Gene Vincent (center) and the Blue Caps in the recording studio

Gene Vincent first performed “Be-Bop-A-Lula” on a radio show in Norfolk, Virginia
during which time a demo was recorded and passed on to Capitol Records, who
were looking for a singer to rival Elvis Presley. Vincent and the Blue Caps recorded
the song for Capitol in Nashville. It was released in June 1956 and peaked at #7 on
the Billboard pop music chart, #8 on the R&B chart, and also made the top ten on
the C&W Best Seller chart reaching the #5 spot. By the following year “Be-Bop-A-
Lula” had sold over two million copies.