Arkie Shibley on Gilt-Edge

Arkie Shibley and his Mountain Dew Boys - Arkie's Talking Blues (Gilt-Edge 5078), 1952

Arkie Shibley's "Hot Rod Race" became the first song to capture the enthusiasm of automobiles and racing. It introduced cars into American popular culture, especially in youth's culture. It also caused a string of similar themed songs in country music and rock'n'roll, namely such songs as "Maybellene" by Chuck Berry. Other similar themed songs were Charlie Ryan's "Hot Rod Lincoln", the Beach Boys' "Fun, Fun, Fun", "Little Deuce Coupe" or their "Little Honda", and a seemingly never ending list of rock'n'roll songs variously named "Hot Rod", "Hot Rod Baby", "Hot Rod Boogie", or other combinations with the term "hot rod".

The man behind "Hot Rod Race" was Jesse Lee "Arkie" Shibley, born on September 21, 1915, in the growing city of Van Buren, Arkansas, near the Arkansas River. His parents, David Monta and Prudence Shibley, were farmers and life was simple but hard. Shibley became a cattle farmer himself and married Evelyn Marie Breeden in 1935. The next year, the couple moved to Bremerton, Washington state, where Shibley found work building Illahee State Park for the "Works Progress Administration", which was part of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. Later on, starting in 1941, he also worked as a sheet metal worker at Puget Sound Navy Yard. In Arkansas,  Shibley was initially called "Buck" due to his deer hunting skills but in Washington, he became known as "Arkie" due to his origin.

After moving to Bremerton, he had bought a $5.00 guitar in a pawn shop and taught himself how to play. Soon, he was confident enough playing Bremerton's venues by night with an uptempo, swinging, style of country music. Bremerton was a US Navy town with lots of young male sailors looking for an opportunity for entertainment. Shibley first performed solo as the "Lone Cowboy" but by 1939, had teamed up with Earl Dobeas, performing in taverns and on radio. Eventually, he changed musical partners and met up with guitarist Leon Kelley from Fort Worth, Texas. The addition of Bill Drinkard  made it a trio and gave birth to the "Mountain Dew Boys". However, Drinkard, who was later known on local radio and TV as "Montana Bill", soon left the band and was replaced by bassist and banjo player Jackie Hays from Oklahoma. This line-up played the bars, joints, and dance halls for sailors, loggers, and shipyard workers. They also performed regularly on local radio, first on KBRG and then on KBRO, and Shibley acquired a night club he called "Arkie's Corral" in mid 1949. However, he was not a good business man and by the end of the year, the club had gone back to its original owner.

Shibley, Kelly, and Hays were also the core line-up for Shibley's recordings a little later on. By 1948, Phil Fregon on fiddle and "Dockie" Dean Manuel on piano and fiddle had joined the band, too. Manuel became a member of Jim Reeves' band in 1959 and died in the same plane crash as Reeves in 1964. 

By 1947, Shibley had set his mind on California-based record companies and made connections with a small record label, Hal Sarb's MaeMae Records from Hollywood. Several records were released during that year but none of them had any greater impact. Then, Shibley visited Bill McCall of 4 Star Records in Pasadena. Shibley and the Mountain Dew Boys had worked up a song called "Hot Rod Race", written by 17-years old Ronald George "Ron" Wilson from Washington state (contrary to some beliefs this was not a pseudonym for Shibley). Reportedly, Wilson's father George Erwin had approached the band while they were playing the Peedle Weezer Tavern and he shared his son's work with Shibley, who took it up for his band's act. They performed the song instantly that night to an enthusiastic reaction of the crowd.

Arkie Shibley on the front cover of "Songmakers Magazine", August 1950

When Shibley played the record to McCall, he was rejected (an event Shibley later reworked as "Arkie's Talking Blues") but Shibley in turn set up his own small label, Mt. Dew Records, in Bremerton to release the song backed by "I'm Living Alone with an Old Love" (Mt. Dew #101) on both 78rpm and 45rpm formats. He managed to press those early 200 discs through the 4 Star company and the songs appeared around August 1950 and soon became a hit in the Bremerton area. Bill McCall got word of it, overthought his initial decision and soon purchased the master for reissue on his Gilt-Edge label (#MD-101/#5021, December 1950).

With McCall promoting the song heavily, it took off (although some eastern radio stations refused to play it due to the line "we were rippin' along like white folks might") and eventually peaked at #5 of one of Billboard's C&W charts in February 1951. The song saw several releases over the years and caused rivaling cover versions at the time, including those by Ramblin' Jimmie Dolan (Capitol), Red Foley (Decca), and Tiny Hill (Mercury), which were successful as well. According to the Coeur d'Alene Press, it sold over one million copies, although this number is not assured and possibly includes combined sales figures of the original releases, reissues, cover versions or is simply exaggerated. It is undisputed, though, that it became a big influence on rockabilly and rock'n'roll music. Chuck Berry cited "Hot Rod Race" as a big influence on him to write "Maybellene", a similar themed song that became his breakthrough hit, and Charlie Ryan based his "Hot Rod Lincoln" on Shibley's original. Though some recognize the song as a rockabilly song, which would make it the first ever recording in that style, it is rather "hopped up country music", or to put it more eloquently, a primitive country boogie, which makes it an influential precursor to rockabilly and rock'n'roll.

During the 1950s, Shibley released his recordings on the Mountain Dew label and Bill McCall would pick out some of them to release on Gilt-Edge, including several continuations of "Hot Rod Race". For some time, Shibley lived in California, where probably most of his recording sessions took place but none of his later discs could match the initial success, however. Apart from his automobile saga, Shibley recorded country boogie tunes in various forms and songs aimed at the Navy audience of the Pacific Northwest areas: "Uncle Sam Has Called My Number Again", "Shore Leave", and "Three Day Pass".

The Montana Stardard, April 6, 1952

During the 1950s, Shibley and his band, which included by then also his son Jesse Frederick (alias "Arkie Jr.") who was adept at bass and guitar, traveled across Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Idaho to play small venues. By 1952, Grover Jackson had taken over lead guitar duties from Kelly. Shibley accompanied Mary Lou (Manges) Flesher, his bass player on some of his demo tapes, to Fairbanks, Alaska, and while she stayed there, Shibley soon left again. Although the Mountain Dew Boys continued to perform, they had given up recording by 1960. Shibley's last single had appeared the previous year on the 4 Star main label, comprising "Pick Pick Pickin' (My Guitar)" and "I'm a Poor Old Oakie" (#1737). He also operated a night club in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for some time.

Eventually, Shibley moved back to his home state Arkansas, where he spent his final years. Arkie Shibley passed away on September 7, 1975, in Van Buren at the age of 59 years shortly before his 60th birthday. He is buried at Macedonia Cemetery in Uniontown, Arkansas. A definitive reissue of his complete material is still missing but Dutch Collector Records compiled 25 songs of Shibley's onto their CD "Hot Rod Race" in 1997.

Recommended reading

• Hillbilly-Music.ccom

• SecondHandSongs

Sources

• Find a Grave entry

• Encyclopedia of Arkansas

• Entries at 45cat and 45worlds/78rpm

• Praguefrank's Country Music Discographies entry

• Arkie Shibley Facebook Tribute

• Hot-Rod Songs of the Northwest (HistoryLink.org)

The Poor Boy Connection

The Poor Boy Connection

Wayne Raney's First Adventure in Record Production

Wayne Raney had been an established artist by the mid 1950s but his heyday as a recording artist had been over by then. His influential work with the Delmore Brothers had come to an abrupt end when Rabon Delmore died in 1952. Raney's last hit and biggest hit, "Why Don't You Haul Off and Love Me" from 1949, was eight years old when he decided to try his luck and switch to the other side of the studio.

