Country-Music-Talk.com

During the 1930s and 1940s Cowboy songs, or “Western music”, which had been recorded since the 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood. Some of the popular singing cowboys from the era were, Gene Autry, the Sons of the Pioneers, and Roy Rogers. (Visit former keyboardist for the Roy Rogers Jr. band.)

Another “country” musician from the Lower Great Plains had become very popular as the leader of a “hot string band”, and who also appeared in Hollywood Westerns was Bob Wills. His mix of “country” and jazz, which started out as dance hall music, would become known as Western Swing. Spade Cooley and Tex Williams also had very popluar bands and appeared in films. At the height of its popularity, Western Swing rivaled the popularity of other big band jazz.

Country musicians began playing boogie in 1939, shortly after it had been played at Carnegie Hall, when Johnny Barfield recorded “Boogie Woogie”. The trickle of what was initially called Hillbilly Boogie, or Okie Boogie (later to be renamed Country Boogie), became a flood beginning around late 1945. One notable country boogie from this period was the Delmore Brothers’ “Freight Train Boogie”, considered to be part of the combined evolution of country music and blues towards rockabilly. In 1948 Arthur Smith achieved Top 10 US country chart success with his MGM Records recordings of “Guitar Boogie” and “Banjo Boogie”, with the former crossing over to the US pop charts.  The Hillbilly Boogie period lasted into the 1950s, and remains as one of many subgenres of country into the twenty first century.

Cirque Du Soleil has signed former Freddy Fender keyboardist Conrad Askland to open their new resident show in Macau, China. Conrad Askland played keyboards with Freddy Fender from 1996-2005. Freddy Fender passed away on October 14, 2006.

Conrad Askland holds the musical distinction of having played both at the Seattle Opera House and at the Grand Ol Opry. Now that’s two different kinds of music styles!

Freddy Fender always used two keyboard players (a piano player and a synthesizer player) and rotated on keyboards between Conrad Askland, Augie Meyers and Charlie Rich Jr. (son of country legend Charlie Rich).

Here is a photo of Conrad Askland (left) and Augie Meyers (right) sitting at the grand piano at Don Laughlin’s Resort and Casino on the main stage circa 2001.

Former Freddy Fender bandmember Conrad Askland has done several tours of Japan, China and South Korea in the past. His favorite? “All of them!” he says, and he can’t wait to go back again.

We wish him the best on his new adventure with Cirque Du Soleil. Freddy Fender would be proud of him, I know we are. Visit the keyboard wizard on his website at www.ConradAskland.com.

 

Grammy-winning California-based country singer DWIGHT YOAKAM has met the turn of the century head-on with an unprecedented burst of creativity. In the past year, DWIGHT has undertaken a kaleidoscopic range of concurrent projects–recording and touring in support of a critically acclaimed solo CD set, dwightyoakamacoustic.net, re-visiting the best material from DWIGHT’s remarkable career; scripting and directing his forthcoming motion picture “South of Heaven, West of Hell”; launching his dwightyoakam.net website; and now, the release of TOMORROW’S SOUNDS TODAY, produced by longtime collaborator Pete Anderson, caps off this remarkable period with a considerable flourish.

Openers “Love Caught Up To Me” and “What Do You Know About Love” (the first single) set the tone for this mostly upbeat set, bristling with steel guitar runs and a vocal that makes clear DWIGHT is once again speaking directly from the heart and creating his own bold type of country music.

DWIGHT’s musical instinct and approach have continually sharpened, attaining a consistence and clarity that is flat-out exhilarating. On “A Place To Cry,” DWIGHT’s gritty rockabilly-style vocal leads into an eruption of extended jamming, a gleeful, gutbucket-groove finale that’s near dizzying–as is his use of contemporary street hustler vernacular (”straight up need to score…what I’m jones’n for”). “Dreams Of Clay,” a fascinatingly subtle piece of writing urged on by some Buddy Holly’s Crickets-style rhythm, demonstrates DWIGHT the writer is far from dry on the perennial subject every tunesmith endlessly confronts–the love song. His ability to present romance with entirely new perspective and understanding is extraordinary; he knows that the best country lyrics rarely depend on facile happiness and here, even with upbeat messages, he deftly applies layers of conflict–whether the song’s protagonist is wary, cynical or elated, each experience is tempered with shadows of reality and an evident joy in the use of language itself, crafting a series of affecting and impressive tales.

