Steve Earle And His Rice Burner
By Bryce Martin
Selling cars at Rally Mitsubishi in Nashville around 1990 I sometimes wandered into the service department. Seeing the name Teresa Ensenat written down on a customer log at the counter, I recognized the name as being Steve Earle's wife and a former rock 'n' roll promoter from Los Angeles. I mentioned it to the service writer and he said the vehicle, a Mitsubishi Montero, was Steve Earle's. The service shop had completed the prescribed work for it and parked it in back. But, on a Sunday the lowdown Midnight Auto Supply firm had climbed the fence, broke out a window, ripped out the stereo system and fled with it and whatever else was filchable. The dealership had to replace it all and had just finished putting it back together. The counterman said Steve was to take delivery in the afternoon. With some vigilance, I caught Steve just before he left, and I would never had recognized him had I not known the situation. He was as slender as a rail and his thin face was sunk in to where his cheek bones protruded. His young son, Justin, had the most radical haircut I had ever seen, and he was all about conjuring up a mean stare and holding it. He reminded me of the feral boy in the movie Mad Max. I thought to myself, this kid is off to a bad start in life already.
The Mitsubishi was an odd choice since Steve had written and sang a song earlier in his career decrying the sudden proliferation of foreign cars on our highways and the need to keep Detroit foremost in our minds. At least that was the message I got from his "Sweet Little 66":
But she was built by union labor on American soil
Sweet little '66
So when your Subaru is over and your Honda's history
I'll be blastin' down some back road with my baby next to me
In my sweet little 66
The song is now dated and maybe even confusing to new listeners, because by today's standards a car can be built by union labor on Amercan soil and still be a foreign car.
-30-
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Tag, You're Not It
Let's Rock This House All You Bakersfield Farm Cats
By Bryce Martin
Growing up in the Midwest, a "story" was sometimes called a "windy." Someone who liked to talk just for the sake of talking, with no real regard for facts, was called "Windy." A father might say to a young son whom he had caught in a fib, "I think you're storying to me." Also, if someone passed gas, or wind, that was known as "letting a windy."
Story: "Bakersfield country was a reaction against the slickly produced, string orchestra-laden Nashville sound, which was becoming popular in the late 1950s."
Fact: There is so much wrong with this. It is part of the definition of the so-called Bakersfield Sound that I see tossed out there to the public as if it is fact. "Reaction"? So, Bakersfield musicians sat down together and consciously said "Forget the Nashville way. Let's rock it up." Something like that? Plus, that so-called "string orchestra-laden Nashville Sound" went all the way back to the early 50s (not late 50s), and before. Hank Williams was country on some and "string orchestra-laden" on others. But that was only part of the sounds coming out of Nashville. They rocked it up on country records, too, just the way they did in Bakersfield. That was just another of the sounds coming out of Nashville. The "rock" in country music was not even exclusive to Bakersfield on the West Coast. The Maddox Brothers and Rose were rocking it up in the late 40s. Jimmy Bryant and Speedy West were far-out gone cats down in Los Angeles. Wynn Stewart? he was not tied down to any genre. Like most in his day, he tried them all. His biggest hit was pop all the way.
The term "Bakersfield Sound" may have won out as a genre designation, but not because it deserves, or even needs, the label.
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "I'm so hungry I'm passing fresh air."
-30-
By Bryce Martin
Growing up in the Midwest, a "story" was sometimes called a "windy." Someone who liked to talk just for the sake of talking, with no real regard for facts, was called "Windy." A father might say to a young son whom he had caught in a fib, "I think you're storying to me." Also, if someone passed gas, or wind, that was known as "letting a windy."
Story: "Bakersfield country was a reaction against the slickly produced, string orchestra-laden Nashville sound, which was becoming popular in the late 1950s."
