March 30, 2006
The Buck Starts Here
Posted by Sean Moores at March 30, 2006 1:56 AMNews of Buck Owens' death at age 76 in Bakersfield, Calif., on Saturday raised a question in the office that we couldn't adequately answer then, and I can't answer any more definitively five days later: Do 18-to-24-year-olds care about Buck Owens?
It wasn't your typical water-cooler topic, I know. Chances are this question only came up because I work at a newspaper. It being a deadline business, snap judgments often are necessary. Hopefully these determinations are well-informed, because they help us decide whose names and faces go on Page 1. We hope that these names and faces get potential customers to drop their 50 cents in the box, so it is in our best interest to promote stories of interest. The question might have come up at your workplace, too. Unless you work at the Country Music Hall of Fame, though, it probably didn't. A more typical query, squeezed between the speculation over Tony's fate on "The Sopranos," the plight of the castaways on "Lost" and other "Idol" chatter, likely was, "Hey, did you hear that guy from 'Hee Haw' died?"
That Owens is widely remembered as "that guy from 'Hee Haw' " who played the red, white and blue guitar certainly could explain a credibility gap with the younger set. The variety/comedy show's corny humor made him a lot of money between 1969 and 1986, but it also effectively overshadowed his reputation as a country hitmaker. That's not an excuse for young music fans to ignore his legacy, but "Hee Haw" went off the air 20 years ago, before many of them were born. Twentysomethings might need enticement to put down the Xbox 360 and pick up some Buck Owens music. Fortunately, Owens' credentials should inspire curiosity.
Unless today's music lovers are big fans of that first caveman to discover the pleasing tone of a club striking a hollow log, their favorites had influences. As one of the prime practitioners (along with Merle Haggard) of the West Coast's stripped-down, electric-guitar-driven "Bakersfield Sound," to say that Owens was influential is an understatement. In addition to being a pioneering honky-tonk stylist, he racked up a string of hits that deserves recognition – or at the very least respect – from 18-to-24s and anyone else who considers themself a music fan. Owens had 15 consecutive No. 1 country hits between 1963 and 1967, and 20 No. 1s between '63 and 1972. He had 26 other top-10 records. Many of these records have become standards: "Under Your Spell Again," "Excuse Me (I Think I"ve Got a Heartache)," "Act Naturally," "I've Got a Tiger By The Tail," "Waitin' in Your Welfare Line" and "Buckaroo," to name but a handful.
Owens certainly gained the respect of other artists, and not just country singers. The Beatles, a pretty fair guitar-driven act in their own right, also had a hit with "Act Naturally" in 1965. Ray Charles, no stranger to blazing a trail through popular music, covered "Crying Time."
Owens definitely was a touchstone for later generations of country stars, though. In 1987, Dwight Yoakam talked him out of semi-retirement. In 1988, their duet on "Streets of Bakersfield," which Owens first released in 1972, went to the top of the charts. Owens also was a huge influence on Brad Paisley, one of the youngest current members of the Grand Ole Opry. Paisley borrowed for his 2001 induction the canary yellow Nudie jacket Owens wore on the cover of his "The Carnegie Hall Concert" album in 1966.
Like so many who grew up as children of the Depression, Owens is worthy of admiration for taking the reins and succeeding. Once he got out of the fields, he made sure he stayed out. He invested in real estate, radio stations and television stations. By the time he opened Buck Owens' Crystal Palace in Bakersfield in 1996, his net worth was estimated at more than $100 million.
Most importantly, though, was Owens' role in establishing the "Bakersfield Sound." He did it on his own terms, without succumbing to Nashville's syrupy strings of the day, and he did it years before Waylon and Willie rebelled against Music City. His headstrong ways make sense when you consider that the man born Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. on Aug. 12, 1929, took the name "Buck" from the family mule.
Owens' groundbreaking stance might get taken for granted these days, but he certainly shouldn't. Owens was "alternative" before alternative country became a movement or a magazine or a fashion statement.
So do 18-to-24-year-olds care about Buck Owens? I still don't know, but I hope the answer is "yes." Individualism is the common denominator between the giants of the American musical landscape, whether the icon in question is Buddy Holly, Bob Dylan, Kurt Cobain or Kanye West. Owens' Old Glory guitar adds vital color to the variegated tapestry of American music. That flag is figurative, but its threads must be mended by each successive generation, as each will take its turn in passing on the tradition and sharing it with the world.
