One clue is often the echo, or reverberation, used on the voice. Elvis Presley and Gene Vincent had a very distinctive “slap-back” echo, in which you hear a sort of instant repeat of the syllable the vocalist just sang. You hear it on “Be-Bop-A-Lula” by Gene Vincent and by Ricky Nelson, on “Heartbreak Hotel” by Elvis, and on “Instant Karma” by John Lennon. Then there is the rich, warm echo made by a large tiled room on recordings by the Everly Brothers, such as “Cathy’s Clown” and “Wake Up Little Susie.” There are many distinctive elements in the overall timbre of these records that we
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