In the opening shots of this video Gene Vincent looks in pain. He is. Two and half years before this 1963 performance in Brussels, Gene had been in a serious auto accident while riding in a taxi cab in England with Eddie Cochran. Eddie was killed and Gene was crippled for life.

There is more than just pain in Gene Vincent’s face. There is profound sadness and unbearable torment. It’s an incredibly naked shot that shows the emotional and physical struggle that Gene was going through in what would be the waning years of his career. But as soon as he hits the stage and tosses off his crutches, some sweet magic takes hold and Gene Vincent is the baaaadest fuckin’ rockabilly cat on the planet.

When Vincent drops the crutches to the stage and dances on his one good leg I feel some rock and roll religion stirring in my chest. But it ain’t Jesus I’m feeling, it’s some deep be bop a lula that speaks in a scripture composed of savage beats and primitive utterance. It takes more to make a crippled man walk than prayer. It takes the soul hollering at the top of its holy fucking lungs “Go, cat, go!” And as Gene’s face lifts heavenward you can see in his expression the beat become beatitude and for a moment man is transformed into angel.