EVERY ONCE AND A WHILE I STUMBLE ACROSS TRUE GREATNESS. WHEN I FIRST HEARD HIS MUSIC I WONDERED HOW A GUY LIKE ME WHO HAS BEEN AN AVID MUSIC LOVER FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS HAD NOT ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT HIM HIS AMAZINGLY WARM AND WONDERFUL MUSIC. NEXT THOUGHT I HAD HE'S THE BEST POET I HEARD OF SINCE BOB DYLAN, WILLIE NELSON AND TOWENS VAN ZANT. AND THAT'S SAYING SOMETHING.
BESIDES SHARING HIS EMOTIONS AND HEART WITH US, HE USES HIS FAME TO SUPPORT THOES WHO CARE FOR THEMSELVES OTHERS. HERE'S AN ARTICLE THAT CAN BE FOUND ON HIS WEB SITE: The Longevity Foundation Site by White Lion
Our goal is to promote human life with quality, free from premature and debilitating disease.
Dedicated to the research and prevention of accelerated aging: The Longevity Foundation supports collaborative, leading-edge research into neurodegeneration, cancer, and other diseases associated with premature aging. We sponsor a national network of researchers led by a team based at M.D. Anderson's Science Park in Texas. They work cooperatively to find practical, holistic, near-term treatments and preventions. We also provide health information and referrals to the general public.
HE WILL PROBABALY NEVER BEEN WHAT WE CALL A ROCK STAR BECASUE HIS MUSIC IS SO WONERFULY HUMAN,OPENLY WARM AND RESPECTFUL OF WOMEN.HIS STYLE IS BALANCED AND EMOTIONAL, DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND LISTEN TO HIM, AND BUY HIS MUSIC, YOU'LL BE GLAD YOU DID.
He gets beautiful vocal and musical support from female back-up singers: Britt Savage, Joy Lynn White and Jessi Colter, the longtime wife of the late Waylon Jennings.
Sam Baker is not just one person. It has always been funny to me that bands that play under one person's name are really teams of dozens of support staffers, they would like when they used to say "and now ladies and gentelmen, the Godfather of soul James Brown." When the curtains fall James is nowhere to be seen but 30 or so players, backup singers and dancers are.
Bakers' co-players in his band back him with warm and soothing earth music. It's a perfect music blend.
Then there's this sort of ultimate good ol' boy named Gurf Morlix. a gifed poet and song writer himself, who looks like a farm hand who plays 'guitar like an angel.
HERE,S AN INTERESTING ARTICLE ABOUT A RECENT CLOSE CALL AND WHAT HE'S BEEN UP TO LATELY:
The survivor of a terrorist bomb in Peru, Sam Baker has found a following in Europe.
SAM BAKER LIVE
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Sam Baker goes from tragedy to success as singer-songwriter
The survivor of a terrorist bomb has found a following in Europe.
By Naomi Koppel ASSOCIATED PRESS Monday, June 02, 2008
KILKENNY, Ireland — "Forget his face? Of course I don't," Austinite Sam Baker sings of a young German boy who died along with his parents on a train in Peru in 1986.
The three had been sitting on facing seats, and the bomb that killed them was set in the luggage rack above their heads by Shining Path guerrillas.
The man in the fourth seat was Baker.
The song probes the psychological legacy for Baker, who had been talking to the boy before the bomb went off. Its title, "Broken Fingers," reveals part of the physical legacy — three twisted, unusable fingers that forced him to relearn to play the guitar using his left hand.
That he survived at all is remarkable: The explosion severed the main artery and vein in his left thigh, and he almost bled to death. He suffered brain damage, kidney failure, gangrene and severe hearing loss and went through years of surgeries.
Perhaps the most extraordinary part of Baker's story: He is making a name for himself as one of the most original new singer-songwriters in contemporary folk music.
Before the bombing, the native of Itasca, between Fort Worth and Waco, had been a white-water river guide who enjoyed traveling, walking and climbing. That all ended in a moment.
"Every day for a long time was like being in some kind of fog. There was a reasonable amount of pain and a lack of clarity and a whole lot of pain meds, and because my hands were bandaged I couldn't really feel anything, couldn't walk and couldn't really hear much. There was a sense of isolation," said Baker, 54, in an interview in a hotel in Kilkenny, where he was appearing at a music festival.
Becoming a singer-songwriter was not the obvious career choice for a man with mangled fingers, partial deafness, balance problems, brain damage that sometimes leaves him struggling for the right word, and a constant ringing in his head — the thing that he says has been the hardest to deal with.
Baker's spare storytelling is delivered in a raspy voice. He describes himself as "the worst guitarist who ever stood on a public stage," and requests from the audience have to be relayed by those in the front rows because he can't hear anything shouted from farther back.
But creating music was not, he says, a choice.
"For a long time I wanted to understand what had happened — and what had happened to those I was sitting around — and be able to write that in a way that made sense to me, so I could clear up that moment of chaos and fear," he said.
"While I was doing that, melodies would come and they would be like a cardinal, a very bright red bird that flies against the window, saying, 'Pay attention to me. Pay attention to the melody. Look at my red wings, listen to the melody.' I don't think I could ignore it."
Baker, who plays the Mean Eyed Cat in Austin from 6:30-8:30 tonight and the first Monday of every month when he's in town, has written directly about his experiences, but most of his songs are about other lives: A man finds himself alone after 50 years of marriage; an abandoned woman with two babies drives the interstate; another woman spends her time playing slot machines; the son of a Texas oil baron lives a privileged but ultimately ruined life.
"All those people and all those sounds, it's like a village or a small town. They all come from the same place. They might all end up at the same pub on a Wednesday night," Baker says.
"Where I move into someone else's world, I think that probably came from those days of not being able to move," he says.
"If you are in a hospital, especially in the ICU, there is so much drama and it is a profound drama, it's life and death. People are wheeled in and then people are wheeled out. While I was in that place, I think I absorbed a lot more than I probably can articulate."
