The Phoenix Sound A History Of Twang And Rockabilly Music In Arizona

In 1956, a fresh-faced Sanford Clark recorded "The Fool" with guitarist Al Casey at Floyd Ramsey's small Phoenix recording studio. Written by local deejay Lee Hazlewood, the song became a top-ten Billboard hit nationwide and launched a new trailblazing era of Arizona music. Their success paved the way for other Phoenix acts and producers to chart national hits. Grammy-winning audio engineer Jack Miller started out in Ramsey's studio, and Hazlewood produced rock hall of famer Duane Eddy's debut album, Have "Twangy" Guitar, Will Travel. These early artists pioneered a sound that inspired Arizona's best musicians from Waylon Jennings and Buck Owens to Stevie Nicks and Linda Ronstadt. Join former radio and broadcast personality Jim West for the story and soundtrack to the early days of music in the Valley of the Sun.

In the 1950s, country music merged with the rising new fad called ""rock and roll"" to form what would become known as ""Rockabilly."" In short, Rockabilly was fast paced, guitar and bass driven ditties with thundering rhythms. The songs were often less than memorable made up with a conglomeration of silly lyrics and phrases like ""bop,""""shake,""""mama,"" and""go cat!"" Cars, especially Cadillacs, and colors, pink and black, were prevalent in many of the songs. Songs like ""Oobie Doobie,"" ""Ubangi Stomp,"" ""Be Boppin' Baby,"" and ""Rockin' In the Congo"" were common record chart contenders. Many up and coming country crooners would go on to achieve widespread acclaim as names like Presley, Holly and Orbison conquered radio station playlists. They, among others, would become R&R legends. Others like Jack Scott, Boyd Bennett, and Dale Hawkins, found success to a lesser degree in the new genre. It's many of these ""lesser knowns"" that Hepcats & Rockabilly Boys explores. Here are some of their stories...

A sharp examination of Arizona by a nationally acclaimed writer, Rim to River follows Tom Zoellner on a 790-mile walk across his home state as he explores key elements of Arizona culture, politics, and landscapes. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in learning more about a vibrant and baffling place.

James and Annetta White opened the Broken Spoke in 1964, then a mile south of the Austin city limits, under a massive live oak, and beside what would eventually become South Lamar Boulevard. White built the place himself, beginning construction on the day he received his honorable discharge from the US Army. And for more than fifty years, the Broken Spoke has served up, in the words of White’s well-worn opening speech, “. . . cold beer, good whiskey, the best chicken fried steak in town . . . and good country music.” White paid thirty-two dollars to his first opening act, D. G. Burrow and the Western Melodies, back in 1964. Since then, the stage at the Spoke has hosted the likes of Bob Wills, Dolly Parton, Ernest Tubb, Ray Price, Marcia Ball, Pauline Reese, Roy Acuff, Kris Kristofferson, George Strait, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Asleep at the Wheel, and the late, great Kitty Wells. But it hasn’t always been easy; through the years, the Whites and the Spoke have withstood their share of hardship—a breast cancer diagnosis, heart trouble, the building’s leaky roof, and a tour bus driven through its back wall. Today the original rustic, barn-style building, surrounded by sleek, high-rise apartment buildings, still sits on South Lamar, a tribute and remembrance to an Austin that has almost vanished. Housing fifty years of country music memorabilia and about a thousand lifetimes of memories at the Broken Spoke, the Whites still honor a promise made to Ernest Tubb years ago: they’re “keepin’ it country.”

Imagine a radio station so successful that an entire nationwide music industry admired, celebrated and honored it as a "benchmark" of excellence for all other broadcasters to emulate. Imagine a radio station that countless air personalities set career goals to work at and never wanted to leave? A station so intimate that dedicated listeners become emotional with memories of their favorite air talent making a difference in their lives and made to feel like "family." An award-winning station committed to its community. A ratings juggernaut that was number one for over a decade. And a place where aspiring country singers who became BIG stars knew they had "made it" when their music was added to its playlist! KNIX-FM in Phoenix, Arizona is that station. Country music Hall of Famer BUCK OWENS purchased the station in 1968 and owned it for nearly 31 years. So many great stories, so many lasting memories. Former Air talent and Program Director R.J. Curtis once said, "Getting a job at KNIX was like winning a Rhodes scholarship, no matter where you were after that you could arguably say that you worked at the finest Country radio station in America."