In 1957, Raney returned to WCKY in Cincinnati and continued to sell song books and harmonicas on air successfully. That same year, Raney decided to switch sides and established his own Wayne Raney Studio in nearby Oxford, Ohio, operating the Poor Boy, American, New American, and Down Home labels out of it. He also set up Oleta Publishing, which became his outlet for composition for the next decades. In late 1957, Raney recorded "We Need a Whole Lot More of Jesus (and a Lot Less Rock and Roll)" and "Don't You Think It's Time", which saw release on Poor Boy #100 the following year (although Billboard would not announce the founding of Poor Boy until February 1959) and the former became a hit in the gospel hit. "We Need a Whole Lot More of Jesus" was also recorded by several other artists in the years to come and became a minor standard.

Raney's business partner was Jimmie Zack, a singer and songwriter who worked in Raney's band before the founding of the recording studio and record labels. Born James Zack Yingst in 1924 in Fair Oaks, Arkansas, Zack penned about a dozen songs, mostly with Raney or Raney's son Zyndall. Zack's "Evil Ways" b/w "I Can't Do Without You" (American #102, 1960) has been featured on a few compilations. He had another release on Starday's Nashville imprint, "Lost John's Gone" b/w "My Get Up and Go" (#5010), which was released in 1961 and probably recorded at Raney's Oxford studio or, though rather unlikely, at his Rimrock studio.

Raney and Zack operated a handful of labels out of the Oxford studio with changing adresses, however, They also began an association with Norman Walton of Richmond, Indiana, who operated Walton Records and probably served as a manager for the Raney/Zack labels.

Location of the labels' addresses:
Oxford, Ohio / Richmond, Indiana / Muncie Indiana

The Poor Boy label was started in 1958. The first release (Poor Boy #100) showed a Richmond post box address. Then, they changed it to a Muncie, Indiana, post box address. Muncie is located about 43 miles southeast of Richmond on the Indiana-Ohio state border. Poor Boy releases #105 up to #107 showed addresses in both Muncie ("Home Office") and Richmond ("General Manager Office"). The final releases on Poor Boy only had a Muncie address. The label was closed down in 1960. Its last release is probably the best known: "Sweet Marie" b/w "Servant of Love" (Poor Boy #111) by the Van Brothers, Arnold and Earl Van Winkle. Both songs were also reissued by Norman Walton on the Walton label. Other notable recordings on Poor Boy include those by Raney himself, Norman Witcher, and Connie Dycus.

American was headquartered in Muncie. It was only active in 1960 and released four discs, including Zack's "Evils Ways". They also operated a New American label out of his Raney Recording Studio in Oxford, Ohio, that same year, which issued a string of bluegrass EPs featuring the likes of Wade Mainer, Clyde Moody, the Stanley Brothers, among other well known names. The tapes possibly came into Raney's possession through his job with WCKY. The last release on New American, a six track gospel EP, was re-released on the one-off Raney label as well.

Down Home Records was another very short-lived venture and released only one disc, a gospel EP by Raney and his family. These as well as other cuts recorded by Raney were also leased to Starday Records.

The Walton label was founded by Norman Walton in 1961 and released a slew of country and gospel singles and EPs up to 1966. Even an album by Gil Richmond was recorded in 1964 on Walton. Several of the songs recorded on Walton were co-written by Norman Walton, including Winston Shelton's sides. Similar to Poor Boy, the record labels also showed different addresses. The address on Winston Shelton's EP was 2923 Boston Pike in Richmond. Possibly these addresses were printed on account of the particular artist.

Many of the releases, especially Raney's EPs on his own labels and Starday, were promoted and sold by him through his radio show over WCKY, which was a powerful station and gave Raney a wide audience (similar businesses were run by WCKY DJs Nelson King and his successor, Arlen Vaden). However, by 1961, Raney decided to pack up things and move back to Arkansas. He discontinued his mail order business, the small labels he had established previously and bought a 180 acre farm near Concord, Arkansas, not far away from his birth place. On his farm, Raney raised Black Angus cattle but his farmer life only lasted for a few months. Later that year, he built the Rimrock Recording Studio and also established a pressing plant and, in 1965, his own Rimrock record label.

Norman Walton continued to release 45s and even some LPs on the Walton label until at least 1966 but discontinued it at some point. Wayne Raney sold the Rimrock company in 1975 to Stax Records of Memphis, Tennessee, and died in 1993.

If anyone has more information on Jimmie Zack or Norman Walton, please feel free to share your memories or information in the comments or via contact form.

Discography

American
101: Charlie Moore & Bill Napier and the Dixie Partners - Story of Love / Big Daddy of the Blues (1960)
102: Jimmie Zack and the Blues Rockers - I Can't Do Without You / Evil Ways (1960)
103: Krazy Kords - Malaguena / Return to Me / That's My Desire / Ol Man River (1960)
104: Rocky Rose - Won't You Reconsider / This Is the First Time (1960)

Down Home
100: Wayne Raney & Raney Family - I'll Be Listening / Where the Soul of Man Never Dies / I Need the Prayers / In the Shadow of the Cross / The Wrath of God / We Are Going Down the Valley

New American
101: Don Reno & Red Smiley - Springtime in Heaven / Stanley Brothers - He Said If I'd Be Lifted Up / Tommy Magness - Jesus Will Save Your Soul / Harlan County Four - John Three Sixteen / Brother Claude Ely - Little David Play on Your Harp / Clyde Moody - I Feel Like Traveling On
102: Trace Family Trio - My Mothers Dying Message / Clyde Moody - Through the Pearly Gate / Wade Mainer - God's Radio Phone / Tommy Magness - When I Safely Reach That Other Shore / Mac Odell - Be on Time / King's Sacred Quartet - The World Can't Stand Long
103: Esco Hankins - Mother Left Me Her Bible / Wade Mainer - He's Passing This Way / Bailes Brothers - Ashamed to Own the Blessed Savior / Trace Family Trio - I've Got a Longing to Go / Tommy Magness - Wings of Faith / Clyde Moody - I Need the Prayers
104: Wayne Raney & Family - A Little Pine Log Cabin / Hand in Hand with Jesus / I Found It in Mothers Bible / Where No Cabins Fall / The Uncloudy Day / An Empty Mansion (see also Raney 104)

Poor Boy
100: Wayne Raney - We Need a Whole Lot More of Jesus (and a Lot Less Rock and Roll) / Don't You Think It's Time (1958)
101:
102: Norman Witcher - Somebody's Been Rocking My Boat / Wake Me Up (1958)
103: Raney Family - When Heaven Comes Down / Lilac Bouquet (1959)
104: The Gays - Don't Rush Me / You're Never There (1959)
105: Les & Helen Tussey / Golden Hill Boys - They Went Around / Married to a Friend (1959)
106: Les & Helen Tussey / Golden Hill Boys - If Jesus Was in the Hearts / We've Got to Answer (1959)
107: Danny Brockman and the Golden Hill Boys - Stick Around / Don't You Know It's True (1959)
108: Connie Dycus - Same Old Thing / Hand Full of Ashes (1959)
109: Wayne Raney - Simply Wonderful / Everybody's Going Crazy (1959)
110: Originales - Bandstand Sound / Lend Me Your Ear (1959)
111: Van Brothers - Sweet Marie / Servant of Love (1959)

Raney
104: Wayne Raney & Raney Family - A Little Pine Log Cabin / Hand in Hand with Jesus / I Found It in Mothers Bible / Where No Cabins Fall / The Uncloudy Day / An Empty Mansion (see also American 104)