Baker made his first album, "Mercy," in 2004 as an attempt to "do one good piece of art." It received no promotion, but was heard and played by some radio stations in Texas, including KGSR in Austin.
Then a copy made its way to influential British disc jockey Bob Harris, who played it on his national radio show. The reaction was almost immediate. Baker tells how he woke up one morning and found that his CDs had sold out. He made a second album, "Pretty World," in 2007.
The success of his strongly Texas-oriented music in Europe has led to Baker spending long periods of time here in recent months. His two shows at the Kilkenny Rhythm and Roots Festival were sellouts.
He returns to North America to play the Woody Guthrie Festival in Oklahoma and the Calgary Folk Festival before returning to Europe in August to headline an Americana festival, followed by a more extensive tour of Britain, France and the Netherlands.
The future, he says, is something that will work itself out, and although he's written more than enough new songs, the next album is not yet in the works.
"I have lots of material, so I have to get it in a place where once again we might expect all those people at the same pub on a Wednesday night," he says. "I will know when the time is right. The characters sort of let me know when they need to be voiced, how they want their stories to come out."
Asked to describe himself, Baker says simply that he is "pretty happy."
HERE'S A LOOK AT SAM FROM THE UK:
Sam Baker
Sam Baker's influences range from Woody Guthrie and Townes Van Zandt to the novels of Leo Tolstoy. True Americana story-telling from the next great Texan singer-songwriter.
Baker's husky, Dylanesque, unique vocals are low-key and enjoy a beautifully sparse backing from some of the finest producers and musicians on offer in Nashville and Austin.
Baker's debut album Mercy garnered rich critical and popular support on the back of old-fashioned word-of-mouth, and his follow-up Pretty World has been much anticipated by hs many fans on both sides of the Atlantic. Pretty World looks set to raise the profile significantly of this unassuming Texan.
Pretty World
Sam Baker - Pretty World
See more titles and find out about Sam Baker
Sam Baker is fast becoming one of the biggest underground Americana success stories of recent years. His album Mercy gained MUCH critical and popular acclaim on the back of good old-fashioned word-of-mouth, with absolutely zero hype.
Baker's much anticipated 2007 follow-up, Pretty World, is set to follow the trend, but will surely project this unassuming Texan out of his cult-hero status and into the mainstream conciousness.
Sam Baker's vocal style is unique, and the delicate phrasing of his intelligent lyrics is supported by a sparse and beautiful backdrop of music. At times Baker almost talks through the songs, with his gravel tones inflecting deep humanity into the stories he is telling.
Walt Wilkins and Tim Lorsch are responsible for the fine production qualities, and they bring out the best from stellar talents such as Joel Guzman on accordion, Lloyd Maines on dobro and steel, with Gurf Morlix and Marcia Ramirez adding vocals as appropriate to the needs of this excellent album.
Juarez Orphan Slots Pretty World Odessa Sweetly Undone Psychic Boxes Prelude to Pretty World Broken Fingers Days Recessional Pretty World
Since forming in 1988, Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys have emerged as one of the world's most respected practitioners of American roots music—western swing, rockabilly, and traditional country—playing it like they invented it. "I think of us as just a rock and roll band—a rock and roll band that's letting the roots show," says bandleader Big Sandy. Whether they're playing the Grand Ole Opry, Late Night With Conan O'Brien, or simply climbing out of a bus after rolling into your town, these guys are bringing us some great old-time rock and roll.
The first lyric on their newest Yep Roc Records release, Turntable Matinee, commands us to "Drop the needle in the groove and start to move!" That opening track—"The Power of the 45, Part 1"—is a dance call to arms as well as a love song to the group's musical influences. Big Sandy sings a rapid roll call of diverse musical heroes: Junior Parker, Ronnie Dawson, Little Esther, Chuck Berry, Glen Glenn, Etta James, Johnny "Guitar" Watson. The list goes on, showing the respect the group has for the music they both listen to and create. "I think with this album we've gotten to the point where we fully and more accurately represent the full spectrum of what we were listening to when all of us were growing up," Big Sandy says. "I mean, when I was growing up in Southern California, a lot of the old R&B guys were still playing. The first show my parents took me to was Ray Charles. I used to go see Richard Berry, and Cliffie Stone still did a weekly talent show at the Palomino."
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This spectrum of early influence is clearly on display on Turntable Matinee, from the western swing of "(Yes) I Feel Sorry For You" to the old-time country of "Lonesome Dollar" and the spit-curl rockabilly of "The Power of the 45." This time around, though, the group has expanded their stylistic palette even further by delving into Stax-style Memphis soul on "Slipping Away" and even bossa nova on "Spanish Dagger," of which Big Sandy says, "It's another example of how I wanted to open up to different styles."
The recording of Turntable Matinee found Big Sandy and company in a more relaxed studio setting than ever before. Over their last ten albums, the group has recorded in such hallowed musical ground as the Capital Records Studios (for the albums Jumping from 6 to 6 and Swingin' West, both produced by Grammy winner Dave Alvin) and Hollywood's classic Electro Vox Studios (for their last album It's Time!). For Turntable Matinee, however, Big Sandy said, "We were looking for a place that we could just come and go." They found just such a place in the studio of producer and friend D.E. Hannigan, whose studio made them feel at home indeed, considering it's built in the very house that bassist Jeff West grew up in. "I lived in it for my first ten years," West says. "Then I lived there again from the late 80s until '94, and now [Hannigan] lives there. The studio is in the garage."
"Recording was different this time," Big Sandy said. "I feel like it was a bit more of a creative atmosphere, because we worked up all the songs in the studio. A good example of that was the song 'Spanish Dagger.' I wrote that song . . . Well, I met a girl at a car show we were playing, then I wrote the song the next day, and then we recorded it the day after that."