Fact: There is so much wrong with this. It is part of the definition of the so-called Bakersfield Sound that I see tossed out there to the public as if it is fact. "Reaction"? So, Bakersfield musicians sat down together and consciously said "Forget the Nashville way. Let's rock it up." Something like that? Plus, that so-called "string orchestra-laden Nashville Sound" went all the way back to the early 50s (not late 50s), and before. Hank Williams was country on some and "string orchestra-laden" on others. But that was only part of the sounds coming out of Nashville. They rocked it up on country records, too, just the way they did in Bakersfield. That was just another of the sounds coming out of Nashville. The "rock" in country music was not even exclusive to Bakersfield on the West Coast. The Maddox Brothers and Rose were rocking it up in the late 40s. Jimmy Bryant and Speedy West were far-out gone cats down in Los Angeles. Wynn Stewart? he was not tied down to any genre. Like most in his day, he tried them all. His biggest hit was pop all the way.
The term "Bakersfield Sound" may have won out as a genre designation, but not because it deserves, or even needs, the label.
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "I'm so hungry I'm passing fresh air."
-30-
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Expect it to get "Nashvilled-up"
Why I'm Not Excited About the Pending Bakersfield HOF Exhibit
By Bryce Martin
On the other coast, Bakersfield somehow stood out against such foes as Los Angeles and Fresno, an equally sun-baked San Joaquin Valley neighbor, to claim the title, "West Coast Capital of Country Music."
Mosrite Records, a proud little Bakersfield independent label in the 60s, even had printed on its 45 record sleeves that very claim: "Bakersfield, California, West Coast Capital of Country Music." Yessiree, Bob. You couldn't say that too many times as far as the local country folks were concerned.
The Mosrite folks got so carried away that once they ran an ad in Billboard, the industry bible, that read: "Bakersfield, California, Capital of Country Music." They apologized with a retraction a few days later.
Los Angeles, or just "el-ay" as Bakersfieldians prefer, had giant Capitol Records and its big tower that looked like a stack of records. In fact, Bakersfield's two biggest stars -- do I need to say Merle Haggard and Buck Owens? -- recorded exclusively for Capitol once their respective careers gained a little leverage. Fresno had its share of country music names as well. "Cousin" Herb Henson, a Bakersfield fixture of the mid-50s to early-60s, was in Fresno first, as were others. The cities were, for all practical purposes, mirror images of each other in most all respects.
But that was then and this is, well, it's not then, that's for sure.
Let me jump ahead without going into all the details of what Bakersfield was and how it got that way.
Rather, let me focus on an upcoming Bakersfield exhibit planned for next March at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville. The Hall has other things going on now, and in between then, and, understandably, has released little to no information about it.
A friend who has ties to Bakersfield's country music past, as do I, was underwhelmed with the news and predicted the event would not represent Bakersfield in context because with Nashville involved it becomes, as she put it, "Nashville-y."
I think I know exactly what she means. It will be more for tourists.
Any singer in the last couple of decades who has put a boot within spitting distance of the California state line, or who has flown over on the way to Hawaii, announces their latest release as having the "Bakersfield Sound." Funny, no one in Bakersfield ever called it that until everyone outside of Bakersfield started doing so. Again, that's another story for another day.
Display items will likely include these:
Red, white, and blue Buck Owens guitar
Never mind that he bought these by the boxcar load, and that the original idea for the guitar came from Bill Woods. And that the guitar was in keeping with his "All-American" theme. It was easier and more profitable to sell ads for his radio stations if they played "All-American" records, and not just country music records. Make room for Ricky Nelson and the like.
Merle Haggard's pardon
Never mind that then-Gov. Ronald Reagan routinely signed hundreds (yes, hundreds) of pardons for felons just like Haggard during his term in Sacramento. Haggard's pardon was just one of those, nothing special. Haggard was given no special favors. He met the standard requirements like all others.
I could go on, but this is too easy. A complaint I've heard over the years when it comes to Bakersfield is that people say they are tired of hearing about Owens and Haggard. What about the little people who made Bakersfield what it was? Jimmie Addington, Oscar Whittington, Betty Peugh, Bryce Martin. Bryce Martin? Well, that's when I woke up and realized that is not likely to happen.
In Nashville, things have a habit of turning Nashville-y.