Walton
Singles
001: Richmond Friendly Four - Lord / I've Been a Hard Working Pilgrim / He Will Go / He Knows the Way / Someday They'll Be No Tomorrow (1961)
002:
003: Norman Walton & Van Brothers - Take That Lock from Your Heart / Too Many Women / Sweet Marie / Servant of Love (1962)
004:
005: Gentry Brothers - My Wildwood Flower / Uncle Orie - Uncle Sam (1962)
007: Gil Richmond and Earl King - Doing Things / Let Me Talk It Over with My Heart (1964)
008: Betty Browning - Do You Remember / My Larry (1964)
009: Gil Richmond and Earl King - Stop, Slow Down / Your Faithful Fool (1964)
010: Jimmy Walls - What a Little Kiss Can Do / Stop Look and Listen (1965)
011: Flora C - Walk Away, Walk Away / A Dairy of Dreams (1966)
EP-950: Winston Shelton and the Country Gospel Singers - From Bethlehem to Calvary / Stop and Think / I'm Not a Poor Man / On the Banks of Old Jordan
1500: Jimmy Walls - Hello Out There World / Look at Me Eyes (1966)
2500: Van Brothers - Uncle Jim Riggs Will / Lonesome Tonight for Tomorrow (1965)

Albums
No.#: Gil Richmond and the Golden Hill Troupe - Hootenanny Roundup (1964)

Recommended reading

• Dead Wax blog: Krazy Kords on American

See also

• Winston Shelton on Walton

• Wayne Raney - King of the Talking Harmonica

• Wayne Raney on New American

• The Van Brothers - Servants of Indiana Rockabilly

Sources

• 45cat entries: American, Down Home, New American, Poor Boy, Walton

• Jimmie Zack Rockin' Country Style entry

• Jimmie Zack Discogs entry

• Wayne Raney Praguefrank's Country Music Discographies entry

Pine Mountain Jamboree

The Pine Mountain Jamboree logo, taken from one of the show's cassette tapes

It appears that there have been quite a couple of family-friendly country music live stage shows in Arkansas that emerged in the second half of the 20th century. These were often non-radio shows, people could only experience the fun they promised when attending the shows. Sometimes recordings were made, like it is the case for Eureka Springs' Pine Mountain Jamboree.

The show was founded by the Drennon family, led by Dave and Deanna "Dee" Drennon. Mike and Mindy Drennon helped also but it is unknown to me how they were related. The show started in 1975 and became a popular one, as it continued for over four decades. It featured mostly country musicians, though the cast remains another blank spot in the show's history. Country and gospel classics were performed live on stage, mixed with comedy. The building housing the show was located on Highway 62 in East Eureka Springs and featured vacation homes, shops, and other entertainment as well.

Several recordings were made in the early 1980s. Two LPs appeared in 1981 and 1982 and at least two cassette tapes were issued, too, although it's not clear if the LP tracks differed from the cassettes. There appears to have been a CD in 2003 entitled "Thirty and Counting" (though the show's 30th anniversary would not have been until 2005), which suggests the show was still in existence at that time.

The Drennons retired from the show business eventually and leased the building to Mike and Dale Bishop, who continued to put on shows there for the next years under the name of "Pine Mountain Theatre". The Bishops discontinued their shows, however, and the Drennon family finally sold the estate and buildings to the local Pig Trail Harley-Davidson shop, who turned over management of the Pine Mountain Jamboree to Mark Wayne Beers.

The opening show under Beers' supervision took place in May 2015. During the following months, the show featured such acts as Walt Morrison, Kimberly Swatzell, the Brick Fields Band, Buster Sharp, as well as Beers himself. Beers was ambitious but had to close the show in late 2015 with the last show being on November 12 that year. The building on 2015 East Van Buren (Highway 62) is still standing but abandoned nowadays.

The Pine Mountain Jamboree building in recent years
Source: Google Street View

Sources
• Pine Mountain Jamboree Facebook page
• Locals Only: Arkansas Twang

Carl Blankenship

Source: Al Turner

The Country Cut-Up from Muskogee

The Story of Carl Blankenship

Although hailing from Oklahoma, mandolinist and singer Carl Blankenship was a driving force in the Fort Smith, Arkansas, area's music scene. Apart from his work as a performer, he was also a radio DJ, a songwriter, and record label owner throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

Homer Carl Blankenship was born on January 11, 1924, in Wagoner, Oklahoma. At that time, Wagoner was a small city with a population of about 3.000 people, located near Tulsa and Muskogee - and the Oklahoma-Arkansas state border is not far away either. Blakenship was born to William Louis and Edna (Stewart) Blankenship, who owned a farm outside the town, where he and his three siblings grew up. He first attended Star School and after graduating from Wagoner High School, he worked for the Katy Railroad company.

He then joined the US Army's Signal Corps and during Word War II, he spent time overseas, including in France. While on home leave in 1943, he married Leota Anderson. Upon his return to the United States, he was honorably discharged and worked briefly for the Veretans Administration. Blankenship and his wife moved to Muskogee in 1949 and in the 1950s, he began working as a salesman for Herzfeld's Beauty Supply.

Around 1951, Blankenship met singer-guitarrist Cliff Waldon through a mutual befriended salesman and they soon formed a duo, subsequently known as the "Country Cut-Ups". Their first appereance took place at a Sunday School event from Muskogee's First Baptist Church. By June 1956, the duo was performing on KWHN's Saturday Night Radio Center Jamboree in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and had made guest appearances at radio live shows such as the Big D Jamboree in Dallas, Texas, the Cowtown Howdown in Fort Worth, Texas, and the Barnyard Frolics in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Around the same time, Blankenship and Waldon managed to secure a recording deal with Dale Siegenthaler's Stardale label out of Morris, Oklahoma (about 30 miles southwest of Muskogee). Around spring of  1956, they travelled to Dallas (possibly while they were appearing at the Big D Jamboree) and held their first recording session at Jim Beck's studio. Accompanied by a studio band featuring Jim Rollins on guitar, Bob Meadows on steel guitar, Billl Simmons on piano, and Fred Scott on bass, the duo recorded "A Rose for Mother" and "It Takes Money", both written by Siegenthaler with the help of Stardale recording artist Carl Tilton. 

Both songs were released on Stardale #13 in June 1956. It remained their only joint release, though, and soon, Blankenship and Waldon went seperate ways. Waldon had recorded two solo songs probably at the same session, which saw release at the same time on Stardale (#12) and in Canada on Ampex a year later. Following their breakup, Waldon went rock'n'roll and recorded two discs for the Mark label.

Blankenship stayed true to his country roots and by early 1958, had found a new duet partner in Arkansas native "Little" George Domerese. They gained a spot on KWHN in Fort Smith and began performing the Arkansas-Oklahoma border region. 

Inspired by Siegenthal's entrepreunism in the record business, Blankenship decided to establish his own Razorback record label in early 1958. Possibly intended to be mainly an outlet for his own discs, he nevertheless found several local artists that recorded for him in the years to come. The debut release, however, was reserved for Blankenship's own recordings of "What's Another Broken Heart" and "The Kind to Cheat" (Razorback #101) in March 1958.

For the next years, Blankenship would appear on local radio, spinning the discs also on KOLS in Pryor, Oklahoma, in 1960, did live shows, played personal appearances in the region, as well as recorded for and led his own Razorback label well into the 1960s. He closed down Razorback in 1962 and his KWHN show with Domerese ended in 1964. It seems that he ceased musical activities from that point, although he performed with his own bluegrass band at festivals, church meetings as well as family gatherings and led the the singing class in the local church's Sunday School.

