Jimmy Rabbitt "...And Renegade" (Capitol Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Waylon Jennings)
A decent Commander Cody-ish set, though nothing amazing, really. Jimmy Rabbit was a Texas-born radio deejay who had previously been a rocker, playing in Texas bands such as Mouse & The Traps and a short-lived psychedelic garage band called Positively 13 O'Clock. Switching gears, Rabbitt moved to California in 1969 and became an influential member of the "freeform" radio scene, notably with a long stint on KROQ in LA, where his sets mixed classic country with material bubbling up from the '70s country-rock scene. He also played music and is best known for co-writing "Long Haired Redneck" with David Allan Coe... He seems to have hooked up with Waylon Jennings as well -- ol' Waylon not only produced this album, playing geetar and whooping along on a tune or two -- and that's nothing to sneeze at. Rabbitt seems to have had his heart in the right place, covering folks like Delbert McClinton and Alice Stuart, as well as a version of Lee Clayton's "Ladies Love Outlaws," which chipped its way into the charts. It sounds like Rabbitt wasn't really able to cut loose on this album, playing it safe when he should've gotten a little wild. This is okay, but it ain't gonna make a big difference in your life... Worth a spin, though!

Jimmy Rabbitt "The Texas Album: Outlaw Country" (St. Roch Recordings, 2015) (LP)
(Produced by Jerry Wexler & Keith Olson)
Long-lost demo recordings, cut for Atlantic Records in 1973... Jerry Wexler helmed the sessions, with fabled session player James Booker backing Rabbitt's band on the ivories...

Buzz Rabin "Cross Country Cowboy" (Elektra Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Pete Drake)
Songwriter Buzz Rabin (ne Raybon Busby) was a Nashville journeyman who is probably best known as one of the main contributors to Ringo Starr's country-oriented 1970 solo album, Beaucoups Of Blues. Rabin was recommended to Ringo by producer Pete Drake, and rode that coup all the way into a solo album several years later. Other than one single released in '69, this was apparently the only record Rabin released, though his career as a songwriter in Nashville lasted many years, most notably with the Top Five hit, "Your Body Is An Outlaw," recorded by Mel Tillis in 1980, as well as gigs with David Allan Coe and others. (Note: I'm not sure where Rabin was from originally -- he occasionally seems to be confused with the much-older, Louisiana-born bluegrass legend Buzz Busby, though I don't think there was any real connection, other than them both being from Louisiana. Anyone with more info about Rabin's career? I'm all ears!)

Michael Rabon & Choctaw "Michael Rabon & Choctaw" (Uni Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Robin Hood Brians & Michael Rabon)
A non-pop outing from Michael Rabon (1943-2022) the former lead singer of the bubblegum-ish 'Sixties Top 40 band The Five Americans, and who later played guitar in the rock band Gladstone. He apparently dropped out and went to live in the desert after the his days of '60s pop glory, and this album seems to have been a musical declaration of independence. There's some overt country-rock on here, particularly on songs like "Texas Sparrow" and "Country Music," though the album is even more full of mellow folk-psych tunes and (semi-) hard rock with power chords though with thankfully little macho swagger. The twang tunes are interesting, particularly how Rabon blended pedal steel with sharper rock guitars... Although this is more of a rock record, its early '70s release does make it a credible country-rock forerunner, and it'll probably be of interest to folks who are into Mike Nesmith's music of the same era.

Michael Rabon "Texas 'Til I Die" (Knife Wing Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Thom Caccetta, Michael Rabon & Don Smith)
A quintessential early 'Seventies country-rock outing, with hazy hippiedelic takes on honkytonk twang and drawl, and a few sideways wobbles into folk on one hand and rock on the other... Full of stoned musings and musical indulgences, this album has a few gems, a few mildly cringeworthy moments, and an overall groovy, relaxed vibe. One song, "Try A Little Harder," is a slightly solipsistic diatribe about following you muse and making your own kinda music, no matter what the heartless, bean-counting big-label business guys tell you, while "Straight Brother" is a funny, odd hippie-era time capsule about how everyone has some "straight" relative who might not be cool, man, but is still okay. ("Straight" being hippie-speak for squares, not gay lingo for heterosexuals...) The only tune that make me pick up the needle and skip past it was "Shotgun," a fairly strained attempt at hard-rock, roots-funk; other than that, though, this is a pretty groovy set, in a distinctly Nesmith-ian way. Mike Rabon wrote almost all the songs on here, sings and plays lead guitar, with Jim Grant on bass, Dahrell Norris (drums), Doug Rhone (guitar), Ron Snyder (percussion) and steel player Larry White, who adds a lot of texture to the sound. A real 'Seventies time capsule... definitely worth a spin.

The Racquette River Rounders "The Racquette River Rounders" (Adirondack Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by David Fleur & The Racquette River Rounders)
Founded in 1979, the Racquette River Rounders was an acoustic string-swing and folk trio from Potsdam, New York, made up of Danny Gotham, Michael Hadfield and John Kribs... They took their name from the Raquette River, which originates in upstate New York, up in what folks call "the North Country." This album features lots of original material, including the "Harrisburg Rag," which was inspired by the 1979 Three Mile Island nuclear reactor meltdown. The group stayed together for a few years in the early 'Eighties, and according to Mr. Gotham's website, they occasionally played a few plugged-in electric gigs, using the name the Rolling Clones. Gotham later joined a bluegrass band called Summit, which recorded one album mid-decade, while Hadfield and Kribs formed a roots-rock band called Johnny & The Triumphs.

The Racquette River Rounders "Liberty" (Adirondack Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by David Fleur & The Racquette River Rounders)

The Rader Family "Fresh Country" (Ocean Opry Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dennis Rader)
The Rader Family was a gospel-and-oldies band led by patriarch Wayne Rader (1936-2015) a Missouri native who owned an appliance store in Wichita, Kansas, but found himself drawn to show business after managing a gospel quartet called the Riverside Boys, which featured his sons, Billy and Dennis. The Raders also recorded as an ensemble for a small gospel label in Cincinnati, and having dipped their toes in the entertainment world, they jumped into it whole hog in 1978 when they moved to Panama City, Florida and created their own, family-run country music venue. The first Ocean Opry show debuted in August, 1978, kicking off a multi-decade, multi-generational enterprise, with the venue finally closing in 2005 when Wayne Rader and his wife Patsy retired. Ocean Opry was mostly a family affair, though like many mom'n'pop oprys they hired outside performers such as singer Ric Mason, who recorded an entire album while part of their 1982 season cast. Other featured performers included multi-instrumentalist Dennis Rader, who doubled as the troupe's cornpone comedian, Moonshine, doing parody songs, skits and recitations, and later became an ordained minister before moving to Nashville. His brother Billy sang and wrote original material, helped operate the Ocean Opry until it closed, and soon after went into local politics, although he continued to perform for local charities and community events. This album is mostly cover songs -- oldies such "Pass Me By," "Silver Threads And Golden Needles," "Tennessee Waltz" and various novelty numbers, though an original penned by Billy Rader, "Don't Say Goodbye," kicks off the album. This is one of several Ocean Opry souvenir albums; numerous cassettes and CDs were also issued, many perhaps lost to the tides of time.

The Rader Family "Some Sweet Day" (Ocean Opry Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Billy Rader & Dennis Rader)
An all-gospel album featuring the Rader brothers backed by Mark Dene on harmonica, Calvin Gann (piano), Charlie Gilley (steel guitar), and Mike Latourette on drums, with the brothers each playing multiple instruments.

The Rader Family "Ocean Opry's Most Requested Show Songs" (Ocean Opry Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Billy Rader & Dennis Rader)
More cover songs, mostly, in a variety of styles. Things kick off with Billy Rader doing a medley of country music impersonations; other highlights include a couple of original songs, "Sea-Going Cowboy" (co-written by Billy Rader and Mike LaTourette) and LaTourette's own "You've Got Me Worried."

The Rader Family "Food On The Table" (Ocean Opry Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dennis Rader)

The Rader Family/Various Artists "Ocean Opry Live On Stage" (Ocean Opry Records, 19--?) (LP)

Grant Rader "Grant Rader" (Jomar Records, 19--?) (LP)
Old-time fiddling by an old-timer in the orbit of the Hebron, South Dakota studio operated by the Tibor Brothers. Several Tibors also back Mr. Rader, including Francis Tibor on drums, Gerard Tibor (piano), Harvey Tibor (steel guitar), Kurt Tibor (bass), and Larry Tibor on guitar.

Radio Flyer "Radio Flyer" (End Of The Trail Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Radio Flyer)
Not to be confused with the bluegrass band from Missouri, this Radio Flyer was a country bar band out of Van Dyne, Wisconsin, playing classics'n'outlaw, with a peppery dash of western swing. The group included lead guitarist Tim Ferguson and his brother Fred Ferguson on bass, with Wally Messner on steel guitar and accordion and Bryan Christiansen pulling triple duty on banjo, fiddle and mandolin. The musicianship is pretty solid, though sometimes their vocals lapse into a corny bar-band self-parody, as if at times they couldn't take the whole country thing totally seriously. That's okay, though, since for the most part this disc is pretty fun, especially with a cover of the old Webb Pierce hit, "Tupelo County Jail," along with several swell originals. Tim Ferguson also played in a band called Ida Red, and more recently in a band called The Best Westerns.

Radio Star "Radio Star" (Trackdown Studios, 1987) (LP)
(Produced by Gorman John Ruggerio & Alan W. Prince)
The star of Radio Star, lead singer Gorman John Ruggerio, claimed fifteen years of experience acting on stage and in television prior to cutting this album at a studio in upstate New York... He has several family members backing him, as well as studio engineer Alan W. Prince on lead guitar, Randy Rollman on pedal steel and bass, Keith Crofut picking guitar on one tracks, and a few other folks. There are some country-themed tunes, such as "There's A Cowboy Town Where Nobody Knows" and "A Cowboy's Holiday," as well as some songs that seem to be from stage productions he was in... Years later Ruggerio landed some film roles, though largely he seems pretty obscure, at least on the country scene.

Dorothy Rae "Here Is Dorothy Rae" (Sundial Records, 19--?) (LP)
An oddball offering from a Southern California "country" gal whose show-biz bona fides stretch back to the big band era, and whose father, musician Dolor Michaud, worked as an arranger in the Hollywood film studios. Rae's first big break came when she was hired by western swing bandleader Spade Cooley touring with his band before moving into the less-hectic movie industry herself where she worked as a dubbing vocalist in various Hollywood films. In the 1940s, pop bandleader Horace Heidt signed Rae to work on his radio program and paired her up with celebrity whistler Fred Lowery, with whom she recorded several duets 78s on Columbia Records. The Lowery-Rae duo left Heidt's band after World War Two and touring nationally though they struggled in the late 1940s, having enough name recognition to work the vaudeville circuit, but not enough star power to headline lounge gigs as a "solo" act. According to the liner notes, Dorothy Rae eventually burnt out on the entertainment industry, retiring to become a fashion designer... but somewhere along the line she acquired a Hammond organ and revived her act, reflected in this album chock full of brisk comedic ditties with Ms. Rae breezily stroking the keys and trotting through her chatty lyrics, with a bit of a jazzy, Blossom Dearie sound. To be clear: this ain't exactly twang, though it's country enough to include here. There are links to old-school country music, including her tune "Texan In Paris," which riffs on "Deep In The Heart Of Texas," as well as her covers of "For The Good Times" and "Little Liza Jane," though the rural material is filtered through a pop-jazz lens, much as it was during the big band era. Dorothy Rae seems to have moved up to the Bay Area at some point: the hype sticker on her second album reads, "now appearing at Masiani's Santa Clara, California," and I found this disc in a dollar bin near San Jose. There's no date on the disc, though she dated an autograph 6/76, so I'd guess it was pressed anytime from 1972-76, given the inclusion of the Kristofferson tune.

Nova Rae "Love And Sunshine" (1976-?) (LP)
One of our more elusive artists, possibly because she didn't do many public performances... Although the liner notes of her similarly-titled Just Like Sunshine album (below) say that it was her first LP, I think actually this one came out earlier, and didn't "count" because it was a gospel record, while the other one is nominally secular. Not entirely sure about that, but it's a theory. Anyway, Nova Rae was the stage name for Ms. Nova Michaux (aka Nova Rae Harrison Michaux, 1944-2005) who hailed from a tiny town called Woodville, out in East Texas, kinda near Lufkin. She worked in the local schools as early as 1964, and on one of her singles billed herself as "the singing teacher," although I don't think she pursued music as a career. Ms. Michaux copyrighted a bunch of original religious songs early in 1976, tunes like "The Glory To Find," "Heaven Is Today," "The Leader" and "Settin' Around" and around the same time cut several secular country singles, including two on Chart Records, one on Brack Records, and another that came out under her real name, Nova Michaux, released on a micro-label from New Jersey. And yet, this seems to be the sum total of her online footprint, so some questions remain. If anyone has more info, I'm all ears!

Nova Rae "Just Like Sunshine" (Brack Records, 1977-?) (LP)
Though the back cover says this was her first album, I'm a little skeptical, though it's kind of a six-of-one, half-dozen-of-the-other situation, since all of her records seem to have been recorded and released around the same time, roughly 1976-77. This is a secular set, though there's a spiritual undercurrent to a few of the songs ("Love Power," for example...) About half the songs first came out as singles, including her cover of Neil Sedaka's "Love Will Keep Us Together," "Burning Bridges," and others. Alas, no musician or producer credits, so while this came out on a Nashville imprint, it's not clear if this was actually recorded in Music City... also, the songs were probably recorded using several different bands, some released as singles and others probably added later to fill out the album.

Ed Raetzloff "It Took A Long Time To Get To You" (Newpax Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Steve Aune & Joe Wilson)
Christian country-rock with some fancy pickers on the sessions... Ed Raetzloff was formerly lead singer for Blue Jug a southern rock outfit from Virginia, and brings that secular band's roots-rock sound into the CCM movement, carving out a new career in the Christian music scene. The gruff, bluesy twang is an interesting twist, though the sometimes-clunky lyrics suffer (as gospel rock often does) from the need to explain his conversion and preach about it to others -- perhaps not the easiest thing to express artfully. At any rate, an interesting mix of sensibilities, groundbreaking at the time.

Ed Raetzloff "Drivin' Wheels" (Newpax Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Turley Richards)

The Railsplitters "In Dixie" (Marbil Records, 1978-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Turpin, Scott Long & Fred Perkins)
This group from Georgia was led by fiddler Everett Clackler (1921-2015), who was born in Clanton, Alabama and later moved to Georgia, eventually settling in the town of Warner Robins, where he owned a business called Kissing Cousins. Mr. Clacker was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall Of Fame, and worked in a variety of bands, including his own Melody Makers (while still in Mobile), the Railsplitters, and a group called the Claude Hicks Vocal Band, in the 1990s. The Railsplitters were together for much of the 1970s and '80s, with a lineup that included Clackler on fiddle, Billy Bumpers (bass), Gene Griffin (drums), Garland Thornton (rhythm guitar), and Jeff Walker on lead.

Rain Crow "Cowboys And Indians" (Howling Records Company, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Funk & Cliff Shilling)
Another cool record from the heartland, in this case, from Newton, Kansas, not far from Wichita, albeit released on a label from Longmont, Colorado... There's a wide mix of styles here, from straightforward twang and jaunty rodeo songs to surprisingly hip western swing, ala Asleep At The Wheel. There might be some slight issues of cultural appropriation, what with the "cowboys and Indians" motif on the front cover, though singer Cliff Shilling was apparently of first nations descent -- a Pawnee-Choctaw -- and his presumably autobiographical song, "Choctaw," opens the album, complete with a Native American chorus led by powwow singer Harvey Ware, so perhaps it was more legitimate than one might assume. The core of the band included Jim Mangan on piano, Lynn Piller (bass and guitar), Reece Pullen (drums), Katy J. Ray (lead guitar), and Cliff Shilling (bass and guitar) and a whole slew of guest musicians, including fiddler Jeff Pritchart, bassist Armadillo Slim, a small horn section, and harmony singers Brian Driscoll, Jeanette Driscoll, and Joni Richardson. The band's main members take turns singing lead, with Jim Mangan being perhaps the most solid country singer; Katy J. Ray has a distinctive presence, initially coming off as a proto-Lucinda Williams type on her composition, "Foolish Woman, Foolish Man" (an album highlight) though she later devolves into sort of a Juice Newton knockoff. Lynn Piller was formerly in the early 'Seventies country-rock band Treefrog, and there may have been other connections to that Lawrence-based band. While not all the songs are that great, the album's first side is pretty solid, while Side Two drifts off onto a few questionable pop-flavored tangents. Overall, this is well worth checking out, especially if you're into Kansas country.

The Rainbow Boogie Band "The Rainbow Boogie Band" (Capital City Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Pete Blanchard)
A Texas country-rock band from Abiline...

Rainbow Canyon CB "Rainbow Canyon CB's Greatest Hit" (1980) (LP)
(Produced by Tommy Lee Reid)
I'm not sure, but I think the CB was meant to stand for "country band," presumably to differentiate these guys from a rock band that had the Rainbow Canyon name in the 'Seventies... This twangband from Columbus, Ohio was anchored by lead singers and primary songwriters Bob Hummel (1947-2019) and Neil Walter, who struck gold with their first single, "Franklin Country Woman," an homage to their hometown that was packed with lots of local references and generated lots of local fans. Other songs such as "Discobilly Music" and "Please Mr. Carter" underscore their novelty orientation, which frequently tilted towards the crude, as on their profanity-laden "Corvette Cowboy," as well as a version of Jimmy Buffett's "Why Don't We Get Drunk And Screw." Other cover songs include a lesser-known Kenny Rogers song and Johnny Horton's "Battle Of New Orleans," although this album distinguishes itself with its wealth of original material, as on their previous LP. This seems to have been recorded in several sessions over a number of years, with a parade of sidemen including two different bass players and four drummers. Lead guitar Jeff Shaner seems to have been there all the way along, with additional backing by steel player Amos Searan and fiddlers Junior Bennett and Andy Carey. The group continued in various forms for several years, including an edition with a gal named Jojo McQuade, who married Robert Hummell in 1985.

Rainbow Canyon "It Was So Tasty" (Rainbow Canyon Records, 1985) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Casey & Doug Edwards)
Although the Bob Hummel/Neil Walter duo still provided most of the material, additional song credits are given for Ward Foster, Jojo McQuade, and Roy Leslie Lee (who also had a song recorded by Nashville's Bill Phillips) though I'm not sure how many of these folks also played on this album. Hummell and McQuade kept the band up for several years, and there was a "Rainbow Canyon 88" that celebrated the band's tenth anniversary.

The Rainbow Ramblers "Dance Time With The Rainbow Ramblers" (Goldust Records, 196-?) (LP)
(Produced by Emmit Brooks)
Led by singer Bill Marinell, the Rainbow Ramblers were a straight-up country dance band from Ruidoso, New Mexico, with a following throughout the Southwest. The group was formed in 1962 and included Hank Henke playing bass, Jimmy Patterson (drums), Jimmy Temple (lead guitar), Calvin Turbeville (steel guitar), and Fred Wood on fiddle. The set list for this album is almost all cover songs, stuff by George Morgan, Moon Mullican, Buck Owens and Bob Wills, as well as one song penned by Bill Martinell, "Like I Did You." Martinell sings lead on most tracks, with Temple and Wood each taking the spotlight on one song. Other than a single or two, I'm not sure if they made other records; Calvin Turbeville worked as a session player on several other Goldust albums.

The Rainbow Valley Boys & Sweetheart "Authentic Blue Grass Music" (Diplomat Records, 196-?) (LP)
Fairly straight-up bluegrass, notable from my end of things for the gal singer referred to only as "Sweetheart" (though I sure wish I knew her real name!) This album has was issued under a few different budget-line labels, with different album art as well. The pressings were pretty cheap, though, and the sound quality was also pretty poor. Oh, well.

Del Raines & Bert Raines "Great Nashville Sounds Of Gospel Music" (Skyland Records, 19--?) (LP)

Roy J. Raines "Old Time Fiddlin' Bluegrass Style" (Ozark Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by D. E. Reno)
A back-to-basics, down-home old-timey trio from Columbia, Missouri, spotlighting fiddler Roy J. Raines (1914-2004) along with banjo plunker Nelson Raines and guitarist Ernest Western... Raines grew up in Camden and Morgan counties, in the area surrounding Osage Beach and the Lake Of The Ozarks, and according to the liner notes, the Raines family had deep musical roots: Roy's father won a national fiddling championship in 1937, and Roy picked up the instrument when quite young, later playing in a regional hoedown band called The Missouri Round-Up Boys. There are a plenty of classic fiddle tunes on here -- "Bill Cheatum," "Grey Eagle," "Eighth Of January," etc. -- but also a few less well-known numbers, such as "Comin' Down From Denver" and "Flat Rock." As far as I know, this was Mr. Raines's only album.

Rains & Harris "Rains & Harris" (RCA Victor, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Ed Norman)
The short-lived country/pop duo of Greg Harris and Chick Rains, both veterans of the '70s Southern California country-rock scene, with backing by Al Perkins on pedal steel, and Michael Bowden, who was also in the band Cold Steel. Starting in the late '70s, Greg Harris was a frequent on-again/off-again member of the Flying Burrito Brothers and studio musician, while after this album tanked, Chick Rains went on to become a successful country songwriter in Nashville. I think this was the duo's only album, with all but one of the songs being written by Rains.