DWIGHT and Anderson’s seemingly effortless facility in transposing and expanding country’s various sub-genres, whether it’s a hard shuffle, rockabilly passion, or the odd curl of a Cajun-style steel guitar figure, is downright wild–they pluck diverse elements seemingly out of the air, weaving them into gleaming new creations. The remarkable process is bolstered by contributions from some stellar guests–Buck Owens, Flaco Jimenez, country-rock originator Chris Hillman (Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers) and esteemed singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale–not to mention DWIGHT’s high voltage band, with Anderson’s guitar, Scott Joss’ fiddle and steel guitarist Gary Morse each contributing brilliantly to the mix. They dig into the music with verve and passion, from classic modern Southwestern Country to hardcore old school, resulting in the most luxuriously brash DWIGHT album yet. It’s a terrific set on several levels: there’s more warmth and joy in the vocals, the stories told by the songs themselves are brighter and the band even tighter then ever. But it’s DWIGHT’s pure country style and the manner in which he expands a rich musical tradition that gives the album its remarkably exuberant character, all stirred up into a sort of joyful, momentous groove that sounds as if the band just can not stop playing–simply because it feels so good.

The ability to put across “The Heartaches Are Free,” a dead center Hank Sr. Drifting Cowboys-style lament, replete with tense, vintage Williams phrasing, and not sound like a waxwork-phony speaks to the intense purity of DWIGHT’s vision, just as the flashes of Elvis influence on “A World of Blue” hit the ear, not as playful homage but as perfectly natural outgrowth of American music. DWIGHT also looks far beyond country’s established heritage and boundaries with the chugging reggae rhythm and dub break of “For Love’s Sake”; his straight, sweet reading of Cheap Trick’s “I Want You To Want Me,” provides the opportunity to extend both his own appeal and, in the process, country music as a whole.

One of DWIGHT’s finest past historical moments–wooing legendary Bakersfield hit-maker Buck Owens out of a decade of retirement to duet with him on DWIGHT’s 1988 #1 hit “Streets Of Bakersfield”–continues to pay off, with Owens contributing his magnificently stylized vocals and considerable songwriting skills: “The Sad Side of Town,” a classic weeper co-written by DWIGHT and Buck and performed with the veteran star, is a bittersweet gem; Owens himself comes up with his own tradition-based twist, taking his “I Was There” (”when love crashed and burned”) loosely from the old gospel “Were You There?” (”when they crucified my Lord?”) and fashioning an atmospheric, deceptively simple piece of country emotioneering. The Hall of Famer also joins DWIGHT for the giddy Tex-Mex romp “Alright, I’m Wrong,” with legendary norte patriarch Flaco Jimenez sweetly momentous accordion urging the tune along. This marks the first time since “Streets Of Bakersfield” that DWIGHT, Buck and Flaco have performed together.

Of writing “The Sad Side Of Town” with Buck, DWIGHT recalls: “Buck and I were together for the millennium New Year’s show in Bakersfield and we were sitting there in the afternoon lamenting the fact that we had never written a song together. I said, ‘Buck if you’ve got an idea for something, I’m wide open’ and he began to play the opening of a melody. The thought was there and when he started to play it, I realized it was the song we had to write together. A couple of months later, I went back up there and we got together and resurrected it. I said, ‘Remember New Year’s Eve, that melody&Mac250; and he played the idea he’d had and I said, “I’ve got a title I think would work for this and we began writing the first verse and came up with the general idea for the song. And from there it just sort of wrote itself. A couple of months later, we recorded the song “The Sad Side Of Town.” DWIGHT adds: “The thing I’m proudest of is that it reminded me–the melodic idea–immediately, of a Buck Owens song in the classic form from around 1966. I’m proud to have written something like that with Buck, and for him to come down to the studio and sing the harmony on it with me was an added bonus. This was a very special opportunity to make music with Buck Owens again in the 21st century.”

DWIGHT’s unstoppable drive rates him as one of the most encouraging forces in his chosen field, and TOMORROW’S SOUNDS TODAY is quite possibly his finest album to date. DWIGHT’s gift for updating and restructuring established forms into vibrant new styles only highlights both this singular performer’s natural gift and the crucial role he plays in country music–not as mere tradition bearer, but as an aggressive artist whose ongoing career is one of the very few that’s not just continually evolving but, more importantly, ascending to new heights.

Tammy Wynette
May 5, 1942 - April 6, 1998

Biography

The First lady of Country Music has been on a musical campaign of presidential proportions in the 1990’s.

Nashville superstar Tammy Wynette scored the biggest hit of her life when she teamed up with the British pop act The KLF in 1992 to create the international smash “Justified & Ancient.” Her 1993 Honky Tonk Angels trio album with Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn was a landmark in the annals of country music. Now, on Without Walls, Tammy reaches higher than ever before.