Besides all that, Blankenship held down his day job as a salesman and finally, he and his wife bought the Herzfeld company in 1973, changing the name to Blankenship Beauty Supply. He retired in 1987 and sold the business.

Carl Blankenship passed away on November 19, 2006, at the age of 82 years at Muskogee Regional Medical Center. He is buried at Fort Gibson National Cemetery. His wife Leota followed two years later.

Discography

Stardale 13: Carl and Cliff /  The Country Cut-Ups - A Rose for Mother / It Takes Money (1956)
Razorback 101: Carl Blankenship - What's Another Broken Heart / The Kind to Cheat (1958)
Razorback 105: Carl Blankenship - I Can't Live to See Tomorrow / I'd Like to Set You to Music (1959)
Razorback 108: Evay and Gene Travis with Carl Blankenship - The Kings Highway / Loved Ones Are Waiting in Heaven (1960)

See also

• Little George Domerese: A Giant in Johnson County Country Music

• Linda Flanagan on Razorback

Sources

• 45cat entry

• Find a Grave entry

• Hillbilly-Music.com entry

• various Billboard and Cash Box news items

Little George Domerese

Little George Domerese

A Giant in Johnson County Country Music

"Little" George Domerese was a Northwest Arkansas based singer, radio personality, promoter, and songwriter. Domerese hailed from Johnson County, near Fort Smith, Arkansas, and the territories located on the banks of the Arkansas River and Lake Dardanelle, from Russellville to Fort Smith, became Domerese's stomping grounds his whole life.

George Virgil Domerese, whose nickname "Little" more than likely came from his stature, was born on October 13, 1926, in Johnson County, Arkansas, to Harley Clarence and Eva (Elkins) Domerese. He came from a large family with a total of nine children. I found no hint to where his last name originated from but I suspect a Greek origin.

Blessed with musical talent, Domerese and his younger brother Clarence had begun appearing as "The Domerese Brothers" by 1950. He had formed a duo with mandolin player Carl Blankenship six years later and by 1958, the duo was performing over KWHN in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Domerese and Blankenship also played school houses along the Arkansas-Oklahoma state border and in addition, he worked with Lost John Miller at KWHN during this time. By then, Carl Blankenship had established his own record label Razorback Records, headquartered in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and although Domerese would never record for that imprint (though Cash Box would report differently in February 1958), he penned two songs, "The Kings Highway" and "Loved Ones Are Waiting in Heaven", which were recorded by Blankenship for Razorback in 1960.

Billboard December 14, 1959

In 1958, Domerese began promoting live country shows, including the KWHN Country Music Jamboree in Fort Smith and his own Johnson County Jamboree in Clarksville. By May 1960, he had added a show on radio KFDF in Van Buren, Arkansas, to his repertoire (Domerese would eventually own KFDF for 34 years), and could be heard on KLYR in Clarksville, too. Around that time, he also promoted records by Blankenship's Razorback label, including Vernon Stewart's "Down to the Blues", the label's latest release in early 1960.  His KWHN show with Blankenship went off the air around 1964 but Domerese remained active in the radio business.

Domerese's only solo recording came into existence probably in the late 1960s. Favoring religious material, he composed two slices of primitive, Vietnam war themed country gospel, "Dear Daddy I'll Pray for You" and "A Message from Daddy in Heaven", which he recorded on the Power label. Given the fact that it was a Rimrock custom pressing, I assume the Power imprint was his own venture.

Domerese would diversify his interests in the radio business by buying gospel stations KMTL in  Sherwood/North Little Rock in 1988 and KWXT in Dardanelle/Russellville and owned at least KMTL until his death.

Domere's wife Earla died in 2016, followed by Little George Domerese on February 27, 2017, in Clarksville at the age of 90 years. KMTL was sold by the Domerese family after his death.

Discography

Power PS 103: Little George Domerese - Daddy Dear Daddy I'll Pray for You / A Message from Daddy in Heaven

Sources
• Find a Grave entry
• 45cat entry and Carl Blankenship 45 entry
• The World's Worst Records blog by Darryl W. Bullock
• Clarence Domerese obituary
• various Billboard and Cash Box news items

Lloyd Marley on United Southern Artists

Lloyd Marley and the Trebles - Ooh Poo Pah Doo (United Southern Artists 5-109), 1961

Northeast Arkansas had a lively music scene during the 1950s, 60s, and 70s but Northwest Arkansas wasn't short of it. And Fayetteville with its many students was the center of it all. One of the many performers from area was Lloyd Marley, who stayed on the scene for more than 50 years.

Samuel Lloyd Marley was born on July 22, 1940, in Bentonville, Arkansas, north of Fayetteville. His family had no money to afford a guitar for Marley, who eventually learned to play piano in the 1950s. In 1952, at age twelve, he met his future wife Dolores at a birthday party.

Blues music was Marley's first love with artists like Muddy Waters or B.B. King. But when Chuck Berry rose to fame in the mid 1950s, Marley was hooked on rock'n'roll and Berry became his hero. He wanted to become a guitarist but couldn't play. Moreover, every band in the region had guitar players but no one had pianists. So Marley began playing piano and joined local bands. When he graduated from Bentonville High School in 1958, he was voted "Most Talented" among the graduating class.

Lloyd Marley in 1958
Source: Bentonville High School Yearbook/Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Marley went on to perform with various groups over the years and played at countless spots in Fayetteville, including the Huddle Club, the Rockwood Club, the VFW, and the Y'all Come Back Saloon. He joined the Cate Brothers for a while around this time, and around 1961, joined a group known as the Trebles.

The circumstances are foggy but the Trebles managed to secure a recording deal with the newly started United Southern Artists label and talent agency from Hot Springs, Arkansas. They recorded Jesse Hill's 1960 R&B hit "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" along with Marley's original "Fade with the Time", released around September that year (#5-109). It possibly sold good regionally, but United Southern didn't call the band back for a follow-up.

Billboard September 4, 1961, pop review

Marley left the Trebles probably shortly afterwards and then joined rocker Ronnie Hawkins on a tour through Canada. Following that tour, Marley and his own band also spent two weeks playing the Peppermint Lounge in New York. When he returned to Arkansas, his association with Hawkins helped him landing jobs all around and he became an even more popular performer than he had been prior to the tour. He was also booked in places such as Oklahoma City, Kansas City, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Tulsa. When local Fayetteville bandleader Johnny Tolleson left town, Marley stepped in and took over leadership of the band for a time.

Constant performing and playing also meant constant partying and drinking over the years. Health problems followed and it took Marley a few years to get on the right track again. In 1981, he reunited with one of his old bands, the Mudflaps, and started performing again. He frequently played the clubs on Dickson Street in Fayetteville during these years and his band became residents at the Swinging Doors club in the 1970s, which became the Whitewater Tavern in 1981. During the 1990s, Marley also appeared with German blues musician Frank Burkhard, who lived in Arkansas for about ten years.

The Cate Brothers, Ernie and Earl, who had enjoyed some chart success, later called Marley a huge influence for Arkansas' northwestern music scene. Marley had eventually also learned to play guitar and played whatever was needed - blues, country, rock. A successful recording career - or at least a long-lasting recording career - eluded Marley, however. Columbia Records rejected him, demo tapes to other companies never reached them. At least, Marley recorded an album in the late 1980s.

He encountered health issues again late in his life and was not able to perform for much of 2019. He died on October 12, 2019, in Fayetteville, at the age of 79 years.