In a voice reminiscent of Buddy Holly—sweet and smooth and sincere— Big Sandy delivers songs that double as musical short stories. "Haunted Heels," for example, tells the rockabilly tale of a woman who, whenever she dons a certain pair of black pumps, loses all control and stays out till the wee hours. West also contributes three standout tracks, "You Don't Know Me At All" (written by West, but sung by Big Sandy), "Lonesome Dollar," and "Mad," the last of which is a discourse on anger management about a man with a "short fuse" who just "gets MAD!"
In addition to madman West, Big Sandy's longtime cohorts in his Fly-Rite Boys include Ashley Kingman on guitar, Bobby Trimble on the drums, and Lee Jeffriess on steel guitar. The band was formed in Anaheim in during the California roots revival of the late eighties, and at first were only a trio. That initial incarnation included Trimble on the drums and generated the group's first two albums (1990's Fly Right With and 1992's On The Go), but the addition of Jeffriess in 1991 led to the shift from trio to Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys. After a decade, Jeffriess took some time off to be with his family, but has now returned to the fold. His replacement for the past few years, the wonderful Jimmy Roy, is now spending time with his own family, but shared steel guitar duties with Jeffriess on Turntable Matinee. After spending so many years together, one might think the Fly-Rite Boys would be sick of each other, but Big Sandy says, "No no no. [When we're home] I still see those guys around town."
Turntable Matinee showcases some top notch musicianship—from Trimble's subtle brushwork on the slow dance number "I Know I've Loved You Before" to the mindblowing guitar on "(Yes) I Feel Sorry For You," where Jeffriess and Kingman trade blistering solos between the steel and electric guitars. Turntable Matinee also features two musical guests: Dave "Kad" Kadison playing the horns on "Slipping Away," and Uncle Ernie Vargas from the Lonely Blue Boys playing a smoking piano solo on "Mad."
Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys are almost always on the road, enough to burn through two tour buses in recent years. The first was a converted passenger bus from 1949 that they retired for use on an old movie set, followed only a few years later by a yellow 1950 school bus that they left for dead in Montana. "We're flying more now," says Big Sandy. But before the school bus died, Big Sandy tells the story of driving it to one particular thrift store: "There was a kid out in front, and he was just like in awe when we pulled up. He looked a little bit confused, and then we come walking up, and he wasn't sure if he should approach us or not. Then he asked us, 'Are you guys from the past?'" Big Sandy laughs. "As if we were traveling in a time machine or something."
The group ascribes to a vintage aesthetic not only in vehicles, but also in gear -- from Kingman's 1957 custom Magnatone guitar to Jeff West's stand up bass and Trimble's vintage kit, these guys play instruments that were used when this style of music was just coming into existence.
For many acts playing music of this era, there is a tendency to look no further than the novelty of the style. Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys, however, have continued to transcend their genre the same way all iconic artists do—by creating music so good, songs that are so well-written, that the genre is simply a launching pad for the integrity of the art. This music is timeless. "Well, it's become that," Big Sandy said. "Once we got comfortable with the style of music we were playing, we made it our own."
Turntable Matinee closes with a reprise of "The Power of the 45," in which Big Sandy sings, "Feel that rhythm in your soul, taking control. That's what keeps me alive, that's the power of the 45." Big Sandy isn't speaking just for himself; as you listen to him sing about his own love of the music, you can't help but fall in love with Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys too.
JOHNNY CARROLL AND A Legendary Cowtown Highaway ... The Cellar
Current mood: quixotic
Category: Music
(EDITOR'S NOTE: BACK IN THE DAY MUSICAL MAGIC TOOK PLACE AT THE NOTOROUS CELLAR CLUBS IN FORT WORTH, SAN ANTONIO AND HOUSTON. ROCKABILLY STAR JOHNNY CARROLL BROUGHT SOME OF THE BEST BANDS AND PLAYERS INTO THE SHADY CLUBS. IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES)
Johnny Carroll epitomized the sound of rockabilly. His classic fifties sides for the Decca label such as Crazy, Crazy Lovin, Wild, Wild Women and Hot Rocks could be considered pre-punk nuggets. Anyone who has witnessed his amazing performance in the teen juvenile delinquent film classic Rock Baby, Rock It knows Carroll was a rock and roll wild man.
His real name was John Lewis Carrell. Decca Records misspelled it, and Johnny failed to correct it. Despite being considered a rock and roll icon by the European rockabilly audience, Carroll never really achieved stardom in the States.
Rollin'Rock records honcho Ronny Weiser recalled how blown away he was upon first hearing Carroll. It was like listening to Little Richard for the first time. It was with the help of Mac Curtis that that Weiser located Johnny in 1974. Weiser flew to Dallas and recorded the immortal Gene Vincent Rock (also released as The Black Leather Rebel). Composed by Weiser, this fanatical tribute came closer to capturing Vincent's sound than any other record. At the time Weiser didn't realize the close bond between Carroll and Vincent. They had worked together in Dallas during the late fifties and often shared band members. Carroll composed the song Maybe on Vincent's fifth Capitol album.
In 1977 Carroll came to the famous "Rollin' Rock" studios in Van Nuys, California to record the album Texabilly. It was a marathon 27 hour recording session over two days. Weiser remembers the energy level being unbelievable. Carroll rekindled his desperate fifties rock and roll sound. The results feature some amazing guitar work by Carroll who learned under the tutelage of Scotty Moore while playing on the Louisiana Hayride. Rounding out the sound is Ray Campi on slapping bass giving this the classic Rollin' Rock Sound. this album plus carroll's entire recording output for Rollin' Rock Sound. This album plus Carroll's entire recording output for Rollin' Rock are included on this CD including some unrleased gems. Sadly, Carroll passed away on January 13, 1995 due to liver failure.