This time, the living legend joins artists whose styles range all over the musical spectrum: Sting, Wynonna, Elton John, Smokey Robinson, Joe Diffie, Lyle Lovett, Cliff Richard and Aaron Neville all lend their voices to this extraordinary project. Each was hand-picked by Tammy for the same reason.

“I’m a fan,” Tammy explains. “I listen to all kinds of music, all the time. George (Richey, her husband) and I have the radio on at home constantly. And he plays it so loud you can hear it from one end to the other.”

“I began this project more than a year ago by writing to all of the people who are on this album. And I really wanted to do it right, by being with each one when we recorded. The only two tracks where we couldn’t work out the schedules and wound up recording on separate days were Smokey Robinson’s and Cliff Richard’s.”

“The rest of us had a ball together, Elton in Atlanta and the rest of them here in Nashville with me. Everybody had a good time and it turned out great. They’re all excellent singers. This is such an exciting project for me. Good Lord, I never dreamed that something like this would ever happen in my life.”

Tammy has never been one to rest on her laurels. As the decade began, she’s already earned virtually every accolade her industry had to bestow, including two Grammys, 16 BMI songwriting honors and three Country Music Association awards. Her compelling life story has been fashioned into a hit TV movie and a hit autobiography, both titled after her signature song “Stand By Your Man”. By 1989 she’d amassed 39 top 10 hits, 20 No. 1 singles, 11 No. 1 albums and more than 30 million in record sales. Dubbed “The First Lady” because she was the first female country act to have a million-selling album, Tammy Wynette was far from
finished as she neared her Silver Anniversary as an Epic Records star.

She kicked off the ’90s by starring in a music video directed by her old friend Burt Reynolds, “Let’s Call It a Day Today.” Country superstar Randy Travis enlisted Tammy for his Heroes and Friends album, launching the series of recent vocal collaborations that reaches its peak with Tammy’s new Without Walls collection. She marked her 25th anniversary as a record maker with the top-selling 1991 retrospective Best Loved Hits.

That June during Nashville’s famed Fan Fair celebration, Tammy Wynette was stunned on national television when Merle Haggard presented her with the TNN/Music City News Living Legend Award.

“I didn’t have any idea, it was really a shock. And a thrill. I can remember that night so well. Merle was laughing and I was crying.”

Less than a year later she had the No. 1 single on the planet when “Justified & Ancient” topped the charts in 18 nations. While the cryptic KLF dancers writhed below, Tammy sang atop a Mayan pyramid in the song’s equally notable video.

gpntw.jpg (30292 bytes)”I did it for the right reasons,” she recalls. “I did it for fun. I did it because it was something different and because I really like those guys. Besides, my twin granddaughters loved to dance around to ‘Mu-Mu Land.’ They said ‘Meemaw, Meemaw, sing Mu-Mu Land!’ and it’s all they wanted to hear. And now I have 18 No. 1 records on that. Can you believe it? I did a show with the KLF and they dressed up as 12-foot ice cream cones, and I had to stand between them. Next, they say they are going to have the Red Army Chorus with them singing ‘Que Sera, Sera.’ They are so crazy.”

In 1993 Tammy became the subject of the lavish boxed-set of commemorative CDs Tears of Fire as well as the centerpiece of the two-hour all-star CBS-TV special The Women of Country. Mary Chapin Carpenter, Emmylou Harris, Trisha Yearwood, Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan, Tanya Tucker and Kathy Mattea were among the dozens who paid homage to the country queen. In 1994 the program became a PBS special and a home video. “I loved that show; I thought it was so
sweet. And I remember the girls were so wonderful to me. I love them all so much.”

That fall, Tammy joined Dolly and Loretta on Honky Tonk Angels. She reports that the studio sessions were hilarious, full of naughty jokes, gossip and high times. Producer Steve Buckingham let the tape run constantly as the three women who changed the face of country music swapped songs and gags.
“That was the neatest thing,” Tammy recalls. “Loretta and I went in there together every day. We wound up with 22 songs, enough for two albums. That old Baptist harmony never fails you.”

It was Tammy Wynette’s distinctive delivery that was the lead voice on the charismatic trio’s single release “Silver Threads and Golden Needles,” which the women premiered to a standing ovation on the 1993 CMA Awards Show. Chet Atkins, Marty Stuart, Rodney Crowell, Grandpa Jones, Ronnie Milsap, Carl Perkins, Bill Monroe and Confederate Railroad were among the men who lined up for cameo appearances in the tune’s humorous hit video.

But tragedy struck just as she was enjoying this latest show-business triumph. The music world held its breath in January of this year while Tammy fought for her life in a Nashville hospital. A recurring bile duct infection became virulent, poisoning her entire system and putting her in critical condition for nearly a week.

