Blake Records story

John Cook's Blake Records

A Memphis Country, Bluegrass and Gospel label

498 Lundee Street in Memphis in September 2011, where
John Cook would first operate Blake Records from.

The Cooks probably moved to 3291 Park Avenue later.

The Blake record label out of Memphis, Tennessee, has never been spotlighted in its full glory. Though the label has an extensive discography that could take years to research in detail, the label's history has been largely obscure since its demise sometimes in the 1970s.

Blake was founded by John Cook, a country and gospel musician originally from Arkansas. Similar to Arlen and Jackie Vaden from Trumann, Arkansas, Cook and his wife Margie would sing harmony gospel duets on radio and also made the occassional record during their career. John was born and raised in Cord, Arkansas, a small town about 20 miles east of Batesville and 25 miles north of Newport. He came from a musical family and started playing guitar and singing at the age of ten. He met his future wife Margie at a camp meeting and married her three months later. Margie hailed from Melbourne, Arkansas, and was also born into a musical inclined family. Together, they began to sing gospel and country duets with John on guitar as well as vocals and Margie joining him.

The Cooks began their professional career in 1947 on the radio. They soon appeared on different stations, including border town stations like XEG (Fort Worth, Texas), XERF (Del Rio, Texas), XERB (San Diego, California) and also did a couple of TV appearances. Probably their first recording was released in either late 1958 or early 1959 on the Volunteer label. A Starday custom press, it featured two of the couple's originals, "The Love I Have for You" / "Do I Have to Stay Alone" (Volunteer #737), credited to "John and Margie Cook and the White River Boys." The name of the band drew probably from the White River in Arkansas, which is located south of Cord and west of Melbourne. The label already showed a Memphis adress (1745 Lamar Avenue), so the Cooks likely lived in Memphis at that time.

Another record of John and Margie appeared in 1965 on the Dot label, coupling "River of Love" b/w "I'll Take Down Your Shingle." It was around that time that John founded Blake Records in Memphis. The initial release on the label had Hershel Jeanes, accompanied by Dotye Dee and her Rhythmaires, with "Let Me Start with You" b/w "Guess Tonight I'll Make the Bars Downtown" (Blake #2-200). Interestingly, this very first release had a completely different, simpler, label design than waht would follow. Jeanes had a second single out with Dee on Zone as well as further releases on Blake. Dee also recorded for Yesteryear Records in her own right. Billboard reported in January 1965, that Jeanes and Dee took part in a benefit show that was held at the Linden Circle Theater (then known as the "Mid-South Opry House"). Other artists included Eddie Bond, Roland Eaton, the Davis Brothers among others. Jim Wells acted as the show's emcee.

The next known release on Blake was by Roland Eaton, "Married in Church" b/w "My Baby Walks All Over Me" (Blake #2-202). Eaton was a country singer from Arkanas. Born in 1935 in Ravenden, Northeast Arkansas, he was the emcee of the Mid-South Jamboree in the 1960s, appeared with Gene Williams' Country Junction show in 1968 and also had his own show on KAIT in the late 1960s. He would go on to record for Capitol 1968-1971 but later quit the music business.

Roland Eaton during an appearance on Ernest Tubb's
Midnight Jamboree in June 1967.

However, a release date for neither Jeanes' nor Eaton's single is not known. It is Sue Simpson's "The Great Tornado" (Blake #2-216) which can be dated as 1966; all releases prior to her single have to be issued around 1965/1966. Due to missing reliable sources such as Billboard reviews or matrix numbers, it is difficult to date early releases on Blake. By 1970, John Cook was using Precision's pressing plant in Nashville, which makes it easier to estimate the release dates because of the plant's matrix code.

John and Margie also released their own recordings on Blake. The first was "Till You Come Home" / "You Were Not Around" on Blake #2-211. During the next years, they would cut another five records plus an entire album. Early Blake labels show 498 Lundee Street in Memphis as adress but soon after, the label would move to 3291 Park Avenue (as seen on Blake #2-215). Both streets are located in residential zones, thus it is likely John ran the label from their home. It is also likely he didn't operate his own studio but rented other facilities in Memphis. In any event, the business seems to have been more a custom label than a professional record business. Nevertheless, Cook had his own publishing firm "John Cook Music" (whereby most of the recorded material was published) as well as another label, Marble Hill Records, which came into existence in 1968. According to Colin Escott, Marble Hill was co-owned by Memphis singer Howard Chandler, who also had the debut release on the label.