Someone told me that.
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Grinnin' like a mule eatin' briars."
-30-
By Bryce Martin
On the other coast, Bakersfield somehow stood out against such foes as Los Angeles and Fresno, an equally sun-baked San Joaquin Valley neighbor, to claim the title, "West Coast Capital of Country Music."
Mosrite Records, a proud little Bakersfield independent label in the 60s, even had printed on its 45 record sleeves that very claim: "Bakersfield, California, West Coast Capital of Country Music." Yessiree, Bob. You couldn't say that too many times as far as the local country folks were concerned.
The Mosrite folks got so carried away that once they ran an ad in Billboard, the industry bible, that read: "Bakersfield, California, Capital of Country Music." They apologized with a retraction a few days later.
Los Angeles, or just "el-ay" as Bakersfieldians prefer, had giant Capitol Records and its big tower that looked like a stack of records. In fact, Bakersfield's two biggest stars -- do I need to say Merle Haggard and Buck Owens? -- recorded exclusively for Capitol once their respective careers gained a little leverage. Fresno had its share of country music names as well. "Cousin" Herb Henson, a Bakersfield fixture of the mid-50s to early-60s, was in Fresno first, as were others. The cities were, for all practical purposes, mirror images of each other in most all respects.
But that was then and this is, well, it's not then, that's for sure.
Let me jump ahead without going into all the details of what Bakersfield was and how it got that way.
Rather, let me focus on an upcoming Bakersfield exhibit planned for next March at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville. The Hall has other things going on now, and in between then, and, understandably, has released little to no information about it.
A friend who has ties to Bakersfield's country music past, as do I, was underwhelmed with the news and predicted the event would not represent Bakersfield in context because with Nashville involved it becomes, as she put it, "Nashville-y."
I think I know exactly what she means. It will be more for tourists.
Any singer in the last couple of decades who has put a boot within spitting distance of the California state line, or who has flown over on the way to Hawaii, announces their latest release as having the "Bakersfield Sound." Funny, no one in Bakersfield ever called it that until everyone outside of Bakersfield started doing so. Again, that's another story for another day.
Display items will likely include these:
Red, white, and blue Buck Owens guitar
Never mind that he bought these by the boxcar load, and that the original idea for the guitar came from Bill Woods. And that the guitar was in keeping with his "All-American" theme. It was easier and more profitable to sell ads for his radio stations if they played "All-American" records, and not just country music records. Make room for Ricky Nelson and the like.
Merle Haggard's pardon
Never mind that then-Gov. Ronald Reagan routinely signed hundreds (yes, hundreds) of pardons for felons just like Haggard during his term in Sacramento. Haggard's pardon was just one of those, nothing special. Haggard was given no special favors. He met the standard requirements like all others.
I could go on, but this is too easy. A complaint I've heard over the years when it comes to Bakersfield is that people say they are tired of hearing about Owens and Haggard. What about the little people who made Bakersfield what it was? Jimmie Addington, Oscar Whittington, Betty Peugh, Bryce Martin. Bryce Martin? Well, that's when I woke up and realized that is not likely to happen.
In Nashville, things have a habit of turning Nashville-y.
Someone told me that.
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Grinnin' like a mule eatin' briars."
-30-
Sunday, July 31, 2011
10 Best Looking Bakersfield Record Labels
1. Pike
Colorful and musical
2. Mosrite
Iconic "M"
3. Bakersfield
Homey
4. Global
Old school great
5. Tally
Major-label looks
6. Starview
Nice angles
7. Country Capers
Comic relief
8. Rose
Beautiful color
9. Audan
Somehow sleek
10. World
Looks almost big-time
Also: ITCA, Cougar, Nashville West, Blue Book
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Nuttier'n a peach orchard bore."
Colorful and musical
2. Mosrite
Iconic "M"
3. Bakersfield
Homey
4. Global
Old school great
5. Tally
Major-label looks
6. Starview
Nice angles
7. Country Capers
Comic relief
8. Rose
Beautiful color
9. Audan
Somehow sleek
10. World
Looks almost big-time
Also: ITCA, Cougar, Nashville West, Blue Book
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Nuttier'n a peach orchard bore."