See also
• United Southern Artists from Hot Springs, Arkansas
• Johnny Tolleson on Chance

Sources
• Jocelyn Murphy: "Marley's music: Rocker and friends remember a lifetime of tunes" (Arkansas Democrat Gazette)
• 45cat entry
• Q24 Pirna (German)
• Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette obituary
• Anthony C. Wappel, Ethel C. Simpson: "Once Upon Dickson: An Illustrated History, 1868-2000" (Phoenix Int./Arkansas Libraries Special Coll. Dep.), 2008, p. 199

Bill Huskey

Bill Huskey
The Unknown Songwriter from Arkansas

While digging deeper and deeper into Arkansas' country and rock'n'roll music past, I ran across a songwriter by the name of Bill Huskey. While the name didn't catch my interest in the first instance, it finally did and in the end, I found out that Huskey was also responsible for some great rock'n'roll recordings on Billy Lee Riley's Rita Records.

Claudis "Bill" Huskey was born on April 1, 1932, to Leslie Ray and Verna Lee Huskey in Caraway, Arkansas, a small town in the northeastern region of the state that was so rich of musical talent. He spent some time serving in the US Army and by the late 1950s, had made his way to Memphis, Tennessee.

By late 1959, Huskey had connected with Billy Lee Riley, who had recently founded his own record label in Memphis, Rita Records. The debut release was reserved for Huskey, who recorded his rock'n'roll composition "Rockin' at the Zoo" along with "Funny Paper People" for the label. Released in December 1959 on Rita #1001, the single failed to stimulate any national interest.

During the same time, he also hung around Sun Studio and managed to pitch some songs to the label's executives. Huskey's "The Good Guy Always Wins" was given to another young singer from Georgia, Lance Roberts. The result was released in October 1960 on Sun. Singers like Billy Garner and Billy Lee Riley also recorded his composition during this time.

At the same time, Huskey's own next release came out on Rita. Credited to "Tommy Hawk", the label issued "Chief Sitting Bull", another rock'n'roll performance, and "I Thought About Living" on the other side. The latter was an answer song to Bob Luman's hit "Let's Think About Living" that soon captured the attention of the original's publisher Acuff-Rose. Threatened with legal action, Rita withdrew the release and put Huskey's earlier recording of "Rockin' at the Zoo" on the flip with "Chief Sitting Bull" remaining. 

In 1962, Huskey worked with Quinton Claunch and his Bingo label (forerunner of his much more successful Goldwax record label). "Big Bad John the Twister" b/w "Pop-Eye Time" were released in the spring of 1962 on Bingo #111 as by another pseudonym, "Jon Kennedy".

Catalog of Copyright Entries 1962

Catalog of Copyright Entries 1962
Copyright entry for Huskey's Bingo single

None of Huskey's singles did noteworthy well so far and it seems that he very much quit recording after his Bingo release. He returned to Arkansas and founded his own record label Jakebil Records in Newport in 1969. The debut release was given to Huskey's daughter Kenni (sometimes also spelled Kenny), who went on to greater fame than her father. Huskey also released a duet with his second wife Julia (who also recorded solo) on Jakebil, "Good Old Country Song" b/w "I Wouldn't Give You the Time of Day" (#1003/4).

Later that year, Huskey moved his family and business to Anaheim, California, where daughter Kenny continued to build her career. She was eventually discovered by country star Buck Owens and recorded for such labels as Capitol and Warner Brothers.

While Huskey also spent some time in Nashville, he eventually returned to Newport, Arkansas, where he died on April 7, 2021, at the age of 89 years. His wife Julia had already passed away.

See also
• Jakebil Records discography on Arkansas 45rpm Records (Arkansas records only)

Sources
• 45cat entry
• Arkansas Democrat Gazette obituary

Vaughn Riley on Ornament

Vaughn Riley and the Blue-Diamonds - It's All Your Fault (Ornament No.#), 1977
Thankfully, Dean from the cherished Small Independent Rockin' 45rpm Labels blog pointed me towards this disc in 2023. Naturally, I got intrigued with Vaughn Riley's story. There's not much out there on him or the Ornament label, though, so if you know more than I do, please feel free to share your knowledge with me.

Early on in his career, Vaughn Riley was a member of the Arkansas based rock'n'roll band the Jokers. Members of this band included at one time or another Jimmy Bone and Jimmy Doyle Payne on vocals, Steve Hanford (sometimes also spelled Handford) and Riley on guitars, Ivan Wood on bass, and John Stice on drums. The Jokers recorded three rare records. The first one was released on Grace in 1961, featuring their Clovers cover "Little Mama" and "Say You're Mine", written by Vaughn Riley. Their second release came in 1964 with covers of two Bobby Lee Trammell classics, "Arkansas Twist" and "It's All Your Fault". These recordings were released by the Bro-Ket label of Batesville, Arkansas. A third 45 was issued as by "Jimmy Payne and the Jokers" on George Whitaker's Zay-Dee label featuring "I Wouldn't Be Seen Alive with Her" b/w "Don't Ground Me".

I couldn't find any more info on Riley until his Ornament disc was released. This came along in 1977 and Riley again tried his hand at the Trammell song "It's All Your Fault". The flip side is not known to me sadly. The Jokers' and Riley's "obsession" with Bobby Lee Trammell material may be due to the fact that some of the Jokers members actually performed with him - at least Steve Han(d)ford and Jimmy Doyle Payne.

Ornament was based in North Little Rock and I know of two releases on this label, the other one being by Riley's old band mate Jimmy Doyle Payne.

See also
• Ornament Records discography on Arkansas 45rpm Records
• Southern Psych from the Zay-Dee label
• Jimmy Doyle Payne on Alley

Sources
• Discogs
• 45cat entries for the Jokers and for Ornament Records

Linda Flanagan on Razorback

Linda Flanagan - Street of No Return (Razorback 45-107), 1959

There was a time in the early to mid 1960s when it seemed that Linda Flanagan was heading for stardom. Obviously, she never achieved that, although working with such top names as Webb Pierce or Ernest Tubb, but she graced the world with a series of fine country singles. Her debut record on Razorback Records is featured in today's post.

Linda Flanagan hailed from Arkansas, although I could not find details on her birth place or birth date. Her father was Harold Flanagan, who was a local country music performer in his own right. A 1956 Cowboy Songs article mentions that she started her professional career at age 13 (although she started singing even earlier at age 3), which puts her birth date into the early 1940s. By 1956, she was performing over KFSA in Fort Smith, Arkansas, on both radio and television. She also dabbled in songwriting around this time, penning songs with Louisiana Hayride member Jimmie Helms.

From Fort Smith, located on the Arkansas-Oklahoma state border, she made her way to nearby Muskogee, Oklahoma, where she not only appeared on a local TV show entitled Big Red Jamboree, but also recorded for Carl Blankenship's Razorback label. "A Life That's Hard to Live" b/w "Street of No Return" (Razorback #107) was released in late 1959. The top side was co-written by the duo of Jerry Roller and Hershel Parker, the latter being also an Arkansas born singer and songwriter, who recorded a few singles in his own right and worked with Flanagan during this time frame.

From left to right: Linda Flanagan, Charlie Walker, Herschel Parker
at the 1956 Jimmie Rodgers Memorial Day in Meridian, Mississippi
(courtesy of Western Red)

Flanagan's next stop in her career was Nashville, Tennessee, where she was given the opportunity to appear on Ernest Tubb's Midnight Jamboree. Likely from this appearance resulted a recording session on June 29, 1961, at the Bradley Film and Recording Studio with a top band behind her, including Grady Martin, Buddy Emmons, Hargus Robbins, and producer Owen Bradley. The result was only one song, "Pass Me By", which in fact saw release in 1962 on a various artists Decca album simply entitled "Midnight Jamboree" featuring different artists that appeared on the show. The LP was also released in the UK and New Zealand. Flanagan's "Pass Me By" was furthermore issued on a special DJ 45rpm with the flip side filled by Webb Pierce's "Sweet Lips". 

