From: "Dik de Heer" Date: Mon Aug 12, 2002 1:16 am Subject: Born To Be With You : Buck Owens BUCK OWENS (By Shaun Mather) Born Alvis Edgar Owens, 12 August 1929, Sherman, Texas So good they named the town after him. Not really, cut in country music terms they could have changed it to Buckersfield. Merlesville would have been too much to ask for. Buck Owens and Merle Haggard are two musical legends who both made their living from the hot California town, Bakersfield, playing in a hard electric honky tonk style that gave more than it borrowed. Whilst both men were influenced by Tommy Collins, it was their own unique styles that saw them make their names. Buck was always going to be in music, working on radio and playing local gigs. His first proper band was as lead singer and rhythm guitarist for Bill Woods & the Orange Blossom Playboys, before he formed his own band, the Schoolhouse Playboys. He got some session work for Capitol Records, playing on Tommy Collins' 1954 hit, "You Better Not Do That." Over the next 4 or 5 years producer Ken Nelson used him on sessions by the likes of Faron Young, Gene Vincent, Wanda Jackson and Tommy Sands. He made his first solo recordings at the local Bakersfield studio Lu-Tal, run by his soon to be life long friend Lewis Talley in 1956, cutting a handful of songs for the independent label, Pep. They were mostly country but he did two rockabilly sides including Hot Dog under the name Corky Jones. He became acquainted with budding songwriter Harlan Howard and they started collaborating with Buck writing the music and Harlan writing the lyrics. They formed the publishing company Blue Book Music. Buck's big break finally came in 1957 when Nelson signed him to Capitol Records but the early results were poor. Just as he was on the brink of throwing the towel in, in the fall of 1958, he was allowed to use a steel guitar and a fiddle for the first time. "Second Fiddle" was released as a single and became a surprise hit, climbing to number 24 on the country charts. Just as importantly, around this time he found the guitarist and soul-mate who would be instrumental in his career, Don Rich. The follow-up to Second Fiddle, Under Your Spell Again went to number four, begining a streak of Top Ten singles that ran more of less uninterrupted into the '70s. The sound was now full-blooded honky tonk with Rich's Telecaster giving the sound a refreshing twang which Joe Public ate up. The band became the Buckaroos and were the most recognisable in country since the Tennessee Two began twitching with JC. Major hits through the '60s included Act Naturally, Love's Gonna Live Here, My Heart Skips a Beat, Together Again, I Don't Care (Just as Long as You Love Me), I've Got a Tiger by the Tail, Waitin' in Your Welfare Line and Before You Go. These are great honky tonk songs but I'm not so keen on the stuff he moved towards like, I Wouldn't Live in New York City (If They Gave Me the Whole Dang Town) or Made In Japan. His long-term image had the shine taken off it a bit with his hosting of Hee Haw which has given him more of a jokey image than his classics deserved. I hope his tombstone remembers him more for I Don't Care than for his Hee Haw years. Tragedy struck in July 1974 when Rich was killed in a motorcycle crash, sending Buck into a deep depression. He lost interest and went into semi-retirement, although he continued to tape Hee Haw until 1986. He came back with a bang in the mid-80s courtesy of Dwight Yoakam, a high profile fan who joined him for a re-recording of Buck's 1972 song Streets of Bakersfield. They performed it on a CBS television special and the single went all the way to number one. Rejuvenated he cut a new album, Hot Dog which became a moderate success. Recommended listening: Young Buck - Country Music Foundation. The Buck Owens Collection (1959-1990) - Rhino 3CDs. The early albums being reissued by Sundazed. Official website: http://www.buckowens.com