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Bakersfield Top Ten All-Time Songwriters
1. Merle Haggard
His output speaks for itself
2. Dallas Frazier
Could be No. 1
3. Buck Owens
Many of his were co-writes
4. Red Simpson
Wrote some classics
5. Tommy Collins
Truly talented
6. Buddy Mize
Tremendous output
7. Bob Morris
Great melody writer
8. Billy Mize
A favorite of Dean Martin
9. Herb Henson
Nice output during short span
10. (tie) Dusty Rhodes
Small but memorable output
10. (tie) Kenny Johnson
Probably should be rated higher
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Hotter'n a bucket o' red ants."
-30-
His output speaks for itself
2. Dallas Frazier
Could be No. 1
3. Buck Owens
Many of his were co-writes
4. Red Simpson
Wrote some classics
5. Tommy Collins
Truly talented
6. Buddy Mize
Tremendous output
7. Bob Morris
Great melody writer
8. Billy Mize
A favorite of Dean Martin
9. Herb Henson
Nice output during short span
10. (tie) Dusty Rhodes
Small but memorable output
10. (tie) Kenny Johnson
Probably should be rated higher
TODAY'S FOLKSY EXPRESSION OVERHEARD: "Hotter'n a bucket o' red ants."
-30-
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Desert Island Vinyl
Favorite Bakersfield-Associated Recordings
(in no particular order)
"Goin' Skinny Dippin'" - Mayf Nutter
"Truck Drivin' Man" - Bill Woods (his original version on Rose Records)
"Roll Truck Roll" - Red Simpson
"Burnin' Rubber" - Gene "The Draggin' King" Moles
"Ask Me No Questions" - Bill Woods
"Black Cat" - Tommy Collins
"On the Jericho Road" - Merle Haggard
"Hot Dog" - Buck Owens (his original version on Pep Records)
"Goose Rock" - Bud Hobbs
"Silver Wings" - Merle Haggard
"Hard Top Race" - George Stogner
"Blues In the Blue of the Night" - Billy Barton
"Kathleen" -- Wally Lewis (original on Tally)
(in no particular order)
"Goin' Skinny Dippin'" - Mayf Nutter
"Truck Drivin' Man" - Bill Woods (his original version on Rose Records)
"Roll Truck Roll" - Red Simpson
"Burnin' Rubber" - Gene "The Draggin' King" Moles
"Ask Me No Questions" - Bill Woods
"Black Cat" - Tommy Collins
"On the Jericho Road" - Merle Haggard
"Hot Dog" - Buck Owens (his original version on Pep Records)
"Goose Rock" - Bud Hobbs
"Silver Wings" - Merle Haggard
"Hard Top Race" - George Stogner
"Blues In the Blue of the Night" - Billy Barton
"Kathleen" -- Wally Lewis (original on Tally)
Friday, February 25, 2011
Discography For Little Richie Records
Below is my attempt to compile a 45 discography for Little Richie Records. I got to talk to Richie once by telephone and he was very accomodating and generous in helping with a promotion campaign for a publication I was working for located on Rosedale Hwy. in Bakersfield. Interesting label design. It's pink in color with a drawing of a ropin' young cowboy? A Bakersfield connection is Jim Whitlock's "Walking in the Footsteps of a Fool" as recorded by Kelly Warren (LR-1014).