“I have heard people talking about having out-of -body experiences. I didn’t have that, but I

do know that I was just that far from being dead. I remember seeing all my girls standing at the foot of my bed with tears in their eyes and thinking, ‘That is a pretty picture.’ I had no pain. I wasn’t scared. It was all just very peaceful. I felt like I was floating somewhere. Maybe this is God’s way of telling me that death ain’t no big deal.”

Tammy pulled through, and the experience left a lasting legacy; After more than 30 years as a smoker, she has quit.

“I couldn’t have them in the hospital. And when I came home I simply didn’t want one. God took away my craving for cigarettes, I guess. And my voice has gotten so much stronger. I always said that I’m not the best singer in the world, just the loudest. Well now I’m louder than ever.”

She went back to work almost immediately. Her duet with Elton John appears on his new album Duets. Her guest-starring role with country star K.T. Oslin recently aired on TV’s hit series Evening Shade. In April she reunited in the studio with ex-husband and ex-duet partner George Jones to re-record their immortal harmony classic “Golden Ring” for his upcoming Unplugged album.

During the same month, Tammy appeared as a special guest along with Whitney Houston, Luciano Pavarotti, Elton John, Branford Marsalis, James Taylor and Aaron Neville at Sting’s annual Rainforest Foundation Benefit at Carnegie Hall. The affection afforded Tammy by her peers and fans was illustrated by Rolling Stone Magazine’s conclusion that “Tammy received the night’s most thunderous applause” and James Taylor’s public remarks that it was “the lifelong dream of all of the
performers to share a stage with Tammy Wynette.” She resumed touring this spring and performed a series of summer concerts at the world famous Opryland U.S.A. theme park in Nashville.

Tammy Wynette passed away in her sleep on Monday, April 6, 1998. She will be greatly missed by fans around the world.

Clarence Eugene (”Hank”) Snow was born in the sleepy fishing village of Brooklyn, Queens County, on Nova Scotia’s beautiful South Shore, on May 9th 1914. His parents divorced when he was eight years old and he was forced to stay with his grandparents. He was not allowed to visit his mother, so he regularly sneaked out at night and walked the railroad tracks to Liverpool where his mother was living. Not willing to return to his grandparents, who would often beat him, he would sometimes seek shelter in Liverpool’s railway station.

Both his parents had musical talent and Hank picked up his basic guitar-playing skills from his mother.

At the age of 14 he left to work as a deck-hand on fishing schooners based out of Lunenburg. With his first earned income he bought his first guitar, a T. Eaton Special for $5.95. He entertained friends and neighbors and quickly developed excellent skills as a musician and entertainer at kitchen parties and neighborhood picnics.

His professional career started at CHNS Radio in Halifax in 1934. Throughout the 30s and 40s he toured the Maritimes and Western Canada playing at county fairs and local radio stations.

On September 2nd 1935 Hank Snow married Minnie Aalders, who stayed with Hank through all the hard, traveling years and beyond, until today. Hank and Minnie had one son together, Jimmie Rodgers Snow, who also traveled with them and eventually joined Hank on stage on numerous occasions.

In 1936 he made his first recording in Montreal with RCA Victor’s Bluebird lable and signed a contract that would last 47 years, the longest continuous contract in the history of the recording industry.

The man known as Hank, the singing Ranger, made his way down South and had his first appearance at WWVA Jamboree in 1945. Here he acquired his trained horse Shawnee, whose tricks and daredevil stunts with Hank endeared them to audiences.

Ernest Tubb invited Hank to the Grand Ole Opry on January 7, 1950. He performed at the Opry for 46 years. His first few appearances received only luke-warm appreciation, until he wrote and recorded the song “I’m Movin’ On”, which became the top country song of 1950 and still holds the country music record for number of consecutive weeks at the number one chart position. This enabled him to finally buy the family’s first home, the Rainbow Ranch, where Minnie still lives today, just outside of Nashville.

In 1954 another top country song of the year followed, Hank’s “I Don’t Hurt Any More”.

In the early fifties Hank discovered a young singer, in his mind a country singer, who just emphasized the beat a little more. The young talent’s name was Elvis Presley, and Hank took him on as an opening act, and later invited him to the Grand Ole Opry and introduced him to Colonel Parker who eventually became Elvis’ manager.

Hank Snow sold over 70 million records in his career that spanned 78’s, 45’s, extended 45’s, LP’s, 8-tracks, cassettes and compact discs.

