Buck Owens, 1929-2006

Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr, was born on 12 August 1929 near Sherman, in Grayson county, Texas, and died on 25 March 2006 in Bakersfield, California, his home since 1951. From 1965 he was a centre of opposition within country music to the advance of bland pop-country. He adopted the name 'Buck' while a small child, after a mule on the family farm. His life and work interacted with bluegrass: the Joe Maphis song 'Dim lights, thick smoke' (recorded by Flatt & Scruggs) is said to have been inspired by Buck's honky-tonk work; his 'My heart skips a beat' has been recorded by the Lynn Morris Band; he himself recorded 'Ruby' and 'Roll in my sweet baby's arms'; and he was a longtime regular of the TV series 'Hee Haw', whose staff musicians included the late Bobby Thompson on banjo.

A brief biography is at this link. Thanks to Dan 'BanjerDan' Mazer for reminding us of the last words: 'There’s gonna be those that liked me and those that didn’t like me. I’d like just to be remembered as a guy that came along and did his music, did his best and showed up on time, clean and ready to do the job, wrote a few songs, and had a hell of a time.'