NOTES: Albert Young Eagle AKA Albert Lucero;
Little Richie Records
Belen, New Mexico
(Bay-LYNN)
Owner: Little Richie Johnson
LR-0000; some later were LRJ-0000]
LR-1002 Albert Young Eagle "It's Over Now"/"Congratulations" -- 1975
1003 Carolyn Horton and Albert Young Eagle "Holding You Was Just Too Hard"/
1004 Frank Leal "Are You Lonesome Tonight"/"Because I Love You" -- 1975
1005 Lloyd Green "Quicksand"/"Darisa"
1006 Will Powers "The Peterbilt Song"/"Play Me a Country Song"
1007 Frank Leal "The Word Woman"/"Is There Any Chance"
1008 Albert Young Eagle "I'll Get Over You"/"Shake Hands With a Fool"
1009 Lee Sherwood and the Road Show "Breaker-Breaker"/"Song For a CB" -- 1976
1010 Rod Hart "C.B. Savage" b/w "Better Off Gone" -- 1976
1011 Kelly Warren "I'm Sorry Baby"/"I Remember the Good Times" -- 1976
1012 Albert Young Eagle "Before My Time"/"'Cause She's a Woman (The Woman of My Life)"
1013
1014 Kelly Warren "Walking in the Footsteps of a Fool"/"Turn Back the Hands on the Clock" -- 1977
1015 Albert Young Eagle "Just Wait For Daddy" / "You Ain't Never Been Mine"
1016 Bobby Lee "I Gotta Have My Baby Back"/"Easy Touch Soft Hearted Me" -- 1977
1017 Alvie Self "Peanut Farmer"/"I See Your Love"
1018 Sherwin Linton "You Men Are All Alike" b/w "The Baby's Cryin'" -- 1977
1019 Dwight Davis "I Cry Alone" b/w "The Lonely Still is Heavy" -- 1977
1020 Dwight Davis "Tears of My Woman"/"Criss Cross"
1021 Bill Mack "Too Tall Jones"/"King Kong" -- 1977
1022 Bobby Helms "Love Power"/"Before Your Heartaches Come"
1023 Kelly Warren "Ain't That Something"/"Living For You, Dying For Him"
1024 Albert Young Eagle "Cause She's a Woman/"Better Off in Dallas" -- 1977
1025
1026 Sam West IV "For Your Love"/"Unwritten, Unsung Country Love Song"
1027 Chuck Dale "Lady Lay Your Head on My Shoulder"/"Never Let Me Go"
1028* Sam West IV "There Goes My Heart Again"/"One Nite Stand" -- 1977
1029 Donna Darlene "What's Wrong With the Way That We're Doing It Now" b/w "The Hand You're Holdin' Now" -- 1977
1030 Dennis Bruderer "She's Already Gone"/"The World Called Today"
1031
1032 Dennis Bruderer "Mule Skinner Blues"/"Shake Hands With a Fool"
1033
1034 Billy Blanton "Blue Side of Lonesome"/"Texas When I Die"
1035 Jimmy Fautheree "Heaven is Only Knee High"/"This Ole House"
1036 Joe Holtzen "On My Way to Houston"/"She's Already Gone"
1037 Ronnie Smith "I Can't Get the You Out of Me"/"She Burned the Little Road Side Tavern Down"
1038 Madame X "Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight"/"Ain't Worth the Pain"
1039 Hatch Bros "Song For Someone Special"/"Shady Grove"
1040
1041
1042 Tony Albert "Texas Love Affair"/"Sally Jane"
1043
1051 Rod Hart "My Name is Country Music"/"I Just Need Lovin'"
1052 Albert Young Eagle "On My Way to Houston"/"Cry"
LP
??? Patty Gallagher & The Sundowners
LR338 Travis Mimms "Wait a Little Longer, Please, Jesus"/"Little Old Time"
*Stereo #711/RM1028 Karen Dee "Mule Skinner Blues" b/w "I'll Build You a Song"
Others: RON FORBIS
-30-
NOTES: Albert Young Eagle AKA Albert Lucero;
Belen, New Mexico
(Bay-LYNN)
Owner: Little Richie Johnson
LR-0000; some later were LRJ-0000]
LR-1002 Albert Young Eagle "It's Over Now"/"Congratulations" -- 1975
1003 Carolyn Horton and Albert Young Eagle "Holding You Was Just Too Hard"/
1004 Frank Leal "Are You Lonesome Tonight"/"Because I Love You" -- 1975
1005 Lloyd Green "Quicksand"/"Darisa"
1006 Will Powers "The Peterbilt Song"/"Play Me a Country Song"
1007 Frank Leal "The Word Woman"/"Is There Any Chance"