Jerry Rainwater "...Presents An Instant Replay" (Sound Systems, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Hoot Gibson)
A mega-DIY album of rootsy folk-twang, recorded in Odessa, Texas, where Jerry Rainwater (1942-2011) had a long run leading the house band at a place called the Flamingo Bar in the mid-to-late 'Seventies. He was a lifelong Texan, born near Abilene in a tiny town called Snyder, and his band seems to have been all locals, including Doug Atwood on bass, Merle David (fiddle), Jay Hansborough (percussion), Terry Vincent (piano) and Jerry Rainwater playing all the guitars. All the songs are Rainwater originals, including the title track, "Instant Replay (Of A Time That's Never Been)" and "Busted For Loving You." Not sure if he made any other records, though I think this one later came out on CD.

The Rainy Day Singers "Country Favorites" (GRT/Sunnyvale Records, 1977) (LP)

The Rainy Day Singers "Great Country Songs" (GRT/Sunnyvale Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Dick Heard)
An odd, Pickwick-esque, cheapo-budget label offering with covers of early- and mid-1970s country hits by an anonymous studio band. The back cover lists several other "rainy day" records, including LPs of show tunes and movie themes, so make of that what you will.

Roger Rainy "Breaker Breaker: Roger Rainy Sings Country" (197-?) (LP)
A twangster from rural Minnesota who also released some 7" singles... Roger W. Reini (d. 2010) was an active musician throughout much of the 1960s and '70s, working a day job in the grocery produce business. According to his obituary, Reini performed extensively throughout the Great Lakes region and in Texas before deciding to retire from the music business, and was known for his tenure in the house band at a joint called the Broken Spoke, in Big Lake, Minnesota. He wrote a couple of songs on this album, including "Best Day Of My Life" and "One More Time," although the title track was penned by June Petri... There are also a few cover songs, including a version of Mel Street's 1972 hit, "Borrowed Angel," which might place this album somewhere in the '73-74 range... The front of the album is one of those "cop covers" showing a staged photo of a police officer "busting" the band; the back cover is blank white cardboard, with no info about where or when this record was made. The band included Roger Rainy on vocals and rhythm guitar, Jerry Rahn (lead guitar), Curt Nohrenberg (bass) and Gary Stibal on drums.

Roger Rainy "These Changes In Me" (197-?) (LP)
This later album was recorded in both Nashville and Minneapolis; Buddy Emmons, Leon Jackson and Bud Logan were in the Music City crew...

Raisin Kane "It's About Time" (Legend Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Alan Raidt & Raisin' Kane)
An obscure, super-indie southern rock band from Martin, Tennessee fronted by lead singers Larry Brewer and Paul David Lindsey, with backing by guitarist Larry Bedwell, Bert Dyer (organ), Mike Jenkins (bass), and drummer Gary Wadley. To be honest, a lot of this verges on unlistenable, at least from a country music perspective (fans of 'Seventies rock might be delighted). The uptempo tracks generally feature frantic, piercing rock guitars, though some tracks (like "Tennessee Foxy Lady") sound kind of Eagles-ish and fit into a country-rock vibe. Mostly, there's lots of shrill, note-heavy, would-be guitar-god soloing -- including some twin guitar riffs -- and on these all-rock numbers the amateurish production values stand out. Some good vocal harmonies, but the disc really ping-pongs between mellow passages and Spinal Tap-ish excesss. Not my cup of tea, but worth noting.

Bonnie Raitt -- see artist profile

Pal Rakes "Palmer C. Rakes" (Musicor Records, 1977-?) (LP)
One of those long-term pluggers who just kept toiling in obscurity for years and years and years, Tampa, Florida's Pal Rakes put in plenty of time in Nashville, and scored several major label contracts, though for the most part success proved elusive. After working in a more pop-oriented 'Sixties band called Pal & The Prophets, he shifted more full-time into a country mode, cutting a string of singles on various labels, constantly searching for a way to make things click. This is an odd album: apparently issued only as a promo, it contains nine songs that as far as I can tell were not released as singles, and presumably the folks at Musicor were just trying to clear out his contract before they folded up shop. Rakes landed on his feet, though, moving to Warner Brothers, where he scored his biggest career hits, a pair of Top Forty singles, "That's When the Lyin' Stops (And the Lovin' Starts)" (#24) and "Till I Can't Take It Anymore," a remake of an old soul song which made it to #31. Despite this modest success, Warner didn't invest in a full album, cut Rakes loose in the early '80s. His final swan song came with yet another major-label deal, resulting in an album on Atlantic that also yielded a few back forty singles. I'm not sure what became of Rakes since the late '80s, but he sure had a quite a run in the music business!

Pal Rakes "Midnight Rain" (Atlantic Records, 1988-?) (LP)
(Produced by Nelson Larkin, Ron Reynolds & Hank Williams)

Norm Raleigh "Midnight Cowboy" (Crown Records, 1969) (LP)
Another anonymous cheapo-label disc with no liner notes, no producer or musician info, no nothin', except the music! It's possible "Norm Raleigh" was a pseudonym for one of the Southern California hired guns who banged these discs our, morning, noon and night. Or possibly, Norm was a real guy... Maybe he came from a small town somewhere in Texas or something, headed for the big city with nothing but his guitar, his hat and a jacket, tried to make it in the music business and fell in with some shady characters... Who knows? At any rate, this must have been a reasonably popular album, since Crown was still selling it in the trades several years after it was made. The title track is, of course, a cover of the theme to the 1969 film, Midnight Cowboy, though the rest of the record is packed with idiosyncratic originals, the kind of weird, half-baked gems that make these cheapo albums fun. No songwriter credits, though, of course.

Ralph & Clyde "Clyde And Ralph Present: Ralph And Clyde" (Big J Records, 19--?) (LP)
The roots duo of bassist Clyde Jorgensen and guitar picker Ralph Smith first came to Grand Junction, Colorado to do a few weeks residency at the St. Regis Hotel hotel. They liked the area, liked the audience, and stayed in Colorado for decades, becoming local legends.

Ralph & Clyde "Getting Inside With Ralph And Clyde" (Big J Records, 19--?) (LP)

Ralph 'N' Clyde "Listen To The Lights In The Rain" (Big J Records, 19--?) (LP)

Ramblin' "Enjoy A Touch Of The West" (Kershenstine Holding Company, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Gary Edwards & Jay Gallagher)
If ever there was an album that screamed out "tax writeoff," this disc issued by the Kershenstine Holding Company would be a pretty good candidate. Kershenstine's was an old-school rib joint in Metairie, Louisiana, and is pictured in the background of the album art... One assume's Ramblin' played there at some point? Anyway, Ramblin' was not, oddly enough, the name of a band, but rather the attempted pseudonym of songwriter Phil S. Malbrough, who wrote all but one of the tunes on this album. Malbrough was born in Marksville, LA and apparently tried his luck in Nashville, possibly in Austin as well. One strong point in his favor is that the liner notes were written by uber-indie honkytonker Norman Wade, so major props for the company he kept. Malbrough seems to have been backed by friends, or at least Louisiana locals -- nary a Nashville cat to be seen in this studio crew. The group included Johnny Bonvillain (bass), Harold Cavalara (steel guitar), Pat A. Flory (lead guitar), Phil Meeks (fiddle), Bobby Stapler (piano), Ray Wood (guitar), and others. The one cover tune here is a version of Jerry Jeff Walker's "Mr. Bojangles," with all other songs credited to "Ramblin'," including tunes such as "Almost Perfect Lady," "Beertender Pour Me A Bar," and "What's A Workin' Man Gonna Do." Other than this album, Malbrough remains pretty much a cipher... He apparently passed away a while ago (it was mentioned in his brother's obituary) but where or when is unclear.

Ramblin' "Ramblin' " (Self-Released, 1982-?) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Renfro)
Not to be confused with the Louisiana group above, this cover band from Ponca, Nebraska was formed in the late 1970s and had a sweet tooth for melodic hits and harmony vocals, stuff like "All The Gold In California" by the Gatlins, "Fancy Free" by the Oak Ridge Boys and Johnny Lee's big hit, "Lookin' For Love." They also dug more country-rock type stuff such as "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles, and "Third Rate Romance," the 1975 hit by the Amazing Rhythm Aces. The group included lead guitar Mark Brewer, bassist Dan Frohberg, drummer Craig Kleinberg and lead singer Jeff Taylor (1954-2010) as well as his wife, Joan Taylor, on vocals (even though they didn't include her in the band photo...) Although eventually the band broke up, the Taylors continued to perform together at weddings and other local events well into the 1990s and 2000s; Mr. Taylor passed away in 2010 at the age of 55.

Ramblin' Lou & Joanie Marshall's Family Band "...Featuring The Waltz Of New York" (Harmony Records, 1980-?) (LP)
(Produced by Paul David, Murray Hunt & Louis A. Schriver)
Wanna know where the folks from Hee-Haw got all their swell showbiz ideas? Well, it might not have been specifically from this family band from upstate New York, but certainly from countless country revue shows just like theirs. Don't believe me? How about Buck Owens, then? He wrote the liner notes praising these folks, and giving an outline of their decade's-long careers playing old-fashion country both onstage and on the radio. Ramblin' Lou Schriver was a deejay on radio station WXRL in Lancaster, New York and presumably worked on the hillbilly vaudeville circuit as well, or in one of the many echoes of that scene. His wife Joanie was the daughter of another hillbilly performer, Bashful Eddie Marshall, who's joined her by his pal, comedian Armand ("Accordion Zeke") Cory... and check out Joanie Marshall pictured with her badass double-neck guitar, her name inlaid in pearl and everything! There are also several Schriver sprats playing various instruments, and a couple of ringers as well, notably Al Brisco on pedal steel. The songs are mostly covers of bandshell standards such as "Games People Play," "Green, Green Grass Of Home" and "Rocky Top," as well as a few backwoods oldies and gospel tunes -- the title track was written by Louis A. Schriver (not to be confused for his son Louis E. Schriver, who plays the drums). These folks were the real deal, an old-time family band with old-time country roots. Just ask Buck!

Ramblin' Lou (Schriever) "...And The Twin Pine Mountaineers" (BACM, 2019-?) (LP)
Many of Lou Schriver's early, vintage recordings are gathered on this collectors-only reissue, including hefty chunks of gospel and western material. It's also worth noting that Joanie Marshall also had some solo records of her own, notably on the Canadian-based label, Arc Records.

Ramblin' Rebel Band "Ramblin' Rebel Band" (Ramblin' Rebel Band, 198--?) (LP)
(Produced by Gregory-Andrews Audio Productions)
A country band with an undercurrent of bar-band rock -- slightly clunky, local-level stuff with a very Waylon-esque feel... This group from out of Hot Springs, Arkansas featured a whole slew of Castleberrys -- brothers one would assume -- with the full lineup being Doug Castleberry on lead guitar, Kurt Castleberry (rhythm guitar), Troy Castleberry (steel guitar), Andrew Frye (keyboards), Greg Spurling (bass), and Kevin Thorton on drums. Some of the guys look pretty young, maybe even in their high school-year teens. The vocals are sometimes a little wobbly, and the production's a little static or flat, but they sound like real folks, doin' the best they can. There are a few different singing leaders; one of 'em sounds like he was a little nervous working in the studio, and some of the picking sounds pretty amateurish as well. Also noteworthy is the inclusion of a bunch of originals, as well as cover tunes like Buck Owens' "Let Jesse Rob The Train" and Waylon's "Theme From Dukes Of Hazzard." There's no date anywhere on the album, but the "Dukes" tune lets us know it's from at least sometime in the early-to-mid '80s.

Kathy Ramone "On The Road Again" (GP Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Arrigo, Joe O'Reilly & Arnie Rosenberg)
Though not directly related to the punk rock legends of the same name, Kathy Ramonez Romanko Findley (1954-1995) also used "Ramone" as her stage name around the same time they did, performing locally in Sandusky, Ohio during the late 1970s and '80s under the name Kathy Ramone. The name was also used for a nightclub, Ramones Crystal Room, which she and her husband Larry Findley opening in 1984, the first of several supper clubs they opened in the area. Mr. Findley was also a musician, leading a jazz big band that also performed in the area. This album, which was released by a tiny indie label in New York, is pretty much all country covers, although a GP single that came out the same year featured two original songs penned by the Broadway team of Andy Badale and Frank Stanton, "Nashville Beer Garden" and "Quietly Back To Dreaming," neither of which appear on her LP. Ms. Ramone also led a band in the 1990s called Top Notch and may have recorded with them; at least one CD came out under her name, though it may have been a posthumous release.

Rand And Betty "Crisp Country Mornin' " (Oreana Enterprises, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Betty Hillman & Rand Hillman)
An album of all-original material written, performed and produced by the Boise, Idaho couple of Betty and Rand Hillman. They both grew up in the rural region along the Snake River and started performing in public at an early age, him working the rodeo circuit and her playing in her family's country band. According to her bio, Betty initially set out on her own and played in bands down in Missouri, presumably in the late 1960s, returning home to meet and marry Rand. They started writing together several years before this album came out: some songs were copyrighted as early as 1971, with her name listed as Betty A. Hillman. The liner notes here only list their own musical contributions -- basically she writes lyrics, sings and plays drums, he sings, writes and plays several instruments. It's not clear, though, if there were other musicians involved: we're informed that another album was in the works, and that they were currently on tour with their "all-girl" band, Wild Honey. Rand and Betty seem to switch off on songwriting and led vocals, though two tracks feature lyrics by Helen M. Nanney, a local religious author who may have been a family member. Rand Hillman got deep into the whole cowboy poet/western music scene, performing at various shindigs and also contributing to the music on Buckaroo Bard, a 1988 documentary about cowboy poet Waddie Mitchell. Mrs. Hillman went back to her musical roots and self-released a CD full of yodeling songs and other western material, billed as Betty Adel, which may have been her maiden name. (No idea whether that second album came out... though I sure am curious about the Wild Honey band!)

Beau Randall "Beau Randall Records Presents..." (Beau Randall Records, 196-?) (LP)
A mega-barebones self-released LP, with all songs written by Mr. Randall... Plainly labeled as a demo set, it has absolutely no graphics, and a plain-old blank back cover. Raphael Beauvais Randall, aka Beauvais M. Randall, aka Beau Randall (d. 2003), was originally from New Orleans but moved to Decatur, Georgia probably right around the time this disc came out. According to his obituary -- which doesn't mention music at all -- Mr. Randall worked at The Atlanta Journal for forty-three years, and as near as I can figure, this album came out right around 1960, when some of the songs were copyrighted. He gives a New Orleans mailing address (maybe he was still using his family's address?) but very little other info. No date, no info about the musicians or producer, and nary a photo of the artist. A WWII veteran, he was probably about forty when this was made, though that's really just a guess on my part.

Darlene Randel "...Sings You Are My Man" (Starway Records, 1978-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Logan & John Salisbury)
A vanity album recorded in Nashville by a gal from Eudora, Kansas, just outside of Kansas City. Claudia Darlene Randel (1936-2015) wrote the title track, "You Are My Man," as well as "Okey Doke Yodel," both of which were also released as singles. She had a nice voice for country, and sounds like a dead ringer for Loretta Lynn on several tracks, although she struggled on high notes, and when she'd croon... Producer John Salisbury also contributed three originals, "Baby Please Don't Take That Plane," "Home Brew," and "It Takes A Man (To Make A Woman Sing The Blues)." He seems to have been under contract with Acuff-Rose publishing, and had material recorded by stars such as Sue Thompson and Charlie Walker. He had another Kansas connection: originally from the West Coast, Salisbury married singer Mary Taylor, and moved to Nashville around 1971; Taylor later retired to Coffeyville, Kansas, down by the Oklahoma border. Sadly, the backup musicians aren't identified, though I suppose Jack Logan had a stable of sidemen he worked with in the late 'Seventies; it seems likely this was recorded at his sound house, Studio 19, which the Logan brothers purchased in '74.

Doc Randolph "Call Me Country" (Uplift Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Randolph M. Howes, M.D., Ph.D)
Not a ton of info about this guy, although we were able to determine that he was Randolph M. Howes, M.D., Ph.D., a twang auteur from Louisiana who rather colorfully self describes as "singer, plastic surgeon, general surgeon, scientist, writer, musician, composer, inventor, business entrepreneur and classic car collector," and according to the liner notes he was the director of the Institute For Plastic Surgery, in New Orleans. Nice work if you can get it, I guess. Mister... I mean Doctor Randolph lived in New Orleans, though he made the trek to Nashville to record this album, which is almost all his own original material, other than two classic country tracks, covers of "Cold, Cold Heart" and "He's Got You." Unfortunately, no one thought to include the names of the musicians backing him, though I'm sure they included some of the finest pickers plastic surgery fees could provide. [Note: This was reissued digitally, apparently paired with another album (or perhaps some later singles?) released in 2014 as a combo package called Call Me Country/Luzianna Sportsman.]

Phil Randoy "Phil Sings" (Randoy Corporation/Topaz Records, 19--?) (LP)
The very epitome of a "private press" vanity album, this set of folkie tunes pops up from time to time as a "country" record, though for the most part methinks twangfans can pass on it. Seattle, Washington amateur troubadour Phil Randoy covers some interesting material, including three songs by John Prine and a version of Kris Kristofferson's "Jesus Was A Capricorn," but most of the songs were from artists such as John Denver, Kenny Loggins, Don McLean and Buffy Sainte Marie -- mainstream folkie-AOR types given a stripped-down acoustic homage. However, Randoy's low-impact renditions don't really add much to any of these songs... He was earnest and well-meaning, and there's a picture of him singing at a grade-school assembly, but nothing on here really catches fire. There are also two original songs written by Randoy, "Voice" and "Mirror," again both in an earnest folk style... No date or recording info on this one, but I'd guess it's a 1974-76-ish affair, maybe even a little earlier.

Wayne Raney -- see artist discography

Billy Ranger "Country And Western Shindig" (Wyncote Records, 1967-?) (LP)
Despite the youthful promise of a folk-era shindig, this cheapo-label album is actually a fairly straightforward set of middle-aged country crooning, with modest musical backing -- not too poppy, but not too peppy, either. No idea who Billy Ranger really was, or who was backing him... But if you dig country dudes like Bill Anderson or Ernie Ford, or maybe even Claude Gray, this might appeal to you as well. There are a a couple of ho-hum cover songs ("Green, Green Grass Of Home," anyone?) but most of these songs are fairly intriguing, lesser-known country tunes, poached from a wide range of artists, with standouts including versions of Justin Tubb's "As Long As There's A Sunday" and "Honky Tonk Happy," a Curly Putnam song that Faron Young and Margie Singleton recorded as a duet back in '64. Not the most electrifying performances, but an intriguing repertoire.

Billy Ranger & The Deputies "The Sound Of Country" (Wyncote Records, 1967-?) (LP)
Although they came out around the same time and seem equally sketchy, this record is actually different than the Billy Ranger LP above, with no overlap of songs... Although there's no guarantee that the same musicians were involved in all the sessions! This album has a few interesting entries, including "I'm From Missouri," "A World I Can't Live In," "Poncho Villa" and "How's My Ex Treating You." But who was Billy Ranger? Your guess is as good as mine!

The Rangers "Proud To Be A Man" (Century Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by B. Farris, C. Hamilton & B. Powell)
Straight-up western/cowboy material with a surprising amount of original material by a band headquartered in Torrance, California. Four guys are pictured on the back cover, but not credited by name... I assumed that three of them were the same folks listed as producers -- B. Farris, C. Hamilton & B. Powell -- but even that set of information didn't get me too far. In addition to covers of a couple of cowboy oldies and songs from Johnny Bond, Stan Jones and the Sons Of The Pioneers, this album includes four originals credited to "B. Powell": the title track, "Proud To Be A Man," along with "Home Wasn't Built In A Day," "Lover Man," and "This Road I Ride." Most of those songs drew blanks while searching online, but finally one paid off: a fella named Bill Powell cut an undated single featuring "Road I Ride" and "Home Wasn't Built In A Day" on a private microlabel evocatively named Contest Recording And Publishing Company, presumably sometime before this album came out. The single gave an address in nearby Lomita, CA, a tiny enclave wedged between Torrance and Long Beach. I don't think this was the same Bill Powell who played lounge piano for fifty years in the Oak Room at the Alisal dude ranch in nearby Santa Barbara... but it's possible.

The Rangers "The Rangers" (Police Records, 1980-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Ham & Ralph Murphey)
A different group than the California cowboys above... This was a vocal trio made up of Jerry, Terry and Wally Gilmore -- who were presumably brothers, though where they were from is pretty hard to track down.

Rank Strangers "Rank Strangers" (Pacific Arts, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Chris Darrow & Chester Crill)
This short-lived band was formed by Chris Darrow and songwriter Robb Strandlund, along with singer Cindy Edwards, who had all worked together on Strandlund's first solo album... They covered some oldies, like "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" and Dan Penn's "Do Right Woman," along with a bunch of originals, several gems by Chris Darrow. Overall the vibe was a little too folk-ish for me, though it was an interesting approach, much less rock-oriented than their Southern California contemporaries, and more anchored in the pre-Nashville stringband sounds of early rural artists such as the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers. I always enjoy Strandlund's voice, and while Edwards added nice harmonies, when she's put in the foreground, it doesn't do much for me. Still, an intriguing and rewarding album, one of the lost nuggets of Michael Nesmith's fabled Pacific Arts label... Apparently there's a reissue edition that also includes some bonus tracks, with an alternate version of Strandlund's bar-room classic, "Just Another Country Song," along with a cover of Hank Locklin's "Send Me the Pillow You Dream On." Haven't heard that edition, though.