by: Allen Larman, 1997
Johnny Carroll "TEXABILLY"
ROLLIN' ROCK / HMG 6602
1. People in Texas Love to Dance 2. Two Timin' 3. You Said You Wouldn't Get Drunk, Patricia 4. Lonesome Boy 5. Who's To Say 6. Judy, Judy, Judy 7. Why Don't You Quit That Teasing 8. My Bucket's Got a Hole in It 9. Gene Vincent Rock (Black Leather Rebel) 10. Teenage Sweetie 11. Is It Easy to Be Easy 12. Watcha Gonna Do? 13. Her Throbbing Lips 14. Sixteen Tons of Rockabilly 15. Bowlegged Woman 16. A Lil' Bit of Your Time 17. Whiskey River 18. Johnny Carroll Rock
Words and images regarding The CELLAR: the ORIGINAL, one-and-only, internationally known, universally imitated Texas nightclub chain created by Johnny Carroll & Pat Kirkwood
(L. to R.) Arvel Jr. Stricklin, Garland Tiger, Johnny Carroll, Performing in the Houston Cellar on Dec. 31, 1966. This trio, in the Summer of 1962, was the house band in the 10th & Main underground Cellar in Ft. Worth.
If HBO wanted to bring it's audience an objective recount of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the network would let conspiracy theorist have a part of the time in each of it's 10-part mini-series. This series is based on a book by Vincent Bugliosi called "Reclaiming History, The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy." As a retired journalist, this author occasionally comes to this forum. As first, I said "I think." Then I decided to go back to third person and say "This writer." Having started research on a book concerning the Assassination, my identity for this story will be "this author." This author fears Bugliosi, a distinguished Los Angeles County prosecutor, is "Revising History," not "Reclaiming History." This author plans to say more and kill a lot fewer trees. This author has prepared a preface indicating the main thrust would be an effort to be objective. To really get into a CIA connection is impossible except to say Oswald seems to have needed help from some kind of agency to enter and leave Russia and end up right in line with the Presidential Motorcade. Bugliosi completely discounted a connection to organized crime. As a retired journalist, this author covered crimes that seemed to have gang connections. A gang is dangerous.One guy tells another guy he is connected with a gang and if you pull off something you will be looked at as part of the gang. In turn, one member of the CIA, without direction from above, could have taken the steps to get Oswald to Elm and Houston without raising many eyes. In a promotion of his movie, Bugliosi blasts the movie, "JFK" as being fictional. This author, who once worked in a strong journalistic setting with Jim Marrs, author of Crossfire, one of the books used as a basis the Oliver Stone's movie. This author had a great respect for Marrs at the time, and great respect for his book although not agreeing with all of it. The movie seemed to establish that there was a conspiracy but not that it involved Clay Shaw or New Orleans. Bugliosi is also critical of a book "Best Evidence," written by David Litton. This is a work this author checked out of the library. It has not been a source for any information used in this book. This author has perhaps compiled more information than needed. Still, the tendency is to look up additional information on the Assassination. Bugliosi could help help the information cause by discouraging the far-out sonspiracy books. Like Marrs but unlike many of the authors on the Assassination, this author is from Texas. Bill Sloan, who wrote "JFK: The Last Dissenting Witness" about Jean Hill, who is convinced that the shooter or shooters were on the grassy knoll, is a Texas journalism I have known.. Sloan also wrote "JFK: Breaking the Silence." This author has not read that work. It apparently focuses on a dozen seldom told tales that evolved from assassination investigation. Significant parts of most books are found on the Internet.Not a journalist but another Texas author who convinced this author that there really was something to the conspiracy theory was J. Gary Shaw of Cleburne who was to become an author. Shaw's convincing arguments were the appearance to the guy with a suit gathering a bullet at the scene and the doctored picture at the rear of Edmund A. Walker's house. This was a picture in Oswald's possession at the time of his arrest. This author had not entered the field of "professional" journalism at the time of the assassination. This background is actually has a romantic connection. This author was planning to go with his fiancee, Nikki, to Dallas to buy an engagement ring. We were 20 and 19-year-old journalism students at East Texas State University. The journalism building at East Texas in 1963 was naamed Dealey Hall. Who else went from Dealey Hall to Dealey Plaza that day? This writer and wife have been married since June 6, 1964. With a sense of history, this author and future wife drove down Elm Street less than four hours after the President was gunned down. Those in Dallas that weekend got more media exposure than the rest of the nation. It's difficult to say what exactly happened. It's not difficult to imagine that a good defense lawyer could have gotten Oawald off. The ultimate test of guilt is guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt. While a person can connect Oswald to a murder weapon, they cannot put him in that room at the time the gun was fired. Then, whether knowing he is guilty or knowing he would considered guilty, Oswald left the building. He had the choice of four exits. So did anyone else in that building. It is said that he walked out the front door of the Texas School Book Depository and walked East on Elm. He caught a bus and then a taxi. He went to his apartment to retrieve a 38-caliber pistol. He then encountered Dallas Policeman J.D. Tippitt. From there, Oswald would have difficulty defending the death of the police officer. He would have had trouble firing four shots, which is necessary to account for Kennedy being shot twice, Texas Governor John Connally once and another man hit by a concrete broken loose by a bullet.The official explanation is that one bullet hit Kennedy and Connally. Connally and his wife say they were not hit by the first bullet that struck Kennedy but one that followed almost immediately. It would have come too fast to be shot by the same bolt action rifle. You would like to think someone with CIA connections, not the entire CIA, got Oswald out of Russia and into Dallas. You would like to think the so-called magic bullet has an explanation other than a grand scheme to frame up Oswald alone. You would like to think Jack Ruby was acting on his own when he killed Oswald and not acting because someone told him "Chicago" wanted it done. Let us be reminded that Ruby was at the Western Union office next to the Dallas Police Station to sent a partial salary payment to a dancer he lured earlier from Fort Worth's Cellar, a beatnik club full of underworld connections. After midnight on the morning of the 22nd, the Cellar was attended by Secret Service agents who the next day would have the task of protecting the President. It was a small world. It seems irresponsible to try to convince the world that a dead man was the lone assassin when it is very likely he was not. Sizzle sells. Interested publishers please contact this author at BobSondy@Yahoo.com.
