“Ace of Spades” (1965) – Link Wray * Written by Link Wray and Mark Cooper * 45: “Ace of Spades” / “Hidden Charms” * Produced by Ray Vernon * Label: Swan
Menacing nighttime music from the man who had composed the only instrumental record to be banned. But if “Rumble” sounded like leather-jacket gang warfare, “Ace of Spades” sounded like a lone delinquent stalking a deserted boulevard at 3 AM. Dangerous too, but in a different way. Music like this gives the “Don’t Drop Out” message that appeared on mid-sixties Swan releases an embossed effect. Co-writer “Mark Cooper” was an alias for Milt Grant, who hosted a TV show called The Record Hop that boasted Wray and the Raymen as its house band. His song credits are likely of an honorary wheel-greaser nature; none of the Norton label’s Link Wray reissues include him.