The label's output was similar to what John and Margie were singing: gospel, bluegrass, country, and some upbeat country music thrown in from time to time. There were at least 123 45rpm records on Blake and the Cook's album. A short Billboard mention in its November 18, 1972, issue, describes Blake as "one of the mainstays in country in Memphis." The last known single is "Country Waltz" b/w "Golden Slippers" by Dusty Ray Sawyer on Blake 2-232 in 1977.

John and Margie, however, had another record out in the 1970s on the Sardis label, "I'll Take Down Your Shingle" / "River of Love" (Sardis #5 5716). The picture sleeve of the record stated it was recorded at Arthur Smith's studio in Charlotte, North Carolina, so this was possibly a re-recording of their earlier Dot single. 

John Cook died in 1983 and was buried at Memorial Hill Gardens in Memphis. By the time of his passing, the Cooks lived in West Memphis, Arkansas.

 Discography

Release dates are estimated from pressing plant matrix numbers and stampers on record labels.

2-200: Hershel Jeanes - Let Me Start with You / Guess Tonight I'll Make the Bars Downtown

2-201: John & Margie Cook - Oh God, Please Bring My Daddy Back / Cabin in the Mountain

2-202: Roland Eaton – Married in Church / My Baby Walks All Over Me

2-203: Paul Cecil – Brink of Tears / Melba from Melbourne

2-204: Wayne Raney – I'm in Love /My Beautiful Bouquet

2-205: Ray Arnold – Blues in My Heart / Ballad of Lefty Bill

2-206: Glen Chandler – Soft Lips / Glen & Margie Chandler - Heart Breaker

2-207: Don Osment – Honky Tonk & Booze / I'll Take You Back Again

2-208: Clyde & Marie Denney - Little Kentucky Mountain Home / Johnny's Breakdown

2-209: Wilma New – It’s Too Late Now / Wilma New / Mack Self – It’s Time to Cry

2-210: Bud & Joyce Murry – I'm Stuck in Jackson / Joyce Murry – I'll Keep on Loving You

2-211: John & Margie Cook - Till You Come Home / You Were Not Around

2-212: Audrey Maupin - God Calls His Children Each By Name / Precious Lord

2-213: Clyde & Mary Denney with Blue Grass Mountain Boys – What’s Wrong with You, My Darlin / Sally Is a Dandy

2-214: Lloyd Arnold - Million Miles to Nowhere / Time Enough to Die

2-215: Bud and Joyce Murry - Tiny Raindrops / Ain't Gonna Worry

2-216: Sue Simpson –  Soldier in Viet Nam / The Great Tornado (1966)

2-217: Hershel Jeanes – Tonight I’ll Join the Crowd / Loves Come Back

2-218: Frank Milam - The Big Ole Jug of Wine / Money in My Pockets (Money in My Shoes)

2-219: Margie Griffin – More Than My Heart Could Understand / Fine Feathers Do Not Make a Fine Bird

2-220: Audrey Laird - Blues in My Heart / Jambalaya (on the Bayou)
2-221: John Daniel - Walk Right Through the Door / I Still Do
2-222: Marlon Grisham - Queen of the City / You're the Rose for Me
2-223: Bobby Joe Boyels - The Wedding Is Over / You're Gonna Hate Yourself
2-224: John & Margie Cook - Mama and Papa / You, the Judge and Me
2-225: Edith Caviness - I'm Not Here / Too Wet to Plow

2-226: Hershel Jeanes & Dotye Dee – The Gentle Judge / Stronger Than Pride

2-227: John & Margie Cook – Wire My Grave with Country Music / ?

2-228:

2-229: Charlie (Slim) Knight – The Outcast / Money Can’t Buy True Love

2-230: Ray Arnold - The Old Man's Outlook on Life / Why Must Man Love Woman

2-231: Sharon Peel - The Gossip Line / It's All Over Now

2-232: The Peggy Carey Story (Interviewed by Jim Wells) / ?

2-233: Marie Roberson – The Patriot / Shadow Path

2-234: Ronnie Parnell – I’m a Fool for Loving You / Everything Changes

2-235:
2-236: Joe T Gibson - Meet Me on the Other Side of Town / Arkansas Boy
2-237:
2-238: Sam & Kay Neal - I Can't Feel the Pain / Dear Angel (1971)
2-239: Martin K. Neal, Jr. - Please Forgive Me / I'll Die Ten Thousand Times (1971)

2-240: Babe Sanders – Last Glass of Wine / Ballad of Ma and Pa

2-241 
2-242: Sam & Kay Neal - If I'm Not Here / Etty Bitty Josephine (1971)
2-243:
2-244:
2-245: Hershel Jeanes - Will There Be Beer Joints in Heaven / Just Because
2-246: Clyde & Marie Denney and the Kentuckians - Southbound / Forty Years Ago
2-247: Kay Neal - I'll Take the Stand Tomorrow / Sam & Kay Neal - (Answer to) Hello Darling

