Tony Wayne on Westport

Tony Wayne - Together Forever (Westport 134), 1956

Tony Wayne's name is mostly associated with rockabilly singer Alvis Wayne, who coincidentally shared half of the same stage name. From today's point of view, Tony Wayne stands in the shadow of Alvis Wayne, who in turn is often overlooked due to other bigger names in Texas rockabilly music. Tony Wayne was a local Texas based country music band leader, who mentored the young, aspiring Alvis Wayne for some time in the 1950s. In contrast to his protégé, Tony Wayne sunk into oblivion after the 1950s.

He was born Anthony Wayne Guion on January 1, 1924, in Rule, Texas, a small town located in the northern part of the state. By the age of twelve, Guion had taken up the guitar and modeled his style after the great Jimmie Rodgers, who had died just a few years earlier. He finished school in 1940 and became a National Guardsman afterwards, followed by a stint in the US Army. However, he was discharged from the service due to troubles with his ears. Upon leaving the military, he started a career in law enforcement and worked as a deputy sheriff nad as chief of police, among other occupations.

Tony Wayne (Westport promotional photo), 1956

However, music had always been on his mind. By the 1950s, Guion had made the move to Corpus Christi in South Texas. By 1955, he had taken up music on a professional base and founded a country music band, the "Rhythm Wranglers." He adopted the name "Tony Wayne" for performing purposes. In early 1956, he made connections with a 13 years younger singer named Wayne Samford, who was playing also bars around town. Guion had greater plans to go out on the road and invited Samford, who would change his name to Alvis Wayne eventually, to join the Rhythm Wranglers. Alvis Wayne, interviewed by John Kennedy in the early 2000s, remembered: "My mom and dad were not very happy about me going out on the road, but I had an opportunity to do so with a band, which was the only thing I ever wanted to do. As I said they weren't very happy about it at all and we talked about it for several days but I just had to go and they eventually went along with it all and didn't hold me back."

But life on the road wasn't as successful as they had imagined. The band played in a couple of spots that Guion had booked previously, though their commodations were far from being luxurious. In addition, payment was low and after some time, the band decided to quit touring and returned to Corpus Christi. Upon their return, Alvis Wayne left the Rhythm Wranglers and joined Al Hardy's Southernaires. Though, he stayed in contact with Guion.

By summer 1956, Guion had connected with Dave Ruf in Kansas City, Missouri, who owned a little record label called Westport Records there with his brother. The label had been originally started in 1955 as an outlet to release their children's music, known as the Westport Kids. However, the label developed into an outlet to release local talent. Alvis Wayne recollected: "Tony got, I don't know how, but he got in touch with them and he came up to me and said 'Hey I got us a recording contract with Westport Records in Kansas City, Missouri, and they want some rock'n'roll records. He said I got five songs already written for you and all you gotta do is go in there and sing. As far as I know Tony never sung or performed those songs on stage, he wrote them just for me. I had to sit down and drum them into my brain and learn them. I think it was probably Tony who suggested that I change my name from Wayne Samford to Alvis Wayne because he said Elvis has already got this thing going and your name is Alvis and all that. I said OK whatever, you know more about this than I do so let's go for it."

Alvis Wayne, ca. 1956-1958

Dave Ruf released "Swing Bop Boogie" b/w "Sleep Rock-a-Roll Rock-a-Baby," both composed by Guion, on Westport 132 around September 1956, credited to "Alvis Wayne / Accompaniment by Tony Wayne and his Rhythm Wranglers." However, Alvis Wayne had recorded the songs in July 1956 in a little local backyard studio with a totally different band, namely Al Hardy's.

The name mentioning on the label was possibly due to some contractual agreements that Guion had signed with Ruf or he simply masqueraded the band on the record as the Rhythm Wranglers when he sent the tapes off to Kansas City. Guion also had a release on his own on Westport, "Many Ways" b/w "Together Forever" (Westport 134), released at some point between September and November 1956. It were two straight country music performances as Guion likely never performed any rock'n'roll. Substantial recording date and location info on this release has been lost over the decades, unfortunately.