The release of the LP in the UK was to some historical importance. Not for Ernest Tubb or any of the other better known artists on the record but for Flanagan. At that time, the Beatles were making their first steps and the band's drummer Ringo Starr was introduced to Flanagan's "Pass Me By" by his best fried Roy Trafford, who was a big country music fan, owned the "Midnight Jamboree" album and was especially fond of "Pass Me By". He even learned it for performing and the song inspired Starr to take up songwriting and he wrote his own "Don't Pass Me By", similar in its lyrical content but otherwise different, as Starr put a piano boogie beat behind it. The song probably wasn't even a minute long and band mates Paul McCartney and John Lennon dismissed it as a "rewrite of a Jerry Lee Lewis B-side". The song, if you can call it even a song, never made it far but Linda Flanagan's recording was an early influence on Ringo Starr's songwriting.

Unknown to Flanagan back then, she tried to find her own way to success. A second Decca session was not arranged for her until October 3, 1963, this time at the Columbia Recording Studio but again produced by Owen Bradley. Four songs were recorded that day and released by Decca in late 1963 ("Hold on to Happiness" b/w "The Keeper of the Key", Decca #31569) and July 1964 ("There's Love All Around Me" b/w "Mama Kiss the Hurt Away", Decca #31647). However, none of her two singles released by the label seem to have caught on with the public.

Although Decca dropped her, the independent and much smaller Boone record label gave Flanagan a chance once more. She recorded for the label in 1966 and 1967, releasing two singles, but these did not chart either. She had one more record out in Nashville in 1970, a duet with Lex Thomas entitled "South Bound Train," which was produced by guitarist Howard White for Spar Records - again without much success.

She left Nashville in the early 1970s and worked the Western Lounge club in Creve Couer, Illinois, with her husband Pete Blue from 1973 until 1975. She held one more session in Nashville in late 1985, which resulted in another record for the tiny Password label. At some point afterwards, she dropped out of the music business but was still residing in Nashville as late as 2017.

See also
• Arkansas-Oklahoma Jamboree

Sources
• 45cat entry
• Hillbilly-Music.com entry
• Steel Guitar Forum
• Praguefrank's Country Music Discographies entry
• Mark Lewisohn: "Tune In: The Beatles: All These Years" (2013), Crown, page 691

Arkansas-Oklahoma Jamboree

Downtown Fort Smith, Garrison Avenue, 1950s

The Arkansas-Oklahoma Jamboree was held in Fort Smith, Arkansas, located (as the show's name suggests) in the Arkansas-Oklahoma border region. The show was the brainchild of wrestling promoter Jimmy Lott and we only find mention of this show in November 1956 in both the Billboard and Cash Box publications. Linda Flanagan, a local country music singer still in her teens, was slated to be the star of the show. It was held at the Sports Arena, sometimes also billed as Jimmy Lott's Sports Arena.

Jimmy Lott

James Newman "Jimmy" Lott was born on January 31, 1908, in Jefferson County, Alabama, and grew up in Birmingham. He was active in both football and boxing during high school and after graduating, he became a professional wrestler, known as "Kid" Lott in the early and mid 1930s. In the early 1950s, he relocated to Fort Smith, Arkansas, and gave up wrestling in favor of promoting. He promoted mostly for LeRoy McGuirk's Tri-State Wrestling organization and many of its events were held at the Sports Arena.

In 1956, he briefly branched out promoting other kind of events, including his Arkansas-Oklahoma Jamboree. However, it is not known if this show was a one-shot or if it became a regular feature in Fort Smith. It was neither mentioned if it aired on radio. The same year, there is mention of a show entitled "Saturday Night Radio Center Jamboree" on KWHN that could have been the successor of Lott's show. In 1958, Billboard told its readers about the "Country Music Jamboree" that took place on Thursday nights (eventually changed to Friday nights) at the Sports Arena. It aired live over KWHN and also featured Linda Flanagan as well as local artists like Little George Domerese, Jerry Roller, and Carl Blankenship. Though it is not clear if this was the same show, a successor or an entirely new program.

Lott retired from promoting in the early 1970s and passed away on January 3, 1979, in Panama City, Florida.

See also
• Linda Flanagan on Razorback

Sources
• Wrestling Data
• Jimmy Lott Find a Grave entry

Cathy Collins on Whirlwind

Cathy Collins - This Tie That Binds (Whirlwind 1), 1970
This is really a mysterious release. Obscure label, obscure singer, obscure songwriter. Cathy Collins had a crystal-clear voice and two releases on Whirlwind, this being the first, and there was another disc on the infamous California based Rural Rhythm label, which could have been of another singer of the same name, though. That's it for Collins.

Billboard May 23, 1970

Both songs for this release were written by Elton Mitchell, who also penned two further tracks that were recorded by Collins for her second Whirlwind single. Mitchell is likely not the singer of the same name who recorded for a gospel label called Universal out of Denham Springs, Louisiana, in the 1980s. Further research on Mitchell resulted in the perception that Elton Mitchell is quite a common name.

Producer John Hurley is probably the best known person among the figures that were involved with this disc. He is best remembered as a songwriting partner of Ronnie Wilkins and both penned several tunes in the 1960s that became hits, including "Son of a Preacher Man" for Dusty Springfield or "Love of the Common People" for Waylon Jennings. They were both living in Nashville by the mid 1960s but left for California in 1970, so I assume this was one of Hurley's last productions in Music City USA. Which, in turn, leads me to the assumption that Collins' recording session took place there.

The Whirlwind label was based in Sheridan, located south of Little Rock in Central Arkansas. Little Richie Johnson, who was based in Belen, New Mexico, and who promoted and plugged numerous small labels across the country in the 1960s and 1970s as well as working with such stars as Willie Nelson, George Jones, or Merle Haggard, was involved with the label. Dalton Edwards, who is credited as a manager on Collins' releases, could have had a hand in it, too. Only four releases are known so far on Whirlwind and by 1971, the label seems to have folded.

See also

• Whirlwind discography on Arkansas 45rpm Records

Sources
• 45cat entry

• Discogs

• Wikipedia entry on John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins

Gathright's Saturday Night Jamboree

West Second Avenue in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, ca. 1910
Pine Bluff was home to "Gathright's Saturday Night Jamboree", one of Arkansas'
earliest live stage country music shows

One of the earliest, if not the earliest, live country music stage show took place in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, entitled "Gathright's Saturday Night Jamboree". At that time, Pine Bluff was a 21,000 residents city with an agricultural based economy, perfect surroundings for a weekly Saturday night country show.

The Saturday Night Jamboree grew out of a weekly, informal jam sessions by local musicians that took place at Gathright Van & Storage Transit Company. Beginning around 1942, the session soon attracted audience and became popular among the citizens, developing the informal meetings into shows. Local radio KOTN began broadcasting these shows on January 9, 1943, as "Gathright's Saturday Night Jamboree".

Soon, the attendants outgrew the capacity of the store and the show moved to another venue known as "Gathright's Hayloft". By September that year, larger station KARK out of Little Rock had added the show to its programming, which resulted in two broadcasts of the show: each Saturday the first segment aired state-wide over KARK and a second segment aired locally over KOTN.

