Buck Owens 1929 -2006

The backbone of the "Bakersfield Sound," Buck Owens was a rootsy antidote to the slick Nashville sound of the 1960s in which the good old bite of guitars often took a back seat to strings and overproduction. With his band the Buckaroos and his trusty right-hand man, guitar slinger Don Rich, Buck Owens carved a unique niche in country music that would later provide inspiration and a foundation for country music’s return to the basics in the 1980s.

Born in Texas, he and his family were Dust Bowl migrants during the Great Depression who ended up in California, where Buck heard bluegrass on the radio. He signed with Capitol in 1957 and formed the Buckaroos in 1962, recording a continuous stream of number one hits and albums. Some of his big hits included "Tiger by the Tail," "Together Again," "Act Naturally," and "Buckaroo," and many of his songs were recorded by other stars including the Beatles, Ray Charles, and Barbra Streisand.

Devastated by Don Rich’s 1974 death in a motorcycle accident, Owens devoted his time to his TV gig on "Hee Haw," which he had joined in 1969. Based in Bakersfield, California, he later created his own dinner theater and museum called the Crystal Palace, as well as purchasing a local TV station and radio stations. Now in his 70s, he continues to perform at his home base, often joined by today’s country heroes who pay homage to his legendary singing and guitar playing style.

Buck was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1996.


Click here to read Buck's full biography:

The Roots of Country Guitar

A complete survey of a musical genre, its pioneers and how it developed, including: Six note-for-note transcriptions of famous tunes pivotal to the genre; extensive instruction in the essential playing styles that are to the genre, using scales, chords, licks, and musical exercises; the history of the development of each playing style; biographies of the pioneering artists; a recording of the songs, exercises, and licks. Songs include: Ballad of Thunder Road • Buckaroo • Cotton Fields (The Cotton Song) • Galloping on the Guitar • I Am a Pilgrim • Twin Guitar Special.

Inventory #HL699079
Book $14.95 (US)

HOW TO ORDER

Guitars. "You just can’t beat the Teles. I did play a Stratocaster for a while; then I tried Jaguars. I even played Mustangs on some shows, but I’m always back to the ol’ Telecaster®. I like my new [Custom Shop] Telecaster a lot. If you play a Tele then you know what I mean!"

Strings. "Most of the lead things up to 1964-1965 with me and Don [Rich] were on the E, A and D strings. Most people play up higher, so I had this unique kind of style on the bass strings. About 1965 Don started putting on light strings -- the rock boys and some of the country boys were doing that. For my part, I like the big thick sound of the old raunchy bass strings. I always hit the strings pretty darn hard. I attack the strings, and that tells me pretty quick whether the amp needs work or not!"

Amplifiers. "True story: My Super and Bassman® were sitting here for 30 years, and when we pulled ‘em out they worked and didn’t even blow a fuse. I love Fender® amplifiers! The first second I pluck a string I know this is what I’m looking for. I used Twin Reverbs® for a lot of years, and liked the Super Reverb a lot, too. I think Fender amps have great reverb. You know, a Tele doesn’t sound the same with another kind of amplifier. Some people think it does, but it don’t." (In 1999 Fender presented Buck with a special Acoustasonic® amp which he uses for everything from his Tele to his Fender fiddle.)

"There were even times when Don and I played through the same amp. Believe it or not it would carry the two of us! Unison things and harmony things.
In all those years and all those miles, there was never any doubt that [the Fender amps] were going to work. I always thought of them as something like an anvil, that the airlines couldn’t break.

"Pete Anderson introduced me to the Dual Professional®. He knows what I like an amplifier to do and I think he shares some of that. I also like the Hot Rod DeVille® a lot. I like the Fat button (on the Dual Professional) and the overdrive on the DeVille."

-- From Fender Frontline Vol. 22 (1997) interview with Shane Nicholas.