Hilburn’s jukebox

I love my ‘50s jukebox the way people today love their iPods -- only more so. Unlike the cheap, tinny speakers that came with radios and record players during rock’s first decade, the big jukebox speakers allowed the music to explode into the room. The coolest jukebox in those days was the Seeburg Select-o-matic, which contained 100 recordings (50 two-sided singles). You can see that model -- in living color -- in the cafe fight scene in Elvis Presley’s second movie, “Loving You.” I bought a beat-up Select-o-matic at a jukebox repair/rental shop on Pico Boulevard in the ‘70s. It is now the centerpiece of my den, and my heart still skips a beat every time the music starts. Here are two dozen of the 45s and their position in my jukebox:

A1 Elvis Presley, “That’s All Right”

A2 Elvis Presley, “Blue Moon of Kentucky”

A3 Elvis Presley, “Baby, Let’s Play House”

A5 The Crows, “Gee”

A7 The Chords, “Sh-Boom”

A9 Elvis Presley, “Blue Suede Shoes”

B1 Hank Williams, “You Win Again”

B3 Bill Haley, “Rock Around the Clock”

B5 Fats Domino, “Ain’t It a Shame”

B7 Chuck Berry, “Maybellene”

B9 Bo Diddley, “Bo Diddley”

C1 Little Richard, “Long Tall Sally”

C2 Little Richard, “Slippin’ and Slidin’”

C3 Johnny Cash, “Folsom Prison Blues”

C5 Hank Snow, “I’m Moving On”

C7 Buddy Holly, “Peggy Sue”

C9 Jerry Lee Lewis, “Whole Lot of Shakin’ Goin’ On”

D1 Ray Charles, “I’ve Got a Woman”

D3 Ray Charles, “What’d I Say”

D5 Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters, “Money Honey”

D7 Gene Vincent, “Be-Bop-A-Lula”

D9 Eddie Cochran, “Summertime Blues”

E1 The Coasters, “Searchin’”

E3 Jackie Wilson, “Lonely Teardrops”