabriel and the Angles

(#51) and “Hey there Lonely Girl” for fellow One-Hit Wonder EDDIE HOLMAN (#2, 1970).

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