2-248: Joe T. Gibson – Team of Mules / Television (1971)

2-249: Ross Lewis - Right As Rain / After I'm Gone
2-250: John Cook - Old Maids Can Love You / A Soldier in Vietnam
2-251: Sam & Kay Neal - My Love Is Gone / We're Gonna Live with Him Someday (1971)
2-252:
2-253: Lloyd Baker - The Song About Jesus / The Endless Time of Eternity
2-254: Sam & Kay Neal - Dozen Red Roses / Sam Neal - Tear Drops in Her Eyes (1971)
2-255: Willie Eiland - Do What You Want to Do / Shoveling (1971)

2-256: Martha Panell – Mister D.J. / Sad Movies

2-257: Sam & Kay Neal - Let's All Party / I've Got a Bobcat By the Tail

2-258: Clyde & Marie Denny and the Kentuckians - Clinging Vine / Ann

2-259: Sam & Kay Neal – They Call Me Orphan / Cold Lonely Heart

2-260: Sam & Kay Neal - I Need You for Real / Springtime in Mississippi

2-261: Sam Neal - Don't Call My Name / Lifetime of Sorrow

2-262: Marion D. Brewer – Too Much to Lose / She’s Been Asking About Me

2-263: Sam & Kay Neal – She's an Angel to Me / I'm Disowned

2-264: Sam and Kay Neal - Sweetheart, My Queen / Pay Day on the Country Road

2-265: Alvie Addison, III – Sanlorsa / Never Forget Mama

2-266: Farrell Dunkin - 8 to 12 / I Turned Her Heart to Stone

2-267: Stewart Douglas – Pass Me By / It’s Not Love But It’s Not Bad

2-268: Farrell Dunkin - Me and Loniless / Fire, Wind and Rain

2-269: James “Juicy” Joel – I Bought the Blues / Crying on the Inside

2-270: Billy Joe Mack – Loneliness / Hold Back Tomorrow

2-271: Southern Ramblers – Our Love Has Ended (vocal by Jean Wilkinson) / Letting Her Love Destroy My Mind (vocal by David Seal)

2-272: Jimmy “Red” Wiggins – Don’t Burn the Bridges / The Ache of a Fool

2-273: Ray Mitcham – You’re Welcome Once More / They Say Today’s Thanksgiving

2-274: Ray Mitcham – Wish I Had a Nickel / Winds of Change

2-275:
2-276:
2-277: Ronnie Hughes - Nashville, You Got a Hold on Me / Six Nights in Vegas
2-278: Jimmy "Red" Wiggins – Roadsigns of Your Heart / When I Hear Your Name (1973/74)
2-279:
2-280: John Cook - Corn Stalk Annie / John and the Water Moccasin (1974)

2-281: Sue Neal – The Image of Me / Truck Driver’s Sweetheart

2-282: Sam Higdon - Dear Mr. President / Courage to Try (1974)

2-283: Sue Neal – Our Rig / Only One True Love

2-284:

2-285: Jessey Higdon – Pay Telephone / Polk Salad Time on the Mississippi

2-286: John & Margie Cook – Eight Miles from Home / Because We Cheated

2-287: Gene Stilley – Angels Play Guitars / It’s Hard to Get Up Once You’ve Been Down

2-288: Bud Rateliff – I’m Not Gonna Be Your Fall Guy Any More / You Left a Stain on My Heart

2-289:

2-290: Clinton McKinney - My Only Reason to Stay / I Throwed It All in a U-Haul

2-291: John Cook – John and the School Teacher / Margie Cook – Kiss Me Love (1974/75)

2-292: John Cook - John and the Billygoat / Margie Cook - Sitting in a Bar Room for the First Time

2-293: Farrell Dunkin – Broadway Flower / 8 to 12

2-294: Lisa Adams - Ain't It Good to Be in Love Again / Benny, the Bald Knob Buffalo

2-295: Wilson Brothers – Trail of the Lonesome Pine / Let Me Live One More Time (1975)

2-296: Con Brewer – Loving You / Dreams

2-297: Merv Landon - Me and Bobby McGee / Four in the Morning

2-298: Scotty Day – No Pickin in the Corner / What Would I Give

2-299: Gary Abbott – Bar Room Angel / Living in a World of Miseries

2-300: Dee Proctor – As the World Keeps on Turning / Walk with Me

2-301: Scotty Day - Baby I'm Crying / Scotty & Rachel Day - Gonna Jump, Drown or Hang (3 Ways to Go)