Alvis Wayne had another two records on Westport and although he didn't perform with Guion's Rhythm Wranglers anymore, they remained in contact and it was Guion who organized the last Westport session in 1958 in Houston: "[...] Tony had phoned over to Houston and arranged a recording session. James Bacon had written 'Lay Your Head On My Shoulder', offered it to me and said he would back me up on the record and that's what he did," Alvis Wayne recalled. The song came out in September 1958 but was not a hit, although Wayne's previous disc, another Guion song entitled "Don't Mean Maybe Baby," had proofed to be a strong seller in South Texas a year earlier. It even sold so good that it saw release in the summer of 1958 in Australia on the Bell label, wrongly issued under the name "Tony Wayne." Desillusioned with the music business, Alvis Wayne left the music business and in 1960, entered the US Air Force. By then, he had lost contact with Guion.

It is likely that Guion continued to perform around Corpus Christi with his band, as he had done the previous years, although no such activies are documented for the 1960s. In 1970, he cut a single at Cutler's studio in Corpus Christie, "An Angel Next Door" b/w "Our Dog Named Charlie," which was released on the local Billdale label in 1970. This is the last hint we find on Guion.

Tony Wayne Guion died on December 12, 1997, at the age of 73 years and is buried at Palms Memorial Garden in Portland, Texas. His personal life is even more hazy than his musical career: a 1956 Westport promotional text stated, Guion was living with his 74 years old mother in Corpus Christi but a 1954 newspaper snippet found in the Corpus Christi Times suggests that he was already married and gave birth to a daughter in April that year. Guion was definitely married to Helen Georgia at the time of his passing.

Guion's fellow musician Alvis Wayne enjoyed some popularity during the Rockabilly Revival and played several gigs in Europe and the US from the late 1990s onwards as well as recorded two albums. He died in 2013.

Discography

Westport
134: Tony Wayne - Many Ways / Together Forever (1956)

Billdale
BD-1007: Tony Wayne - An Angel Next Door / Our Dog Named Charlie (1970)

Sources
• Tony Wayne 45cat entry
• Tony Wayne Find a Grave entry
• Alvis Wayne Rockin' Country Style entry
• Alvis Wayne biography/interview by John Kennedy (Rockabilly Hall of Fame)

Ted Russell Kamp - Solitair review

 

Ted Russell Kamp – Solitaire
Continental Song City CSCCD 1183
May 2021

Total playing time: 52:03

When I first learned of Ted Russell Kamp’s new album “Solitaire,” it dawned on me that I had to have this album. I was familiar with Kamp’s name through my fondness of Shooter Jennings, for whom Kamp played bass for years. However, Kamp has been active as a solo artist as well as producer and has released several albums over the years.

In May 2021, his new work “Solitaire” was released on Continental Song City. To be honest, I expected it to be something different. I have been familiar with all of Shooter Jennings’ work and thought, Kamp would deliver something in the same manner but it turned out to be quite different. “Solitaire” is calm, quite, soft and seldom the songs are pushers. This might be because Kamp recorded it mostly at his home during the pandemic months. It is an album to sit down, settle down, and listen.

To my ears, highlights of the 14 tracks strong record include the opening track “My Girl Now,” “You Can Go to Hell, I’m Going to Texas,” “As Far As the Eye Can See,” “Western Wind” and the great “Lightning Strikes Twice.” Kamp himself performed many of the instruments, although he also assembled a group of musicians that support him on different tracks. The sound is acoustic in its best sense, it’s pure and it’s grounded. In my very personal opinion, a few faster paced songs would have enhanced the track selection but the judgement is probably up to each individual.

Nevertheless, Kamp delivers an extremely well-produced and coherent album and I surely will occupy myself with more Ted Russell Kamp material. 

track listing:

1. My Girl Now (3:16)
2. Path of Least Resistance (2:52)
3. You Can Go to Hell, I’m Going To Texas (4:17)
4. Birds That Sing At Dawn (3:35)
5. As Far As the Eye Can See (3:37)
6. The Hardest Road to Find – (3:48)
7. Solitaire (3:14)
8. Western Wind – (3:51)
9. Be Your Man – (3:37)
10. A Rose or Two (4:11)
11. The Spark – (4:19)
12. Only a Broken Heart (3:04)
13. Exception to the Rule (4:43
14. Lightning Strikes Twice (3:32)

Mack Banks R.I.P.

Rockabilly pioneer Mack Banks has passed away on May 4, 2021, at the age of 86 years. Banks, who has secured his place in rockabilly history with his 1956 two-sider "Be-Boppin' Daddy" / "You're So Dumb," was active in music until recent years and was considered as a part of Mississippi's rich music scene. He was an ensemble member of the local "Sparta Opry" stage show for years. After his Fame single, Banks recorded a slew of strictly local 45s for the Vee-Eight label and other companies. 

