I was introduced to Russ Thompson's unique records years ago through the blogs of a record collector who called himself "Red Neckerson" or "Howdy" (see 45blog and Frances' Favorite 45s). Since then, Russ Thompson has caught my attention but I was never able to unearth any information on him. When I was given the possibility to purchase both of his 45s recently, I jumped at the chance.
From what I remember Red told me that Russ Thompson and his wife Paula were local Little Rock country music singers. His Blue Bird disc, probably Thompson's own label, was pressed by Wayne Raney's Rimrock plant in Concord, Arkansas, in the 1960s or 1970s. This release became a little underground favorite among collectors since it was posted by Red as "My Arkansas Baby" features a hot band. The other one, on Thompson's Russ, Paula imprint, was self-released by him and pressed by Monarch in 1969. It featured both songs from the Blue Bird release plus his version of the country classic "Wreck of the Old '97".
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| Catalog of Copyright Entries, 1970 |
The address on both records, 3901 East Broadway in North Little Rock, seems to have been Thompson's home at that time. The address houses a hardware store today.
If anyone has more information on Russ Thompson, feel free to leave a comment.
Discography
Blue Bird BBS 601: Russ Thompson and his Arkansas Blue Birds - Beautiful Arkansas Waltz / My Arkansas Baby
Russ, Paula RPR 101: Russ Thompson and his Harmonica: Wreck of Old 97 / My Arkansas Baby / Beautiful Arkansas Waltz (August 1969)
See also
• Blue Bird and Russ, Paula on Arkansas 45rpm Records
Sources
• Russ Thompson on Discogs
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