2-302:

2-303: John & Margie Cook – Would You Call Jesus Hippie / Mama and Papa

2-304: Sue Neal - Trying to Forget You / Clouds to Glory

2-305:

2-306:

2-307: Jim McKee – She Makes Me Glad That I’m Alive / I’ve Got Heartaches and Trouble on My Mind

2-308: Jim McKee - If It Hadn't Been for You / Yours and Mine
2-309:
2-310:
2-311:
2-312: Joe T. Gibson - I'm the Loving Kind / It Hurts
2-313: Sue Neal - If She Can't Go to You / You'll Be Sorry
2-314:
2-315: Lucille Vandiver - Nestle in the Arms of Jesus / Just Let Me Make It Home Lord
2-316:
2-317: Southern Comfort - A Light in Her Eyes / Let's Talk It Over
2-318:

2-319: Paulette Cruzon – Yesterdays, Darling, Are Gone / One You Left So Blue
2-320:
2-321:
2-322: Dusty Ray Sawyer – Shannon Waltz / Joys of Quebec (1977)
2-323: Dusty Ray Sawyer – Country Waltz / Golden Slippers (1977)

Thanks to DrunkenHob, Peter, Jack Hill, Mark C., Eric, Bayou Bum

Gene Wester acetate

Gene Wester & the Goodtime Band - Borrowed Angel / A Thing Called Sadness (acetate)

When I bought this disc around 2014, I had no information on neither Gene Wester & the Goodtime Band nor on Echols Recording. It came from Los Angeles to me and I guessed it was a Bakersfield related disc. But that was not the case. In 2016, Wester's son gave us a little insight. Wester was a local Fort Worth, Texas, country music singer and performed around the city's honky tonks and joints. He recorded this disc in 1975 or 1976 in a garage in Fort Worth.

If there is more info out there, feel free to pass it along.

"Borrowed Angel" was a #7 country hit for Mel Street on the Royal American record label. Written by Street, he recorded it originally in 1970 for the small Tandem label and after some good airplay, Royal American picked it up and released it nationwide in 1972. Street had several more top ten hits in the following years but committed suicide in 1978. He had been fighting depression and alcohol problems for some time then.
 

Lee Finn on Rose

  Lee Finn - Lonesome Road (Rose No.#), 1962
Lee Finn was born Dwain Lee Voorhies in 1926, in Greentop, Missouri. I won't cover his entire biography here, mainly because Shane Hughes has featured him on his highly informative Rockabilly Hall page. But let me say a couple of things about Finn. His life remains, in spite of Hughes' efforts, mostly undocumented. The only interview Finn gave was in the 1970s, when Rockin' Ronnie Weiser was able to track him down.

Today's selection was Finn's last release. Both original composition, I chose to present "Lonesome Road" here. It was released in 1962 on the Rose label, which origin is not known. Finn had recorded previously for Stardust (1957), and Westport (1959). He died in 1999.

Tennessee Hayloft Jamboree

The Tennessee Hayloft Jamboree, a live stage show from Chattanooga, Tennessee, still misses a well-grounded documentation. Although the show does not share the historial importance with such formats as the Grand Ole Opry or the Louisiana Hayride, it is nevertheless an interesting part of local Tennessee music culture and worth a detailed story as well.

According to Billboard, the show began its run on July 25, 1953, at the Chattanooga Memorial Auditorium. The show lasted three hours; one our was broadcast through a network of six different stations from Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia. Another one-hour portion was carried by WGAC in Chattanooga.

Headliners of the show were three local acts: Bob Sanders, the Hixson Playboys and the Signal Mountain Gang. Though, the show's cast was made up of 42 different local singers and bands. Les Morrison, from WDXB in Chattanooga, was "heading the details," according to Billboard (whatever that means).

The show aired at least until 1954, judging from a 1954 article in Cowboy Songs No. 32 by Bobby Gregory. If anyone has more information or memories he would like to share, please leave a comment below or feel free to send me an email (adress can be seen on my profile page).

Indio Records

The Indio label was founded by country and rockabilly singer Bill Carter in 1961. It was first located in Modesto, California, but moved to Emeryville soon after the first two releases.

Born on December 11, 1929, in Eagleton, Arkansas, Carter's family moved to Broken Bow, Oklahoma, when Carter was eight years old. A couple of years later, in 1943, the Carters once again changed homes and settled down in Idaho, California, where they made their living as farmers. At that time, Carter started his career as a singer and landed a spot on KREO in Indio (hence probably the name of his label).

