If ever there was a song that typified the close of the ‘50s it would be “Sleepwalk,” written and first recorded by Santo & Johnny and recorded by thousands of musicians over the years. Hailing from Brooklyn, the Farina brothers made 30+ albums before disbanding in the late ‘70s. The steel guitarist of the duo, Johnny Farina keeps the retro guitar vibe of Santo & Johnny alive and well with his 2006 solo CD Pure Steel Vol. 1, released on his Aniraf label. In addition to a new version of “Sleepwalk” Johnny summons up some upbeat pedal steel instro covers of originals and favorites like “Ghost Riders In The Sky,” Santana’s “Europa,” “Caravan,” “The Enchanted Sea” and more. On Pure Steel Vol. 1, Farina’s superbly recorded multi-tracked guitar-centric approach sounds fresh and up to date. Paying tribute to his Italian ancestry, the 2005 CD of Italian Being Served features a number of composers with lineage back to the mother land including Nino Rota and even an instrumental from the pen of Four Seasons studio genius Bob Gaudio. Johnny also has very cool Christmas CD entitled Christmas Mine, capped off by a different holiday inspired version of “Sleepwalk.” www.santoandjohnny.com

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