Buck Owens, the king of the Bakersfield Sound, and one of the nicest (and savviest) guys in Country music has passed away. The son of sharecroppers, rising out of the Dustbowl and the Depression he used his Telecaster to create a unique sound and a music empire.
Listen to a recording of Buck's No.1 duet with Dwight Yoakam, "The Streets of Bakersfield" here.
(Via Skinny's WAV collection.)
Here's a video from 1966 of Buck performing a live version of "Tiger By The Tail" for his Ranch concert series.
This pic of Buck with his band was always my favorite of him:
He was a lot more than Hee-Haw, which he owned, by the way. He was a bright kid out there picking potatoes and cotton, fleeing the Dustbowl, living in grinding poverty, who taught himself guitar and made a way out for himself. He created a unique sound with his playing, one that's still popular today. He was famous for his hard work, his forward-thinking, and his business acumen. He also gave a lot of musicians a hand up.
I love the Bakersfield Sound, and I admire a guy who backed up his talent with a lot of hard work. I'm not one for the tortured artistic genius--I think it's a cop-out and load of bullshit. Buck Owens worked.
'Together Again' is one of my favorites.(I'm hearing Emmylou's version as I write this and it is giving me chills.) When I was a kid 'Tiger By the Tail' was the one I remember most just for the mental visual that it brought to mind. RIP Buck, SALUTE!
Posted by: Willard at March 25, 2006 01:51 PMWhat a great picture - captures Buck perfectly. Should have known you'd have something impressive.
Me, I'm just real sad about losing old Buck. What a great guy, all around, he was.
Posted by: Scott Chaffin at March 25, 2006 03:31 PMBuck Owens was one of the giants of country music- I feel it's safe to mention his name in the same breath as Johnny Cash and Hank Williams. Buck's music was authentic, fun, twangy, and anti-Nashville in a way.
FWIW, I can't decide on my favorite Buck Owens song- although "Made In Japan" and "Love's Gonna Live Here" would be at the top of the list.
RIP, Buck. Well done.
Posted by: Barry at March 26, 2006 02:51 AMOh, he was very much the opposite of the Countrypolitan sound coming out of Nashville.
Posted by: Donnah at March 26, 2006 01:02 PMI will double up on the 'businessman' aspect of the
current comments..I remember when I found out *who*
was behind Dwight Yoakum's boost..
so I guess I'll add his albums to my Ray Charles
and Elvis collection...
I read the wikapedea article and was floored by how much he had accomplished. I remember some of those songs from radio play but never realized how many #1 hits he had. He will be missed.
Posted by: Gmac at March 26, 2006 05:26 PM