Roy Lett on Smitty

To clear up the misunderstandings that for long have surrounded the name "Roy Lett," I decided to put together this post, although I don't have much information or any of his recordings in my collection. For years, Roy Lett was believed to be a pseudonym for Memphis singer and label owner Shelby Smith, likely much due to the statement in the liner notes to the Stomper Time reissue CD "Fernwood Rockabillies" and possibly also "The Rebel - Rebel Ace Records Story."

However, I received a message from Roy Lett's daughter, stating and verifying that it was actually her father Roy Lett, who recorded "Rosalie" b/w "To Your Heart for a Moment" for Shelby Smith's Smitty Records (#55784) in 1960 - and not Smith hiding under another name. Roy Benton Lett was born on November 16, 1931, likely in Tennessee. He began his career on the Knoxville country music scene and appeared on such radio and TV programmes as WNOX's Tennessee Barn Dance and business man Cas Walker's show. Lett served in the US Marine Corps during the Korean War, eventually leaving as a corporal. By 1958, he and his family lived in Memphis, Tennessee, and Lett was part of Don Gibson's touring band, performing on the Louisiana Hayride with the Gibson troupe. Gibson was one of country music's stars that had emerged from the Knxoville scene.

In 1960, Lett recorded what was likely his only solo outing. The songs were recorded at Slim Wallace's Fernwood studio in Memphis and Wallace contributed the song "Rosalie" for the session, while label owner Shelby Smith penned "To Your Heart for a Moment." Lett's daughter assumed that Lett was performing lead guitar on the recordings.

Tragically, Roy Lett died way too early on June 30, 1963, at the age of 31 years. The circumstances of his death are unknown to me. He is buried at Knoxville National Cemetery.

See also
•  Shelby Smith's empire of record labels

Recommended reading
• 45cat entry
• Rockin' Country Style entry

Sources
• Find a Grave entry
• Special thanks to Roy Lett's daughter Sadonna Lett

Jim Morrison on Curley Q, Part II

Jim Morrison & Band - Campfire (ca. 1964), Curley Q 5705

Seven years ago (yes, SEVEN!), I have posted a disc by Curley Jim Morrison of "Rock and Roll Itch" fame (see here). It was always a goal for me to unearth his story and I am now very near to achieve it. His daughter has been generous in providing me with memories and information. The result will be published in a future American Music Magazine issue.

However, I am still looking for other people who knew Jim Morrison, saw him perform, or even played music with him. He was active in Miami, Fort Worth, Clovis, Edwards, California, and Glenwood, Illinois. Feel free to leave a comment if you can provide any details (any info is appreciated).

For today's post, I picked out a song that was recorded by Curley Jim around 1964, a follow up to his local Fort Worth hit "Ace in the Hole," entitled "Campfire." Enjoy it!

Jimmy Heap on Fame

Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters - Alone at a Telephone (Fame FA-501), 1957

"Alone at a Telephone" was recorded during the fall of 1957 at KTAE's studio in Taylor, Texas. The line-up included Jimmy Heap on lead guitar, Horace Barnett on rhythm guitar, Butterball Harris on steel guitar, Perk Williams for the last time on vocals and fiddle, likely Bill Taylor on trumpet, Bill Glendening on bass, and George Harrison on drums. Their second independent production and their first release on the band's newly founded Fame record label, "Alone at a Telephone" and the other song recorded, "I'm One of Those," were fine mid 1950s western swing recordings by a band that soon would make the change to popular rock'n'roll. But for this release, they settled with the style they had played for over ten years by then.

Billboard C&W review December 23, 1957

The disc was released at the end of 1957 and saw review in Billboard's C&W segment on December 23 but the magazine staff was not impressed with the record. However, they were more impressed with the band's second Fame release, recorded and released around the same time, and reviewed in the very same Billboard issue. Heap and the Melody Masters continued to record their own songs as well as other artists on their Fame label until 1961. They also would use the Fame label to release their "party" LPs in the 1960s.

The Jimmy Heap Show at Cow Palace in Tyler, Texas, 1970. On vocals reportedly Bill Taylor and next to him Jimmy Heap on lead guitar.

