I have heard from people who know Prewitt Rose. Heard from John Covert of the Crystal Image, and am glad to hear of his many successes. Who's out there? Let me know.
Poppy Records owned by Chester Smith whom I met when I was on Valley Variety TV in Stockton.
1965: Roy Paul, drummer, and I were hired out of Stockton, CA to go to Ely, NV to back up Jan Davis. The stage was behind the bar and it was a tight fit, with Roy's hi-hat snapping at my butt. Jim Pierce was piano and front man. Jim Pierce Biography Jim Pierce Fact Sheet
We then went to Elko to back up Bob Luman at the Rancher's Inn, and on to Reno for a one-nighter at the Balky Burro. Bob stood on the grass just outside the back door and when we announced him he came running in. He made it work. We played Reno on June 20, 1965, and the date is memorable because as we were packing out Bob told us that he had just heard that Ira Louvin of the Louvin Brothers had been killed in a head-on with a wrong-way drunk driver.
James Burton was on Bob's first session for Imperial Records. Burton Web Site Burton Wikipedia Burton RockHall
Eddie Cochran Session work session Cochran RockHall Cochran Wikipedia Cochran Tribute
"Unfaithful Diane" was also done by Johnny Perry on Senator 714 and Ronnie Deauville on Era 1071. "Unfaithful Diane" charted locally, #2 on KRAK in 1963 (Sacramento-C&W). Both records were produced by Jack McFadden and both are out of Stockton CA. The Senator might be from Sacramento CA.
Early one morning (not sure which decade) in the Ranchers Inn coffee shop I had the pleasure of a short visit with Sue Thompson who had the two hits "Norman" and "James, Hold The Ladder Steady." She was petite, pretty and very gracious. Thank you, Ms Thompson, for a moment of light in the tunnel. Here is a fans' page about Sue Thompson.
SANDY KNOX SHOWCASE:
It must have been later in 1965 that I played lead guitar with Sandy Knox and the Showcases for a few months. Sandy was a hard worker and in 1967 Sandy was a nominee for the Academy of Country Music's "Most Promising Female Vocalist." Next year - 1968 - she was once again a
nominee as vocalist and the "Sandy Knox Showcase" was Nominee for
Touring Band of the Year.
When I joined the Showcase the lead guitar was Lucky Ward and he was an amazing picker. Sandy's band was basically a trio, guitar, my brother Dave on bass, and John Dennis - Lucky's brother on drums. (About Dennis, he could play four different beats at the same time with each hand and foot - including three-four against a shuffle, for example.) For a couple of weeks there were two guitars, or more likely one-and-a-half, as there was no way to match what Lucky was doing. He was a good teacher, both by encouragement and example.
For instance, we were at the Museum Club in Flagstaff, just before Lucky was to go back to Georgia for session work. Sandy called "Night Train" and we took off. Lucky sets it all up, we are rockin', and he gives me the nod. As always when playing with an outstanding picker, there is a high level of excitement that inspires to better performance. I amazed myself. Then Lucky comes back in and blows me off of the map. We are not talking competition here - it's about mentor and grasshopper. Proud to have shared a bandstand.
I ended my time with Sandy on the New Year bringing in 1966 playing at the Gay Nineties in San Francisco and went back to Stockton to work with Doug and Blossom Campbell in their trio, The Profiles, as
John Covert
was leaving.
LUCKY WARD:
COLUMBUS, Ga. (AP) -Feb 19 2002- James C. "Lucky" Ward, a guitarist who played with musicians ranging from Chet Atkins to Janis Joplin, died Saturday, Feb. 16, 2002, in Columbus, GA, at the age of 65. Ward also fronted a band in Las Vegas and wrote and recorded country songs. He played with Atkins, Buck Owens, Ernest Tubb, Merle Haggard, and Hank Williams Jr. He also played rock with Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, and Moby Grape.
Here is the link to this info about
Lucky Ward.
And here is a strange connection to
the amp Lucky Ward owned.