Rocker Rocco, Heart And Sole Of Rock'n'roll
The Age
Monday June 5, 1995
In the 1950s, rock'n'roll was king. You could tell by looking at people's feet. Back then, youngsters were tapping or twisting or shuffling to the beat.
And while Elvis sang about blue suede shoes, a young Italian named Rocco Bufalo was making them. And lots of other colors, too. With pointed toes. Now, nearly 40 years later, Rocco Bufalo is still making those flashy rock'n'roll shoes.
The son of a tailor from the south of Italy, Mr Bufalo arrived in Australia with his brother, Tony, in 1953. His first five years in this country were spent digging down a mine in Murchison, and fruit picking in Shepparton.
He finally came to practise the trade he learnt from his two uncles when he took a job in a Melbourne womens' shoe store in 1958. But it was the sight of a rather flashy, pointed pair of shoes in a Fitzroy shop window that caught young Mr Bufalo's attention. He had the rock'n'roll craze, so made himself a pair that had the laces tied up on the side. And didn't they attract attention on the tram from his Prahran home to the city.
For several years, Mr Bufalo worked on developing wild patterns and outrageous styles in the bungalow behind his house, and also crafted a few orders for people who asked where he got his own shoes from.
In 1965, Mr Rocco took over the shoe shop formerly owned by his brother-in-law, in Station Street, East Malvern.
Thirty years later, Mr Bufalo's shoes store is almost a shrine to rock'n'rollers. Jon Bon Jovi and his band dropped in to buy some pairs last time they were here. Paul Kelly has a few pairs himself.
A few weeks ago, a bus pulled up and in marched the entire Ballarat Rockers Club.
© 1995 The Age