Recommended reading
• A Heap of Texas Music: The Story of Jimmie Heap and the Melody Masters
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Capitol, Part I
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Capitol, Part II
• Perk Williams on Allstar

Jimmy Heap on Capitol, Part II

Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters with Perk Williams - Cat'n Around (Capitol F2636), 1953

This was the Melody Masters' cover of Harry Choates' "Cat'n Around." Choates had recorded the song in 1950, released in July 1950 on Macy's #124 backed by "Gra Mamou" (Big Mamou). He was a popular cajun fiddler in Texas and especially known for his 1946 version of "Jole Blon," which was a #10 hit for Choates and is considered as a cajun classic today. Heap and the Melody Masters likely had the song in their repertoire for some time, when they recorded their rendition on February 27, 1953, at an unknown location in Texas. The line-up consisted of Perk Williams on vocals and fiddle, Jimmy Heap on lead guitar, Horace Barnett on guitar, Cecil "Butterball" Harris on steel guitar, Arlie Carter on piano, and Bill Glendening on bass.

Capitol released "Cat'n Around" on #F2636 in October 1953 with "Make Me Live Again" from the same session. Like Choates' original version, this was an up-temp number and quite a fair approach of the hep cat country music of the time. The Melody Masters are in top shape here, joining Perk Williams on background vocals, with Harris, Williams and Heap performing some good solos on their instruments (although Jimmy Heap seems to be a bit out of tune at the end of his run).

Recommended reading
• A Heap of Texas Music: The Story of Jimmie Heap and the Melody Masters
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Fame
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Capitol, Part I
• Perk Williams on Allstar

Billy Eldridge R.I.P.

Sad news won't end. Today, I received the message that Florida rockabilly artist Billy Eldridge passed away on March 16, 2021. He recorded several discs with his band, the Fire Balls, for the Vulco label in Fort Pierce, Florida. Eventually, he made the move to Nashville, where he enjoyed some success as a songwriter. 

Recommended reading:

• Billy Eldridge on Vulco

Earl Epps R.I.P.

I was informed today by Dave Westheimer that Earl Epps, Houston country music singer, has passed away February 10, 2021, at the age of 91 years. Epps was a mainstay on Houston's country music scene, beginning in the 1950s. He has recorded numerous records during the decades and was performing right until recent years. He was a member of the Alvin Opry for many years.

Although Epps was a country singer from the heart, he is best remembered outside Houston for his 1956 rockabilly recording "Be-Bop Blues," which he cut for Danny Ross' Minor record label. Read his obituary here.

Jimmy Heap on Capitol, Part I

Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters - Heap of Boogie (Capitol F3434), 1956

We continue our little journey through the life and times of one of Texas' popular western swing dance bands, Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters. Today featured is their 1956 Capitol release "Heap of Boogie," a western swing instrumental. By that time, the band virtually had dropped from Capitol's stable of artists.

Both "Heap of Boogie" and its flip side, the Jack Rhodes-Dick Reynolds composition "Conscience, I'm Guilty" (which would become #4 hit for Hank Snow in 1956) were recorded on December 12, 1955, at an unknown location in Texas. "Heap of Boogie" was a boogie-based instrumetal, with songwriting credits to Heap, and it featured the drumming of George Harrison for the first time. It was also only the second time the band had used drums on a recording session so far. Band members got their spotlight during the song, performing solos on their instruments, although sax player Ken Idaho is not audible. The line-up consisted of Jimmy Heap on lead guitar, Horace Barnett on guitar, Cecil "Butterball" Harris on steel guitar, Perk Williams on fiddle, Arlie Carter on piano, Bill Glendening on bass, Ken Idaho on saxophone, and George Harrison on drums.

Billboard May 16, 1956, C&W review

Capitol released both songs in May 1956 on Capitol #F-3434, thus making the Heap version of "Conscience I'm Guilty" the first one to appear on the market, as Hank Snow's record wasn't out until June. Actually, Snow recorded his version on May 31, 1956, making it a cover version of the Melody Masters original recording. This had happened to the band earlier with "The Wild Side of Life," having recorded the original version but the hit got snatched away by another artist. Although the Melody Masters were a popular band, the majority of their records did not reach the charts, as it was the case with this one. Capitol gave them a final shot a couple of months later with the release of "Mingling" b/w "This Song is Just for You" (Capitol #F-3543) from the same session.

Recommended reading
• A Heap of Texas Music: The Story of Jimmie Heap and the Melody Masters
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Fame
• Jimmy Heap and the Melody Masters on Capitol, Part II
• Perk Williams on Allstar