Emcee of the show was Joe Wallace. The cast was made up of local talent, including such acts as Smokey Goodwin, Eva Pappas, Two Guys and a Gal, Gene Gray, Bill Dudley, the Original Tune Peddlars, Gathright's Quartet, Fanny Evans, and the house band of the show, the Troubadors. This band also featured local fiddler and singer M.T. "Fiddlin' Rufus" Brewer, who later joined the Louisiana Hayride along with Sammy Barnhart.

It is not known to me when the show ended its run. Any info is highly appreciated!

Sources
• The Day the Music Died - by Bob Brewer (son of M.T. Brewer)
• Jimmy Cunningham, Jr., Donna Cunningham: "Delta Music and Film: Jefferson County and the Lowlands" (Arcadia Publishing), 2015, p. 61

The United Southern Artists label

Of the many small and local labels that were founded during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s in Arkansas, the United Southern Artists label out of Hot Springs was one of the longer running and prolific record companies. Since 2010, I am trying to research the history of this record label but still, its whole background remains foggy, although I have interviewed several original recording artists over the years. The recorded output concentrated on rock’n’roll and country music, the latter became eventually the label’s main genre.

United Southern Artists, shortened to United Southern one year after its formation, was founded on March 13, 1961, in Hot Springs, Arkansas, a city with a population of nearly 30,000 habitants, located in the beautiful landscape of the Ouachita Mountains, and known for its many heat springs. Contrary to many local labels in the US, which where one-man companies operated out of its owners’ houses or garages, United Southern Artists was founded on a much more professional base. Billboard reported the founding in its March 20 issue and mentioned that Burton Wilton LeMaster (1895-1970) was president of the company and Carl Friend, a songwriter from Memphis, served as its A&R manager. The imprint was not only intended for releasing music but also for managing and promoting its artists. In unison, a publishing firm was formed to handle the music catalogue: Ouachita Music. United Southern had its offices in Suite 312 in Hot Springs’ Thompson Building, built in 1913 and still one of the city’s most prominent landmarks (nowadays known as the “Waters Hotel”). Although the company was equipped with own offices, it housed no own recording facilities and therefore had to rely on capacities of such recording studios as Leo Castleberry’s local studio or Echo Studio in Memphis.

Thompson Building in Hot Springs, Arkansas, 1910s

Daily business was handed over to LeMaster and Friend but the actual owner of the company remained in the background: John Wilbur Roddie. He was born in 1903 in Poplarville, Mississippi, was living in Hot Springs by 1950 and earned his living as a songwriter, publisher, author, and entrepreneur. At one time, he was vice-president of the National Garment Manufacturing Company and owned the Roddie-Miller Publishing Company. The latter published several songs recorded for the Hot Springs based Caesar and SPA record labels by different artists (partially written by Roddie). Roddie might have been involved in these labels, too, though this is an assumption only.

Billboard March 20, 1961

Speaking of SPA Records, this was a label associated with United Southern Artists prior to the actual founding of United Southern. SPA was likely operated by local country singer, TV personality and recording studio owner Leo Castleberry and/or John Roddie. The actual ownership is unclear at its best. In fact, Castleberry recorded for the label and his first release on SPA was “Teenage Blues” b/w “Come Back to Me” (SPA #100-10) in 1960. There were a few more releases on the label that year and the following, including a single by Memphis music stalwart Eddie Bond, “Only One Minute More” b/w “I Walk Alone” (SPA #25-1001) issued around November 1960. When United Southern was established a couple of months later, its first release was comprised of Castleberry’s recordings “Teenage Blues” and “Come Back to Me” as United Southern Artists #5-101. Original copies of the SPA release have often either the original label name blacked out or “United Southern Artists” overwritten on it. It is my understanding that Castleberry’s release was considered to be potential enough for the debut release of the new Roddie-Friend-LeMaster imprint and therefore was re-released. The SPA label in turn became dormant and Castleberry even went on to work as an A&R scout for United Southern.

There was another early 1961 release by Tiny Collins, pressed by RCA in 1961 and carrying the record number 6-101. This is quite odd as the 6-prefix would not be introduced to the label's numerical system until 1964. For now, my only explanation is that the number was assigned erroneously. 

Billboard November 27, 1961

The year of 1961 saw several more releases on United Southern. There was country music by Eddie Bond (probably brought to the label through Bond’s disc on SPA) and Ray Mitcham, pop music by Little Rock TV host Steve Stephens, as well as surf/rock’n’roll/garage rock by such groups as Beau-Hannon and the Mint Juleps, Dave’s Travelers, the Uniques, among others. The label experienced a minor success with Texas based country singer Hank Milton’s “Gatling Gun” b/w “As You Were” (#5-105, July 1961). Billboard reported in its August 14 issue that “Carl Friend, a.&r. director for United Southern Artists, Hot Springs, reports that Hank Milton’s new release ‘Gatling Gun’ b.w ‘As You Were’ is making big noise on KCUL, Fort Worth; KWAM, Memphis, and KDXE, Little Rock.” This mention, however, remains the only evidence of success for this single. Another regional strong seller was the Pacers' (former backing band of Sun artist Sonny Burgess) "New Wildwood Flower" b/w "The Pace". Bobby Crafford recalled in Marvin Schwarz' book "We Wanna Boogie": "'The Pace' was probably one of the best records we did, but United Southern Artists was the worst company we ever dealt with." However, Crafford didn't explain what that meant in detail.

The label released at least a total of 14 45rpm singles during 1961, though release information on certain discs is vague only. Even one of those, United Southern Artists #5-104 by the Uniques, was released in Australia through the Strand record label. It seems that the label pressed several releases still in 1961 but issued them not until early 1962. One factor for this could have been the leaving of Burton LeMaster. Tom Luce replaced LeMaster as president in January 1962. I assume the last months of the previous year were troublesome for United Southern as there could have been a fall-out with LeMaster, which ended in his leaving. This would explain why so many releases were pressed in 1961 but held back until early 1962. This is, however, nothing but speculation on my side.

The first release of the new year was probably Geannie Flowers with “There Oughta Be a Law” b/w “Lock, Stock, and Barrel” (#5-114). It also brought a completely new label design. Instead of the plain blue labels with silver printing and the label name printed in italic font, releases from #5-117 onward carried a white label with red printing and the label’s name depicted in a red italic font (shortened to “United Southern”), rounded out with a confederate flag.

United Southern continued to release recordings by local artists but with a much lower frequency. The estimated eight releases during the year 1962 included country and bluegrass music by the Sunny Valley Boys (featuring husband-and-wife duo Leon Tidwell and Myra Collins) and the Crystal Mountain Boys, and rock’n’roll by two groups known as the Galaxies and the Thunderbirds. However, the biggest success for the label that year was probably by Ricky Durham, who cut “Mr. Were-Wolf”, a song composed by local Arkansas band leader Bobby Garrett, and a cover of Buddy Holly’s “Raining in My Heart” (#5-116). Although I could not find any hints concerning the success of the single, it caught the attention of the bigger independent label Jubilee Records, which picked it up and re-released it on its “Jubilee Country & Western” imprint.

Billboard January 19, 1963

For the year 1963, only five releases on United Southern are documented so far. As rock’n’roll was fading by then, Carl Friend concentrated on country music acts, still the predominant music style in rural Arkansas. Pauline Boyette, Bob Land, Lance Roberts, and Dale Fox (with support by Memphis’ famous vocal group, the Gene Lowery Singers) recorded for United Southern during this year, as well as James Fred Williams, who cut a gospel EP disc for the label. In January 1963, Billboard also reported that Dan Emory was signed to a recording contract but no release by him has been found so far. One of the year's more successful releases was Russ Elmore's "Black Gold" b/w "Sittin' at the Table" (#5-119) (although already pressed a year earlier), which reached the #36 spot on KREM's charts in Spokane, Washington, in April.