Posted 6.10.2007 3:12:53 PM
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This is the Real Deal folks. This was posted in every Cellar's Musicians Room Scanned image courtesy Freddie Cisneros When sizing image, it was noted that an appropriate width would be 666 pixels.
MUSICIANS: I know there are those I have not mentioned here. Send me YOUR info. The roster keeps growing. Help it along by contacting me with information. If you have Cellar photos, scan 'em and send 'em along. arvel@arvel.com
These are musicians who got paid to perform at the CELLAR clubs. Click on the name for what they did then and what they might be doing now. Let me know if I misspelled any names.
Johnny Carroll,the Cellar's CEO(Chief Entertainment Officer) passed away on Feb.18th,1995. His legend resides in the rockabilly Hall of Fame. His early recordings and general info can be found thru www.rockabillyhall.com Some of the songs he performed in the Cellar can be heard on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1 A biographical article on Johnny Carroll may be read HERE
Cannibal Jones is deceased. One of the wisest and nicest people I ever met, he was a popular spring and summer street performer in Galveston and SanAntonioTexas. He performed in the Cellar during the winters.
G. Tiger is deceased. Originally a sax player, Mr. Tiger took up guitar in 1961 and, within a few months,established himself as a fluent and innovative jazz guitarist. People whose names you may have heard, such as C.L.(Cornell) Dupree, Aretha Franklin's guitarist, came to listen to Tiger.
Billy Tom Robinson is a jazz tenor saxman who has played and recorded with the best. He's lived in Ontario and worked in New York for the past 20 years. Billy played sax for Johnny Carroll in the Cellar beginning in 1963.
Adrian Watts was Johnny Carroll's part-time drummer(whenever Adrian wanted to play) from 1963 thru 1972. Adrian retired near lake Whitney where he passed away peacefully along with the 21st century.
Arvel Stricklin had been working as a blues guitarist/vocalist around Fort Worth for a couple of years before he was hired as Johnny Carrol's drummer at the Cellar in 1962 (they had several great guitar players). In 1963 as guitarist and vocalist, led his own band ('63-'64) the "Knightbeats" on club gigs in DFW and as the featured "midnite" band in the Ft. Worth Cellar. 1966 road gigs on guitar with the "Blues Quintet". In 1967 played guitar with the "Neurotic Sheep", replacing Joe Ely. Later in '67 played bass for Bruce Channell. In 1968 played bass with the"Ball Point Carrot" with Bugs Henderson, in 1969 guitar with "The Sheep", in 1970, guitar with "Naked Letus", FW Cellar. 1971-72 with "Wildlife", Dallas Cellar. 1986-1996 led and recorded with the "All Night Workers". These days he writes music and more, produces audio masters and works in cyberspace on the WWW. Recordings/MediaQuotes Recorded live in the Cellar, 1970 and '72 on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1
Doug_Davis - Piano player for Arvel Stricklin's Knightbeats at the Fort Worth Cellar 1963-64, Doug played with the Cellar Dwellers and others at the Cellar through the '60s, after which he moved to California where he wrote songs and did studio work with Jerry Lynn Williams, among others. For the past 20 years Doug has been living in Germany but he has recently returned to the U.S.A. and is currently based in Fort Worth.
Timothy "Coyote" Williams was Arvel Stricklin's bass player at the Fort Worth Cellar 1963-64. Arvel and Coyote traveled to California in late '64 and worked night club gigs in Los Angeles for a while. In 1966 Coyote traveled with Arvel in a road band called the Blues Quintet, after which Coyote and and a friend named Jake set out for New York City where they were killed in an attempted robbery.
Lon Price Played saxophone for the Knightbeats at the Fort Worth Cellar 1963-64, after which he moved to California and rapidly became a sought-after session player. Lon has a successful career and has worked with and led many well-known bands, among which are Red and the Red Hots, with Keyboardist Red Young, and Billy and the Beaters on Late-night TV.
Arthur Leslie "Tudy" Taddi died of natural causes, at his home in Fort Worth, on Sept. 5, 1999. He was 55 years of age. The all-time natural musician, Tudy could play anything he could lay his hands on. Well known among DFW music fans as leader of local bands the "CELLAR DWELLERS", and "STRAY DOG",Tudy came, from a blues background in San Antonio, to the Cellar, in 1962. In recent years Tudy worked as a veterinary assistant in Fort Worth and did some jamming at the Jazz Cafe on Magnolia St. Tudy will be missed. He may be heard on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1
Paul Sevy also came to the Cellar from San Antonio, in 1962, as a beatle-haired rocker. Paul's uniquely original personality and performance styles win fans to him anywhere he plays. Paul writes and records and his web link is: http://users3.ev1.net/~paulsevy
Guy Parnell is a guitarist who had a great jazz/blues band in the Cellar 1960 thru '63. Today Guy, with his wife Bonnie, produces an old time gospel music show which airs on Internet Radio.http://www.bonnienguy.org
Paul Jay , Spencer Hollis and Johnny Gore are all fine sax players who worked with Guy Parnell. Noteable also are trumpet player Jim Price, who later played with the Rolling Stones and drummer George Rains, noted below.
George Rains was Guy Parnell's drummer in 1962. Renowned for his metronomic meter, George went on to be drummer for "Mother Earth", Boz Scaggs, Van Morrison and Doug Sahm. Since returning to Texas and settling in Austin, George plays with Austin heavyweights such as Junior Brown and Jimmy Vaughn. George wrote a Cellar story and you can read it here on the Cellar Home Pages.
Ron Thayer brought in the first drumset to be used in the Cellar, and he wouldn't let George Rains (who's left-handed) turn them around, thereby causing George to develop his unique and effective left-handed-right-footed style. Ron's a fine drummer,too,and a licensed pilot and has worked for many years in the airline industry.
