Buck Owens and JBL

[Steve Gonzales]

Counrty music and the world lost a great one today, Buck Owens passed away. I am a native of Bakersfield and admired him for his contributions to the city and as a compassionate and charitable human. I have a story about Buck I'd thought to pass along. When he built Buck Owens Studios here in Bakersfield, he hired my longtime friend, Mr. Jack Sproul to procure and install the equipment. Jack was the only JBL professional dealer in Bakersfield and Buck insisted on the best. JBL 4311wxa's were used throughout the entire complex. One other note: Recently, there was an article in the newspaper brought to my attention by my dear sweet Mom, she has known that I've been crazy for JBL's since I was about 13, I'm 43 now and that torch has long been passed to my wonderful wife. The article was concerning a local musical instrument/electronics repair guru and it included his comments about being Buck's 'go to' guy locally. He said Buck had an old Fender that he loved and that it has these orange JBL's in it and that he'd only ever seen that one pair in all his years. R.I.P. Buck Owens (1929-2006)

I imagine it was a pair like this:

[jerryjg]

Nice post Steve..great story.Buck was a legend and if you are a serious musician, then you were influenced by Buck-period! Beatles did a cover of "Act naturally" and Dwight Yokum covered "Streets of Bakersfield"-Bucks masterpiece.Of course, i grew up with "Hee Haw", and his classic Red white and Blue guitar(still available as a reissue). Buck Owens had a "Tiger by the Tale"!

[John]

Steve I agree and would like to add that I am hoping someone will tell Buck,s story by making a movie about his life and career???:bouncy:

I grew up with Rock, but started digging Buck Owens in the early 70,s after being exposed to his music.:applaud:

[Titanium Dome]

Lots of happy bumpkin memories.

[northwood]

Lots of happy bumpkin memories.
Titanium Dome has exceeded their stored private messages quota and can not accept further messages until they clear some space.

[speakerdave]

If you like Buck Owens you may be interested in a book called Workin' Man Blues: Country Music in California, by Gerry Haslam, who was one of my writing teachers when I was in graduate school (he's not to be blamed for anything I put on this forum). Haslam grew up in that part of the state and has become well known in his own right as a regional California writer and so was able to get access to the name musicians.

His history covers more than the Bakersfield sound. It's a history of that music that arose more or less spontaneously in many places before it came under the control and direction of the big labels. He was also able to get the rights to a large number of photos.

The book was published by the University of California Press. Like a lot of perfectly good books, it may have been over-printed, so you can find it remaindered. That is, don't pay retail for it.

David

[speakerdave]

Lots of happy bumpkin memories.

This is cooked down from Haslam:

Buck Owens more or less regretted doing that show, and eventually was pretty hard on himself for his part in it, saying, "Quite frankly, I prostituted myself for money." But early in his career he had gotten a handle on the business of being a musician, and he never wanted to go back to the poverty he had experienced as a child. "The biggest driving force for me . . . I hated being poor. I hated wearing pasteboard in my shoes and twine for shoestrings, and I hated wearing hand-me-downs . . . ." He and is family were migrants in the thirties from the dust bowl to California: actually their car gave out in Mesa, Arizona, where they stayed. Buck moved to Bakersfield after his career was under way.

As a child he'd vowed when he got big he'd never be poor again. His TV costar Roy Clark saw the conflict between Buck's TV persona and the real man, and said, "He wasn't a laid-back country boy I felt comfortable being around. He was, and still is, very opinionated, very set in his ways, very dollar conscious. If he doesn't have the first dollar he ever made, he knows where it's at."

Buck Owens experienced the generosity of the country music "family" very early in his career when Billy Mize lent him a guitar so he could do a gig, and he was known for passing it forward when he saw someone deserving in need.

For me, he's not to be blamed for seeing his main chance never to be poor again, but I don't think the TV show is the thing he would want to be remembered for.

David

[Hamilton]

Cool article, David.

I thought Buck was at his best in the 60's with Don Rich and Tom Brumley. His own TV shows, with the Buckeroos, were a real treat to country music fans.

Combine Buck's talent with Merle Haggard, Wynn Stewart, Jean Shepard and Rose Maddox, California country music was some of the best back then, IMO.

[Rolf]

I have never been a fan of the music (country) he made, but I have always respected this man as a great songwriter and performer.

It is sad to think about all the good musicians that has past away in the latest years, and even sadder to think about those "gods" getting older and who will pass away sooner or later.

I fear we will only have computer dazzled "opbla bobla" in a few years.

[speakerdave]

I thought Buck was at his best in the 60's with Don Rich and Tom Brumley. His own TV shows, with the Buckeroos, were a real treat to country music fans.

Combine Buck's talent with Merle Haggard, Wynn Stewart, Jean Shepard and Rose Maddox, California country music was some of the best back then, IMO.

That was probably his peak artistic and commerical recording period. Something like fifteen consecutive releases went to the top of the charts.

David

[Hamilton]

Then the '70s came and we got orange shag carpet, lava lamps and polyester bell-bottomed country music. :mad:

[briang]

For me, he's not to be blamed for seeing his main chance never to be poor again, but I don't think the TV show is the thing he would want to be remembered for.

David

IMHO, being part of a show that made so many people very happy is no reason for shame. The show may not have be high art yet it was able to make people laugh and exposed a great many to a great man.

RIP Buck Owen.

[speakerdave]

Then the '70s came and we got orange shag carpet, lava lamps and polyester bell-bottomed country music.
Gee, that's funny! I don't remember any of that!


IMHO, being part of a show that made so many people very happy is no reason for shame. The show may not have be high art yet it was able to make people laugh and exposed a great many to a great man.

No doubt a lot of people will feel that way. The issue is that the stereotypes that country people endure, and it is among them would be found an important part of Buck's real fan base, were so much a part of the "humor" of the show. I watched the show for about three minutes once, and that was all I could take, so beyond that I can't say very much about it specifically.

David