Throughout his life he recorded over 100 LPs, including everything from hit parade material to gospel, train songs, instrumentals ( alone and with Chet Atkins ), tributes to Jimmie Rodgers and the Sons of the Pioneers, and recitations of Robert Service poems. He has always kept a warm spot in his heart for Nova Scotia, and he paid homage with his album “My Nova Scotia Home”. He also recorded “Squid Jiggin’ Ground” in honor of the fishermen he sailed with out of Lunenburg in his early youth.

His recordings were released in England, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and elsewhere.

He entertained troops during the Korean and Vietnam wars as well as in Germany and Norway.

Because he never forgot his troubled childhood he established the Hank Snow Foundation for abused children. He supported many foster children from around the world. He also dedicated a wonderful children’s playground on the site of his parents former home in Brooklyn, Nova Scotia.

At one time Hank operated a music school in Nashville, a publishing house in New York and owned two radio stations.

He has been elected to eight different Halls of Fame, including the Country Music Hall of Fame of the United States of America (1979), The Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Canadian Country Music Hall of fame and the Nova Scotia Music Hall of Fame. He also was voted Canada’s top country performer ten times.

When he was sixty-one, he had the hit song “Hello Love” and thus holds the record of being the oldest country performer ever to have a number one hit.

Prime Minister Trudeau and President Carter, as well as a number of state Governors and Premier Buchanan honored Mr. Snow at various times. In May 1994 he received an honourary doctorate from St. Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

His biography, “The Hank Snow Story,” is a personal record of the difficulties of his early years, his rise to success and his participation in a number of remarkable events.

Visit the Hank Snow Website

 

Freddy Fender is the greatest and most significant singer, writer and musician in Mexican American musical history. After nearly five decades of giving his music to the world, millions of Tejano music fans are still happy to know he continues to record, appear on television, and be written about in magazines in at least five different languages. There’s a lot to write about Freddy and it wouldn’t be so surprising if one day soon a producer like Robert Redford called him and said, “Hey, Freddy … would you mind if we’d do a movie about your Life?”

He was born to a poor but romantic family who lived in San Benito, Texas, a tiny town in the Rio Grande Valley. Freddy was given the birth name of Baldemar Huerta but at various stages in his early musical development, he was known as El Be- Bop Kid (1957), Freddy Fender (1958), Eddie Medina (1961), and Scotty Wayne (1%2) before he settled on the stage name, Freddy Fender.

Although Freddy’s music speaks for itself, one cannot write about him without learning about some of the apogees and perigees of his life, for it is those collective extremes that give him his flair for living life to its fullest, on stage and off.

While still a child, Freddy was a farm laborer hut he had already made his first appearance on radio, singing a current hit “Paloma Querida” on KGBT in Harlingen, Texas. He also won a tub of food, worth about $10, as first prize in an amateur talent contest at the Grand Theater in Harlingen. It was, however, the long hours he spent working with his family and with fellow workers in the fields that gave him the time he needed to think and dream about music, and life beyond the border. Often it was the blues music he heard sung by black workers that helped him get through the days and nights. To this day, Freddy recalls that some of those workers were so great they should have been on stage at Radio City Music Hall in New York instead of in fields in Michigan.

At the age of 16, he traded school for a three year stint in the Marines, where he was frequently found having fun and playing guitar in the barracks. He soon returned to San Benito and by the late 1950s, his music was contagious to many who frequented his performances. His first two recordings were done during this era. He wrote Ay Amor (Holy One) in 1955 which was released by Falcon Records on the flip side of “No Seas Cruel” (Don’t Be Cruel) in the Spring of 1957. These recordings were distributed by Peerless Records in McAllen, Texas, Mexico, Central America and South America and were credited with initiating a wonderful cultural change in music. “No Seas Cruel” went to number #1 in Mexico and South America. Hispanic rock and roll was born, and Freddy Fender was its proud father.

Freddy’s got a great sense of humor, but behind his laughter is a strong intellect combined with the insight of a poet and the wisdom of someone who has known life inside castles, as well as life inside prison. Although today one would not even be slapped on the wrist for having a few joints in their possession, it was on a Friday the thirteenth in 1960 that Freddy and his bass player were arrested in Baton Rouge for just that. They wound up being guests of the State of Louisiana at Angola State Penitentiary. After serving three years and cutting at least three songs for Goldband Records while an inmate, Freddy was released by then-Governor of Louisiana, Jimmie Davis. Two of the songs he recorded while Angola’s guest were “My Train of Love” and “Bye Bye Little Angel.”

Many Latin and Spanish artists followed Freddy’s initiation of Hispanic Rock and Roll. In 1961, well known Mexican actor, comedian and singer, Tin Tan, used two of Freddy’s songs from his rock and roll album, “Eddie con Los Shades” in two motion pictures. The songs were “No Esta Aqui” and “Acapulco Rock”. These recordings are now valuable collector’s items and are easily identified by the cover which is a silhouetted illustration of comic book characters Archie and Veronica, done by Paco Betancourt, owner of Ideal Records in San Benito. Not so surprisingly, the songs were released in San Benito on Ideal Records, and on Doniinañte Records which were located in Matamoros and Monteitrey, Mexico.