Little Caeser's name was Gary Xavier. He played piano about as well as anyone I've ever heard. Guy Parnell said he met Ceaser in the Air force. I wish I knew what he's doing now.
Doug Sahm showed up in the Cellar in early 1963, driving a purple Caddilac and playing great blues guitar with one hand and great country guitar with the other(or so it seemed!) Johnny Carroll had a full staff of musicians at the time, but he hired Doug to play with Guy Parnell's jazz band because Doug was such a great personality and performer. After hanging out in Fort Worth a month or two; long enough to get tired of it, Doug went on to become Sir Douglas, the Mendecino Madman, the Texas Tornado(s) and the Last dadburn Real Texas Blues Band. Doug Sahm is no longer with us; may he rest in peace. Check him out at: http://members.aol.com/SirDoug/sahmdisc.html
Rocky Hill led a band called the "American Blues" in the Cellar, in 1967/68. Rocky played guitar and his brother, Dusty, played bass, with Frank Beard on drums. Rocky's a strong performer, guitar and vocals and writes good songs, but Billy Gibbons liked his rhythm section and the rest is history. Rocky's still playing and has got some good blues CD's of his own available. Rocky has no web site that I can locate, if you know different, please let me know.
Dusty Hill: Bass and vocals in the "American Blues",Rocky's brother - ZZ Top's bassman/vocalist/songwriter,billionaire, what's to say that ain't been? I ain't giving away any secrets. Friend of mine in 1967, be nice to see him again. Links : http://www.zztop.com/
Frank Beard: Great drummer in the "American Blues" and ZZ Top. Same link as Dusty.
Joe Ely was hanging out in the Fort Worth Cellar in late 1966 and was recruited to go to Houston with the Neurotic Sheep for the opening of the Cellar there on Dec. 7th, 1966. Joe played with the Neurotic Sheep for a few weeks, to packed houses, there in Houston, then a disagreement with a Cellar manager led to his departure, and the rest is history, with Joe turning out to be the ultimate winner of the abovementioned dispute - probably more folks have heard of Joe Ely than have heard of the Cellar! Joe's link is www.ely.com
John Nitzinger led a band called "Fancy Space & the Rockin' Rhythm Daddies", in the Cellar in 1968. Linda Waring played drums and Bugs Henderson played guitar. John is a fine songwriter with hits to his credit. He can be found online at: : http://www.nitzinger.com
Curly Benton is deceased. He played bass with Fancy Space, was good at it, and a genuine nice guy. I'm sure he didn't mean any harm when he shot Dahryl in the arm.
Bugs Henderson was brought to the Cellar by Arvel Stricklin, in 1968, as guitarist for a band called the "Ball Point Carrot", then went with Fancy Space. Ancient history. Bugs heads his own band, the "Shuffle Kings"(for 20 + years, now), and has some fine CD's available. Links: http://imusic.com/cgi-bin/bbs/bbs.cgi?x=bugshenderson
Linda Waring is one of the best drummers, of any gender, that the Cellar ever saw. Linda played with Fancy Space. She is currently playing with Bugs Henderson.
Darrel (Hatchet)Welch is deceased. he was a fine drummer from Morgan City, Louisiana who played with a number of Cellar bands, notably Childhood's End (1967) and TX WILDLIFE (1972), and he also played and recorded with Delbert McClinton in the mid seventies. He's playing on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1
Gene Mathews played lead guitar and sang lead vocals with the "TREEKS". Tragically, Gene died in a traffic accident in Los Angeles while in hot pursuit of a career in songwriting. His brother Kenny Mathews played bass and later moved to Dallas and took up photography, and their drummer, "Ruckles", (a copyrighted name) has since disappeared. The Treeks were a hot trio who played the Houston Cellar, initially, opposite the Neurotic Sheep and the American Blues.
Mark Stricklin plays bass and sax and is one of the better vocalists in the north and southTexas areas. Mark played with the"Rubber Band" in Houston and later with "TX Wildlife" in Dallas until the Dallas Cellar closed. Mark now lives in Galveston where he plays with The Rhythm Kings, writes songs and works days as a veterinary technician. He's playing on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1Visit Mark online at: oceanboundpublishing.home.att.net
Mike McClain plays keyboards like nobody's business and he's got plenty of business at McClain Recording in Dallas. Mike played a Vox Continental organ with the Neurotic Sheep in 1967 - '68. He had orange hair, but not anymore.
Charlie Mitchell was the bass anchor for the Neurotic Sheep '67 - '69, guitar with Naked Letus in 1970 and guitar with TX Wildlife in '71 - '72, played bass with Johnny Carroll and with "General Boogie" in Houston. Charlie still plays guitar and bass around Fort Worth, writes and records his own songs and is enjoying his grandchildren. He's now a rocker with his own entourage and he's on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1 and you
Jas Stephens was drummer for the Neurotic Sheep in '67 and '68 and also played with the first rock band in the Cellar, "Jack & the Rippers" along with Randy Cates on bass, Larry Berry on guitar, Jack Hammond on keys and a saxman named Richard Dixon. Extremly talented in all directions, Jas is a full-time working drummer and is playing with someone you know, right now!
Mike Harrison was lead singer for the Neurotic Sheep. The girls loved him and he could work the Cellar stage lights with precision and perfection. Last report, Mike was doing Karaoke gigs in Big D. Catch him live - the girls still like him, but now they're all his grandchildren! contact Mike at momandpop@home.com
Riley Barnes played bass with LB STONE and others in the Cellar. Riley still plays and was with LB STONE at the February, 2006 reunion.
Johnny_Geary played rhythm guitar with the GEEKS at the Fort Worth Cellar and in the daytime he drove an ambulance.
