Country Music
Roger McGuinn got a transistor radio from his parents as a young kid and was never the same after hearing Elvis Presley. He instantly picked up the guitar and it changed his life forever. Roger co-founded The Byrds in 1964 with David Crosby and Gene Clark and recorded amazing versions of “Turn!...
Andy Leftwich began playing the fiddle at the age of six when his dad bought one from a local pawn shop. Andy grew up knowing he could always express himself though music and by the age of twelve branched out to play the mandolin after seeing a young performer at a festival. Growing up, Andy...
Rusty Richards would like to point out the distinction between Singing Cowboys and Cowboys that sing. He is very much a cowboy, having roped, rode in the rodeo and having worked as a ranch hand most of his life. He also is a singer, having crooned with the famous Sons of The Pioneers and other...
Ken King performed in several Country and Western bands in and around Los Angeles beginning in the 1940s. While playing his guitar as a guest on the Spade Cooley television show in late 1949, two fellow musicians in the band (Jimmy Wyble and Cameron Hill) showed Ken the new solid body Fender guitar...
Terry Oliver grew up in Southern California and remembers the day his father took him for guitar lessons at RC Allen’s guitar shop in 1964. The famous luthier had dozens of projects in the works including building a hollow body guitar and a banjo. In 1967, Terry’s father requested that Mr. Allen...
Paul Franklin asked his father to help modify his pedal steel guitar, as he had ideas to create sounds and chord changes that were not possible on the instrument at the time. His father, also Paul Franklin, created and patented the Pedabro, which his son, Paul, used on classic recordings, such as “...
Gail Davies was the first female Record Producer in Nashville. In 1973, she was encouraged to run her own sessions by Henry Lewy (1926-2008). It was not easy to establish herself as a producer, but she was determined. As a result, Gail has assisted the careers of hundreds of artists over the years...
Paul Leim established himself as one of the top studio drummers in both Los Angeles and Nashville. Paul has recorded with the likes of Randy Travis, Dolly Parton, Brian Setzer and Lionel Richie (along with many others). He has also played for several television shows and movies including Star Wars...
Byron Berline established the Double Stop Fiddle Shop in Oklahoma back in 1995. The store became a major hub for musicians which bought and sold a great number of both vintage and new instruments. The store followed Byron’s amazing career as a professional musician, which included recordings with...
Gary Burr played trumpet in the school band and went on to become one of the top songwriters in Nashville in the 1980s and 90s. Among the many hit songs he penned were “In a Week of Two,” “Watch Me,” “I Try to Think About Elvis,” and his first million selling song, “Love's Been a Little Bit Hard on...