As his parole had called for him to not he involved with the music industry for a while, Freddy had dutifully returned to San Bemto where he went back to school and became a sociology major. Wake up from your siestas, Amigos. There was no way that Freddy would or could stay away from music. Music is in Freddy’s soul and in the air that he breathes.

It was in 1974 while Freddy was living in Corpus Christi, Texas that he was introduced to Huey P. Meaux, who ran the Houston-based Crazy Cajun label. Huey not only loved Freddy’s music, he also knew that Freddy’s music was meant for the world. Meaux insisted that Freddy record “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” and before long, it stated to gain regional attention. ABC/Dot licensed the song and within a few months it jumped to Number #1 on both the Country and Pop charts. Freddy’s life had a whole new meaning by the time it was certified Gold.

His follow up single “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights”, was originally recorded for Imperial Records, but released on ABC/Dot. It shot to the top of the Country charts and wound up in the top ten on the Pop charts. It also went Gold.

By the end of 1975, Freddy had two more singles on the Country Top 10. One was released by ABC/Dot, the other on GRT, the same record company that licensed Meaux productions. Interestingly enough, they entered the Country charts in the reverse order to their impact on the Pop charts.

His all-time favorite, “Since I Met You, Baby” was Freddy’s third cross-over single. As if landing in Country and Pop charts wasn’t enough, Freddy penned “Secret Love” which was recorded and made a number #1 hit by America’s-girl-next-door, Doris Day.

Also in 1975, Freddy was named “Most Promising Male Vocalist” by the Academy of Country Music. The Country Music Association named “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” its Single of the Year. Between 1975 and 1977, he had nine songs in the top 10 country charts. This Freddy Fender era resulted in endless appearances on television, international tours, and writers from Rolling Stone chasing the rise-and-fall- and-rise-again saga of the migrant worker whose career had been submarined by a low-rent marijuana conviction.

In the 1980’s, times were good, and times were not-so-good, but times were always exciting for Freddy. In 1988, Robert Redford asked Freddy to accept the co- starring role of the Mayor in The Milagro Beanfield War. Freddy said, “yes.” His popularity was once again on the road to big-time.

A year later, music industry executives put together a dream project and asked if Freddy wanted to be part of the dream team they wanted to develop. It involved teaming up with three other Texas roots legends to form the Texas Tornados. Augie Meyers, Doug Sahm, and Flaco Jimenez. Again, Freddy said, “yes.” His popularity continued to increase.

The Texas Tornados released three albums between 1990 and 1992 for Reprise Records. “Texas Tornados,” “Zone Of Our Town,” and “Hangin’ on by a Thread.” Reprise Mexico also released “Texas Tornados” in South America. Critics love the Texas Tornados for their classic mix of country, rock and Tejano! Presidential performances, European tours, Gramnües, music videos, and soundtracks followed release of their Reprise records. Today, the Texas Tornados are an on-again-off-again project but there is and always will be only one Freddy Fender.

It is important to the history of Tejano music that all aspects of Freddy’s career are recognized and respected. He is the most unique pioneer of all Tex Mex music which sprouted in Texas and spread to the rest of the world.

Casey Monahan, former music critic and director of the Texas Music Office in Austin, has this to say about Freddy, “Texas has been blessed with a handful of singular voices that define the sound of our state and the pinnacle of artistic expression. Freddy is in the company of a very few that includes Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison and Buddy Holly.”

Freddy Fender band keyboardist Conrad Askland said in an interview the answer Freddy gave when he asked him what life was all about - Freddy replied: “I know two things: I know theres a God, and I know I ain’t him.”

Freddy is one of the most talented artists God ever created. He is like a Renoir except that the world is his canvas and his pen is his brush. His presence is as powerful as the force of two trains colliding at full speed. A movie producer might look at Freddy’s life and see that it includes everything from romance and danger to artistic revelation and songs that initiated a cultural change in music. Yet when asked to sum up his own career, Freddy might laugh as only he can and say, “Life is just a matter of what kind of day you are having. My life is my life and I am who I am. I like keeping the tortillas hot.”

Here is a list widely accepted as “Legends” of country music. They forged the path before a path existed. Long live country music!
Anderson, Lynn

Arnold, Eddy

Barbara Mandrell

Chris LeDoux 1948-2005 star
Chris LeDoux is described by those who knew him as a talented, kind man. From all accounts the world is a sadder place with the loss of this singer, song writer and former rodeo champion.