Jim Ransom "Just Come Along For The Ride" (Biscuit City Records, 1974) (LP)
Originally from New York state, folksinger Jim Ransom moved west in the 'Seventies and settled down in Denver, where he co-founded the Biscuit City label, which quickly became a focal point for the vibrant Colorado folk/acoustic/bluegrass scene. This was his first album, the prelude to a long career in low-key music making. (I have to confess, this looks too folkie for me to prioritize... But you never know. I might get around to it some day!)

Jim Ransom "The Escape Of J. D. Mackenzie And Other Songs" (Biscuit City Records, 1976) (LP)

Jim Ransom "Ransom Notes" (Biscuit City Records, 1977) (LP)

Orrin Ranum "The Country Voice Of Orrin Ranum" (Love Productions, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Al Perry)
This album includes country classics like "Four Walls," "Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain," "Phantom 309" as well as standards like "Distant Drums" and "Beautiful Dreamer" -- also the promisingly titled "The Wine And The Lord" and "There's That Smile Again" (originals?) This was recorded in Tyler, Texas, with producer Al Perry playing guitar and steel, Glenn Worf on bass and Rags Allen playing piano, and Donna Love playing drums and singing backup. There's no information about when this came out, or where Mr. Ranum lived, but I think there's a good chance that he was from Wisconsin, and that this was recorded early in Glenn Worf's career, before he left Wisconsin to pursue his career in Nashville. Anybody got more info on this one?

Lynda Rask "Lynda Rask" (Stop Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Tommy Hill)
Born in Battle Creek, Michigan, Lynda Rask made her professional debut at age eleven when she took the stage at the Green Valley Jamboree, a local venue hosted by hillbilly singer Rem Wall. She seems to have regularly performed as a teen, opening locally for numerous national stars before moving to Nashville around 1970 and recording this album while still in her teens. Ms. Rask also released a string of singles in the early 'Seventies, although an upcoming second album mentioned in a 1973 newspaper article may not have materialized.

Kenny Raska "...And The Kickers" (Camelot Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Charlie Booth, David McCumber, Anthony Puccio & L. W. Wright)
Some indie honky tonkers from Houston, Texas, with almost all original material, including six songs by Kenny Raska and one by George Svbovda, along with covers of oldies by Webb Pierce, Charlie Walker and a countryfied version of Neil Diamond's "Red Red Wine." Raska is kind of a croony singer, and the record has a distinctly 'Seventies production style, with keyboards and synths drifting around in the aether... But overall, nice stuff from the indie side of the mainstream country world. The guys in the band are listed by first name only: Kenny, Jerry, Jimmy, Larry, Tommy... anyone know their full names? And one more question: what exactly was it that they were kicking, anyway?

The Rathbun Country Music Show "The Rathbun Country Music Show" (Professional Artists Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Parvin Tramel)
An Opry-esque variety show from the Branson area, started in June, 1974 by Willis and Melvin Dickerson. The cast included Debbie and Steve Dickerson, Janice Pickering, Bill Pickering, comedian Bobby Allen, and others. Recorded in St. Louis.

The Ratliff Brothers "The Other Side Of Me" (The Ratliff Brothers, 1983-?) (LP)
(Produced by Joe Bob Barnhill, Ronnie Light, Mark Moseley & Mike Poston)
Super-ultra traditionalist/throwback twang from a pair of brothers, Ken and Tom Ratliff, who cover stuff by Jim & Jesse, Ernest Tubb, The Delmore Brothers, Ray Price and others, and who contribute their own original tune, "The Other Side Of Me," to the country canon. I poked around for quite a while online but couldn't find any references to these guys online, although the back cover liner notes mention them playing venues such as Twitty City and Ernest Tubb's Midnight Jamboree. (The liners also mention their longtime goal of playing onstage at the Opry, which it doesn't sound like they'd done, at least not by the time they cut this album in Nashville.) They look like they were twins, and may have been from Kentucky; I'm pretty sure Tom Ratliff was not the same as the East Tennessee bluegrass picker and music store owner of the same name, who passed away in 2016. To be honest, this didn't really wow me... Their vocals sound so-so, perhaps because of the slick but indifferent musical backing..

Rattlesnake Annie (Anne McGowan) "Rattlesnakes And Rusty Water" (Rattlesnake Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Annie McGowan)
A self-produced album by Texas-based songwriter Anne McGowan (aka Rattlesnake Annie), This is a pretty stripped-down and unpretentious, bluesy set, as much influenced by Jimmie Rogers and the '60s folkies as by more modern country types. Not mindblowing, but kind of an interesting footnote to the whole "outlaw" scene... Sorta similar to Townes Van Zandt, I suppose.

Jerry Rau "Minnesota Minstrel" (Train On The Island Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Dakota Dave Hull & Jerry Rau)
Part of the Twin Cities folk scene, Jerry Rau is backed here by Dakota Dave Hull and Peter Ostroushko. Although not really all that "country," this disc does include a track called "Honky Tonk Steel Whine," co-written by Hull and Rau.

Ralph Raulerson & The Countrymen "Sing Your Favorites" (Auburn Orange Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Jon Corneal & Leonard Walls)
Bandleader Ralph Raulerson hailed from Fort Myers, Florida and was active for several decades, first as a honkytonker and later as a bluegrass artist... On this 1970s album he's singing pure hard country, and sounds a lot like Merle Haggard on several tunes, with backing from David Brooks (bass), Roger LeBlanc (lead guitar), George Smith (fiddle), and Wes Hollingsworth on drums. In the 1980s, Raulerson could be heard singing at bluegrass festivals, but the stuff he was playing was more more of an old-school hillbilly boogie style, ala Wayne Raney. At any rate, he was a presence in Florida's traditional country scene for many, many years. Most of the songs on here are covers, though there's one tune written by Mr. Raulerson, "It Breaks My Heart (To Let You Go)" and one by lead guitar picker Roger LeBlanc, "This Is The Place." Raulerson sings on three tracks, generously sharing the spotlight with the boys in the band, who handle the rest of the record. Highlights include Raulerson's original, as well as a semi-kooky, slightly wild, amped-up and completely countrified rendition of CCR's "Proud Mary." Good stuff, with plenty of twang.

Ralph Raulerson & The Countrymen "Country Gold: Ralph Raulerson Sings With The Countrymen" (Music City Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Len Walls)
A sizzling set of rambunctious country covers, with a little bit of rockabilly retro in the mix as well. The album opens with a cover of "The Race Is On," done Buck Owens style, with hefty doses of Merle Haggard, Harlan Howard and Hank Williams to follow... The vibe is a mix of West Coast/Bakersfield Sound and Southern-fried rockabilly bop, with a simplicity and primitive, no-frills approach that sounds really damn good. In technical terms, this album is not well produced, and I'm willing to bet that Raulerson and his band could summon a much bigger, more electrifying sound when they played live, but even with the modest production values, this record oozes authenticity and vigor. It's fun. I'm a fan.

The Raunch Hands "Pickin' And Singin' With The Raunch Hands" (Epic Records, 1960) (LP)
(Produced by Stephen B. Fossett)
These jovial fellas from Harvard were a straight-up '60s folk-parody group, not quite the kind of twang we're looking for here... But certainly worth mentioning if only to differentiate them from the '80s cowpunk band of the same name. The band included Fritz Donovan, Cam Fordyce, Al Goldman, Raph Henderson, Larry Reeder and Bill Wood. This originally came out in 1959 as a private press release sporting a plain white, no-art back cover, but was later picked up by Epic Records and reissued with fewer tracks, and some altered song titles. (No idea if the actual performances were the same or not, but if someone wanted to donate a copy of the first edition, I'd be glad to compare and contrast...)

The Raunch Hands "Against The World... And Other Favorites" (Epic Records, 19--?) (LP)
A swell set of satirical songs, this time including many politically themed numbers... Actually, come to think of it wouldn't it be cool if this were the same band as the '80s Raunch Hands? Like, if they'd been together all those years and just changed with the times? That would be awesome.

Leon Rausch "Doin' It Bob's Way" (Discus Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by John Patterson)
A tribute to western swing patriarch Bob Wills, with a bunch of classic tunes recorded by picker-singer Leon Rausch. Rausch was a veteran of both the Bob Wills band, and that of his brother Johnnie Lee Wills; he also led his own edition of the fabled Texas Playboys. He's backed here by David Brown (drums), Tommy Camfield (fiddle), Casey Dickens (drums), B. D. Griffin (also on fiddle), Tommy Hargrove (drums), Kenny Norman (steel guitar), David Odom (more fiddle), Johnny Patterson (lead guitar), Harlan Powell (bass), Lindsey Reist (piano), Buddy Wallace (still more fiddle), and Bobby Zellnew (on... fiddle!) This early 'Seventies homage was released in 1972, still in time to get the stamp of approval from Bob Wills himself, before he passed away in '73. The liner notes mention Leon Rausch helming a late-vintage lineup of the Playboys, a gig he took even further on numerous albums released as The Original Texas Playboys...

Ray & The Emeralds "Transition..." (Yellowstone Records, 1975-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Burdett & Tom Hersley)
Bass vocalist Ray Burdett seems to have been aiming at a sort of Dave & Sugar setup here, backed by three (unidentified) gals collectively known as the Emeralds. They toured with Billy Walker and did their time in Nashville, which is where this album was made. A young-looking fellow, Burdett was cut firmly from the same cheesy cloth as country elders such as Tennessee Ernie Ford or Jim Ed Brown, with a deep, rumbling voice that was (almost) worthy of William Lee Golden -- indeed, he sang bass with Hovie Lister and the Statesmen Quartet from 1973-77, presumably around the time this album was mad. Burdett opens with an amazingly earnest reading of "Biff The Friendly Purple Bear" (one of the all-time worst novelty songs of the early 'Seventies) and things are going along just fine until he shakes himself out of recitation mode and goes all uptempo on Roger Miller's super-perky "I Believe In The Sunshine," one of several crypto-Christian, pseudo-secular anthemic pop songs he explores. The trouble is, once he starts singing Burdett reveals that he's got the vocal tone, but perhaps not the performing chops to really pull it off. This disc is a digression from his religious career, packed with covers of hits by John Denver, Carole King, Joe South ("Games People Play"), Olivia Newton-John ("If You Love Me" and "Let Me Be There," in a nod towards the Oak Ridge Boys...) as well as Kris Kristofferson ("Why Me Lord," of course, and "Please Don't Tell Me"). It's a nice snapshot of a would-be Top Forty country band, circa 1975-ish, with professional backing by a bunch of usual-suspect Nashvillers... but it has its limits as actual entertainment. Not surprisingly, Ray Burdett moved decisively back into proper Christian music, letting his little light shine down in Branson rather than the big city nightclubs.

Ray & Nell (Lunsford) "Memories Gone By" (1985-?) (LP)
(Produced by Marshall Craven)
Super-duper old-time music, played by some fairly old-time musicians. This was a Lunsford family affair, led by Nellie Ray Lunsford (1908-1993) on autoharp, and Ray Lee Lunsford (1908-1989) picking banjo. They were both natives of Iredell County, North Carolina, and are joined by several family members on this intimate recording, including their son Clay Lunsford (banjo, guitar and mandolin), Dwayne Lunsford (rhythm guitar), along with Rhyne Dowell and Kim Felts playing bass, and fiddler David Johnson. The album is a mix of gospel songs and sentimental oldies, from "White Dove" and "Old Country Church" to "The Weeks Are So Long," "Old Folks At Home" and "Wildwood Flower." The Depression-era repertoire doubtless reflects the music of their youth, and those of who dig the real-deal old stuff might get a kick out of this album.

Alan Ray "Mr. Blue" (Suncoast Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Joe Mills)
Not a ton of information about this one... According to the liner notes, Alan Ray was originally from Saint Petersburg, Florida and had a radio show in Tampa, but he gave it all up when he moved to Nashville, in pursuit of a musical career. This album was recorded at Bradley's Barn with a mostly A-list studio crew, including folks like Jimmy Capps, Sonny Garrish, Billy Linneman and Willie Rainsford, as well as The Four Guys vocal group, and also a couple of musicians I don't recognize who may have been from Alan Ray's own band -- Reggie Allie on rhythm guitar, and bassist Eddie Regger. Although this was recorded in Tennessee, the album itself seems to have come out on a UK-based label, as that's the only place I've seen copies for sale.

Burch Ray "Woman On My Mind" (Yellowstone Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Burch Ray & Bill Porter)
A singer from Miles City, Montana who caught the rockin' pneumonia, Burch Ray formed his first band, The Walkers, back around 1961 and cut his first record in '62... Though originally a rock band, they drifted towards country in later years, as heard on this disc from the 'Seventies. The album includes several originals, as well as rock, folk and country covers; two tracks -- a version of Buddy Knox's "Playground" and Buddy Holly's "Well, All Right" -- were released as a single back in 1965, recorded in LA with Glen Campbell on guitar and some members of Holly's old band, The Crickets. (As far as I can tell, this LP reissues those old tracks, along with newer material recorded with unidentified studio musicians.)

Burch Ray "Nashville Dreams" (Yellowstone Records, 198-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ronnie Gant & Tommy Williams)
This album was recorded in Nashville with Nashville pros such as steel player Sonny Garrish, Bunky Keels on piano, and Tommy Williams on lead guitar and fiddle. The set is all Burch Ray originals, except for instrumental covers of Billy Armstrong ("Fidjun") and Bob Wills ("Faded Love"). Mr Ray comments on the music business in the wistful title track, "Nashville Dreams" and in the more philosophical "In My Home Town I'm A Star." The album unfortunately is undated, though it features liner notes by Montana governor Thomas L. Judge, who left office in early 1981; Ray autographed a copy of this album in '81 so I'm guessing it came out around 1980-81.

Eddie Ray "Old Lovers and Friends" (JEGE Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Earl D. Adkins & Joe Deaton)
A Nashville man through and through, Eddie Ray Russell was born in Kentucky but moved to Music City in 1961, where he mostly found work behind the scenes, as a producer and promotions man and to a lesser extent as a songwriter. Nicknamed "the golden bear of country music," he seems to have done just about everything you can do in the music business, and claims to have composed over five hundred songs, including a slew of original tunes on this album. He also recorded numerous singles, dating back at least to the early 1970s, including one in 1980 called "Whiskey Talking Woman," which generated some regional buzz. This LP was recorded at Joe Deaton's indie studio in Bristol, Virginia, and featured prolific local picker and luthier Chuck Tipton playing lead guitar, as well as Randy Maniss on drums, Tim Compton (bass), Brad Booher (piano), Jack Willis (fiddle) and Eddie Ray singing and playing rhythm guitar. I gotta say, though, it's pretty cheesy record, with Ray fully under the spell of then-superstar Kenny (Sauron) Rogers, dipping into hushed, overly earnest tones and even letting his voice crack a little under the emotive strain of such profound sincerity and heartbreak. He really goes over the top on a few tunes -- huge, swooping arrangements and everything. Some of it's okay, but mostly it's a little too early '80s for me. Worth a spin, though also you were warned.

John Ray "Woman On My Mind" (Jef Tone Recordings, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Greg Miller)
A truly awful lounge vocals album, from a guy who at the time was holding down a gig at the Chalet Inn, in Gaylord, Michigan. This disc is packed with 'Seventies hits and material ranging from country chestnuts to acoustic-oriented AOR, stuff like "Tie A Yellow Ribbon," "I'll Have To Say I Love You In A Song" and "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight." On the country side of things, there are spectacularly cheesy renditions of "Green, Green Grass Of Home" and "Now And Then There's A Fool Such As I." I'm not really into the whole mocking-cheesy-musicians-on-old-lounge-albums, but this disc is a standout in the genre. The band was okay, but Mr. Ray's super-schmaltzy Elvis-style vocals are -- honestly -- pretty challenging.

Leda Ray "Hits The Road" (Allied Artists, 1974-?) (LP)
Originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, singer Leda Ray made her way to Nashville, and cut a string of singles on the Allied Artists label starting in the early 1970s... There's no date on this album, but several of the songs on here were copyrighted to Ms. Ray in late 1973, so I'm gonna guess it's a 1974 album. The cover songs include Wanda Jackson's "Two Separate Barstools," "Rose Garden" and "Sunday Morning Coming Down," which were all hits in 1970, so it could have been even earlier. Anyway, I'm not sure what happened with Ms. Ray's career -- she cut a bunch of discs, got some mentions in the press playing telethons and whatnot, but at some point she packed up and moved to Sanford, North Carolina, where she opened a coffeehouse called Moka Joe's Cafe. This album seems to have been a songwriter's demo set, packed with original songs -- most (including two credited to Leda Ray) were copyrighted by Kilrey Publishing, which seems to be a concatenation of her name and Bill Killian's. Other composers include Carol Jones and Clay Price, though oddly enough one song, "Crying In Color" is credited to Clay Price on the album, but copyrighted by Leda Ray in '73. Who knows. Ray seems to have quit her Nashville career rather abruptly, though she did record a couple of singles for the Illinois-based Nashville North label, including one with neo-trad honkytonker Dallas Wayne(!). I'm not sure if she was attached to any local "opry" type shows, but it seems likely that at least for a while she was affiliated with the Nashville North club, in Chicago. Later, in the 2000s, back in Sanford, Ray started up a new band, and was available to play regional gigs as recently as 2019.

Randy Ray "Live At The Nashville Palace" (Randy Ray Records, 1982) (LP)
Although Top Forty star Randy Travis seemed to appear, fully formed from the head of Proteus when he hit the charts in '86, it turns out he also had a past as an indie-label artist... There was this live album as well as a couple of singles in the late '70s under the name of Randy Traywick... Good luck tracking this stuff down -- I just barely learned of its existence myself! But I am mighty curious...

Frank Raye "This One's For You Mister Elmer" (Jomar Records, 198--?) (LP)
I'm not trying to be catty or mean, but objectively speaking, this is a pretty painful album to work your way through, the very kind of ultra-amateurism that certain hipster folk expect to hear from "private press" records. Stanton, North Dakota's Frank Raye was one of the many hopeful locals who made their way to the Tibor family's Jomar Studios in Hebron to set their music on wax... In the liner notes he says he'd played in Bismarck's regional country scene for about twelve years, and had "recently" developed his own one-man-band act, which I guess is what's on display here, in all its monochromatic glory. (There are no musician credits, though I suspect the Tibor Brothers provide some assistance, although the arrangements don't show much variety in tempo or style -- thumping percussion, minimal, rhythmic keyboards and a little noodly guitar, all taken at the same moderate, unvarying pace.) Mr. Raye seems to have been aiming for a gruff Waylon Jennings vibe, and swallows his phrasing in overly-stylized, guttural passages which might have been more effective in a more well-developed musical atmosphere, but quickly wear thin in this setting, with one thinly-produced track after another, and little variation between them. I couldn't find any real information about Mr. Raye online, and suspect "Frank Raye" was a stage name. Similarly, although warmly praised in the back cover liner notes, "Mister Elmer" remains a mystery as well. No release date, though comparison to other Jomar albums places this somewhere in the late 1980s, maybe around 1988, or '89.

The Raymond Avenue Ramblers "The Raymond Avenue Ramblers" (The Music Will Play, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Brooks, D. B. Brown & Debbie Macfarlan)
Formed in 1976, the Raymond Avenue Ramblers were a stylistically diverse, bluegrass-y string band made up of several professors, students and staffers at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York (Raymond Avenue being the main road running along the western edge of the campus.) A longtime mainstay of the Hudson Valley roots music scene, the original band included Tom Brooks on bass, D. B. Brown (lead guitar), Debbie Macfarlan (guitar), Phil Seitz (mandolin) and David Yurkofsky on violin. Along with covers of folks like Albert E. Brumley and Hazel Dickens, this album includes one original written by Brown, and three by Macfarlan. With slowly shifting lineups and set lists, the group performed together for several decades, with onetime Dean of Students, D. B. Brown at the core. Around 2009, they changed their name to the Roundabout Ramblers, although I believe this was their only album released under either name. By the way, this will all be on the test.

David Rea "Maverick Child" (Capitol Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Felix Pappalardi & David Rea)
A well-regarded folk-scene sideman, Ohio-born singer-guitarist David Rea (1946-2011) moved to Canada in his teens and kicked off his career in the early 1960s as a sideman for Gordon Lightfoot, later performing with Ian & Sylvia, Jesse Winchester and other stars of the era... By the time he got his own record deal, Rea had moved into more of a rock mode, albeit with strong currents of country in there as well. He worked for a few years with blues-rocker Felix Pappalardi, and Pappalardi's new band, Mountain, co-writing the sludge-y hard-rock anthem, "Mississippi Queen," which became a big hit. He continued working as a studio session player and sideman, including a brief stint with an early-'Seventies lineup of the English folk-rock band Fairport Convention. Jinkies!