While early releases from the label, especially those issued in 1961, turn up quite often, it seems that later discs were pressed in less quantities as they are harder to find nowadays.
By that time, the SPA label had been reactivated and released a few discs during 1963 with the involvement of John Roddie. It seems the high hopes he had for the United Southern label were crashed and the ambitious start of the company had developed into a restrained sideline business. While both LeMaster and Friend had reported frequently to Billboard at the beginning and had sent promotional copies to both Billboard and Cash Box, they ceased their communication with trade papers already in 1962.

In 1964, the executives at United Southern introduced a new four-digit numerical system, beginning now with a 6- and starting again at 101. This system replaced the old catalog numbers, which had started at 5-101. The first release in this new series was split for two artists, Bob Millsap and Peggy DeCastro, performing “Daugie Daddy” and “The Ring from Her Finger” respectively (#6-101). At least three more releases followed in 1964, the last known being by the Tradewinds, “A Boy Named Jerry (and a Girl Named Sue)” b/w “The Heart of the Month Club” (#6-104).

If there were more releases on United Southern is possible but doubtful as none have surfaced so far. By that time, the label had vanished from trade papers like Cash Box or Billboard. It is likely that the label had come to an end by late summer 1964 as Billboard reported on August 8 that Carl Friend and former United Southern recording artist Lance Roberts had taken new jobs with Joey Sasso’s Music Makers Promotion Network in Nashville, Tennessee. Ouachita Music, the label’s publishing arm, was still in existence by 1968, then based on 125 Albert Pike in Hot Springs.

During its three-years-existence, United Southern had released around 40 different singles, extended play records, even an album, and managed – although unconsciously at the time – to preserve local music culture.

After the discontinuation of United Southern, the executives of the label went separate ways. LeMaster moved to Louisiana around 1964 following his departure from United Southern. He had been born on December 16, 1895, in Oakland City Junction, Indiana, but grew up in New York State, and died on January, 1970, in a Jackson, Mississippi, hospital. He had served his country during World War I in the US Navy.

Carl Friend remained in the music business well into the 1970s, heading various music publishing and production companies. In 1964, he moved to Nashville, where he worked with Joey Sasso’s Music Makers Production and founded his own promotion business, Carl Friend Enterprises. In the late 1960s, he had some minor success as a songwriter. Various artists recorded his compositions, including Hank Williams, Jr., and Billie Jo Spears, who had a #48 country hit with “He’s Got More Love in his Little Finger”, co-written by Friend, Mack Vickery, and Bruce Roberts. While he was based in Little Rock in 1971, Friend moved back to Memphis the following year and co-founded Rivermont Music Productions with Bobby Burns. The firm was said to release a 15 volume “History of the States” LP series but never followed through with it, which eventually caused Friend legal disputes. He also founded two soul-oriented labels, Bluff City and Plush, and became president of Memphis based Casino Records, which enjoyed moderate chart success with artists like Jimmy Dean or Vic Dana.

John Roddie remained in Hot Springs after United Southern folded and likely stayed in the music publishing business, at least until the late 1960s. He died on December 11, 1980, at the age of 77 years. He is buried at Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Hot Springs.

Leo Castleberry continued to play TV and personal appearances in and around Hot Springs. He also operated the Torche and Castletone labels and died June 9, 2016, at the age of 84 years.

Discography
5-101 – Leo Castleberry: Teenage Blues / Come Back to Me (1960)
5-102 – Ray Mitcham: Initiative / Long Lonely Nights (1961)
5-103 – Steve Stephens: Pizza Pete / How It Used to Be (1961)
5-104 – Uniques: Renegade / Malaguena (1961)
5-105 – Hank Milton: Gatling Gun / As You Were (1961)
5-106 – Eddie Bond: This Ole Heart of Mine / Second Chance (1961)
5-107 – Dave's Travelers: Traveler's Rock / Movin' (1961)
5-108 – Beau-Hannon: It’s All Over / Brainstorm (1961)
5-109 – Dean Purkiss: Chivato / Alone Without Love (1961)
5-109 – Lloyd Marley: Fade with the Tide / Ooh Poo Pah Doo (1961)
5-110 – Jimmy Forrest: Night Train / Bolo Blues (1961)
5-111 – Earl Grace: Christmas Is Just Around the Corner / Santa Town (1961)
5-112 – Pacers: New Wildwood Flower / The Pace (1961)
5-113 – Ray Mitcham - Stood Up Again / I Can't See (1961)
5-114 – Geannie Flowers: There Oughta Be a Law / Lock, Stock and Barrel (1962)
5-115 – Thunderbirds: T Bird Rock / End Over End (1962)
5-116 – Ricky Durham: Raining in My Heart / Mr. Were-Wolf (1962)
5-117 – Galaxies: It’s All Over Now / Be Mine (1962)
5-118 – Sunny Valley Boys - My Son Calls Another Man Daddy / Teardrops, Teardrops (Please Stop Falling) / Myra Collins - The Hard Way / Divorce Denied (1962)
5-119 – Russ Elmore - Black Gold / Sittin' at the Table (1962)
5-120 – Dot Beck: Ed Went a-Courtin' / When Is Tomorrow (1962)
5-121 – Crystal Mountain Boys: Homin' Heart / A-Hangin' on the Vine (1962)
5-122 –
5-123 –
5-124 –
5-125 – Ramblers: Riverside Twist / Lonely Senorita (1962)
5-126 –
5-127 –
5-128 –
5-129 –
5-130 – Pauline Boyette: Parade of Broken Hearts / Footloose (1963)
5-131 – Walter Archie: The Joke's on You / Blue Autumn (1963)
5-132 –
5-133 – Lance Roberts: It Was Fun While It Lasted / ? (1963)
5-134 – Bob Land: Down in the Valley / Lost Soul (1963)

EPs
GLP 101 – James Fred Williams - Hold on to God's Unchanging Hand / Stay with Me Jesus / I Need the Lord / Every Child of God (1963)

6-101 – Tiny Collins - In the Meantime / Acapulco (1961)
6-101 – Bob Millsap: Daugie Daddy / Peggy DeCastro: The Ring From Her Finger (1964)
6-102 –
6-103 – Dale Fox & the Gene Lowery Singers - It Can't Be True / Call Me Again (1964)
6-104 – The Tradewinds - A Boy Named Terry (and a Girl Named Sue) / The Heart of the Month Club (1964)

LPs
LP 101 - Betty Fowler Four – 4 to Go (1962)

See also
• United Southern Artists discography on Arkansas 45rpm Records
• SPA Records discography on Arkansas 45rpm Records
• The Thunderbirds from El Reno, Oklahoma
• Merry Christmas! Earl Grace - Christmas Is Just Around the Corner
• The Sunny Valley Boys on United Southern

• Beau-Hannon and the Mint Juleps

Sources
• 45cat entry
• SPA 45cat entry
• Rockin' Country Style entry
• Discogs entries for United Southern Artists and United Southern
• Find a Grave entry for Burton LeMaster, John Roddie, and Carl Friend
• Marvin Schwartz: "We Wanna Boogie: The Rockabilly Roots of Sonny Burgess and the Pacers (University of Arkansas Presss), 2014, page 154
• various Billboard issues
• Special thanks to those who provided additional discographical information: Johan L, Rocky Lane, DL, Ken Clee of the "Directory of American 45 RPM Records", Franck, and Bob