Conley, Earl Thomas star

Conway Twitty

Crystal Gayle

George Jones

Glen Campbell

Hank Williams

Johnny Cash

Loretta Lynn

Merle Haggard

Patsy Cline star

Tammy Wynette star

Waylon Jennings

Willie Nelson

Young, Faron

 

George Glenn Jones is one of the last of his breed: pure country singers. He is a link to a bygone age, a time when the likes of Roy Acuff, Lefty Frizzell and Hank Williams were kings of the jukebox, when family values and the neighborhood church were important along with the honky-tonk down the street. Well-respected within the Country Music community, George has been listed as the favorite country singer by many of its top performers, most of whom he has influenced. Although he is one of the greatest honky-tonk singers, he has often been victimized by its way of life.

He was born September 12, 1931 in Saratoga, Texas, in a log cabin in an area known as the Big Thicket. This was a hard area to live in and it was filled with lumber camps and oil fields. George was the eighth child born to a heavy-drinking pipefitter (George Washington Jones) and his wife (Clara). His father played guitar and his mother played the piano; they encouraged their son to take an interest in music and they bought him a guitar when he was just nine years old. It wasn’t long before George learned how to play it well and he began to play at various local and church functions. A few years later, the family moved to Beaumont where he played guitar in the streets for tips.

In 1947, George was hired to play in the band of Eddie and Pearl at Beaumont’s Playground. This eventually led to his own radio show where a co-worker nicknamed him “the possum” due to his supposed similarity to the animal. He married his first wife, Dorothy, at the age of 18, but the couple was separated with one year. George joined the U.S. Marines in 1950 and he performed while he was stationed in Southern California. After returning home from Korea in late 1953, George began playing at dances and in clubs all over Southeast Texas. His style caught the attention of a Houston record executive, H.W. “Pappy” Dailey, who helped to prepare the 24-year-old singer for stardom - which didn’t take very long. He married his second wife, Shirley, in 1954.

George Jones’ first country hit came in 1955 with “Why Baby Why.” This was followed by a brief period as a rockabilly performer, a time that George is not fond of remembering. Even though he was asked to perform on the Grand Ole Opry in 1956, he remained in Texas instead of making Nashville his home. That same year, he had several hits, including “Just One More” and “Yearning,” a duet with Jeanette Hicks. The year 1957 included such hits as “Color of the Blues” and “Treasure of Love.” After leaving Starday for Mercury records in 1959, George had a big hit with “White Lightning,” written by his friend J.P. Richardson (the Big Bopper), followed by “Who Shot Sam” later in the year.

The decade of the 1960’s was filled with George Jones hits, both on United Artists and Musicor Records. These hits included such songs as “The Window Up Above” (1960), “Tender Years” (1961), “She Thinks I Still Care” (1962), “We Must Have Been Out Of Our Minds” (1963), “The Race Is On” (1964), “Love Bug” (1965), “I’m a People” (1966), and “Walk Through This World With Me” (1967), “When the Grass Grows Over Me” (1968), and “I’ll Share My World With You” (1969). Jones’ second marriage ended in 1968. It wasn’t long before he met Tammy Wynette, whom he married the same year. In 1969, George joined the Grand Ole Opry.

In 1970, Jones’ relationship with Pappy Dailey was ended and he began working with Tammy’s producer, Billy Sherrill, at Epic Records. Despite the differences in the two producers (Sherrill used symphonic strings and other pop instruments), they were able to work successfully together. Notable hits from early 1970’s were “Take Me,” with Tammy (1971); “We Can Make It” and “The Ceremony,” with Tammy (1972); “Once You’ve Had the Best” (1973); and “The Grand Tour” (1974). Contrary to the song they had released in 1973, “We’re Gonna Hold On,” George and Tammy were headed for divorce.

This began a dark period in George’s life. His outrageous behavior, the result of heavy drinking and an addiction to cocaine included the alleged beating of his wife, shooting at friends, and missing concerts. It seemed as if he was trying to live out his honky-tonk songs. The couple’s lives became a Nashville soap opera filled with separations and reconcilliations, culminating in 1975 when the two were divorced. It was quite ironic that George and Tammy continued to record together, and they had hits such as “Golden Ring” in 1976. He performed that same year a Willie Nelson’s Fourth of July Picnic, thereby strengthening his fan-base, both hardcore country and younger “outlaws.” His hits during the late 1970’s included songs like “Near You,” with Tammy (1977); “Bartender’s Blues,” with James Taylor and “Maybelline,” with Johnny Paycheck (1978); and “You Can Have Her,” also with Paycheck (1979). He failed to appear at over fifty concert dates in 1979, earning the nickname “No-Show Jones” from many irate fans and tabloid writers. His doctors warned him to stop drinking and he obliged them by entering an Alabama alcoholism clinic.