David Rea "By The Grace Of God" (Capitol Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Bob D'Orleans, Felix Pappalardi & David Rea)

David Rea "Slewfoot" (Columbia-Windfall Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by David Rea & Bob Weir)
Although this one's mostly on the radar for Deadheads, standard-issue twangfans will wanna check it out too, particularly for the fine covers of real-deal country songs that Rea opens the album with, notably Tom T. Hall's "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" and the Dolly Parton/Porter Wagoner duet "Run That By Me One More Time," which spotlights a dead-on Loretta Lynn imitation by Darlene DiDomenico. Rea excels on the copious cover tunes, and picks some doozies, even including one by UK folkie Dave Swarbrick(!) along with some R&B songs by Chuck Berry and Ike Turner that kind of get swallowed up into the early '70s boogie-rock void. Speaking of which, let's circle back to the Dead now... David Rea was definitely in the Dead-o-Sphere, in a major way... His band features Bob Weir, both as a producer and guitarist, Keith and Donna Godchaux, as well as folks from the New Riders Of The Purple Sage and other orbiting musicians: bassist John Kahn, drummer Spencer Dryden, Matthew Kelly (from the band Kingfish), Buddy Cage on pedal steel and even fiddler Richard Greene and post-bop saxophonist Charles Lloyd. The originals on here by Rea are mostly spacey, yearning, folk-rock-boogie tunes, with great concern for capital "L" Love, and it sounds perhaps as if Rea was really hoping that the Dead or some of their pals would pick them up to record. Anyway, this is a pretty decent hippie twang album, at least when he is being twangy. Definitely worth a spin.

Bill Reader & Barbara Alan "Together" (Hawk Records, 197--?) (LP)
Not a lot of info on this one... It's a decent, if low-key country/pop duets set featuring singers Barbara Alan and Bill Reader, modestly backed by an anonymous studio crew whose strongest member was the pedal steel player. Reader seems to be the onetime pop-rockabilly singer Bill Reeder (sic), who recorded a few singles in the early 'Sixties for labels such as Fernwood and Hi Records. (Which would explain why they cover pop oldies like "Playboy" and "Searching.") I honestly can't tell if this is the same Barbara Alan who recorded the 1978 In Nashville album, though I think it was... If so, this looks (and sounds) like an earlier album, possibly from around 1972-74: he sings a version of the Statler Brothers "Bed Of Rose's," which was a hit in '71, and the general countrypolitan vibe on several tracks has a definite early 'Seventies feel. Sadly, there are no composer credits -- although most of the tracks are cover tunes, there are a couple of uptempo numbers showcasing Alan in a vaguely Wanda Jackson-ish mode which are album highlights. The album opens with the mildly raunchy "A Kind Of A Woman" and closes on "Don't Leave Without Me," both of which I think are originals. Not an earthshaking album, but it has its charms.

Joe Reagan "Memory Of Cowboy Copas" (Crown Records, 196--?) (LP)
Not quite sure where crooner Joe Reagan was from, or when he cut these tracks, but I'd guess around 1963 or '64, just after Copas and Reeves passed away. In all honesty, I gotta say Reagan sounded kinda geefy, foghorning in a very exaggerated, mannered baritone, he covers some nice old country tunes with pretty solid, if rather minimal, country backing. The band had a good steel player, for sure, although the rhythm stays pretty sedate. I can't say I'm that into his voice -- personally, I'll just stick with the originals. [Note: the album below, Tribute To Cowboy Copas, appears to be a different edition of the same album.]

Joe Reagan "A Tribute To Cowboy Copas" (Crown Records, 19--?) (LP)
This album was also issued on the Coronet imprint as Hits Made Famous By Cowboy Copas

Joe Reagan "A Tribute To Jim Reeves" (Wyncote Records, 19--?) (LP)

Toby Rean & The Common People "Outa Space" (Crown Records, 1972) (LP)
Singer-picker Tobe Rean Mintner (1936-1976) was a minor figure but longtime fixture in the West Coast/Bakersfield country scene of the 1950s and '60s, playing alongside stars such as Merle Haggard and Buck Owens, as well as his own gigs at venues such as the Stallion Club and on some Southern California military bases. This album is a little weird in that it's packaged as though it was a cheapo exploitation album for the psychedelic rock scene, when actually it's pretty solidly a country thang. Well, mostly: the first track, "Outa Space," is a hyperactive psych-funk instrumental based on a Billy Preston song, with a punchy rhythm section and lots of over-the-top wah-wah guitar work... But then things abruptly turn towards twang, and while charmingly down-to-earth, it's also a little bit rickety overall. Rean's mix of straight-up twang and strained comedy material reminds me quite a bit of Bill Carlisle, combining limited vocal talent with plucky energy and a somewhat random, see-what-sticks attitude. You can hear both desperation and resignation in these sessions, as though he knows it ain't really gonna work, but you never really know, right? So there are some interesting country tunes on here, though overall the album is a slapdash, low-budget affair, and like most of the el-cheapo Crown LPs, there often an undercurrent electrified, rock-flavored music courtesy of whichever underemployed hippies they had come in and play on the sessions; Rean's own live band included fellow Crown artist Leon Copas and steel player Frankie Hardcastle, and it's likely they play on here as well. Maybe not the greatest record ever, but certainly worth checking out if you're into Crown Records kitsch, and also another footnote in the saga of the Bakersfield Sound.

Frankie Reb "The Frankie Reb Show" (Linda Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Kenny Wallis)

Rebe And Rabe "If I Can Just Make It In" (Linda Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Kenny Wallis)
Revin "Rebe" Gosdin (1924-1978) and Auburn J.C. "Rabe" Perkins (1923-2005) were an old-timey gospel duo from Alabama, modeled on the Blue Sky Boys and the Louvins. The pair met while working in a local cotton mill, and began performing professionally in the 1930s and '40s. For many years they had a show on radio station WVOK, Birmingham as well as on WBAM in Montgomery, where Gosdin also had a day job in the early 1960s. They recorded prolifically for a while, but gradually gave up their music career, several years before Gosdin passed away. They continued to perform and record together sporadically; an early 'Seventies reunion included an appearance at Bill Monroe's fabled Bean Blossom Festival. This album includes Rebe Gosdin on mandolin and Rabe Perkins on guitar, as well as Wayne Cobb Jr. (drums), Buddy Davis (guitar), Junior Maharrey (bass) and John Probst playing piano. [Also of note is Gosdin's nephew, honkytonk balladeer Vern Gosdin, who became a chart-topping country star in 1970s and '80s.]

The Rebel Yell Band "The Rebel Yell Band" (198--?) (LP)
(Produced by Melinda Grable, Larry Nix & Andy Black)
This Memphis-based group played a mix of bluegrass and country and apparently did extensive travel on multiple USO tours in the late '70s. That's according to the group's drummer, John Lodholz (aka Johnny Washboard) who later moved to Nashville, where he landed a gig in Mark Collie's band, as well as finding studio work... The group also included a guy named John Anderson, although as far as I know, he's not the swingin' dude from Florida. Not a lot of info about these guys out there... Anyone who remembers them, feel free to get in touch!

Elton Record "The Maine Man In Nashville" (Eljan Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Al Harris & Bernie Vaughn)
A stalwart of the Maine country music scene, singer Elton Record cut this album with a little assist from Conway Twitty's backing band, the Twitty Birds. I'm not sure if was in the band at the time, or just finagled a way to get them in the studio. This set is mostly cover songs, though the originals include "Bernadine" and "Pennies, Nickels And Dimes." The Record family own country bar in Mechanic Falls called the Silver Spur, which is also the site of the Maine Country Music Hall Of Fame. Mr. Record was induced into the Hall the same year it opened, back in 2008.

Red And Murphy & Co. "Riding Around On Saturday Night" (Eljan Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Markham)

Red And Murphy & Co. "Red And Murphy & Co." (Eljan Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Al Harris & Bernie Vaughn)

The Red Birds "...Sing And Play Your Favorites" (Ben Records, 1967-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Nix & John Hacha)
A swell set by a family band from Fort Wayne, Indiana, moving through old-school (1940s-ish) sentimental and novelty country tunes, along with standards such as "Bill Bailey," "Home Sweet Home," and a gospel tune of two. The dad, Joe Taylor, wrote a song called "He's A Cowboy Auctioneer" -- which became a hit for Tex Ritter back in 1950 -- and worked steadily in the Midwest for decades to come. This edition of the band also includes his sister-in-law, Patti Corbett, who was an original founding member of the Indiana Redbirds, back in the late 'Forties, as well as fiddler-guitarist Jay "Pee Wee" Dickerson, who lays down some sweet, jazzy licks. Also notable here is Taylor's eleven-year old daughter, Paula Jo Taylor, who chugs her way through a version of the Bob Morris instrumental, "Buckaroo," -- her performance is impressive for a pre-teen, but only a faint foreshadowing of the days, decades later when Paula Jo would go viral as the "Granny Guitarist," a smoking hot chicken-picker championed by rocker Nikki Sixx and profiled in Guitar World magazine. Parts of this album seem to have been recorded live, though others, such as Patti Corbett's recitation, "Letter To Mom," notably are not. All in all, this is a swell set -- there's no steel guitar on here, but the Merle Travis-y guitar pickin' more than makes up for it! Nice little record.

The Red Boot Boys "Fire!" (Williamson Recording Studio, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Stan Willamson & Terry Wilson)
This band was formed by several middle-aged members of the Greeneville, Tennessee fire department, including producer Stan Williamson on keyboards, Steve Morris on pedal steel, Marty Kaufman on fiddle and Steve Kaufman on banjo and guitar, as well as drummer Marty Llewellyn. Other than a couple of public domain oldies, it's mainly original material, including a few tunes written by guys who apparently weren't in the band, Johnny Jones and Don Williamson. They also released at least a couple of albums as cassette-only records, including the gospel-oriented Songs Of Inspiration and a concert album, Live From Rutgers University.

Charlie Red "Mother Lode Minstrel" (G&J Motherlode Productions, 1980) (LP)
Near as I can figure, this fella, Charles Rovenstine, was a modern-day folk minstrel who played gigs up in Angel's Camp and around Sacramento, California, up in the so-called Gold Country. His repertoire spanned historical-ish songs like "Streets Of Laredo" and "The Saga Of The Hotel Leger" and Utah Phillips' "Daddy What's A Train," as well as good-natured novelty numbers, including several songs by one of my favorite songwriters, Dick Feller: "Uncle Hiram And The Homemade Beer" and "Money, Trouble And Love." Charlie Red had a nice, straightforward presentation -- he's not super-charismatic or a particularly arresting performer, but he's completely likeable and sincere, and certainly had good taste in music. Rovenstine played shows across California well into the mid-1980s, though I'm not sure how many albums he made... Maybe just these two?

Charlie Red "Skinny Dippin' " (Carco Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Charlie Red & Mark Welborn)

Buddy Red Bow "BRB" (First American Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Dik Darnell)
A singer, composer and actor, Warfield Richards "Buddy" Red Bow (1948-1993) was a Lakota tribal member who grew up on the Pine Ridge reservation in Red Shirt, South Dakota, near Rapid City. In his teens he decided to become an actor, and landed a part in the 1962 classic, How The West Was Won, followed by a few other small roles in years to come; he additionally scored the soundtrack to the 1972 documentary, Hard Rider. After serving in Vietnam as a Marine, Red Bow focussed on his musical career, crafting an canny mix of country and Native American musical themes. Though this album includes a few cover songs, it's mostly his own originals, with tracks such as J.D. Loudermilk's "Indian Reservation," Red Bow's own "Indian Love Song" and "South Dakota Lady." The musicians include Buddy Red Bow on vocals and guitar, with Bud Abbott (bass), John Bergeron (piano), San Bressard (guitar), Billy Cox (guitar), Dik Darnell (synthesizer), Jimmy Ibbotson (guitar), John Macy (pedal steel), Jimmy Thompson (drums), and others.

Buddy Red Bow "Journey To The Spirit World" (Tatanka Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Dik Darnell)
Along with a reprise of his song, "Indian Love Song," this album pursues strong cultural themes and includes several songs with political themes addressing the economic hardships imposed on first nation people, the vanishing frontier, as well as spiritual quests and the relationship of indigenous people to the natural world. The electrified music is slightly manic and rock-influenced, but still fits comfortably into the country music vibe of the times, with stylistic callbacks to outlaw icons such as Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings, and most notably to Billy Joe Shaver, whose vocal style is a lot like Red Bow's. Though the arrangements may be a little hard-edged and brash, the lyrics are evocative and heartfelt; definitely worth a spin.

Buddy Red Bow "Black Hills Dreamer" (Tatanka Records, 1995)
(Produced by Dik Darnell & Mark Derryberry)

Red Heart "Introducing Red Heart" (SRC Records, 19--?) (LP)
This was a Coeur d'Alene bar band, playing all rock oldies and honky tonk covers... The group included Jim Sherman, Steve Pierre, Jim Boardway and Armando Velazquez (who is described as "of Mexican descent," which gives you an idea of how times have changed...) There's no label or year listed on jacket or LP, so this one's a bit of a mystery.

The Red Horse Band "Borderland" (AMI Records, 1986) (LP)
(Produced by John Beland & Jerry Abbott)
A country-rock set by a red dirt band out of Sherman, Texas which worked as the road band for the Flying Burrito Brothers in 1983-84. They get production assistance by erstwhile Burrito member John Beland, who had earlier produced a single for the group, as well as a solo album (also on AMI) with keyboard player Jimmie Grokett. For whatever reasons, Grokett was no longer part of the band by the time Red Horse made it to the studios in Hendersonville, Tennessee, although his album seems to have been recorded at basically the same time as this one. (That must have been a fun road trip for Beland, who produced both records...) About half the songs on here were written by John Beland, with additional material by Glenn Frey, Hugh Moffatt, Sonny Throckmorton, and others... The lineup for this album included Danny Batchelor on lead vocals and guitar, Benny Vincent on lead and two new guys, bassist Bob Campbell and Jeff Williams playing drums. No sign of Jimmie Grokett though... Red Horse previously released a single, back in Texas, and there's a mysterious comment in these liner notes about those two songs, "...master tape to WAITING ON A SOUTHERN TRAIN and WHISKEY TO ME was erased at Precision Audio in Dallas, Texas. THANKS, Rick." Hmmm. Maybe there's some connection here to Mr. Grokett leaving the band? At any rate, these guys seemed to know how to hold a grudge... Probably best that we don't know the whole story.

The Red River Boys "Red River" (Jerry Free Records, 1986) (LP)
(Produced by Ansley Fleetwood, Jerry Free & Pat Holt)
These young fellas were the winners of the fifth annual country music "battle of the bands" contest sponsored by Wild Turkey distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. Unlike the previous year's champions, an earnest group calling itself Crossfire, these guys were lucky enough to have their names included on the back cover, although no breathless blurb touting them as hometown heroes and telling us where they were from. The Red River Boys included four vocalists -- Dave Alford, Reuben Buck, Tim Buchanan and Bill Sealy -- with instrumental backing by guitarist Paul Carrol, Mike Cunningham (keyboards), Trevor Reddick (bass), Dave Steinquist (drums) and presumably some studio musician playing pedal steel(?) They seem to have been from Tennessee -- Reddick and Steinquist played together in a jazz combo at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, where Steinquist was an assistant professor... Or at least that's what they were up to in 1987-88. The folks at Jerry Free Productions recycled the album art on at least two of these albums... another entry in the annals of stock cover art.

The Red Ryder Band "The Red Ryder Band" (Decameron Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by J. M. McCarthy)
A modestly shaggy, relatively clean-cut outlaw twangband from the Great Plains... Although they recorded in Omaha, Nebraska, this was an Iowa-based band... The group included lead singer Jack Dahlke on guitar, Betty Frank (guitar and piano), Duane Gallagher (bass), Steve Mether (drums) and Jon Smith (lead guitar and mandolin) with additional steel guitar by Chuck Lettes. Except for a cover of Gram Parsons' "Sin City," all the songs are originals, including six tracks credited to Mr. Dahlke. This band was together for several years, and like many beloved local groups they fanned out into various subsequent bands and seem to have done a reunion show or two over the years...

Red Shadow "Live At The Panacea Hilton" (Physical World Records, 1975) (LP)
Now, I'm not saying that this record is any good (wouldn't know) or that it's particularly "country," just that it exists and that it's very, very 1970s. Self-identified as "the economics rock'n'roll band," these longhaired commies (and I mean that literally) met while attending grad school at the University of Michigan and brought their hard-left socialist critiques to The People in the form of hippie-rock musical harangues, with song titles such as "Stagflation," "Understanding Marx" and "Commodity Fetishism." Whoo-hoo! Yeahhhhh!! Party down!!!

Red Shadow "Better Red" (Physical World Records, 1979) (LP)
"Marx Had A Word For It," "Daddy, You've Been Played," "History Will Take Me Home," "Labor Is Value..." So many memories of slow-dancing to these songs at so, so many homecoming celebrations. Really takes you back, doesn't it?

Red, Wilder, Blue "Red, Wilder, Blue" (Warner/Pentagram Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Al Schmidt)
While it's not much of a country album, this rock record is worth noting for twangfans because it's by an early band of future Texas outlaw, Michael Ballew, who was kickin' it on the West Coast for a few years trying to make it as a rocker. It's mostly a mediocre mix of contemporary styles: LA sunshine pop, CSNY-style group harmonies and a bit of hard/psych, as heard on their riffy cover of Jesse Colin Young's "Darkness." I think they were mostly aiming for the Crosby Stills & Nash sound, and they probably could have been more successful if the album had been better produced, or rather, better edited: the songs drift and meander quite a bit, and generally don't feel all that cohesive. But if you're just into obscure '70s soft rock and soft-psych, you might wanna check this one out; definitely not much overt twang involved here.

Red Willow Band "Red Willow Band" (Lost Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Chris Gage & Hank Harris)
South Dakota's answer to Asleep At The Wheel, the Red Willow Band blended country, bluegrass, blues and western swing, often led by their fiddlers, but with strong backing by the rest of the band, which included sleek pedal steel and a versatile piano work from Chris Gage, one of the band's two lead singers, along with Hank Harris. They produced two fine albums and toured extensively between 1974-82, and like many regional bands have reunited frequently over the years. The full band on this album included Barry Carpenter, Marley Forman, Chris Gage, Hank Harris, Kenny Putnam and Dale Saukerson

Red Willow Band "Note For Note" (Lost Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Barry "Byrd" Burton)
On their second album, RWB traveled to Nashville to record at the Jack Clement studios and stretched out into more ornate pop and jazz stylings, but only on a tune or two -- there's still plenty of great honkytonk and western swing material. A couple of songs feature surprising approximations of more contemporary commercial country sounds -- not enough for them to crack into the charts, but another opportunity to show the band's musical chops and stylistic breadth. All in all, even with the fancy stuff added into the mix, this album was pretty similar to the first, and worth checking out as well. They were a really good band!

Red Willow Band "Way Back When: A Compilation" (Moonhouse Records, 1999)
This handy-dandy CD gathers the songs from the RWB's two long-out-of-print albums, Red Willow Band and Note For Note, a fun, comprehensive collection with good sound quality and a wealth of strong original material. Unfortunately, there are no significant liner notes, nothing to give the story of the band itself, but the music is pretty impressive. Chris Gage compiled the disc, and decided to mix the two albums together, so the more country-sounding tracks from the first album are peppered into the later stuff from '78. I think there were also a few reunion records, though I don't have solid information about thise releases.

Leon Redbone -- see artist discography

Johnny Redd "Country Hot" (JRS Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Redd)
A hard-rockin' bar-band/outlaw country group from Palmdale, California, with canny covers of Waylon & Willie, Delbert McClinton and Ray Griff... Singer Johnny Redd pens a trio of originals, "Sunshine," "Lonesome" and "Party Party Party," while bass player Mike Hufford adds "Just Her Friend" into the mix. Though not part of the band, a guy named Big Lloyd Carlson sings lead on a version of Dennis Linde's "Burning Love." I couldn't find out much about these guys online -- dunno when this album came out (looks like late '70s/early '80s) or if the band played live. Anybody out there have more info?

Kamie Redell "I've Got The Country In Me" (Blue Gem Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Pete Martin & Bill Kredel)
Not totally sure where Redell was from, but this album was recorded in Torrence, California, while the label is credited as from LA proper... The songs appear to be all originals, including songs like "From Home To Waiting Tables," "Troubled Mind, Lonely Body" and "Forget Me Tomorrow." Her band included Peter Apodaca on bass, Brad Fenton (steel guitar and banjo), Pete Martin (piano), Pete McIntire (fiddle), Lee Stanley (lead guitar), and several others.

Teddy Redell "The JLL Sound Of Teddy Redell" (Collector Records, 1972) (LP)
Arkansas-born rock-and-boogie pianist Teddy Redell (1937-2014) was one of the many American rock'n'rollers who found a haven with European audiences in the 'Seventies, recording this album for a Dutch label while doing gigs abroad and at home. Though he touches on familiar 'Fifties rock styles, it's worth noting he also connects with rockabilly's country roots, covering a couple of oldies by country piano plunker Moon Mullican.

Teddy Redell "Teddy Redell Is Back" (White Label Records, 1979) (LP)
The band on this album included Teddy Redell on piano (and vocals), Fred Dale Douglas (bass), Sam Querry (bass) ad drummer Carl R. Stevens. There were some later recordings as well, though I don't have all the info about those...

Redeye "Redeye" (Pentagram Records, 1971) (LP)
This LA-based rock band was apparently a one-hit wonder, placing one single ("Games") in the Pop Top 30 before losing their mojo and drifting into obscurity. Singer/guitarist Douglas "Red" Mark had previously been in another moderately successful band called the Sunshine Company; I'm not sure what happened to any of these guys after they disbanded. Although they got into twang on their second album, there are few traces of country music here, basically it's a rock'n'roll record, lots of guitar in the early-'70s hard rock style.