In the early days of recording in Arizona. Phoenix was isolated from National record distribution. Local musicians that wanted to record, had to drive out to the West Coast. In the mid-1950's this all changed when Floyd Ramsey set up Audio-Recorders of Arizona in Phoenix., followed by Lee Hazlewood's early VIV studio which he sold to Loy Clingman and Buddy Wheeler, from which emanated many strong Chart contenders, some made by Donnie Owens that made the National charts. Later Loy Clingman (Who was also a Schoolteacher), recorded many groups on his 'Indie' labels from his 'Garage 'studio, operated out of his house. Due to the low pressing numbers and popularity of these records, they are highly sort after by record collectors and one day, many will reach the same 'price range' of ancient curios. The 'Teen Years' heralded in the 'Pop Music' era and this was augmented by local Country music which mutated into a new form of music known as 'Rockabilly'. Within this environment many local musicians rose to National and International fame, such as Duane Eddy, Sanford Clark and Lee Hazlewood. This book is an attempt to explain the process and evolution of recording and the work of those who were directly involved in putting Arizona 'on the map', the Recording Engineers, Singers, Musicians, Record Producers and Composers.

The inspiration for the Play It Loud exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art "Every guitar player will want to read this book twice. And even the casual music fan will find a thrilling narrative that weaves together cultural history, musical history, race, politics, business case studies, advertising, and technological discovery." —Daniel Levitin, Wall Street Journal For generations the electric guitar has been an international symbol of freedom, danger, rebellion, and hedonism. In Play It Loud, veteran music journalists Brad Tolinski and Alan di Perna bring the history of this iconic instrument to roaring life. It's a story of inventors and iconoclasts, of scam artists, prodigies, and mythologizers as varied and original as the instruments they spawned. Play It Loud uses twelve landmark guitars—each of them artistic milestones in their own right—to illustrate the conflict and passion the instruments have inspired. It introduces Leo Fender, a man who couldn't play a note but whose innovations helped transform the guitar into the explosive sound machine it is today. Some of the most significant social movements of the twentieth century are indebted to the guitar: It was an essential element in the fight for racial equality in the entertainment industry; a mirror to the rise of the teenager as social force; a linchpin of punk's sound and ethos. And today the guitar has come full circle, with contemporary titans such as Jack White of The White Stripes, Annie Clark (aka St. Vincent), and Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys bringing some of the earliest electric guitar forms back to the limelight. Featuring interviews with Les Paul, Keith Richards, Carlos Santana, Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, and dozens more players and creators, Play It Loud is the story of how a band of innovators transformed an idea into a revolution.

Irwin Chusid profiles a number of "outsider" musicians - those who started as "outside" and eventually came "in" when the listening public caught up with their radical ideas. Included are The Shaggs, Tiny Tim, Syd Barrett, Joe Meek, Captain Beefheart, The Cherry Sisters, Daniel Johnston, Harry Partch, Wesley Wilis, and others.

A concise yet comprehensive account of the origins and evolution of rock music, emphasizing its interaction with social change and cultural trends. The narrative begins with ``the birth of the blues'' and proceeds to discuss the major (and mention the minor) performers and to identify the significant styles. These include Fifties rockabilly, folk/protest, the British Invasion, acid rock, punk/New Wave, and Eighties revivalism. Using a lively, anecdotal approach and pertinent quotes, the author examines the appropriate political, economic, technological, or psychological context of each topic, e.g., the relationship between Dylan's music and JFK's New Frontier. A primary focus throughout is on the contributions of blacks and the role of racism. Paul Feehan, Univ. of Miami Lib., Coral Gables, Fla. - Library Journal.

Reviews and rates the best recordings of country artists and groups, provides biographies of the artists, and charts the evolution of country music