Excellent post. Unfortunately, I don't believe that the 18-24 demo really knows who Buck Owens is. Sure, they may know the name and may associate him with Country music but I believe it stops there. Ask 10 people from that bracket to name 3 Buck songs you'll be greeted with 9 and a half blank stares. Hell, ask 10 30-something's and you'll get the same reaction. Its the same story with George Jones, Merle Haggard, or even Hank Williams - people may know the name, but - unless they have actively sought it out - they have had very little exposure to the music. Country radio may play a Buck Owens song once a week - at best - but on the day he died, they all lined up to play his stuff like they'd just lost their dear Uncle Eddie.
Posted by: James at March 30, 2006 9:55 AMVery nicely said.
As someone who grew up watching Buck Owens on Hee Haw who was also an aspiring musician, I can tell you that even between the cornball jokes, that individuality, integrity and musical innovation was apparent, and made me, by the time I was 10 or 11, aware of Buck Owens other than as Roy Clark's sidekick. But I'm in my 40s; the late 60s and early 70s were my Petri dish.
I wonder about younger generations, and think about the old adage "if you want to play like Eric Clapton, the last thing you want to do is study Eric Clapton. You'll end up a weak carbon copy. Instead, study who he studied - Freddie King, Robert Johnson, Otis Rush - and develop a style that is parallel to Clapton, equally as compelling because it is another branch from the same roots."
The same applies to country songwriting, singing and performing. If my only sources for inspiration are George Strait, Alan Jackson and Toby Keith, but I have no sense of where they learned, it's likely I'll be a forgettable cookie-cutter. And country music is nothing if not about the relevance of your roots. Once it loses that connection to the past, it loses its integrity.
The big question is 18-to-24 year olds where? Did 18 to 24 year olds EVER care about Buck Owens? Seems to me the crowd demographic has changed. If you haven't got 'em by the time they're 18, they're not going to care anyway. The question is --- have you taught your 10 year old to care about Buck Owens?
Posted by: John Litzenberg at March 30, 2006 12:13 PMI don't have any 18-24 year old connections at the moment, so I can't answer the question definitively, but I can tell you that I was around 19 or 20 when I first "discovered" Buck Owens by way of Dwight Yoakam. Much the same way I stumbled across artists like Gram Parsons and Robert Johnson via the Rolling Stones. I'd like to think those kind of connections are still being made by young people who are open to it. Of course, with each generation, they're a little more removed from the original influence, and maybe it's a little more challenging. It's an interesting question you've raised, and it begets other questions about what music is "important" and to whom is it relevant. Of course, music is an art form, and therefore subjective, so it's all relative...
I'm 30 by the way, just a youngster myself ;)
I think those folks that Valerie mentioned -- those of us who look up references to find roots -- that's the HickoryWind.org crowd. ;-)
Posted by: larry at March 30, 2006 1:54 PMMost 18-to-24 year olds will only care about Buck if a movie gets made...with some hot chicks...and a cool, skinny 18-to-24 year old singing Buck's songs.
But the BEST of them already know about him!
Posted by: Jim Pipkin at March 30, 2006 2:26 PMMan when I was 18, the CDs I bought were the Cure and the Charlatans UK and PJ Harvey. It's never too late to locate the hillbilly in your soul.
Posted by: B. Earnest at March 30, 2006 2:28 PMYeah, Boney said it -- music for 18 year olds isn't our music. Americana, more than anything else, is an "adult" music. That's the whole point of Hickory Wind to me -- bridging that gap -- the old and new -- being in between -- becoming an adult -- being an adult -- being away from home -- creating your own home -- the circle being unbroken and all that jazz. You hear me, people?
Posted by: larry at March 30, 2006 3:16 PMHey now, I'm 21 and I listen to Buck, Hank, Bill Monoe, Loretta, and all that good stuff. Maybe I'm just a geriatric at heart.
The best music out there, regardless of genre, is good because it's got universal themes. People can relate to stuff like "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" or "London Calling" while most kids in that 18-24 range don't have a whole lot of life under their belt, leading to flash-in-the-pan crap like "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" and Jessica Simpson's entire existence.
Hopefully, the rest of my generation will come around in time.
Posted by: J at March 30, 2006 9:22 PMa real highlight of "who ive seen" was a trip i took to bakersfield in the summer of 1999. was at a meeting at the jpl in pasadena. after the meeting i rented a car and headed to the crystal palace. setting at the bar, the sound man was blown away that i had made the trip just to see buck (wouldnt anyone?). gave me a personal tour of the palace and the studio. buck was right as rain that night, the night before his 70th birthday. a true hero ... i hope everyone appreciates what he means to american music. im under his spell again.
Posted by: tallyho at April 8, 2006 1:57 AM