Randy Panda played drums with the Sheep in '68 - '69, then went to Nashville, from where he toured with Earnest Tubb, Hank Snow, Johnny Paycheck, Jack Green and a bunch of others.I saw him playing with Willie, once. Willie turned around and saw him, too.Randy is living in Gun Barrell City and plays around Dallas now and then. He never says where, choosing to remain analamous. pandawool@aol.com
Mike Hickman sang lead vocals and played genuine rhythm guitar with Naked Letus in 1970. A good, solid band with somewhat eclectic tastes. They can be heard, recorded live, on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1.......... nowhereman@ev1.net
Gerald "Stick" Pierce was bassman and 2nd vocalist for Naked Letus in 1970 and, in 1968, could have been ZZ's bassman, but he turned it down, said he didn't want to play no damn rock & roll. Stick writes good songs and owns a candle manufacturing/marketing business in east Texas. Find Stick on the WWW at www.unclestick.com and also on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1
Don Ivey played drums with Naked Letus and then went to Denver where he was very successful musically, less so marriagely, and at last report was writing a book about Men Who Had Bad Luck With Women or some such. Don is good people - you'd like him. Catch him on "THE CELLAR TAPES" Vol.1
Rusty Burns is a left-handed guitarist who plays it strung upside-down, like Hendrix. Rusty played guitar with "Point Blank". He is amazing and I'll put his link up as soon as I find it. e-mail Rusty at zagfil@aol.com
Pete Gruen played drums with Odessa and Osborne Apple and later with Point Blank. Fine technical percussionist, haven't seen him in a coon's age. He probably got rich and retired.(Hold on- )recent reports have "Buzzy" playing again with Rusty-the band is "Bigfoot Johnson"(Doesn't mean he's not rich - recent reports don't say.)
Joe Reese: there were two - one played guitar and the other played bass, one with the "Geeks" and one with the "Osborne Apple", I believe, but they don't play anymore.
Joe Wonder: Joe was a bouncer in Houston but he also was a good drummer and played with the Rubber Band. Joe is deceased.
Bobby Albin started singing at the Cellar in 1964, sitting in with different bands,and played full time with the band "Cold Turkey", with Tudy Taddi. Bobby recently had throat cancer surgery and now works full time at an animal hospital.
Mike Kennedy plays drums. He played in the Cellar with Ol' Bob(Robert Allen) in a band called "Duckbutter". Mike still plays actively and is also bookings manager for the DFW Musicians' Union(AFM Local 72-147).
Robert Allen (aka Ol' Bob) was the raucous lead singer for "Duckbutter", a favorite of the ladies and a longtime friend. He still shows up at local jams, sometimes, and probably has millions in the bank.
Gary Myrick played stratocaster guitar heavy on the hand vibrato, a unique style that served him well in Hollywood, where he went, with his band, "Slip o' the Wrist" after rehearsing a set of original songs for several months in the Cellar ( "I like to rock; I LIKE to rock; I like to ROCK; I like to play the ROLE..."). He's up to about record 6 solo, with credits on 20 or so others. Look him up at http://www.garymyrick.com
Brian Brown played guitar with "LB Stone" in the Cellar in 1973. Brian's a guitar tech in Los Angeles. E-mail him at Brianbrown@webtv.net
Mark Stimson played rhythm guitar with "Slip o' the Wrist". He now lives in L.A. and does special effects work for Paramount.
Anthony Brogden played guitar in the Cellar 1969 - 1972 with groups "Family Dog", "Kenlo", "Odessa", "Bullwinkle" and "Street Noise". Contact Anthony at ABro412477@aol.com
Dave Kenlo (deceased) was a singing drummer who led Cellar groups "Kenlo" and "The Time Machine".
Steve Lowrey played keyboard with Cellar band "Orchrist" along with Mike Harrison. e-mail Steve at stevelowrey@hotmail.com
Johnny Nash played bass, after Tim "Coyote" Williams, in 1965 with Arvel Stricklin's Cellar House Band along with Arvel, Lon Price, Doug Davis and Chester Freeman. They were the featured midnight band for the last few months of the 10th & Main Cellar and, starting with the opening press party, in the upstairs Cellar at 509½ Main street for it's first six months. Johnny Nash and his wife Alice still play in the DFW area.
Randy Palmer was bass player and high-end vocalist with the "Cellar Dwellers". No one has seen or heard from Randy in the past 20 or so years. Jim Hill says he was killed in Houston about 20 years ago while trying to hold up a liquor store.
Chip Wells played drums with the "Cellar Dwellers" for a while. Chip was a great guy. I don't know Chip's whereabouts or if he's still living. If you know, please tell me.
Randy Cates is a fine bassman who was an Original member of "Jack and the Rippers" along with Jack Hammond (guitar), Larry Berry (guitar), Herman Acker (drums)and Richard Dixon on sax. These guys were all seniors in high school at the time and stayed up too late while playing in the Cellar. After the Rippers left, Randy stayed on, playing early sets with Arvel Stricklin, Johnny Carroll and Johnny Nash and later joining with drummer Steve Langdon and Guitarist/Songwriter Johnny Nitzinger in a group called "Lucifer". They played the Cellar in Ft. Worth, Houston and Dallas for the next 2 years. Randy still plays and is owner of a successful jewelry business.
Billy_Brow played guitar and sang early sets and also played bass with Toby Henderson and Childhood's End. Billy would stare straight into the spotlight when he sang.
Toby (T.W.) Henderson - Toby started as an early set player in the Houston Cellar with his band, "Childhood's End". Toby always had a very strong voice. He went to California in the late 60's and is still there and still recording good songs.
Ron Cintron was known as "Fat Ronnie" and played bass with "Odessa" and later with Charlie Mitchell and "General Boogie" in Houston. Ron is still around, I think he runs a guide business out of Dallas.