Redeye "One Man's Poison" (Pentagram Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Al Schmitt)
Their second album definitely had a more "country" feel to it, a rugged, clattersome, rock'n'twang style that recalls the classic early-'70s Grateful Dead albums, as well as stoner jug-band rockers like Jesse Colin Young and the Youngbloods... It's not bad! Definitely a rock band, but they were having fun going into hoedown mode, and this record has a lot to recommend it... It's basically hippie rock, but good for the style. The twangiest tunes are "Walter Why Knott" and the spacier "Beginning To End," with the best tracks on here being the ones that are most nakedly imitative of the Dead. The lineup here included drummer Bob Bereman, Dave Hodgkins (guitar), Bill Kirkham (bass) and Douglas Mark on guitar and vocals. Worth a spin.

Larry Redmon "First Time Around" (Country Crossings, 1979) (LP)
A sweet, well-produced set of mellow outlaw honkytonk by Lexington, Kentucky's Larry Redmon. On some songs he presents himself as a blatant Waylon Jennings soundalike (which is fine by me) though in addition to the outlaw growling, there's a fairly wide stylistic range. The album is packed with Redmon originals, including one co-written with Greg Austin, as well as one song by Chuck Pyle, a cover of Guy Clark's "Desperados Waitin' For A Train," one from Hank Junior, and the Latin-tinged pop hit "Come A Little Bit Closer," which had already entered into the country canon in 1977 through a hit duet version recorded by Johnny Duncan and Janie Fricke. All in all, this is a pretty solid record for such an off-the-radar artist. Worth tracking down!

Redwing "Redwing" (Fantasy Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Russ Gary & Redwing)
These SF Bay Area roots-rockers had a funky vibe reminiscent of Little Feat, while also colored by John Fogerty and CCR -- and The Band, too, of course. Previously, the Sacramento-based band had been a straight-up rock group called Glad, but when band member Timothy B. Schmit left to join an early lineup of Poco, the group reformed around guitarists Andrew Samuels, Ron Floegel and Tom Phillips and got into a looser, funkier roots-music sound, and are considered one of the classic early California country-rock bands. For me, most of the songs on this debut disc go too far into the "heavy" boogie-rock sound of the time, although on Side Two they delve more into twang, notably with their cover of Mickey Newbury's "(Tell Me Baby) Why You Been Gone So Long" as well as their funky jam version of the Jimmie Rodgers oldie, "California Blues," as well as their Band-like original "Oh Maggie," which is possibly the catchiest track on the record. Redwing were one of the most promising, on-the-edge-of-fame bands on the early-'70s Northern California rock scene, but it never quite clicked in the end. This disc is worth checking out, though maybe more rock-oriented than some twangfans might like. See for yourself... they were pretty groovy, man!

Redwing "What This Country Needs" (Fantasy Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Russ Gary)
This one was kind of disappointing, at least from a twangfan's point of view. They set aside the funky rural vibe they pioneered on their first album, concentrating instead of crunchier, early-'70s boogie-rock, which was doubtless more salable then, but doesn't hold up so well now. Well, maybe there are jam-band or heavy rock aficionados who will be all over this album, but I thought it was a bummer, considering the innovation and diversity of the surrounding albums. Oh, well. I guess they were just looking for a hit.

Redwing "Take Me Home" (Fantasy Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Redwing & Brian Knapp Gardner)
A great record, with lots and lots of twang. They really upped the ante on their country bona fides: the album opens with the jaunty "Here I Go Again," an uptempo country-rock tune that's very reminiscent of the Gram Parsons-era Flying Burrito Brothers, followed by "Fast Locomotive," with some tight, funky chicken-picking guitar straight out of the Jerry Reed playbook, while the instrumental "Katy Warren Breakdown" showcases some awesome Joe Maphis-flavored flatpicking. Guitarists Andrew Samuels and Tom Phillips display a mastery of country picking that's head and shoulders above what most of the country-rockers were doing at the time, while guest fiddler Tiny Moore adds some sweet licks of his own, around Phillips' dazzling yet concise dobro and pedal steel. More conventional rock/pop riffs come into play on the boogie-funk of "Lost Highway" and the dreary slow-dance power ballad, "Our Day." As a viable regional band, Redwing might not have been able to set aside their hippie-pop and ballroom boogie roots, but even if those songs give the album an uneven feel, it's still packed with genuine gems. It's also worth noting that all the songs on here are originals, including the humorous, Doug Sahm-ish "Lowdown Samuel," co-written by fiddler-pianist Ed Bogas. If you're looking for a swell souvenir of the San Francisco country-rock scene at it's best, here it is.

Redwing "Dead Or Alive" (Fantasy Records, 1974) (LP)

Redwing "Beyond The Sun And Stars" (Fantasy Records, 1975) (LP)

Billy Cole Reed "Billy Cole Reed" (B. C. R. Enterprises, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Al Pachucci & Billy Cole Reed)
Singer-guitarist Billy Cole Reed (1942-2012) hailed from the tiny coal country town of West Frankfort, Illinois in the southern end of the state, closer to the orbit of Saint Louis and the Ozarks opry scene than to rust-belt Chicago. After playing in a series of garage bands as a kid, his interest turned to country music, and he carved out a niche as a regional bad-boy "outlaw" artist, with a particular love for the music and image of Waylon Jennings. Though Reed also made his way to Nashville, he was primarily a regional Midwestern bandleader, leading his group, The Outlaws, throughout the late 'Seventies and early 'Eighties. This is the first of several albums recorded in Nashville, in this case, at Pete Drake's studio, with backing primarily coming from his own band, which included Richard Ahum (lead guitar), Brad Brown (bass), John Link (drums), and Brad McMillan on bass, with the studio group filled out by steel player Jim Vest, and a bunch of Nashville folks cobbled together from Margo Smith's band and elsewhere. The album includes covers of Waylon classics such as "Storms Never Last" and "Only Daddy That'll Walk The Line," others by the likes of Merle Haggard and Ernest Tubb, and some originals as well, including Rick Schulman's "Who Broke Your Heart Today" and a couple of Dave Cox, "Chains Of Love" and "Why Should It Take A Lie."

Billy Cole Reed "Tribute To An Outlaw" (Phonorama Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Al Pachucci, Randy Best & Billy Cole Reed)
A tribute to Waylon Jennings, with ten songs either written by Waylon, or made famous by him. Pretty much the same group of musicians backing him as on his first album, working again with producer Al Pachucci. The Audiograph album (below) may be a reissue of his first LP, or possibly a re-recording.

Billy Cole Reed "Music Row - Audiograph Alive" (Audiograph Records, 1982) (LP)

Bobby Reed "Shakin Charlene" (Shur-Trak VII, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Brien Fisher)
An excellent set of uptempo, pop-flavored '70s-style honkytonk cheating songs, a surprisingly strong record that probably didn't do as well as it should have due to the super-ugly artwork. An independent artist from Benton, Illinois, Bobby Reed was a popular regional performer who'd been around since the early '60s. He made a strong play to break out nationally with this record, though he wasn't able to get onto the charts. The bouncy, energetic single, "Shakin Charlene," is a novelty number about a nightclub stripper who is condemned by local hypocrites, reminiscent of topical songs like "Harper Valley PTA" and "Skip A Rope." It was a regional hit and is buoyed by a slew of equally potent, well-produced material on the album, all of which was written by Reed, whose neotrad approach echos that of Moe Bandy, with a healthy dose of Merle Haggard in his vocal tones. The musicianship is pretty high-calibre as well -- unfortunately the studio crew isn't listed, but since the Cate Sisters are singing backup, it's probably a safe bet that he cut this album in Nashville. Another album highlight is the cheatin' song, "My Bridges Won't Burn," a really great honky-tonk number about a guy who resists temptation... even though it's so, um, hard. Bobby Reed made another big push a few years later while still plugging away in Illinois; his 1982 single, "If I Just Had My Woman," broke into the back forty of the Billboard charts, but his momentum flagged and he decided to switch gears and go into production. Reed moved to Nashville in 1985, and opened a recording studio. I'm not sure if this was his only full LP... but it's a doozy!

Haden Reed "Pure Country, Old And New" (Reedsound Records, 19--?) (LP)
Dunno much about this fellow... Haden Reed (1937-2006) was apparently from Summerville, South Carolina and had been recording country tunes since at least 1974, when he placed an ad in Billboard for his single, "The Woman Of My World," which he self-released and sold from his home. Mr. Haden passed away in 2006, but other than that he's a bit of a mystery. Anyone out there have more info?

Haden Reed "A Tribute To Hank Williams" (Reedsound Records, 1981) (LP)
On this album, Reed was billed as "The Black Hank Williams Sr.," so make of that what you will... As with his other LP, this doesn't give a release year or any info about the musicians, although a print ad (in Popular Mechanics, no less!) provides us with the 1981 date. (PS - thanks to Ken at Wildwood Records for the info about this one!)

Jerry Reed - see artist discography

Luke H. Reed "What Is A Cowboy To Do" (Bueno Records, 1987) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Goad & Luke H. Reed)
The first(?) album by Sooner songsmith Luke H. Reed, who hailed from the tiny town of Ringling, Oklahoma, near the Texas border. Though this is mostly straight-up country stuff, Mr. Reed was also a frequent participant at cowboy poetry gatherings and had his original songs covered by older stars such as Michael Martin Murphey and Red Steagall who had drifted into the western music scene. His tunes have also been recorded by Top Forty honkytonkers such as Gary Allen, David Ball, George Strait, Randy Travis, and Gene Watson, as well as by numerous regional artists, including Clay Blaker and Roger Brown. On this disc he's backed by what I believe was a local Okie crew, though they also got some help from the Maines Brothers folks over in Lubbock, with Lloyd Maines adding a few licks on dobro and steel guitar, as well as glowing liner notes. The main band included Luke Reed on rhythm guitar and vocals, along with multi-instrumentalist Paul Goad, Richard Bowden (fiddle), Ray Carl (harmonica), Billy Grimes (drums), Ronnie Miller (slide guitar), Jill Mulhair (harmony vocals), and Johnny Mulhair on lead guitar and steel. (Thanks to The Gene Watson website for details about Reed's career.)

Luke Reed "Corridos: Story Songs Of The West" (Blue Hat Records, 2007) (LP)
More of an overt western/cowboy slant on this disc, with guest performers including Waylon Jennings and Ranger Doug Green, of the Riders In The Sky band.

Ray Reed "Sings Traditional Frontier And Cowboy Songs" (Folkways Records, 1977)
(Produced by J. D. Robb)
Western singer and cultural preservationist Raymone William Reed (1917-1998) came from a ranching family near Clovis, New Mexico and grew up as an actual, working cowboy. In his youth spent time out in California and hung out with West Coast country musicians, including some guys from the Bob Wills band. Eventually he moved back home, but it was during a trip to Texas in 1989 that he attended a western event in Lubbock that inspired him to create a similar gathering in New Mexico. Reed was the driving force behind the Lincoln County Cowboy Symposium, and annual shindig filled with poetry and song -- this album shows Reed's own facility with ballads and tall tales, a nice addition to the cowboy canon.

Hank Reese "I Wish I Didn't Love You So" (Buckeye Records, 19-?) (LP)
(Produced by Hank Reese)
Indiebilly from Daleville, Alabama, a tiny town in the Southeastern end of the state, near the Florida border... Reese was originally from Georgia, but later moved to the heart of Dixie and was playing here with a largely local band, including fiddler Murrell Counts, Tommy Cozart on drums, Tommy Floyd (bass), Benny Kennerson (piano), Glen Ray McWhort (steel guitar) and Jack Solomon on lead guitar... The repertoire is almost all cover songs -- real oldies like "Cattle Call," "Shotgun Boogie," "Devil Woman" and "The Gods Were Angry" -- with one tune credited to Hank Reese, "I'll Still Be Waiting." No date on this one, but I'd guess late 1970s, just from the look of it.

Jimmy Reesor & Orchestra "Easy Coffee Cup" (Wax Records, 1971-?) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Benson)
A mix of gospel originals and country covers... Songs include some overt gospel tunes ("Lord Jesus Lives," "Abraham To Be Free," both written by Reesor) and many straight country covers: "Sunday Morning Coming Down," Harlan Howard's "Busted," "Green Green Grass Of Home" along with a couple of other Reesor originals, "Bright Side Of The Sun" and the colorfully titled "Television Atom Bomb." Reesor was originally from Bismarck, North Dakota, where as a teen he recorded a rock single called "Streak Of Lightning," before decamping to Nashville in 1962... He apparently had a staff writing job at House Of Cash for a while, but as far as I know, this was his only secular album.

Jimmy Reesor & Orchestra "Reesor Communicates" (Christian Folk Records, 19--?) (LP)

Jack Reeves "Wabash Cannon Ball" (Corral Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Big Bill Smith & Rob Kinney)
A longtime fixture on the Southern California country scene, singer Jack Reeves grew up in Desire, Arkansas and claimed to be a cousin of Glen Campbell, who was born in nearby Billstown. Moving out to the West Coast around 1966, Reeves landed feet first in the middle of the Bakersfield-adjacent longhair country scene that clustered around the Palomino Club, including guitarist Clarence White and singer Eddy Drake. Reeves cut several singles in the decade leading up to this first LP, including one produced by scenester Gary Paxton, and others on various microscopic SoCal indie labels. In 1974 he won a major country music showbiz award, but remained mostly off-the-radar nationally; imitations were a big part of his live act act, and after Elvis Presley died, he specialized in an Elvis routine, working casinos and elsewhere. Eventually he moved back to Arkansas, and formed a band with his two sons, Cole and Matt, who also went on to record as The Reeves Brothers. This was Jack Reeves's first album, and finds him backed by Archie Francis on drums, John Hobbs (piano), Don Lee (guitar), Jay Dee Maness (steel guitar), Curtis Stone on bass. (And by the way, for anyone keeping track, this album contains yet another version of "Me And Bobby McGee.")

Jack Reeves "When I Dream" (Ripcord Records, 1977-?) (LP)
(Produced by Gene Breeden & Blaine Allen)
I'm not 100% sure this is the same Jack Reeves as from California, but it seems likely... Country musicians seemed to move up and down the West Coast back in the 'Seventies. This album features backing from the Ripcord Records studio's usual suspects: Blaine Allen on guitar, Gene Breeden (lead and steel guitar), Danny Breeden (drums), the wonderfully-named Geno Keyes (piano), and a gal named Lorraine Walden singing backup.

Jack Reeves "The Heavenly Quartet" (Novo Productions, 1983-?) (LP)
(Produced by Roy Barnes)
You'd be excused for assuming this was a gospel album, based on the title, but alas it's actually a "tribute" to four deceased country stars -- Hank Williams, Jim Reeves, Elvis Presley and Marty Robbins -- who Reeves imagines singing together in a celestial choir, despite their different musical styles. It's a showcase for Reeves's putative skills as a musical imitator, but the sad fact is he doesn't sound remotely like any of those singers, and the arrangements are pretty bad. I'll leave this one up to the local schadenfreude patrol to embrace; I thought it was fairly unlistenable. On the plus side, the LP was a gorgeous picture disc... the liner notes indicate that Reeves was holding down a regular gig at a bar called the Magnolia Room, in Corona, CA when he cut this record. Alas, the backing musicians are not identified.

John Rex Reeves "Introducing..." (Soc-A-Gee Records, 1977-?) (LP)
(Produced by Al Gore & Johnny Elgin)
Why, yes, this was country crooner Jim Reeves' nephew -- son of Catherine and Buford Reeves -- singing a bunch of Jim Reeves covers, including "Mexican Joe," "He'll Have To Go," et. al. John Rex was, of course a Texan, hailing from the same East Texas terrain that gave us so many country great, including his uncle Jim. Although the Soc-A-Gee label was from Houston, these sessions were recorded in Nashville. Sadly, the backing musicians are not listed, and alas, neither was the release date. The Jim Reeves-cover-band act was pretty good for Mr., um, Reeves, and he continued to perform his uncle's repertoire -- and other country oldies -- at various venues for decades to come. Starting in 2005, John Rex was given a permanent berth for his family tribute show at one of Branson, Missouri's many country venues, and was still traveling and performing as recently as 2017.

John Rex Reeves "John Rex Reeves" (Soc-A-Gee Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Elgin)

John Rex Reeves "After All These Years" (House Of Rex Records, 1991) (LP)
A later album... though, it should be noted that Reeves has self-released many, many other CDs since this one, mostly selling them through his own website...

Joseph Reeves "Heaven Forbid" (Tribute Records, 1977) (LP)

Chris Reffner & The Final Touch "Natural High" (Butter Sound Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Bailey)
Self-identified "redneck" music by some fellas from Odessa, Texas... The youthful group included Chris Reffner (lead vocals and guitar), Jerry Dugan (bass and fiddle), Andy Pearce (lead guitar), Monnie Sparkman (drums) with Mr. Reffner the main songwriter on what seems to have been an all-original set of scrappy Texas twang. They all look like teenagers on the back cover -- Andy Pearce was a senior at Odessa High School, though I'm not sure about the other guys. I'm also not sure if any of them made any records after this one -- Pearce and Sparkman both went to work in the oil industry, although Jerry Dugan formed a country band called West Wind, which was around at least as far back as the 1990s, and which had an active Facebook account as recently as 2022 and seems to have self-released at least on album on CD. Chris Reffner also seems to have stayed in Texas, and may have actually been from Levelland, closer to Lubbock. This album is a bit more obscure than usual, though... so any info is welcome!

The Reflections "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" (American Artists Records, 1981-?) (LP)
It took me a while to track this one down, having caught wind of it through the KCLawrencevinyl blog a while ago... Apparently the Reflections were a high school band (with a large vocal chorus) from the tiny town of Pittsburg, Kansas on the state line near Joplin, Missouri. According to the liner notes this was the ensemble's third album, a charmingly clumsy set covering various contemporary hits, with a particular emphasis on country, inspired by the Urban Cowboy movie, though with a lot of pop Top Forty as well. Along with tunes from Eddie Rabbit, Willie & Waylon, Don Williams and The Charlie Daniels Band, there are covers of mainstream pop artists such as Anne Murray ("Could I Have This Dance"), Olivia Newton-John ("I Honestly Love You," a solo by Jerri Dawn Timi) and Irene Cara ("Fame"), as well as a delightfully puzzling version of Steve Martin's novelty hit, "King Tut." There are various soloists, though most tracks feature a vocal chorus which generally makes the tracks feel less nimble; the main musical backing comes from a modest though mostly competent ensemble including drummer Mark Breneman, guitarist Steve Mahnken, and bass players Larry Davenport and Richard Ralph, as well as a few different pianists a few horn players. It's all very talent-showy, nothing terrible, but also nothing you need to rush out to find, although there are a few kitschy bits that could be kind of amusing.

Helen Regan "Here's Helen" (Bejay Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Mickey Moody)
A solid set covering a bunch of early 'Seventies country hits, including a slew of "girl" songs such as "Delta Dawn," "I Wish I Was A Teddy Bear," "Paper Roses," Lynn Anderson's "Top Of The World," etc. The backing band is solid -- the Bejay studio crew were one of the most underrated house bands of the era -- and even though they may have been going through the motions a little bit, it's still a strong performance. No info on Ms. Regan, though presumably she was from Arkansas as well. In all honesty, she wasn't the greatest singer ever -- the album starts with an excellent uptempo rendition of "My Man," but gets a little wobbly the farther in you go. Nonetheless, she seems to have been enjoying herself, and her good spirits are infectious. Unfortunately, the musicians aren't specifically identified, though Mickey Moody contributes some cheerful, though extremely brief liner notes. (Note: this album may have actually come out in '74, though the liners tell us it was recorded on November 29th and 30th, 1973.)

The Rehrig Family "Country" (Rehrig Family Records, 1974-?) (LP)
Originally from Pennsylvania, the Rehrig Family band did a ton of backup work in early '70s Nashville, notably working for Conway Twitty, while Bill Rehrig was the lead guitarist in Dolly Parton's band... The Rehrigs also performed and recorded under their own name, including this self-released set.

The Rehrig Family "While In Nashville" (Royal American Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Rehrig & Louis Owen)
This album features liner notes by the great Dolly Parton herself... (Also worth noting: Dolly's little brother Randy Parton plays bass and sings backup on this album; he later recorded an album of his own.)

Al Reid "Honky Tonk Heart" (Polaris Productions, 19--?) (LP)
Hard country from Canada... No info about this one, yet.

Alice Reinert "Alice" (Fun-nel-Aires Records, 1983-?) (LP)
Dubbed "the queen of the funnel cake," Pennsylvania baker Alice Reinert was known as the gal who popularized traditional Dutch funnel cakes, selling them at county fairs from her family-run kiosk, and she even wrote a book about 'em. Reinert also composed some country music, which local picker Marty Navarre recorded, backed by his band the Country Jades. This undated LP is basically the same as another (very similar) record released under Navarre's name, with near-identical artwork, and the track listing jiggled around a little. It was also released as a cassette tape with Reinert calling herself Dutchie Alice, but as far as I can tell it contained all the same music.

Ted & Ruth Reinhart "Go Western" (Teru Records, 1982) (LP)
An early album by the husband-wife duo of Ted and Ruth Reinhart, who co-hosted a long-running radio show in Pennsylvania and specialized in nostalgic western songs -- cowboy stuff -- on their own records. Fans of the style may appreciate their music, but this is one of those times when it may be difficult to separate the music from the man: in 2005 Mr. Reinhart was arrested and received a fifteen-year prison sentence on child molestations charges. So... ew. Kinda makes me way less likely to check this album out.