From 1950 up to 1953, he served the US Air Force and upon his return, he made a guest appearance at Cottonseed Clark's TV show "Hoffman Hayride" and started his recording career. His first disc was released in 1954 on the 4 Star label ("Making Believe" / "More Than a Man Can Stand," 4 Star X 91). During the next years, he would record for such labels as Republic (1956), Tally (1957-1958), Black Jack, Showboat and Challenge (all 1959), Ozark, Honey B (both 1960), Checker (1960), D (1961) and others.

Cal Veale (left) and Bill Carter holding a Jim Reeves record,
penned by Veale.

Carter was also a DJ. He was on KBOX (Modesto) as well as KPIX (San Francisco) and appeared regularly at the Riverbank Clubhouse in Riverbank, California, in 1956. Around the time he recorded "Shot Four Times and Dy'in" / "Stranger, Shake Hands with a Fool" for D in 1961, he also founded Indio Records. One of Carter's business partners was Cal Veale, who acted as a producer and songwriter for the label. Veale had tried his luck in the recording business unsuccessfully in 1956, when he recorded one single with the Howard Reading Trio ("Don't Cry Baby" / "Standing on the Edge of Nowhere," Las Vegas #1237). Veale owned a recording studio in Modesto, where probably most of the Indio recordings were cut. Larry McGill, who had one release on Indio under his own name, also appeared on a couple of Indio releases as a songwriter. As Carter remembers, he played bass on many of the Indio recordings. Del Reeves was also at some point part of the studio band.

It appears almost all known releases were issued in 1961, as many Billboard reviews document. However, one disc is certainly from 1969 ("Camille" / "Now I'm a Star" by the Stage Hands, Indio #8692), judging from the Southern Plastics matrix code. At that time, Carter had already left the business, as he confirmed to me. The Stage Hands, which included Clyde Arnold, simply took label name and design from him. Arnold also wrote one of the songs, "Camille" and had recorded the classic "Black Smoke and Blue Tears" in 1961 for Indio. He was once described by Carter as a "leather jacketed hoodlum." This 1969 release, however, shows the label's location as Newark, California.

Nevertheless, Indio was a  short-lived affair for Carter. He became a Christian in October that same year and turned to Gospel music. Nowadays, he is retired but has recorded some sides with his wife.

An interview with Bill Carter can be found here. 

Discography

Indio IN-1 

Jimmy North / Jack Mashburn Band 

Leavin' Town (Jim Hostetter) / I Know I'm to Blame  ()

A / B

1961

Indio IN-2

Ray Smith and his Oklahoma Outlaws 

You've Heard About Texas (Ray Smith) / Bluer Than Blue (Ray Smith)

A / B

1961

Indio IN-3

Dave Miller with Joe Richie and the Impossibles

Froggy Went A'Rockin' (Arr. Dave Miller) / With You (Dave Miller)

A / B

1961

Indio IN-4

Bob Gordon with Slim Williams and the Blue Valley Boys

Why Make Believe (Bob Gordon) / It's Not Easy to Forget (Bob Gordon)

A /  B

Indio 605
Ralph Hill with Roy Henderson and the Arkies
There Goes My Baby () / Sweet Love ()

Indio IN-606

Clyde Arnold

Black Smoke and Blue Tears (C. Arnold; C. Veale) / Livin' for Your Lovin' (C. Arnold; C. Veale; McGill)

A / B

1961

Indio IN-607

Larry McGill with the Echo-Tones

I Want a True Love () / I Only Wish ()

A / B

1961

Indio IN-608

Clint Marrs and the Saddle-ites

Love and Money (Clint Marrs) / A Million Memories (Bob Morphew)

A / B

Indio IN-609

Ruthe Dee

I Want a True Lover (Bill Carter; McGill) / Tears on the Rocks (Ruthe Dee)

A / B

Indio 8692

Stage Hands

Camille (Clyde Arnold) / Now I'm a Star (Nancy Tester)

SO: 7398 / SO: 7399 (Southern)

1969

Thanks to DrunkenHobo, Svein Martin Pedersen

Billy Riley - Wouldn't You Know

  Billy Riley / The Little Green Men - Wouldn't You Know (Sun 289), 1958
"Wouldn't You Know" was penned by famous songwriter John S. Marascalco (born 1931 in Grenada, Mississippi). Before his affiliation with Art Rupe's Speciality label, Marascalco tried his luck as a songwriter first with Sam Phillips and his Sun Records - unsuccessfully, though. He saw Elvis Presley performing in 1955 and presented him his composition "Rip It Up" backstage. Although Presley wouldn't record it after Little Richard's hit version came out, it was through this connection that Marascalco came to Sun. 