George started of the decade of the 1980’s in a big way. He won a Grammy Award along with several Country Music Awards for the song “He Stopped Loving Her Today” in 1980. He followed this success with songs such as “If Drinkin’ Don’t Kill Me (Her Memory Will” and “Still Doin’ Time” (1981), and “Yesterday’s Wine,” with Merle Haggard (1982). In 1983, Jones married his fourth wife, Nancy Sepulveda, who helped him to kick his drinking and cocaine addictions. It was because of her support that he was able to close out the decade with hits like “I Always Get Lucky With You” and “We Didn’t See A Thing,” with Ray Charles (1983); “She’s My Rock” (1984); “Who’s Gonna Fill Her Shoes” (1985); “The One I Loved Back Then” (1986); “The Right Left Hand” (1987); “If I Could Bottle This Up,” with Shelby Lynne (1988); and his final hit on Epic, “One Woman Man” (1989).

The move was made to MCA in 1991 and George was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1992. Upon moving to Nashville, he resumed touring, performing at over 100 gigs each year. George’s memorable songs from the early 1990’s include “A Few Old Country Boys,” with Randy Travis (1990); “”You Couldn’t Find The Picture,” (1991); “I Don’t Need Your Rockin’ Chair,” with several artists (1992); and “Never Bit a Bullet Like This,” with Sammy Kershaw (1993). George had open-heart surgery in 1994, surviving a successful triple bypass operation at Baptist Hospital in Nashville. I Lived To Tell It All, George’s autobiography co-written by Tom Carter, was published in 1996, and is an honest appraisal of his life.

George Jones is much more than a consummate country singer. He is the model from which any true country artist must be made. He is the result of a life filled with heartaches, hard living and hard loving. Throughout his career, he as never forgotten his country roots, even with the advent of the “country” music of today’s crop of performers. And, despite some recent events, it appears that George Jones will continue his career well into the next millenium.

Freddy Fender passed away on October 14, 2006 at his home in Corpus Christi, Texas, surrounded by his family. He was one of the most significant voices in Mexican American musical history,

Born Baldemar G. Huerta on June 4, 1937 in the Mexican slums of San Benito, Texas, Fender’s music took him on a “rags to riches” journey from the Rio Grande Valley. Overcoming career and cultural challenges, Fender’s music has left a musical imprint on more than six decades.

Fender migrated north with his parents in the late ‘40’s to work as a farm laborer in the upper Midwest. At 16, he dropped out of school to join the Marines.

He began his music career in the ‘50’s, while still in his teens, billing himself as “El Be Bop Kid.” By ’58, he was cutting sides in Spanish, and finding success throughout Texas and Mexico. He switched styles to a more rockabilly feel, becoming Freddy Fender in ’59 and breaking the wider “gringo” market.

His major breakthrough to international audiences came in 1974 when his recording of “Before The Next Teardrop Falls,” topped both country and pop charts. He followed it with a gold record for “Wasted Days And Wasted Nights,” and another cross over smash “Since I Met You Baby.” Between 1975 and 1977, he had nine songs in the top 10 on the country charts. Fender is also credited with having written “Secret Love,” which became a number one hit for Doris Day.

Fender was named “Most Promising Male Vocalist” by the Academy of Country Music in 1975. The Country Music Association named “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” as single of the year that same year.

The beloved performer moved to yet another level in his career when he was tapped by Robert Redford to co-star in the film, “The Milagro Beanfield War.” One year later, tapped fellow musicians Augie Meyers, Doug Sahm, and Flaco Jimenez to form the “dream band” of Tex-Mex music, The Texas Tornadoes, whose popularity moved Hispanic influenced music to worldwide attention and international audiences of the caliber of the Montreaux Jazz Festival, where Fender and his companions received more than a dozen standing ovations for their high-spirited ethnic influenced music.

Fender has continued to tour as a legendary icon whose audiences have shouted their approval in a multitude of languages. In recent years, health problems slowed him, but never silenced his music.

Funeral Arrangements
“Freddy was an icon for country music and the American dream. While recording a duet of “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” with Freddy this year, it was evident that he still had the fire that burns in the belly of “true” artists. It was the first time I have ever had chill bumps in a studio. He was a champion and a warrior and now he has become my hero. Thank you my friend….save a spot in heaven for me in your angel band.” – Clay Walker, friend and fellow musician.

Visit the website of Freddy Fender’s keyboard player from 1996-2005.