Much has been written in European entertainment media about Johnny Carroll, the legendary Texas rockabilly artist, born John Lewis Carrell in Cleburne, Texas on Oct. 23, 1937 and a citizen of Godley, Texas for most of his life. One of the original five "outlaw" artists in the Sun Records Studio "stable" (the other 4 were Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis), Johnny Carroll's rockabilly music star career is chronicled in the Rockabilly Music Hall of Fame. For those who wish to know more about that aspect of his life this online resource, www.rockabillyhall.com/JohnCrrll.html, has information. There are a number of recordings to his credit that may be had from online sources. Texas music web site www.arvel.com offers a CD titled "The Cellar Tapes, vol.1" which features live recordings from Cellar performers, one of which is Johnny Carroll performing what he called his "theme song" titled "Gimme Some", a song he gleaned from an old Tex Ritter record and made his own. His Decca recordings and the movie "Rock Baby Rock It" as well as later Rolling Rock Records titles like "Texabilly" can be found online at www.amazon.com, and also may be had through local resources such as Sumpter Bruton's Record Town on University Blvd. in Fort Worth.
One salient fact has been overlooked by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and by all others who have written about Johnny Carroll. The date of December 1, 1986 was proclaimed, by the City of Fort Worth, to be designated as "Johnny Carroll Day" in Fort Worth, Texas, in recognition of his role as an international ambassador of good will for the city during his rockabilly tours of Europe. The day was capped off with a special midnight showing, at a downtown Fort Worth theater, of the 50's rock and roll movie "Rock Baby Rock It!" starring Johnny Carroll, which had been recently rediscovered in an old Texas film archive.
In the early fifties, when the terms "rhythm & blues" and "country and western" had not yet been called, there was only "pop" music (Frank Sinatra; Lawrence Welk) and "hillbilly" music (Hank Williams; Jimmy Rodgers). The blues, then called "race" music (BB King; Hank Ballard), was on most Fort Worth jukeboxes but was hard to find at the retail level, and WAS NOT PLAYED by any radio station, other than small, ethnically-owned stations such as KNOK in Fort Worth. Rock and Roll (a term coined in 1954 by disc jockey Alan Freed), was just beginning to arise out of "race" music and, since it was also performed by "colored people", was not considered legitimate music by mainstream radio stations. Fortunately, this viewpoint is now history. The term "rock and roll" was not initially applied to Caucasian artists. Elvis Presley, Bill Haley and the Comets and Carl Perkins were, in early performances, promoted as "rockabilly" acts.
Rockabilly is one of those iconoclastic terms usually inspired by statements of ridicule coming from ESTABLISHMENT record producers and A&R people, standing in studio control rooms and thinking "What IS THAT? It ain't any music I ever heard!" I can imagine a New York producer of the 1980's, faced with an auditioning young group, saying, in derision, "whaddya call that, Rhythm And Prose?" and a serious, fast-thinking young entertainer coming back with "Yeah, man, R.A.P.". I can also imagine some A&R guy in 1954 Nashville saying "sounds like rocked-up hillbilly to me…" Rocked-up billy? Yeah, ROCKABILLY! The term was only in common usage for a year or so before being swept aside by the more descriptive term "rock and roll. Rockabilly was given new life by European record collectors and retro music fans who, in the early 1970's, began seeking out the original artists and their recordings. This interest spawned a new generation of young rockabilly artists from around the world as well as a crop of new songs to fill out the genre.
Rockabilly stardom was only a small part of Carroll's life. On a day - to - day basis, He was entertainment manager for the Cellar, an equally legendary Texas nightclub chain. I could write a good bit about the Cellar (you may have heard it mentioned as the place where Secret Service agents partied the night before the JFK assassination), but here I'll talk about it only as it concerns Johnny Carroll.
The Cellar club began life, about 1958, under a hotel at 1111 Houston Street in Fort Worth. Sometime in '61, it was relocated to 10th and Main, in a basement under a liquor store, and in '64 moved to an upstairs location further up Main St, over an arcade. Subsequently, owner Pat Kirkwood also opened and operated CELLAR clubs in San Antonio, Houston and Dallas, and Johnny Carroll was CEO (Chief Entertainment Official) in each one. In August of 1962, Carroll hired me as his first full-time staff musician. I was a guitar player, but Johnny hired me as a drummer because I had been sitting in with him on drums (the Cellar had house drums set up) and he liked the way I played them. The pay wasn't much but the girls made up for it. There were a lot of girls and all of them liked musicians. With fringe benefits like that, plus getting paid to play music, for a while I felt as though I'd found the promised land.
In 1959, the first time I stood at the top of the stairway leading down to the Cellar entrance, the music I heard rolling up the stairwell was a loud, driving rendition of "Hey! Bo Diddley", sung in a hard-as-nails voice and accompanied by booming electric guitars and drums. Once I got inside (wow, was that girl at the door was in her underwear?) I could see, across the small room, a drum set against the opposite wall and, sitting behind it, a mike stand between his legs, a Danelectro guitar in his hands and shouting the blues like no hillbilly ever would, was Johnny Carroll. With his feet he played the bass drum and hi-hat cymbal, and the guitar in his hands screamed and stuttered, played through some sort of echo unit and in a giant voice he yelled "Hey! Bo Diddley" while the audience yelled it back at him. The whole room rocked and it was hard to believe that this was all coming from one person, but there it was.
Johnny Carroll - performing at the Fort Worth Cellar in 1959
About the time I thought I was through being amazed, a huge black man walked up and began beating, with huge sticks of some kind, on a 55-gallon oil barrel, picking up the rhythm Johnny was playing. After a couple of minutes, Johnny yelled "King George Cannibal Jones, TAKE IT!" and he turned a light on the black man who was banging the oil drum energetically in an intricate rhythm pattern. After watching him for a few seconds, I realized that Johnny Carroll had disappeared and that "Cannibal Jones" was just getting started.
In the midst of a turbulent career as a rock and roll star, after completing a national tour and performing the starring role in the movie "Rock Baby Rock It" (a bigger cult favorite than "Blackboard Jungle" among true rockers), Johnny Carroll (a record compan
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