Unable to come to an agreement with Phillips about a songwriting contract, the only two songs Marascalco penned for Phillips were "Wouldn't You Know" and "Dance with Me Honey." Both songs were recorded by Billy Riley but only "Wouldn't You Know" saw release on the yellow Sun label. It was recorded by Riley and his Little Green Men on November 25, 1957 at the Sun Studio with Riley on vocal and guitar, Roland Janes on lead guitar, Martin Willis on sax, James Paulman on piano, and Jimmy Van Eaton on drums. Released in February 1958 with Riley's own "Baby Please Don't Go" on the flip (Sun #289), it was his next single after his claim to fame "Red Hot" b/w "Pearly Lee" (Sun #277). Unfortunately, it sold less than "Red Hot," which had been dropped by Phillips in order to finance the promotion of Jerry Lee Lewis' "Great Balls of Fire."

Craig Morrison wrote in his book "Go Cat Go!" about "Wouldn't You Know":

'Wouldn't You Know,' the fourth single, never quite seem to gel, at times veering to one style and then to another. "

Marascalco began a new relationship with Specialty Records and penned such hits as "Ready Teady," another version of "Ript It Up," "Good Golly Miss Molly" and others. In the early 1960s, he owned a couple of record labels and worked as a songwriter and producer.

Happy Harold

Remembering Happy Harold - A Miami Country Music Pioneer

Happy Harold Thaxton was one of the few country DJs in the greater Miami area and one of the most popular radio and TV personalities all over southern Florida back in the 1950s and 1960s. Although many people seem to remember him, his career has been largely obscure in the past years. I started documenting Thaxton's career in 2014, which resulted in a detailed article on him on American Music Magazine in December 2016. However, people keep sharing their memories with me and they will be added to this post frequently.

His full name was Harold J. Thaxton, born in 1918 in Georgia. He was married to Anna Thaxton, who was born in 1929 in Hungary as Anna Kreuter. She immigrated to the US in 1949. They had a son, who died in a car crash in the early 1980s. Anna died in 2022.

Thaxton spent his early lifetime in Georgia and served his country During World War II. Upon his discharge in 1946, he moved to South Florida in order to work as a musician and DJ. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Thaxton was a member of Uncle Harve's Ragtime Wranglers, a group that performed on different radio stations and live shows in Miami. In 1948, the group began recording for the Red Bird label out of Fort Wayne, Indiana. How this Florida group ended up on a Indiana label is a mystery to me. The first record was "Rainbow of Roses" b/w "Montana Skies" with Harold (Lazy) Donelson on vocals and Thaxton doing the recitation on the A side. Two more records for the label followed in 1951.
 

Billboard July 18, 1953, review of the Ragtime
Wranglers' first Red Bird release. Although
the disc was originally issued in 1948,
Red Bird re-released its records over the years.

By the early 1950s, Thaxton set out on his own and formed his own band, the Dixie Millers, which also recorded for Harold Doane's local Perfect label around 1953. The band also played many shows and bars in the Miami area, at times with Uncle Harve's Ragtime Wranglers.

In 1954, Thaxton worked with "Uncle Martin" Wales, a radio announcer for more than 20 years back then. That year, Wales started a new television show called "Sunset Ranch" on WITV that featured local Miami singers and musicians. Thaxton, "the one with the painted freckles and blacked-out teeth," led the show's house band, as stated in an article published in "The Miami News" on April 11, 1954. The band also included Harold (Lazy) Donelson on fiddle. Thaxton was one half of the comedy team "Happy and Slappy" on this show. He had developed this act with steel guitarist Billy Kenton while being a member of the Ragtime Wranglers. Artists that appeared on "Sunset Ranch" included Slim Somerville, Mrs. Henry Turner, James E. "Eddie" Thorpe, Johnny Burns, Molly Turner, Elaine Rouse, Rita Winters, and Jimmie Martin. Several of the artists were at one time or another members of Thaxton's band. Also Charlie McCoy and his group as well as Vulco recording artists Billy Eldridge and the Fireballs appeared on the show several times.

Happy Harold on stage, early 1950s

However,  by 1955, Thaxton produced his own barn dance show called "The Old South Jamboree", which was held Saturday evenings from the porch of an old parking lot. It was probably Mun. Auto Sales' lot on NW 36th Street, where he also had parked a Volkswagon bus. This venue possibly also housed the Sunset Ranch and was owned by William "Alabama Bill" Lehman, who would go on the be a US congressman. Thaxton would do a regular afternoon radio show from the back of that bus, too. The Old South Jamboree was on air as early as 1955 and was held at least until 1958. Another witness remembers he attended dances hosted by Happy Harold at the old Dade County Armory at 7th Avenue and NW 28th Street. "He was there every Saturday night for years," as he remembers. The armory building is now gone and was replaced by a seafood restaurant.