1008 Albert Young Eagle "I'll Get Over You"/"Shake Hands With a Fool"
1009 Lee Sherwood and the Road Show "Breaker-Breaker"/"Song For a CB" -- 1976
1010 Rod Hart "C.B. Savage" b/w "Better Off Gone" -- 1976
1011 Kelly Warren "I'm Sorry Baby"/"I Remember the Good Times" -- 1976
1012 Albert Young Eagle "Before My Time"/"'Cause She's a Woman (The Woman of My Life)"
1013
1014 Kelly Warren "Walking in the Footsteps of a Fool"/"Turn Back the Hands on the Clock" -- 1977
1015 Albert Young Eagle "Just Wait For Daddy" / "You Ain't Never Been Mine"
1016 Bobby Lee "I Gotta Have My Baby Back"/"Easy Touch Soft Hearted Me" -- 1977
1017 Alvie Self "Peanut Farmer"/"I See Your Love"
1018 Sherwin Linton "You Men Are All Alike" b/w "The Baby's Cryin'" -- 1977
1019 Dwight Davis "I Cry Alone" b/w "The Lonely Still is Heavy" -- 1977
1020 Dwight Davis "Tears of My Woman"/"Criss Cross"
1021 Bill Mack "Too Tall Jones"/"King Kong" -- 1977
1022 Bobby Helms "Love Power"/"Before Your Heartaches Come"
1023 Kelly Warren "Ain't That Something"/"Living For You, Dying For Him"
1024 Albert Young Eagle "Cause She's a Woman/"Better Off in Dallas" -- 1977
1025
1026 Sam West IV "For Your Love"/"Unwritten, Unsung Country Love Song"
1027 Chuck Dale "Lady Lay Your Head on My Shoulder"/"Never Let Me Go"
1028* Sam West IV "There Goes My Heart Again"/"One Nite Stand" -- 1977
1029 Donna Darlene "What's Wrong With the Way That We're Doing It Now" b/w "The Hand You're Holdin' Now" -- 1977
1030 Dennis Bruderer "She's Already Gone"/"The World Called Today"
1031
1032 Dennis Bruderer "Mule Skinner Blues"/"Shake Hands With a Fool"
1033
1034 Billy Blanton "Blue Side of Lonesome"/"Texas When I Die"
1035 Jimmy Fautheree "Heaven is Only Knee High"/"This Ole House"
1036 Joe Holtzen "On My Way to Houston"/"She's Already Gone"
1037 Ronnie Smith "I Can't Get the You Out of Me"/"She Burned the Little Road Side Tavern Down"
1038 Madame X "Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight"/"Ain't Worth the Pain"
1039 Hatch Bros "Song For Someone Special"/"Shady Grove"
1040
1041
1042 Tony Albert "Texas Love Affair"/"Sally Jane"
1043
1051 Rod Hart "My Name is Country Music"/"I Just Need Lovin'"
1052 Albert Young Eagle "On My Way to Houston"/"Cry"
LP
??? Patty Gallagher & The Sundowners
LR338 Travis Mimms "Wait a Little Longer, Please, Jesus"/"Little Old Time"
*Stereo #711/RM1028 Karen Dee "Mule Skinner Blues" b/w "I'll Build You a Song"
Others: RON FORBIS
-30-
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Mystery 45s
From 'The Twilight Zone' of Bakersfield singles releases
Sid Silver is a mystery. Who was he? Tom Sims, a San Diego, Calif., collector and lawyer told me he bought a garage full of items from Bill Woods out of Woods' Bakersfield garage in the mid-1980s. "One item was a box full of unplayed 'Bumble Rumble' singles by Sid Silver," Sims said. That is the sum total of my research on that one. Also lost to antiquity: Bonnie Blue Bell. "Let's Go" is too good of a recording to raise such question marks. It is without question not Bonnie Owens, who was a friend of mine and whom Merle Haggard once described as having an "odd voice." Bonnie Blue Bell sings "Let's Go" with a Leon, whom I theorize might be Leon Roach, a vocalist with Bud Alden's band. And then there is Duke Dickson. I've dug and dug and not found even a clue. He took his "Walking Shoes" and walked on, if you'll pardon my corniness. After coming up mostly empty and banging my head on these three, any sense of humor I have left is welcome for my well-being.