Ted & Ruth Reinhart "Sing Cowboy Sing" (Muscadine Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Hornsby)
More oldies and cowboy tunes... This disc is notable for producer Paul Hornsby, who was best known for his work with the Capricorn label, a Southern rock powerhouse during the 1970s. Hornsby apparently set up shop in Macon, Georgia during the early '80s and this album features some of the same studio players as other Muscadine productions, including fiddler Randy Howard, pedal steel player David Irwin, and Hornsby on a variety of instruments, so the Reinharts get a pretty full backing on this one. Most of the songs are duets, though Mrs. Reinhart also has a couple of multi-tracked numbers where she harmonizes with herself.

Bob Reinier "Me, Myself & I" (Ripcord Records, 1978) (LP)
Down-home twang from the Pacific Northwest. A singer from Salem, Oregon, Bob Reinier wrote four of the songs on here, including the title track, "Me, Myself And I," as well as "Is It Time Again," "This Bottle And This Old Guitar" and a gospel song called "The Path To His Mansions." He also covers a few newer songs, like James Joiner's "Fallen Star" and Bill Mack's "Drinkin' Champagne." The session was recorded at the Ripcord studios, with Gene Breeden playing steel guitar and leading a house band that included Gene Keyes on piano, Ellis Miller on bass and Blaine Allen singing backup.

The Reinsmen "Songs Of The Trail" (Sierra Records, 1973) (LP)
Western music cowboy revivalists from Southern California, the Reinsmen formed in 1962 after working a gig with the Wagonmasters, a country-oriented house band at the Knott's Berry Farm amusement park. The original trio included steel player Jerry Compton, with singer-guitarist Don Richardson and bassist Dick Goodman, who formed the core of the group for over three decades. They are joined on this album by guitarist Bob Wagoner, one of many musicians to pass through the band over the years. The Reinsmen were based in Southern California, but toured nationally, including gigs in the Branson/Lake Of The Ozarks circuit, as well as appearing in western films and performing at the White House, and perhaps most notably they backed cowboy star Rex Allen for many of his projects. They self-released a series of souvenir albums, with this one being -- I believe -- their first LP.

The Reinsmen "Sing Songs Of The West" (Sierra Records, 1977) (LP)

The Reinsmen "Sentimental Trails" (Sierra Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Manny Alvarez & The Reinsmen)
A fairly sedate, perhaps overly formal set of western oldies, with one original written by lead singer Doc Denning, the title track, "Sentimental Trails." The rest of the quartet -- Dick Goodman, Don Richardson and Jerry Compton -- provide a smooth, professional backing, though the album's reverential tone makes it feel... I dunno... a little less joyful than might be...? The studio and label are both from Visalia, California, just south of Fresno, so I bet you there's a pretty good chance some of these guys actually ran cattle up in the mountains around the Valley, or, if they stuck in the flatlands, they at least knew which end of a shovel was up.

The Reinsmen "Alive... In Death Valley" (Sierra Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Manny Alvarez)
Alas, the bandmembers aren't named individually in the liner notes, though it looks like Dick Goodman was for sure in the group, or at least is pictured on the back. Another set of old western standards, sentimental tunes and a little bit of western swing -- including songs by Stephen Foster, Stan Jones, Bob Nolan, Marty Robbins and Bob Wills. Also of interest, is that this album was partly produced/mastered in Visalia, CA, on the other side of the mountains from the desert.

The Reinsmen "This Ain't The Same Ol' Range" (Sierra Records, 1985) (LP)

The Relations "Record No. 1" (QCA Custom Records, 19--?) (LP)
A country covers band from Newburg, Pennsylvania, featuring singers Bob Crank and Calvin Ott. Songs include honktonk ballads such as "She Thinks I Still Care," "The Older The Violin, The Sweeter The Music," and Tony Booth's "The Key's In The Mailbox." The liner notes say that when this album was made, brothers Calvin and Dennis Ott had been with the band about five years, with Bob Crank having "taken over" the band back in '73.

Rita Remington "Sounds Like Songs Of Loretta Lynn" (Pickwick Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Shelby Singleton)
Though she also cut a few original-material singles, Rita Remington was primarily known as a "soundalike singer," one of those talented few who were elevated from anonymous studio work and given a chance to cut a few albums under their own name, but still mostly budget-label releases where she covered the hit material of star artists. I'd always assumed that hers was a stage name, although it turns out several women really are (or were) named Rita Remington... Unfortunately I couldn't find much biographical info about this particular country singin' gal... Originally from McPherson, Kansas, her birth name was Rita Unruh, and she seems to have married and moved back to near Wichita after about a decade trying to make it in Nashville. Ms. Remington first seems to have been tried out as a chart artist, scoring a minor Back Forty hit with an "answer song" that mirrored one of Conway Twitty's hits back in 1973; her highest charting song was a 1982 single called "The Flame," which peaked at #76. This initial LP includes cover versions of nine Loretta Lynn classics, with Remington doing a remarkably good job of imitating Lynn's voice on some (though not all) the tracks, although the unidentified backing band sounds a little lackluster. This album was reissued with all the same tracks in 1980 as Sounds Like Songs Of Loretta Lynn with "FEATURING COALMINER'S DAUGHTER" emblazoned across the cover in order to capitalize on the popularity of the Loretta Lynn biopic of the same name. Three other albums followed, and Remington also appeared in actress Carol Channing's 1978 country music revue, although she completely dropped off the radar in the early 1980s. In later years she does seem to have done a few low-profile local appearances at small venues around McPherson -- I guess it's just another cautionary tale of how Music City can chew up even the most talented artists. Still, she did get the chance to make several albums, which is a lot more than most folks can say!

Rita Remington "Country Girl Gold" (Plantation Records, 1977) (LP)

Rita Remington & The Smokey Valley Symphony "My Melody Of Love" (Plantation Records, 1977) (LP)

Rita Remington "Magical Musical Memories" (Plantation Records, 1978) (LP)

Rita Remington "The Country Collection" (Sun Records, 2012)

Leni Re'nae "Singin' My Songs" (K-Ark Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by John Capps)
Originally from a French-Canadian background, Leni ReNae (who spelled her name a few different ways) was living in Blaine, Washington around the time this album came out... How she hooked up with the Ozark-based K-Ark label is anybody's guess. The set list is mostly not original material. dominated by versions of chestnuts like "Columbus Stockade Blues," "Johnny One Time" and "Louisiana Man," as well as several Kris Kristofferson covers, "Help Me Make It Through The Night," "Me And Bobby McGee," and "Sunday Morning Coming Down," which indicate an early 'Seventies release. There are a few songs that might have been originals, but more research is required...

Leni ReNae "Cold Denver Rain" (K-Ark Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by John Capps)
The apostrophe in her name on the previous album was probably a typo: it's spelled "ReNae" on this album, as well as on all of her singles. This album includes three songs written by Leni Renae, as well as one from producer John Capps. Also worth noting, she additionally recorded at least one single for the Ripcord-related Vanco label, out of Vancouver, Washington.

Renegade "...With Bobby Mack" (Golden Voice Recordings, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bobby Mack, Terry Jamison & Tom Byler)
Not to be confused with the (much younger) Texas blues player of the same name, midwesterner Bobby Mack (ne Mack L. Lipe) (1932-2016) was born in Tennessee, but he moved to Peoria, Illinois after serving in the Korean War, and was an early rockabilly artist from the heartland. Nicknamed "the man with a thousand voices," he self-released his first single, "Waitin' For You To Call"/"Crazy Heart" in 1958, a thumping rocker with an Elvis-y sound, followed the next year by two locals-only 45s that gave off increasing amounts of country twang. He laid low for a while, reemerging in 1967 with a hip-sounding, Waylon-esque single on the Golden Voice label, cut a couple more for Ace Of Hearts in the early '70s. This disc appears to be his only full LP, with backing by a band of younger musicians, Renegade, which included Tim Atwood on piano, Kenny Elam (bass), Bill Houston (guitar) and drummer Sal Salamanca, who was originally from Santiago, Chile. There's no date on the album, though the liner notes say this was Bobby Mack's "twentieth year in the entertainment field," so it was from sometime in the late '70s. Unfortunately, there were also no composer credits, so even though Mack wrote a lot of originals, it's hard to tell which songs are his... The most obvious covers are a version of "La Bamba," as well as a Gary Stewart's sultry "I See The Want To In Your Eyes." Over the years, Mack owned a string of supper clubs and bars -- The Field Steakhouse, The Driftwood and The Music Mill -- and played at his own clubs and other venues, often backing touring country stars when they came to town. His obituary mentions sone songwriting in Nashville, but as of press time, I'm not sure which if any of his songs were recorded there.

The Renfro Valley Pioneers "England Swings" (Spin-O-Rama Records, 1966-?) (LP)
A fake-o-roonie cheapo-label pseudo-band which may or may not have had some actual connection to the Renfro Valley Gathering (though my money is on "not...") Random country oldies and western-themed tracks by "the Pioneers" were used to pad out sketchy mid-1960s budget-line albums headlined by stars such as Elton Britt, Tex Ritter and Merle Travis. Amazingly, though, the tracks on those albums didn't overlap with ones on this LP.... and least mostly not: a few of these songs were recycled on a Coronet LP called Nashville's Big Winners. No date on this disc, though most of the Renfro Valley Pioneers albums seem to have been pressed around 1966; this one includes covers of two hits from 1965, Roger Miller's "England Swings" and "Flowers On The Wall," from the Statler Brothers, so it's possible this was an earlier release. I'm not going to spend too much time worrying about it, though...

Ronnie Reno "For The First Time" (MCA-Tally Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Compton & Jim Williamson)
In the mid-1970s, country superstar Merle Haggard presided over a corporate echo of Fuzzy Owens' old Tally label, using the imprint to put out a couple of albums featuring Haggard pals and proteges. In this case, it was the solo debut of bluegrass prodigy Ronnie Reno, who became a member of Haggard's band in '73 and stayed with him for the better part of a decade. Ronnie was the son of '50s truegrass legend Don Reno, and worked in his dad's band as a kid, then did a stint with the Osborne Brothers before giving Nashville a shot. At this point in his career, he was writing and pitching songs, some of which Haggard recorded, and here he crafts a pleasant if not totally amazing set of soft-toned '70s country, including three of his own originals and a couple of Hag's lesser-known numbers, as well as a countrypolitan cover of the Beatles' "Hard Day's Night." There's surprisingly little bluegrass influence here (none, really) which makes this album a curious footnote to a long career: Reno went back to the high lonesome sound, forming the Reno Brothers band with his younger siblings many years later.

Wes Reo & The Countrymen "Live At Sandpiper's Trace, Ltd." (Reo Records, 1972-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ernie Bivens, Jesse Bivens & Vince Chory)
Country covers from a little-known but lively band, performing live at an odd venue in North Carolina... Singer-guitarist Wes Reo was apparently really named Wes Crawford, and a decade later was playing gigs in San Diego County, out on the West Coast. I'm not sure which state he was originally from, North Carolina or California, since biographical info proved hard to come by online. Either way, he seems to be fairly well remembered by his SoCal country fans. Anyway, this is a pretty straightforward set of cover tunes, heavy on more contemporary hits from around 1970-71, including gems like Merle Haggard's "Working Man Blues" and "Carolyn," as well as standards like "For The Good Times," "Funny How Time Slips Away," "Good Hearted Woman" and "Country Roads." The compact quartet had a sharp sound worthy of their Merle Haggard cover, with a lineup including Wes Reo on rhythm guitar, along with R. W. Byrum (drums), Bryant Morgan (bass) and Anthony Wynn on lead guitar; it's not clear if any of these sidemen played in later incarnations of the band. Perhaps of equal interest is the venue itself: Sandpiper's Trace was a recreational campground that opened on Roanoke Island in 1970, set up on the site of a dimly remembered "freedmen's colony" of Confederate slaves liberated by the Union Army in 1863. The colony was disbursed after the war, but when Sandpiper's Trace was sold and slated to be commercially developed, archeologists found extensive evidence of the old colony... Though by then the music shows were long gone!

Gary Revel "Revel" (Star City Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Pick & Ray Shockley)
A collection of older singles and albums tracks by Florida native Gary Revel, who played in a couple of high school garage bands before joining the Navy and serving during the Vietnam War. After his discharge he moved to Los Angeles and tried breaking into show business, working in both music and film, notably providing the music for an independent film directed by Titus Moede, called The Last American Hobo. Mr. Revel later moved to Nashville, where he signed up as a staff writer for the Acuff-Rose publishing company. While living in Tennessee, he worked on a book about the murder of Hee Haw star, David "Stringbean" Akeman, a project that seems to have been the catalyst for decades of "investigative work" leading to several books and documentary films on topics such as the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Revel became what was once quaintly known as a conspiracy theorist, back when that was just a harmless pastime. He maintains a robust online presence (circa 2022) and according to his website he still writes and lectures about his various theories. This album gathers various singles, including ones written about Stringbean and MLK, as well as the environmentally-themed "Mother Nature," and a number of songs co-written with Mary Noel and Revel's cousin, Ray Fillingame.

Revival "Revival" (Kama Sutra/Ampex Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Rose)
An ambitious though awkward country-rock outing from a group with clear folkie roots. The liner notes detail how the core duo of singers Dan Daley and Michelle Conway played a bunch of "hoots" in the NYC folk scene, and later picked up a backing band that gave them more opportunity to branch out musically. They harmonize nicely, particularly when he takes the lead with his enthusiastic (and pleasantly dorky) vocals, hitting sort of a Gram Parsons-like vibe; when Conway sings lead, she inevitably leaps into a too-serious, Joan Baez-ian folkie warble, undercutting the country feel that Daley was building up. There's a spiritual-religious undercurrent to some of the songs, though many just seem like spaced-out, word-salad hippie-druggie stuff, which often takes on a quasi-religious tone, just because that's what sometimes happens when you realize you have hands and could fly the spaceship on your own. Musically, the rest of the band is kind of iffy -- the rhythm section is pretty stiff -- but there's some noteworthy pedal steel from Hank DeVito (later a key member of the Emmylou Harris band) and nice fiddling by Larry Packer, of the Cat Mother band. This album isn't really a classic, but it is a nice, authentic slice of early, hippiedelic country-folk. This was the first album featuring Dan Daley, who later struck gold as a songwriter, penning the Charlie Daniels Band hit, "Still In Saigon," a decade later.

Revival "After All These Years" (Blue Mountain Records) (LP)
Hang on... this one might get a little dense. This late 1970s(?) album isn't totally a country thing, but I just spent half the evening tracking their story down online, so I figure I might as well write it down. This group from Indianapolis, Indiana had just three guys in the band -- Ed Moore, Pat Brunner and Larry Lewis -- and the band name on this project (Revival) seems to be a playful reference to their long-running stint as midwestern folkies. Brunner and Moore were in a folk group called The Gateway Trio, which is not to be confused with the Gateway singers spinoff of the same name, or the jazz combo with John Abercrombie, et. al. Anyway, these guys played local gigs forever, jammed with John Mellencamp, etc. etc. Here they cover stuff by John Denver, Dan Fogelberg, Billy Joel, and John Prine, along with a couple of songs (originals?) credited to "Austin," "Maine To Texas" and "Mason Dixon." An article about a show they did circa 2008 refers to the Gateway Trio (in various incarnations, no doubt) playing "on the same stage" for forty-five years... unfortunately no mention of exactly where that might have been. Anyway, that's what I've got... so far.

Andy Reynolds & The 101 Ranch Boys "Our Best To You" (Renco Records, 19--?) (Produced by Mark Rogers)

Andy Reynolds & The 101 Ranch Boys "He Touched Me" (Joel Records, 1971-?)

Jody Reynolds "Endless Sleep" (True Gems Records, 1978)
This was apparently the only full-length album by former '50s teenpop/rockabilly singer Jody Reynolds, who was best known for the 1958 Top Five pop hit, "Endless Sleep," a moody teen tragedy song that inspired a number of imitators (songs like "Teen Angel" and "Tell Laura I Love Her"). Like many early rockers, Reynolds was mainly a singles artist and bounced from label to label. Eventually he retired from show business and moved to Palm Springs and occasionally did gigs on the oldies circuit. This is a pretty cool album, seen from the '70s hippiebilly point of view: pure psych-tinged country-rock, with a spacey, laid-back feel that's similar to stuff by Mike Nesmith or Ricky Nelson. The Nesmith vibe is perhaps reinforced by the guitar work of Al Casey, an LA studio heavy who played on the Monkees albums, and fits in nicely with the loose feel of this album. Reynolds, who sounded fine as a youth-oriented rock singer, shows a few flaws in his older incarnation, but anyone who was willing to forgive, say, Gram Parsons, for his vocal limitations, should be able to do the same for Reynolds here. It's the spirit of the music that counts, and this is some truly groovy, vintage California indie twang, with a little whiff of Buck Owens-style Bakersfield in there as well. Worth tracking down.

Lawrence Reynolds - see artist profile

Neely Reynolds "The Way You See Yourself" (JW Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Joseph Wyndell Productions)
Songwriter Neely Reynolds was an early '70s sensation, or perhaps a flash in the pan, depending on your point of view. In 1974, he won a national competition called "In Search Of The Singing Cowboy," a TV talent contest sponsored by ABC's Wide World Of Entertainment. It was a prestigious win, but didn't have much teeth behind it -- the 24-year old Reynolds made the rounds of a few daytime talk shows but found few doors open to him as a result of the show, and had to retrench for several years while making his living singing in bars. This album came out during that period and was recorded in Dallas, Texas with a band featuring Chicken Hubbard on fiddle, bassist Marc Jaco, Maurice Anderson on pedal steel and some saxophone in the mix as well... This is an ambitious but uneven album: Reynolds seems to have wanted to break through as a Harry Nilsson-style pop auteur, with some airy, lightly orchestrated singer-songwriter musings, stuff that may be of lesser interest to twangfans, but could be catnip for fans of 'Seventies soft-pop. There are also a couple of nice, straightforward countrypolitan tunes; too bad he didn't do a whole record of that stuff! All the songs are originals, and overall this is solid stuff, particularly for someone working so far outside the NY/LA music business mainstream. The album ends on a low note, though, with one of the worst novelty songs I've ever heard, "The Pope And Louis," which imagines a summit meeting in Heaven between the Pope and jazz legend Louis Armstrong, where they sit down and puff on a big old doobie together -- it's hard to tell which is more embarrassing, the song's juvenile chorus of "the Pope smokes dope..." or Neely Reynolds' pale imitation of Armstrong's growling vocal style. Oh, well. It was the 'Seventies. We'll just assume he was super-high when he wrote the song, and unfortunately thought it was hilarious. Eventually, Reynolds got religion and started his own ministry as a singing evangelist, recording many albums, both secular and religious over the years.

Rolly Reynolds "...Sings At The Alisal" (Sunny Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Hal Southern & John Phillips)
Western swing and country oldies by California crooner Rolly Reynolds, who "for many years" had a gig at the Alisal dude ranch and golf club, near the coastal town of Solvang. Not sure when this album was recorded, though it looks early '70s; apparently Reynolds later moved to Arizona, and was using Phoenix as his home base around 1976. To be honest, his vocals are pretty underwhelming, with a nice deep timbre, but problems with phrasing and occasionally with staying on key. However, he's backed by several SoCal country veterans, including guitarist Roy Lanham, Billy Armstrong on violin and Noel Boggs on steel guitar, as well as bassist Dusty Rhoads and drummer Keith Berry. They don't sound super-inspired, but they're competent and add some nice licks throughout. Western balladeer Hal Southern produced the album, showing Reynolds' links to the older West Coast country scene... He recorded at least one single as well, though I think this was his only full album.

Brenda Rhodes "Buchanan County" (Transworld Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Joe Deaton)
Not a lot of info about this southern gal... The title track is an ode to her home of Buchanan County, Virginia, one of four originals she wrote for this album, along with "Blue Page," "Not Tonight, I've Got A Heartache," and a gospel number called "If You Think There's Not A God." That's fully half the album, with only eight tracks total... Ms. Rhodes is backed by Tim Compton on bass, Randy Maris (drums), Bruce Rush (piano), Chuck Tipton (guitar) and Eddie Trent (steel guitar), musicians who were possibly provided by the Bristol-based Transworld label.

Dusty Rhodes "Rosin Dust" (Dungeon Recording Studio, 198--?) (LP)
(Produced by Pat Shikany)
A former child prodigy and championship fiddler from Missouri, old-timer Perry Hilburn "Dusty" Rhodes (1920-2005) was a popular regional performer who had quite a career. He and his brothers Slim Rhodes and Speck Rhodes formed their own "Rhodes Show," and even hosted a TV program for a while; Mr. Rhodes made some waves in Nashville and found success as a songwriter. Perhaps most significantly he got his daughters, Donna and Sandra, into the music business, where they excelled as backup singers -- first in Nashville and then in Southern soul scene, in the fabled Rhodes-Chalmers-Rhodes trio. Sandra Rhodes appears as a guest musician, picking guitar on this instrumental album, while her husband Charlie takes the spotlight playing saxophone on a version of "Jackson." Also backing Mr. Rhodes is his wife Dot, who plays both acoustic and electric lead guitar, and banjo picker Don Thompson who was a stalwart member of the Ozark mini-opry scene in the late 'Seventies and early 'Eighties. Not sure if this was the only Dusty Rhodes album, but he and his brothers also recorded numerous singles, dating back to the early 'Fifties.