A couple of familiar names appeared on Happy Harold's Old South Jamboree, including Mel Tillis, Charlie McCoy, Kent Westberry, and Jimmy Voytek. The house band was made up of Bill Phillips, Bill Johnson, Charlie Justice, and Johnny Paycheck. Other band members at one time or another included the band's roadie called Shorty, Eddie Thorpe, Mollie Turner, Charlie McCoy, Mike Shaw, and Russ Samuel. Samuel, who had a record out on AFS Records in 1960 with his own band, the Vanguards, remembered: "I knew and worked with Happy Harold in the early sixties. I guess the first time I met him was probably when I stopped by his radio show one afternoon to get him to listen to a demo record my band and I had recorded. He not only listened but played it on the air right then on the spot, even though it was only a demo."

It is hard to list all the shows Thaxton did during his career but I try to include as much as I can. He had an evening TV show in the second half of the 1950s, an early morning radio show in the 1960s, and afternoon DJ show, too, and was probably heard on several more slots during the years. Thaxton was so well-known and popular that the pharmacy on Palm Avenue and 41th Street in Hialeah, where Harold would eat breakfast, had a sign on its restaurant counter telling people "Happy Harold Eats Breakfast Here." But his popularity was not limited to the Miami area. His radio/TV shows were broadcast all over southern Florida and he booked many artists on his stage shows across the Sunshine State's south.

In the early 1960s, Harold ran for city council but was defeated in the final election. One reason could have been the fact that everyone knew Happy Harold but no one knew Harold Thaxton, as he was presented during the election campaign. However, he gave it a second try and eventually served as a city councilman in Hialeah, Florida, for several years.

In 1964, Thaxton joined WIII in Miami along with another veteran country DJ, Cracker Jim Brooker. By 1968, Harold was working at WOAH on 71th Street in Miami, a country station previously known as WFEC. Harold recorded a lot of commercial spots at that time for such companies as "Mr. King's Pony Farm" and "A-1 King Size Sandwiches." WOAH shortly thereafter changed its format, aimed at a Latin American audience. 

By the 1970s, Thaxton ceased musical activities and split his time between Georgia and Florida. He passed away in 1985 at the age of 66 years in Miami Lake, Florida.

Recommended reading

• "The Deep Voice from the Deep South: Happy Harold - Remembering a Miami Music Pioneer" (American Music Magazine #143, December 2016)

See also

• The Story of Perfect Records
• The Old South Jamboree
• Billy Eldridge on Vulco

• Mike Shaw on Regal

Sources

• Find a Grave entry

• 45cat/78rpm entry

• Special thanks to Bill Spivey, Jack Blanchard, Russ Samuel, Alma Sexton, Dale Wasson, Jim Cran, Terry, Jack, Marie, and Les for sharing their memories with me and providing so much information.

Sid Elrod on Summer

  Sid Elrod - The Slow Rock and Roll (Summer 503), 1959
I'm pretty sure "Sid Elrod" was a pseudonym for musician Macy (Skip) Skipper. This 45 came to me a couple of weeks ago and it is the only copy I've seen so far. The label on one side is not in best shape but it plays great, nevertheless. This is a follow-up on my Summer Records post last week.

Macy (Skip) Skipper
Picture credit: 706unionavenue.nl

Macy "Skip" Skipper was born on September 2, 1920, in St. Louis, Missouri. He started his musical career as a bass player for the Swift Jewel Cowboys. In 1943, Skipper and his wife Marie moved to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and they began to work as a duo around Memphis in 1951. Sometimes in the 1950s, he founded his own band and appeared at different venues in Memphis with this outfit.

In 1956, Skipper and his band cut three tracks for Sun Records, including an earlier version of "The Slow Rock and Roll." The band consisted of Skipper on vocals and bass, Sun studio musician Brad Suggs on lead guitar, Nelson Grilli on sax, Melton McNatt on piano, and Slick Grissom on drums. Since Sam Phillips showed no interest to release anything from that session, Skipper moved on and recorded "Quick Sand Love" b/w "Who Put the Squeeze on Eloise?" for M.A. Lightman's Light record label (exact date unknown), followed by a second single under that same brand.

After that, Skipper probably recorded the single featured today. Summer Records was founded by Jack Clement early in 1959, who had just parted ways with Sun before. How Skipper ended up on Summer as "Sid Elrod" remains a mystery, though it is likely that Skipper and Clement knew each other before. The two instrumentals "Slap Happy Bass" b/w "The Slow Rock and Roll" were possibly recorded with his own band. The Sun files list Skipper as the composer of "Slow Rock and Roll," the Summer label lists also Melton McNatt as composer.