Bakersfield rockabilly. Tele friend.
Sid Silver is a mystery. Who was he? Tom Sims, a San Diego, Calif., collector and lawyer told me he bought a garage full of items from Bill Woods out of Woods' Bakersfield garage in the mid-1980s. "One item was a box full of unplayed 'Bumble Rumble' singles by Sid Silver," Sims said. That is the sum total of my research on that one. Also lost to antiquity: Bonnie Blue Bell. "Let's Go" is too good of a recording to raise such question marks. It is without question not Bonnie Owens, who was a friend of mine and whom Merle Haggard once described as having an "odd voice." Bonnie Blue Bell sings "Let's Go" with a Leon, whom I theorize might be Leon Roach, a vocalist with Bud Alden's band. And then there is Duke Dickson. I've dug and dug and not found even a clue. He took his "Walking Shoes" and walked on, if you'll pardon my corniness. After coming up mostly empty and banging my head on these three, any sense of humor I have left is welcome for my well-being.
Bakersfield rockabilly. Tele friend.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Me and Wanda Jackson Finally Meet
My Visit With Wanda Jackson
By Bryce Martin
If I find Wanda, it will not be the first time I have seen her in person.
Back in 1963 in my mostly wasted youth, I left my hometown of Galena, Kan., and drove in the direction of the small town of Arma, nine miles north of Pittsburg, to see the greatest singer on the planet perform. I paid at the door. Wanda Jackson, I had trouble believing, was on stage at the Blue Moon Ballroom, a place I had never visited before. It was a large building, resting off the highway about a hundred feet and the only place of any size in the vicinity.
She wore a bare-shouldered gown and looked stunning. Her voice was impossible to describe, accented with trills and lilts, smooth and clear when need be, growly, mean, impudent, and nimbly naughty at intervals. She was wild and raw, her lyrics often wonderfully bizarre and delivered in a frenetic rhapsody of rock and roll the equal of any man. Then she would deliver a soothing country ballad, in as soft and artful a voice as you would imagine from an angel.
There was a closed-off wraparound balcony that some of the boys had sneaked up the stairs to find. They wanted to peer down and get a better view of Wanda’s cleavage. It didn't appear to be a good angle for that, and the small group soon disappeared.
I walked outside when the show bid finale and stood in the gravel driveway. Wanda, with dark hair and eyes, came out and entered a waiting Cadillac. A man assisted her entry and closed her door for her. Someone whispered that it was her husband. She smiled politely, and rather sadly, I thought, as she acknowledged those of us nearest her and waved with a delicate raised hand in a goodbye gesture.
The Cadillac soon disappeared in the dark and the distance and produced a final crunch of gravel before smoothing out on the asphalt. Wanda Jackson. Here. In this place. In my universe. Tonight.
Wow. There goes my 25-year-old, grown-up prom queen.
I arrived at the Baptist church complex in Bakersfield not as early as I would have liked. I found Wanda down the sidewalk from the building where she was about to make an appearance. I introduced myself and told her I would appreciate a short interview. Her husband, Wendell, interrupted.
"I'm Wendell, her husband, and you should have notified us sooner. There is not enough time now as we're heading to where we need to go. Join us if you like."
"Afterward then," I said.
"No, we'll be leaving right after for another appointment," Wendell said. "Like I said, you should have let us know beforehand."
Since Wendell was doing the talking, I aimed my conversation toward him as we walked along, but I wanted to make sure Wanda heard. I mentioned how I had seen her perform with her Party Timers in 1963 at the Blue Moon Ballroom in Arma, Kan. She had toured with her then-boyfriend Elvis Presley while still a teenager and had made hundreds, no thousands, of appearances of the years. Still, I thought it might ring a bell since her manager at the time, Jim Halsey, was based in nearby Independence, Kan., and part of her band was from nearby Pittsburg.