Red Rhodes - see artist discography

Ron Rhodes "Down The Road" (Breeze Music, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Leon Forrest Caulkins)
These shaggy, hippie-lookin' Oregon dudes might have been the exact kind of guys that Kurt Cobain and his pals were rebelling against later in the '80s -- plaid-clad older brothers who wouldn't share their beers with those pesky little kids who wanted to borrow their guitars. Anyway, I'm not sure how country this was, but with tunes like "Country Woman" and a cover of Jud Strunk's "Daisy A Day," it's worth a whirl. This was recorded in Lincoln City, Oregon (on the coast, between Portland and Eugene) with David Franklin (lead guitar), L. F. Caulkins (bass and keyboards), and R. Jackson Smith on drums. Most of the songs are originals, with five songs written by Ron Rhodes, and four more penned by the otherwise obscure Gib Pelts, aka Gilbert Lee Pelts, who had been making music for a while: he filed a copyright on a song called "Baby It Will Be All Right," which dates back to 1972 (though it's not on this album...) Oh, and yeah, I know Nirvana weren't from Oregon... but you get my point, right?

Sandy & Donna Rhodes "The Lonesome Rhodes" (RCA Victor, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by Felton Jarvis)
A completely charming folk-country outing, sort of like the Kimberlys or Gale Garnett, but better. Great backstory on this one, as well: hailing from Memphis, the Rhodes sisters were daughters of regional celebrities Dusty Rhodes and Dot Rhodes, singers who recorded for Sun Records in the old days, and who hosted a local TV show that the whole family performed on. Skeeter Davis caught wind of them and championed the gals at RCA, recording some of their original material and urging Chet Atkins to sign off on this album. It's a great record, simple, charming, with the gals singing sassy pop-country crossovers that mix light go-go stylings with a mod-country vibe that reminds me of Waylon Jennings. You can sense that the RCA studio crew weren't quite as hip or as funky as they wanted to be, but if you like the girl-group tinged '60s stuff by Skeeter Davis and Connie Smith, you'll want to check this out. Sandy and Donna went on to forge a truly remarkable career as backup singers singing with some of the best Southern soul and pop artists of the 70s, notably Al Green and O.V. Wright. They sang backup and recorded their own material as RCR, or the Rhodes Chalmers Rhodes trio, with Sandra's husband Charlie Chalmers as the third voice. In addition, both Sandra and Donna recorded their own solo albums, though more solidly in a soul and pop style. This early Nashville folk-pop album, at the beginning of their careers, is a winner... Give it a spin, if you get a chance!

Sandra Rhodes "Where's Your Love Been" (Fantasy Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Sandra Rhodes & Charlie Chalmers)
A remarkable distillation of the two strands of Sandra Rhodes' remarkable career -- a truly funky, truly twangy mashup of musical genres, filtered through the slick, professional Memphis Sound of the early '70s. Ultimately more of a white soul album, this still has strong callbacks to her country roots, including some swell steel guitar, but also the undeniable rural twang of Sandra Rhodes sly, sinuous vocals. On the title track she evokes a much-funkier Carole King, while obvious comparisons to Dusty Springfield and Bonnie Bramblett suffuse the rest of the record. Nevertheless, Rhodes emerges as a singular performer in her own right, and one marvels that she didn't find greater success as a solo artist based on the strength of this album alone. The material is uniformly strong, with a heavy tilt towards straight-up soul on Side Two; even her cover of the Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want" turns out to be a winner, with a sneaky country vibe that transforms it into a rural-rock gem. The RCR trio is at the core of this album, with Charlie Chalmers co-producing and sister Donna Rhodes playing percussion (and presumably adding harmony vocals...) Chalmers and Rhodes clearly benefit from their history as a session players, getting great performances out of the studio crew, which included Butch Johnson and Leo LeBlanc on guitars, Steve Holt on drums, pianist James Brown and a horn section led by Charlie Chalmers on tenor sax. If you get to check this one out, go for it -- it appeals to a wide variety of 'Seventies music fans.

Alan Rhody "Stop The Rain" (Headless Horseman Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Barry "Byrd" Burton, Tom Knox & Alan Rhody)
This was, I believe, the first album by Kentucky-born songwriter Alan Rhody, who was plugging away in Nashville in the late 'Seventies, and took over a year during 1979 and 1980 to record the tracks on this album, squeezing sessions in when he could with a variety of producers. Although he remained a folk-ish indie-niche artist in his own career, Rhody was pretty darn successful as a composer... His biggest hit was the weeper "I'll Be True To You," a song that became the first Country #1 for the Oak Ridge Boys -- Rhody kept 'em coming, with Top Forty tracks recorded by George Jones, Lorrie Morgan, Suzy Bogguss, Toby Keith, and others. His version of "I'll Be True To You" is included on this album, which features backing by Nashville session players attached to the Tree Studios... Alan Rhody can perhaps be seen as an "Americana" artist, playing small gigs and keeping it low-key while also making a living through his Music City contacts. At any rate, this one has been reissued on CD and is easier to find now than it was when it came out, lo those decades ago...

Rhonda (Herzog) "When They Ring Those Golden Bells" (Herzog Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by John Antos, Mark Antos, Marv Herzog & Rhonda Herzog)
Another fine example of the intersection between country music and polka up in the Great Lakes region. This was a "solo" album by multi-instrumentalist Rhonda Herzog, the daughter of polka bandleader and accordionist Marv Herzog. She sings lead vocals and plays bass, guitar and banjo, with Marv Herzog on accordion and cordovox, joined here by two members of Marv Herzog's group, drummer Dave Burner and Don Cialkoszewski on accordion and elkovox. There's no doubt this was a dance band, though she sings several ballads, including several country tunes from the likes of Boudeleaux Bryant ("All I Have To Do Is Dream"), Dick Feller ("Some Days Are Diamonds") erstwhile Pure Prairie League-er Gary Burr ("Love's Been A Little Hard On Me"). In addition there are some polka-ed up adaptations of pop songs such as "Could I Have This Dance" and "Somewhere My Love." This seems to have been her only solo album, and though I haven't gone through all their albums to check, I suspect she played on a few of his other albums. The Herzogs also opened their own hotel in Frankenmuth, Michigan, which also includes a modest museum commemorating his musical career.

The Rice Family "The Rice Family Album: Featuring Lorraine And Bobby" (Cuca Records, 196--?) (LP)
Originally a child member of a regional family country band, Bobby G. Rice had real rural roots... Born in Boscobel, Wisconsin, Rice and his family made nearby Richland Center their center of activity, and they were a real-deal 1950s hillbilly band that performed in gingham and overalls for several years before breaking up as the siblings got older and married off. After a high school fling in a frat rock band, Bobby G. formed a country duo with his sister Lorraine, and when that fizzled out, he set off for Nashville to become a solo star. This reunion album is of late '60s vintage, packed with covers of hits such as "Talk Back Tremblin' Lips," "Tippy Toeing" and "Company's Coming," along with a bit of polka and waltz music that was still popular in the region. Sure would be cool to also hear some of the stuff the Rice Family did in the 'Fifties when they were on the radio, but this is a pretty interesting memento of his early years.

The Rice Kryspies "Sugar Coated" (Fanfare Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Ron Compton)
Describing themselves as "neither hick nor hippie," this bluegrass-folk family band from Southern California was made up of brothers Jim, Joe and Wayne Rice, (on guitar, mandolin and banjo, respectively) as well as Wayne's wife Marci, who played bass and sang harmony. They saw themselves as a Christian group, though they made a concerted effort to appeal to a wider audience, and recorded mostly secular material, peppered with a few Jesus tunes here and there. The band formed in the early '60s as part of San Diego's folk revival scene, though they were still in their teens and early twenties when they cut this album: bandleader Wayne Rice was the oldest member at twenty-three, while younger brother Joe Rice was still in high school. Though they only cut a couple of self-released records, the Rices went on to co-found Brush Arbor, one of the most influential country-gospel groups of the country-rock era.

The Rice Kryspies "A Reason To Believe" (Tortilla Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Ron Compton & Jack Williams)
This was the second album from this Southern California band, with Side One devoted to secular music, and Side Two to religious tunes, all recorded live at the auditorium of the First Presbyterian Church, in San Diego. The group included family members Jim Rice (guitar and pedal steel), Joe Rice (bass and mandolin), Marci Rice (bass), and Wayne Rice on banjo, along with percussionist Pat Stephens. Following this, Marci Rice quit the group in 1971, and the Rice brothers then merged with members of another SoCal band called the Kentucky Faith, recruiting that band's singer, Ken Munds, to create a new group which eventually became known as Brush Arbor.

Dave Rich "Ain't It Fine" (Bear Family Records, 1994)
Songwriter Dave Rich was a favorite of RCA head Chet Atkins, but he fell short of big-time success, after having recorded a couple of dozen tracks in the late 1950s, just as rock'n'roll was knocking Nashville for a loop. Rich's departure from the spotlight was due in no small part because just as his career was starting to cook, he got religion and turned his back on showbiz, choosing instead to become an itinerant Pentecostal preacher. This album charts his career from his early hillbilly material -- where he sounds like an odd, interesting cross between Lefty Frizzell and Hank Locklin -- onto his later work where a panicky Nashville tried to repackage him as a teenybopper rockabilly idol. The country material is fun, but the rock-pop stuff falls flat and sounds pretty insincere. It's okay, but not great. The album closes with four gospel songs from Rich's last RCA session, and these songs are actually pretty interesting, original material penned by a soul-searching singer who was trying to sort out his conflicting feelings about material success as opposed to spiritual glory. It's hardly music with great commercial potential, but looked at from the religious side of things, it's kinda cool. Rich, by the way, wrote "Didn't Work Out, Did It," which Don Gibson later recorded, with great success... the original version is included here, and is one of the album highlights.

Dave Rich "Gospel Time" (Mercury/Cumberland Records, 1964) (LP)
Probably one of more noteworthy of the many cheapie-label knockoff albums cranked out by Mercury Records for their folk-era Cumberland imprint, this features former '50s hillbilly/rockabilly singer Dave Rich, who got religion and went Pentecostal around the time this came out, effectively ending his career in the secular scene. Alas, the Cumberland albums didn't credit their studio crews or producers, so there's no way of telling who backed Rich on this disc.

Dave Rich "Soil Brother" (Stop Records, 1968-?) (LP)
A pretty plainspoken, no-frills vocalist, sort of in the Ernest Tubb school, Dave Rich mostly sang covers of hits like "Green Green Grass Of Home" and several by Merle Haggard, as well as one old-school, cornball recitation song, "The Runt." The musical backing is decent -- a good studio crew backing a modest singer -- nothing dazzling, but it's okay.

Dave Rich "Dave Rich's Greatest Religious Songs Old And New, v.1" (Gusto/Power Pak Records, 1973)

Dave Rich "Dave Rich's Greatest Religious Songs Old And New, v.2" (Gusto/Power Pak Records, 1973)

James (Spider) Rich "The Rich Sound Of Twin Guitars" (True Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Spider Rich & Raymond Rich)
Fancy pickin' and multi-trackin' from longtime Opry guitarist James Q. Rich (1923-2003), who is perhaps best remembered as the co-composer of Boots Randolph's hit instrumental "Yakety Sax," included here as "Yakety Axe." Born in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, Mr. Rich was kin to the Everly Brothers as well as hillbilly gospel singer Dave Rich, and played in several regional bands while still a teen, before joining the Army and serving in World War Two. After demobilizing, he moved to Nashville where he earned a slot on the Opry stage and became an in-demand picker, touring with Lefty Frizzell and other honkytonk stars. He met Music City legend Chet Atkins in the late 1940s and became a close collaborator with Atkins, who recorded several of Rich's tunes, including his own hit version of "Yakety Axe." This album includes contributions from some family members and fellow Kentuckians he knew in his youth, including Mr. Rich's older brother Raymond and nephew Dave Rich, guitarists Mose Roger and Lindell Russ, and a guy simply called Mac, who played harmonica.

James (Spider) Rich "When They Ring Those Golden Bells" (Rich Tone Records, 197--?) (LP)
A slick, mellow set of gospel instrumentals, strongly influenced by Chet Atkins and his affinity for big band-era pop. Indeed, Spider Rich's pal, Chet Atkins, adds liner notes to the album. Not electrifying, but some pretty classy picking, for sure. Sadly, the backing musicians are not identified.

Jeane Rich "Jeane Rich And Friends" (Black Gold Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Jeane Rich, Sid Fendley & Gordon R. DeVore)
An ambitious, or perhaps aspirational, set of country and jazz-ish pop vocals, with several Patsy Cline covers and other swank, torchy tunes such as "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight" and "Mack The Knife," as well as a few country and western swing oldies like "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down" and "San Antonio Rose." This highly informal jam session from Albuquerque, New Mexico featured singer Jeane Rich, backed by a mostly-amateur band, featuring co-producer Sid Fendley on keyboards, Joe Maese Jr. (drums), Don Sawyer (guitar), Scott Tregembo (bass), and Norma Scarberry playing fiddle. Sadly, it's a pretty flawed album, mostly because Ms. Rich was an inconsistent vocalist -- she hits some nice notes and has a few fine passages, but she gets a bit wobbly as well, and her jazz inclinations frequently pull the country stuff off-center. That being said, the gal's a plugger: there are show dates listed online dating back to the early 'Seventies, as well as when this album came out -- right up until the 2020s, when she was still performing in the region, these days with a band called Mixed Company, playing a mix of pop and country oldies.

Rich Mountain Tower "Rich Mountain Tower" (Ovation Records, 1971) (LP)
An interesting and very early '70s country-rock outing from a little-known Tennessee band... Really, though, these folks are mainly anchored in psychedelic folk, with a driving, rock rhythm and lots of jangly guitars and Southern-style slide balancing out the nascent twang. The lyrics are very hippie-dippy and diffuse, spacey, celebratory stuff about being alive and in nature, sung in airy harmonies with pedal steel an 12-string guitar providing sweet counterpoint -- all in all, a very Byrds-y sound. A few Nashville studio pros were brought in to beef up the band's sound -- Charlie McCoy lays down a few hot harmonica riffs, and steel player Weldon Myrick adds gorgeous accompaniment throughout. There's not a lot on here that I would call "country," as opposed to rock, and a few songs may get irritating if you're just in search of country sounds, although for psych/folk-freak fans this record is a real treat. A mixed bag, but a great document of its time.

Rich Mountain Tower "Can't You Feel It?" (Ovation Records, 1976) (LP)

Rich Mountain Tower "Playin' To The Radio" (Beau Geste Records, 1976) (LP)
There's more overt twang on this album, and more of a relaxed feeling overall... Still plenty of rock influences, and particularly a Byrds-y vibe, but the influence of mainstream country-rock comes into play as well, as on the John Denver-esque "Where I Live," as well as numerous tracks that have an Eagles/Poco/Ozark Mountain Daredevils feel. On the uptempo, funky "Sour Mash," they dive headlong into slide-driven Southern rock, but the rest of the record is much mellower -- and though "Good Time Music Band" has a nice, laid-back feel, there's one weird line about how one of his girlfriends used to "make love to a great dane" that was just a little too creepy for me. Ah, the 'Seventies! Anyway, like their other albums, this is a fine musical time capsule, with a handful of tunes that will interest country-rock cratediggers, balanced by rock music that really shows the eclectic spirit of the times. This does seem like a band ripe for some kind of reissue record. Anyone?

Richard & Mary "Take A Chance On Richard And Mary" (Custom Fidelity Records, 1973-?) (LP)
(Produced by Randy S. Cierly)
Though mainly considered a folk duo, Richard & Mary covered some country territory on this sparse, private-press LP, which may have been their first album. Most of the songs are originals, though they also covered Merle Haggard's 1972 hit, "Daddy Frank" along with pop and folk tunes such as "Open The Door" by Judy Collins and Elton John's "Daniel." Born in England, songwriter-guitarist Richard Byford (1945-2020) emigrated to the United States and settled down in Palm Springs, California along with his wife, Mary (Avery) Byford, who plays piano on this album, along drummer Joe A. Crain and producer Randy Cierly playing guitar on a few tunes. The Byfords started their own agency and label, Byway Entertainment, self-releasing several albums and singles over a five-decade span, including the single, California Cowboy," which is not included on this album. I've seen this album listed as coming out in 1979, but I think that's incorrect: some of the tracks came out as singles in 1973, the same year given as the release date of other Custom Fidelity records with adjacent catalog numbers. I'm guessing this was from 1973, or '74 at the latest.

Rod Richard "Rod Richard" (Pirouge Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Chuck Pollard)
Independent modern-day honkytonk in perhaps a Moe Bandy-ish mode... A native of Sulphur, Louisiana (which sounds like a hell of a place to grow up) Mr. Richard was clearly a Hank Williams fan, covering a couple of Hank's classics, along with one each from Harlan Howard and Mel Street, and a couple more by the album's producer (and local club owner) Chuck Pollard, "Back To The Bottle" and "Lonesome And Me." Rod Richard also penned two of the tracks on here himself, "Friday Night Love Affair" and "Lady, Love Me Forever." The liner notes mention Chuck Pollard's ventures as a nightclub owner, so I imagine it's possible Rod Richard was one of the musicians who played there in the early 'Eighties. (Couldn't find much info about him, unfortunately, so for now this album's sparse notes are all we have to go by... Any info is welcome!)

Brian Richards "Brian Richards" (Richard III Music Company, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Keith Johnston)
Wow, talk about intimate. When I saw this disc, I thought Brian Richards was probably some low-level lounge singer (which he may have been) but it's even better than that... way better. Apparently, this entire album was recorded live at his own wedding reception and I'd guess was given out to the guests later as a memento. While there are several distinctly country songs ("I Must Have Been A Cowboy," "Johnny Cash Pickin'," "Superstar Of The Singles Bar") there's also a lot of fabulously bad 'Seventies pop-vocals material, such as the Neil Diamond-esque "Ah! Music" and the plunky keyboard-driven semi-reggae of "My Love Is Alive," one of several songs that seem to be directed at his newlywed wife, Jodi Richards. The band is actually pretty good, particularly guitarist Bruce Gaddy, who goes off on some epic flights on a tune or two. In addition the arrangements are way more ambitious than what you'd expect from a live wedding gig, and while some of the pop ballads are flat-out embarrassing, the country stuff is kinda fun. Richards seems to have been a Californian at the time, providing an address in West Los Angeles for his label, although in the (presumably) autobiographical "I Used To Love To Hear My Daddy Sing," he mentions growing up in Iowa... so your guess is as good as mine.

Digby Richards -- see artist profile

Earl Richards "The Sun Is Shining (On Everybody But Me)" (Ace Of Hearts Records, 1973) (LP)

Earl Richards "Earl Richards" (RPA Productions, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Less Ladd)
Songwriter Earl Richards (born Henry Earl Sinks) was a Texas native, born near Amarillo, who as a teen in the early 1950s played with Bob Wills' Texas Playboys and years later was tapped by producer Norman Petty to replace Buddy Holly in the Crickets, after Holly left the band. When the Crickets gig ended, he headed to Nashville where he enjoyed success as a songwriter in the '60s and started his own label, Ace Of Hearts, establishing himself as a successful music producer along the way. As "Earl Richards," he placed several songs in Billboard country charts during the '70s, including his biggest hit, "Margie, Who's Watching The Baby," which peaked at #29 early in 1973. (A version of that song is included on this album, along with several other originals. This album seems to have been reissued several years later, as seen below. He also recorded an earlier album, The Sun Is Shining (On Everybody But Me), under the name Earl Sinks, and re-released some of that material as Earl Richards...)

Earl Richards "Margie, Who's Watching The Baby" (Berden Records, 1982) (LP)
This appears to be a reissue of the 1976 album above... Not sure if the version of "Margie, Who's Watching The Baby" is the same one as his 1973 hit.

Jim Richards "Sings For You" (Princess Records, 1970-?) (LP)
I dunno how he bankrolled it all, but in the early 'Seventies, Princess Records label owner Jim Richards put out five albums of his own and quite a few LPs and singles by other local and regional artists such as Vivian Bell, Marshall Coiner and several by a bluegrassy band called The Highlanders. A music promoter and manager from Roanoke, Virginia, Mr. Richards made some waves in Nashville in 1971 when he set up shop and started exclusively promoting his own artists, as noted in a fairly long Billboard article. Richards recorded an eclectic and slightly motley group, although early on he recorded some top talent like bluegrasser Jim Eanes. From the albums and singles I've heard, I'd say a collection of tunes from the Princess label is perhaps overdue. Richards himself had one of those thin, gentlemanly voices, like Bill Anderson or Hank Locklin. He sang a lot of his own material (and offered a lot of it to the artists he signed) but he also sang plenty of well-chosen cover songs from a rich selection of composers. There's surprisingly little info that I could track down about him online -- all of the Princess records seem to have come out in a short burst that lasted from 1970-74, with one of his last albums being a funk band from Virginia called Earl Carter And The Fantastic Six. And then what? Anyway, this seems to have been his first album... Based on some of the material -- such as a cover of "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" -- I'd guess it came out in late 1969, or more probably the following year, in 1970.