In 1960, Skipper followed up with another single on Stax ("Night Rock" / "Goofin' Off", Stax #117). Skipper kept on performing locally while holding down his regular job until his death on April 17, 2001.

Discography

Summer 503: Sid Elrod - Slap Happy Bass / The Slow Rock and Roll (1959)
Light 2020: Macy (Skip) Skipper - Who Put the Squeeze on Eloise? / Quick Sand Love
Light 3030: Macy Skipper and his Orchestra - At the Movie / Girl-Firl
Stax S-117: Macy Skipper - Night Rock / Goofin' Off (1961)

Summer Records

Summer Records was a very short-lived venture by Sun producer and songwriter Jack Clement. It was his first own label after leaving Sun Records in 1959.

Jack Clement was born on April 5, 1931, in Memphis, Tennessee, and was interested in music at an early age. After he was discharged from the Army in 1953, he began to work with bluegrass musician Buzz Busby and his band in Washington, D.C. They were seen regularly on the Hayloft Hoedown show in Washington. But already in 1954, Clement returned to Memphis and became friends with Ronald "Slim" Wallace and Clement joined Wallace's country band as a steel guitarist.

Jack Clement at Sun, ca. 1956

Wallace set up a small recording studio in his garage and together, Clement and Wallace produced Billy Lee Riley's first recordings "Trouble Bound" and "Rock with Me Baby," which were intended to be the first single on their new label Fernwood. Since they had no possibility to master the tapes on their own, Clement took them to Sam Phillips of Sun Records in Memphis. Phillips was impressed with singer Riley and instead released both songs on his own Sun label in on September 1, 1956 (Sun #245). Phillips not only snatched away Riley from Wallace but also Jack Clement, who began work for Sun in July 1956 as an engineer and producer. Fernwood didn't come into existence until December 1956, when Wallace finally released its first single (Ramon Maupin with "Love Gone" b/w "No Chance," Fernwood #101).

Clement became an influential figure at Sun during the next months. Phillips assigned him with more responsibilities, for example producing Johnny Cash's recordings from December 1956 onwards. Also in December 1956, Clement supervised Jerry Lee Lewis' audition at Sun and conviced Phillips later to sign the young piano player to Sun.

In March 1959, Clemet was fired by Phillips and branched out on his on with the founding of his first publishing firm Jack Music Inc. The first song published by Jack Music was "Motorcycle Michael" by the Archers on May 1, 1959, which became Summer's second release.

Along with the founding of Jack Music came Clement's record label Summer, located on Main Street in Memphis. The label's first release was by Cliff Gleaves with "Love Is My Business" b/w "Easy Goin' Guy" in 1959. Gleaves, who was a longtime close associate of Elvis Presley, had recorded an earlier version of "Love Is My Business" for Sun in either 1958 or 1959 with Charlie Rich at the piano. This session had been produced by Clement, who took Gleaves to Summer after his break-up with Sun. Later in 1959, Gleaves followed Elvis to Germany. He died in 2002.

The third release was made up of two instrumentals by a certain Sid Elrod (Summer 503). I'm pretty sure this was a pseudonym for Macy "Skip" Skipper (1920-2001), who was a steady performer in Memphis from 1951 on. Judging from the sound of "Slap Happy Bass" / "The Slow Rock and Roll," I believe this was recorded at Sun Studio. Skipper had recorded an earlier version of "Slow Rock and Roll" at Sun in 1956, which remained unissued. 

Summer Records did not last very long. No other singles are known after Summer #503 and probably folded soon after its founding in the spring of 1959. Clement, however, kept busy producing records for Pepper, Hi, and Echo (which he co-owned with Clyde Leoppard and Stan Kesler). In the fall of that year, he left for Nashville before moving to Beaumont, Texas, shortly afterwards. He became a highly successful songwriter and record producer. Clement died in 2013.

Discography

Summer 501 

Cliff Gleaves

Easy Goin' Guy (Jack Clement) / Love Is My Business (Quinton Claunch; Bill Cantrell)

S-101 / S-102 (Sheldon)

1959

Summer 502

The Archers

Motorcycle Michael (Clement; Nelson; Burch) / Golden Girl (Clement; Nelson; Burch)

S-103 / S-104 (Sheldon)

1959

Summer 503

Sid Elrod

Slap Happy (McNatt; Suggs; Skipper) / The Slow Rock and Roll (Skipper; McNatt)

S-105 / S-106 (Sheldon)