"The only thing I recall, other than Wanda's singing," I said, "was some of her stage patter. In introducing one of her songs, she turned to one of the musicians backing her and said, 'We picked this song up in Russian while we were there from a little Russian boy. What was his name? Ivan Snatchertitsoff?'"
"Things have really changed since then, haven't they?" Wendell said.
I guessed that he meant going from telling bawdy, and bad, jokes in those days to holding church rallies in present day.
Wendell confirmed that the man driving the Cadillac that evening in Kansas would have been him and that the two at the time had not been married long.
...
To be continued
By Bryce Martin
If I find Wanda, it will not be the first time I have seen her in person.
Back in 1963 in my mostly wasted youth, I left my hometown of Galena, Kan., and drove in the direction of the small town of Arma, nine miles north of Pittsburg, to see the greatest singer on the planet perform. I paid at the door. Wanda Jackson, I had trouble believing, was on stage at the Blue Moon Ballroom, a place I had never visited before. It was a large building, resting off the highway about a hundred feet and the only place of any size in the vicinity.
She wore a bare-shouldered gown and looked stunning. Her voice was impossible to describe, accented with trills and lilts, smooth and clear when need be, growly, mean, impudent, and nimbly naughty at intervals. She was wild and raw, her lyrics often wonderfully bizarre and delivered in a frenetic rhapsody of rock and roll the equal of any man. Then she would deliver a soothing country ballad, in as soft and artful a voice as you would imagine from an angel.
There was a closed-off wraparound balcony that some of the boys had sneaked up the stairs to find. They wanted to peer down and get a better view of Wanda’s cleavage. It didn't appear to be a good angle for that, and the small group soon disappeared.
I walked outside when the show bid finale and stood in the gravel driveway. Wanda, with dark hair and eyes, came out and entered a waiting Cadillac. A man assisted her entry and closed her door for her. Someone whispered that it was her husband. She smiled politely, and rather sadly, I thought, as she acknowledged those of us nearest her and waved with a delicate raised hand in a goodbye gesture.
The Cadillac soon disappeared in the dark and the distance and produced a final crunch of gravel before smoothing out on the asphalt. Wanda Jackson. Here. In this place. In my universe. Tonight.
Wow. There goes my 25-year-old, grown-up prom queen.
I arrived at the Baptist church complex in Bakersfield not as early as I would have liked. I found Wanda down the sidewalk from the building where she was about to make an appearance. I introduced myself and told her I would appreciate a short interview. Her husband, Wendell, interrupted.
"I'm Wendell, her husband, and you should have notified us sooner. There is not enough time now as we're heading to where we need to go. Join us if you like."
"Afterward then," I said.
"No, we'll be leaving right after for another appointment," Wendell said. "Like I said, you should have let us know beforehand."
Since Wendell was doing the talking, I aimed my conversation toward him as we walked along, but I wanted to make sure Wanda heard. I mentioned how I had seen her perform with her Party Timers in 1963 at the Blue Moon Ballroom in Arma, Kan. She had toured with her then-boyfriend Elvis Presley while still a teenager and had made hundreds, no thousands, of appearances of the years. Still, I thought it might ring a bell since her manager at the time, Jim Halsey, was based in nearby Independence, Kan., and part of her band was from nearby Pittsburg.
"The only thing I recall, other than Wanda's singing," I said, "was some of her stage patter. In introducing one of her songs, she turned to one of the musicians backing her and said, 'We picked this song up in Russian while we were there from a little Russian boy. What was his name? Ivan Snatchertitsoff?'"
"Things have really changed since then, haven't they?" Wendell said.
I guessed that he meant going from telling bawdy, and bad, jokes in those days to holding church rallies in present day.
Wendell confirmed that the man driving the Cadillac that evening in Kansas would have been him and that the two at the time had not been married long.
...
To be continued
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