Jim Richards "I'm Not The Man I Used To Be" (Princess Records, 19--?) (LP)

Jim Richards "Wrong Way: Jim Richards Sings His Own Songs" (Princess Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Jeff Newman)

Jim Richards "Jim Richards Sings His Songs" (Princess Records, 19--?) (LP)

Jim Richards "The Real Wrong Way" (Princess Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Jeff Newman)

Jim Richards "The Real Wrong Way" (Princess Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Jeff Newman)

The John Richards Band "Drinkin' Doubles, Feelin' Single" (John Richards & Pat Sheedy Enterprises, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by John Richards)
A nice obscuro offering from Ottumwa, Iowa, recorded sometime in the late '70s or early '80s. The "John Richards Band" featured Richards and three brothers -- Don, Tom and Tony Blew -- who provide solid harmony vocals on the opening title track, a song that sounds a bit like the Statler Brothers backing Don Walser. There seem to be at least two lead vocalists; I think the other was Tony Blew, who wrote four of the ten songs on this album, and I think it's Blew who has the younger-sounding voice, a bit like Gram Parsons, in fact. Well, despite the lack of liner notes to clarify who done what, this is an excellent privately released album -- there are some amateurish parts, but the quality of the songwriting and the sincerity and conviction of the performances is pretty compelling. Yet another band I'd love to hear more about!

Sheriff Joe Lee Richards "Country: Yesterday, Now And Forever" (Richmar Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Charlie Louvin)
A real-deal, country singin' cop... Joe Lee Richards (1935-2013) was the Sheriff of Saline County, Arkansas, cutting an album with a bunch of Nashville cats, pickers like Johnny Gimble, Buddy Spicher, Buddy Harmon, as well as Charlie Louvin, who arranged and produced the album...

Phil & Betty Richards "You're So Easy To Love" (P & B Records, 1979) (LP)
This husband-wife lounge duo from Portland, Oregon were not strictly country, but there's some twang in there, including covers of "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights," "Long Black Veil," and John Denver's "Back Home Again," although the rest of the record goes in a decidedly pop/pop vocals direction, with stuff like Bobby Goldsboro's "Pen In Hand," "They Call The Wind Mariah," etc. Most of the tracks are just the two of them singing and strumming, though on Side Two they are joined by a drummer named Dale Snyder.

Rusty Richards "Traditional And Contemporary Folk Songs" (Shasta Records, 1969-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jimmy Wakeley)

Rusty Richards "The American Cowboy" (Young Oak Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Rusty Richards & Gene Breeden)
A solo set by cowboy crooner Rusty Richards, who became a member of the legendary Sons Of The Pioneers in 1963 and was with the group off and on for about two decades... Richards was a California native who grew up as a rancher in rural Orange County, and in his teens he got into playing western music -- later, after a hitch in the Marines he headed for Hollywood where he worked as a stuntman on TV westerns. He was championed by a young Burt Reynolds for an audition with the Sons Of The Pioneers, where he yodeled and sang tenor for many years. Richards also was a member of a latter-day version of Hal Southern's old band, the Frontiersmen, led in the late '60s by Ken Curtis, and eventually set himself up as a professional horse trainer before rejoining the Sons in 1974. This album includes a snapshot of Richards with the group on the back cover, but around the time this record came out, Richards was asked to leave the band, and in 1985 he sued them over the use of the group's name and for his share of the profits from a 50th anniversary album released in '82, having himself been kicked out of the band in '84. (Did you really need to know all this? Well, maybe not, but there it is, anyway...) The lawsuit was apparently resolved amicably, and Richards continued to sing (and write) cowboy songs for years to come, appearing at the Gene Autry museum and other SoCal venues. I gotta say, this album seems a little rough around the edges, but it does contain a wealth of original material, and is worth checking out if you're a diehard western music fan.

Turley Richards "West Virginia Superstar" (CBS-Epic Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Ron Bledsoe & Troy Seals)
Wow... I would never, ever in a million, bazillion years have guessed that an album like this -- with that picture of a dorky-looking, longhaired good-old-boy, a guy named Turley, for goodness sake! -- wouldn't be a country record. Instead, it's more of a whiteboy Southern disco-soul album, and a pretty good one at that. Originally from West Virginia, Richards was an ex-rockabilly singer from the late '50s who slid into soul and pop vocals, in sort of a Jackie Wilson-meets-The Righteous Brothers mode. This later record, despite being recorded in Nashville and despite the presence of country-afilliated artists like producer Troy Seals and Janie Frickie (who sings harmony), is more like an Atlanta Rhythm Section or Average White Band record. Oh, well. Can't win 'em all! But all of y'all who are into the whole retro-disco thing... well hey, you might want to check this one out.

Jim Richardson & Purebred "Who Are Those Guys?" (Starting Gate Music, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Vince Emmett)
A fixture on the Lexington, Kentucky bar scene, singer Jim Richardson led the band Purebred from 1977-83, with this album recorded pretty much in the middle of their run. Although they definitely projected a country image and played country-rock twang, there are also a few regrettable doses of '70s-ish AOR and herky-jerky jam-band rock in there, too, with maybe just a hint of disco rhythm as well. The sound mix isn't great, though this album is notable for a wealth of original material... The twangier tunes are respectable, in a New Riders Of The Purple Sage kinda way... Which, by the way, is probably the band they stole their album title from... A little iffy, overall, but worth a spin. (Note: the album's producer Vince Emmett, who plays pedal steel and guitar on some tracks, worked at the independently-owned Lemco music studio, which was a hub for up-and-coming bluegrass talent, and went on to become a well-regarded country/Americana producer and film music composer.)

Randy Richardson "A Country Called Heaven: Country Gospel Music" (Gospel Media, 19--?) (LP)
Aww. This one was disappointing: despite its proclamations of being a "country" album, this gospel set is mostly just Mr. Richardson strumming solo in a Sunday school folksinger mode, although there is one track, "Shadow Of The Cross," where he imitates the classic 1950's Johnny Cash chunka-chunka rockabilly riff -- other than that, though, it's mostly a folk-guitar style. Half the songs are credited to Richardson, along with covers of songs by Laverne Tripp, Marty Robbins, the Rambos and others. Slightly long-haired, Richardson was a California native living near Sacramento who recorded several albums back in the 'Seventies, and may eventually have had a ministry of his own.

Randy Richardson "Can't Stop Praisin' The Lord" (Gospel Jubilee Records, 1974) (LP)

Joe Richie "Live At O. T. Price's Music Hall" (Red Dirt Music, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Hewlitt Crist)
An excellent set of independent, old-school bar-room country music, with strong, simple songs and plenty of twang, recorded by a Panhandle transplant to the California shores. In the liner notes Richie goes out of his way to explain the meaning and origin of the term "red dirt music," an amorphous regional music movement which was named after the iron-heavy, crimson soil of Oklahoma... This is a rambunctious live set recorded at O. T. Price's Music Hall, a country music venue in Santa Cruz, California that was open from 1979-1990. O.T.'s was a well-loved showcase club for local and national roots music acts, and is pictured on the back cover. Great record... Highly recommended, particularly for fans of pre-Nashville George Strait.

Robert Richie "Hail We Americans" (Pyasaw Music Studio, 19--?) (LP)

Robert Richie "Writer-Producer" (Pyasaw Music Studio, 19--?) (LP)

Alex Richman "Salty" (Capitol Records, 1972) (LP)
Definitely more of a rock-oriented 'Seventies singer-songwriter kinda thing, ala Carole King or Helen Reddy, though the presence of several high-profile country-adjacent studio musicians does demand our attention. Los Angeles-based singer-pianist Alex Richman is backed by a shifting lineup that included (among others) Ry Cooder, Jesse Ed Davis, Chris Ethridge and Wayne Perkins... Sure, there are bongos, trumpets and saxophones in the mix, but there's definitely a rootsy core as well. This appears to have been Richman's only solo set, although she later joined the more blues-based Butts Band, playing on the second album of the post-Doors project led by John Densmore and Robby Krieger.

Richmond Recipe "Richmond Recipe" (Eastern Recording Studios, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Harmon & Tim Williams)
That would be Richmond, Virginia, home of songwriter John O. Atkinson, who's also the lead singer. This album, which is a mix of bluegrass and country, seems to have been a vanity album with backing by a pickup band -- the liner notes indicate he hired them all one by one. The lineup was John O. Atkinson (rhythm guitar, vocals), Dave Garrett (banjo), Craig Wingfield (dobro), Mel Hughes (bass), Ray Garrett (steel guitar), Bruce Nicholls (lead guitar) and Wally Southworth on drums. As for their pedigrees, Wingfield and Garrett were recruited from Chief Powhatten's band; Hughes from a group called the Grasscutters, and apparently Ray Garrett also toured with Cal Smith. Almost all the songs are Atkinson originals, along with cover tunes such as "Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain," "Making Believe" and Jimmie Rodgers' "Waiting For A Train," all of which reveal a healthy love of old-school, pre-honkytonk sentimental stuff. Apparently only a thousand copies were pressed back in '75.

George Riddle "The Sunny Side Of George Riddle" (Parthenon Productions, 196-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Boles)
Novelty-oriented songwriter George V. Riddle (1935-2014) was an Indiana lad who made it pretty big in Nashville. He landed a spot in George Jones's backing band, The Jones Boys, and penned over a dozen songs recorded by his boss, while also placing tunes with country stars such as Mickey Gilley, Melba Montgomery, Del Reeves and Faron Young. According to an online bio, he recorded seven albums(!) and at least a couple dozen singles, so one would hope that a collector-label compilation would be forthcoming!

George Riddle "Riddle 'N' Rhyme" (Marathon Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Shot Jackson & Doug Taylor)
This album includes the song "King Of Country Music," his tribute to Nashville patriarch Roy Acuff (who perhaps not coincidentally write the liner notes) along with some real country mopers, such as "I Wouldn’t Know About That," "She Learned To Live With Me" and "They Bought The House Next Door," while gospel fans may enjoy the album's closer, "Only God Knows Every Story." This album was released on a Canadian label and recorded at studio in Ontario, with a largely local studio band... The ever-itinerant North Carolinian Shot Jackson co-produced the session and chimes in on dobro, with additional backing by Mel Aucoin on rhythm guitar, Brian Barron (fiddle), Mike Francis (lead guitar), Roddy Lee (drums), Bob Lucier (steel guitar), Greg Smith (bass), and Stan Szelest on piano.

Jimmy Riddle "Country Harmonica" (Mercury/Cumberland Records, 1964) (LP)
An old-timer who played in Roy Acuff's band starting back in the 1940s, Jimmy Riddle (1918-1982) also did a bunch of session work in Nashville and later appeared as a regular on the Hee Haw TV show. He's backed here by an anonymous band on one of Mercury Records' budget label imprints. While on Hee Haw, Riddle teamed up with guitar picker Jackie Phelps where they jammed together as "the Hambone Brothers," introducing the weird improvisational vocal style known as "eefing" to a mainstream audience.

Leslie Riddle "Step By Step" (Rounder Records, 1993)
(Produced by Mike Seeger)
Speaking of The Carter Family, here is a lovely disc that a pal of theirs, guitarist/folklorist Lesley Riddle, made during the waning days of the '60s folk revival. Riddle was an African-American performer originally from Burnsville, North Carolina who played in several Depression-era stringbands, notably around Bristol, Tennessee, which became ground zero for the birth of modern country music, back in the late 1920s. Mr. Riddle shared (and sought out) many songs for A.P. Carter to add to the Carter Family's early repertoire -- in fact, you could almost say he was to the Carter Family what George Martin was to the Beatles, acting as a musical mentor to both A.P. and Sara Carter. This disc was the result of some serious song-chasing by Mike Seeger, who brought Riddle out of retirement during the folk revival, and who accompanies him on autoharp. It's truly lovely stuff that shows Riddle's gift for delicate lyrical expression, and emotional resonance. This disc is getting harder to find, but is well worth the search.

Richard Riddle "Cowboy" (no label, 1975) (LP)
A mega-custom pressing with no album art (a plain white cover) and only the song titles on the inner label. This disc was a memento of, or possibly a reference material for, an off-Broadway biographical play written about "cowboy painter" Charles M. Russell (1864-1926) a folkloric figure who was born in the Midwest but moved to Montana in his teens. Russell is often seen as a romantic figure who set out to capture the spirit of the open frontier, which he saw vanishing by the turn of the century as the open plains were being fenced off and the rough-and-tumble wild west was settling down. First staged in 1975, the play featured a libretto by Jess Gregg and music by Richard Riddle, and was performed by a cast that included David Canary as Russell, playing opposite Cyd Charisse's niece, Zan Charisse. The musical was panned by critics, and appears to be Riddle's only play staged for Broadway, although it found a second life in regional performances in Montana. I'm not sure how twangy or "country" this recording is, or who performs on the tracks, as there are no liner notes or information online (that I could find) about these recording sessions. The album "cover" pictured here is from an old listing on eBay; apparently it was a plain white cover with the title hand-scrawled with a black marker... Not sure how many copies of this disc were actually pressed.

Ozzie Ridings "It's Finally Over" (Ribbit Record Company, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Nelson Larkin & Steve Scruggs)
Old-school country twang from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with songs such as "If I Never See Your Face Again" "Don't Wake Me If I'm Dreaming," "I've Forgotten How To Love" and "I Gave You A Diamond (You Gave Me A Heartache)."

Len Ridley "On The Banks Of Old Chattanooga" (Sounding Board Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Otis Forrest)
An amateur singer from Taylors, South Carolina who specialized in old-time stuff, Len Ridley was apparently a mobile home salesman who played at bluegrass festivals and other gigs in and around Greenville... The liner notes for this album were by Raymond Fairchild, so you know it's the real deal.

Rig "Rig" (Capitol Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Elliot Mazer & Adam Mitchell)
An amiable, but fairly inconsequential country-rock(ish) outing notable for Nashville heavyweight Kenny Buttrey playing drums, with his twangy colleague Weldon Myrick also sitting in on one track, though for the rest of the record it's Artie Richards who contributes on pedal steel. The driving force of this band came from the principal songwriters, Kendell Kardt and Don Kerr, who seem like your average early 'Seventies, middle-American semi-longhair dudes who got caught up in the cosmic vibes of the time. Kardt was the better-known of the two, a kid from Queens, New York whose career always skirted on the edges of success. Beginning in the 1960s, Kardt was in a series of bands and projects that fell apart just when a major label deal looked likely... This album turned out to be his magnum opus; a couple of solo projects followed, but both were shelved by the labels involved. He moved into the 'Seventies folk scene, but doesn't seem to have recorded much beyond this hippie-era album. As a legacy, this record ain't bad -- the songs are rambling and inchoate, expressive but unformed, but they also have a quavering, fragile sincerity that probably has more appeal for the folk-freak crowd than for us twangsters. I suppose it wasn't implausible that these guys could have succeeded, given the eclectic artistic environs of the era, though as fate would have it, Rig was destined to be one of those weird, obscure artifacts of a very inventive era.

John Riggs "Bluejeans & Country Ways" (JRM Records, 19--?) (LP)
Cool souvenir album from Nashville-based songwriter John Riggs... Although he wasn't a smash hitmaker, Riggs had an impressive track record at selling his songs to several bona fide Nashville stars, and placed several in the Top Ten. This album features his own versions of songs that were recorded by folks such as Dave Dudley, Stonewall Jackson, George Jones, Loretta Lynn, Marty Robbins, Hank Snow, Mel Street, Conway Twitty and Don Williams. Unfortunately, the liner notes don't give much insight into where or when this record was made, but if you're a fan of songwriters performing their own material, you might want to track this one down.

Riley "Grandma's Roadhouse" (Mo-Fok Records, 1970)
Honkytonker Gary Stewart was a sideman for this obscuro hippie-soul/country-rock outing, playing in a small band led by singer Riley Watkins. It's fun stuff, with a rough-and-ready proto-Southern rock feel that Stewart's fans will recognize from his later records. Watkins is kind of iffy singer, but the music is still fun. Originally released as a vanity pressing in Florida, this has seen the light of day during the reissue renaissance of the post-millennial digital era. Worth checking out, particularly if you're a Gary Stewart fan.

Bartow Riley "Panhandle Fiddling" (Kanawha Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Ken Davidson)
A television repairman by trade, Bartow Riley was also an old-timey fiddler from Oltan, Texas, accompanied here on this disc by guitarist V. C. "Zipp" Durrett from nearby Lakeview, TX, as well as Ollie Miller, a picker and truck driver from Rotan, and Nolan Price, of Shamrock. Years earlier, Riley recorded for County Records, contributing several tracks to a collection called TEXAS HOEDOWN, which also featured his idol, Benny Thomasson.

Don Riley & The Coolie Hand Band "Live At Borrowed Money" (Kanawha Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Don Caldwell)
A live album led by singer-guitarist Don Riley, along with Acton Brumley on bass, Charles Hughes and Jack Sykes on lead guitar, and Jessee York, playing a gig that was recorded live at a venue called the Borrowed Money, in San Angeleo, Texas... They seem to have been fairly joke-oriented, with pix of the guys wearing, variously, cowboy hats, turbans, jogger sweatbands, KISS makeup and greasepaint beards straight out of the old hillbilly comedy shows. The set list includes a lot of crowd-pleasers, a mix of old and new hits such as "Amarillo By Morning" (still kind of a new tune bubbling up on the Texas scene), "Lonesome Fugitive" and "Swinging Doors" (yay, Merle!), "San Antonio Rose," "Truck Driving Man," "Sweet Home Alabama," and the album closes -- of course! -- with yet another version of Ray Wylie Hubbard's "Up Against The Wall, Redneck Mother." Dunno much more about these fellas, though Don Riley may have worked revue gigs up around Branson, Missouri, earlier in the decade.

Harold Riley & The Country Rush "Live At The Gold Rush" (198-?) (LP)
Lo-fi, low budget, but good music... This live album captures a West Coast bar band tearing through a bluesy, twangy set that included some early Rodney Crowell stuff, so despite the lack of any discographical info (not even song titles) I'd place this one as an early '80s album, maybe around 1981-82, possibly later. It's a good record, but a bit of a mystery. Anyone out there know anything about this band?

Jay Riley "I Just Wanted To Make A Record" (Windchime Records, 1973)
(Produced by Harold Lee, Larry Henley, Larry Keith & Johnny Slate)
Not a lot of info on this one, which appears to have been a Nashville demo set... Singer Jay Riley may have been from Texas (the liner notes mention some crazy times in Amarillo) but he recorded this set in Tennessee, with a crew that included studio pros Stu Basore on steel guitar, Jimmy Colvard (lead guitar), Jimmy Isbell (drums), Grady Martin (guitar), Tony Migliore (piano), David Shipley (guitar), Don R. Smith (bass) and Bobby Thompson playing rhythm guitar. About half the songs are Jay Riley originals, with most of the rest written or co-written by producers Larry Henley and Johnny Slate, whose Windchime publishing company sponsored this album. Among Riley's own songs is "The Big Bar-B-Que," which was apparently based on the incident in Amarillo, and was his impetus for making this album. Anyone know more about this guy?

Rimrock "Rimrock" (Rimrock Records, 1981)
(Produced by Buzzy Smith)
An excellent, well-realized, professional-sounding country-rock set by a band from Lafayette, Louisiana... This is all very smooth and Poco-delic, but nicely done, with excellent musicianship and and with some pretty strong songwriting as well. If you like the classic, LA-based Top 40 country-rock sound of the 'Seventies, you'll want to check these guys out. Not to be confused with the fabled Ozarks indie, Rimrock Records, this was a private imprint of the band, with this LP apparently the only release. The group included lead singer Mark MacDiarmid on piano and guitar, B.B. Pride (drums), Righty Schwartz (rhythm guitar), Jake Steel (pedal steel) and Howdy Walls on bass. The songs are all all originals credited to either Mark MacDiarmid or David McBane (who I suspect is one of the musicians above, using a stage name); MacDiarmid also released at least one single under his own name, with Rimrock listed as the backing band.

Jim Ringer "Any Old Wind That Blows" (Philo Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Ringer & Michael Couture)
Really nice. I'm used to thinking of California troubadour Jim Ringer (1936-1992) as more of a "folk" artist, and as the longtime partner of singer Mary McCaslin, but this set of country twang is a real delight. It's most cover tunes, including hillbilly classics such as Roy Acuff's "As Long As I Live," Jimmy Driftwood's "Good Woman's Love" and Don Reno's "I Know You're Married But I Love You Still," as well as bluesier numbers like "Sittin' On Top Of The World," and an outstanding, wonderfully lusty version of "Stackolee" (here entitled "Mrs. DeLion's Lament," with a songwriter's credit to Ringer...) McCaslin sings harmony on several tracks, and in this oldies-country context, they evoke the hardrock sentimentalism of duos such as Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper... Ringer's own vocals bring to mind robust vocalists such as Hoyt Axton and old-fashioned twang-stars such as Roy Acuff, and a couple of tracks that feature a small horn section have a boozy charm reminiscent of Leon Redbone. All in all, a swell album... highly recommended!

Rio Grande "Rio Grande" (RCA Victor, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Dale Hawkins)
This pioneering but short-lived country-rock band was an offshoot of the Tyler, Texas rock group, Mouse & The Traps, and featured several members of that band, including lead singer Ronny Weiss, bassist David Stanley and drummer Ken Murray, along with producer Dale Hawkins, who had previously worked with Mouse & The Traps and had the band back him on his own late-'60s records. The trio was joined by pedal steel player Bobby Tuttle and bassist Tom Russell (though not the same Tom Russell known to Americana fans of the '80s and '90s...)

Rio Grande Band "Playin' For The Door" (Rounder Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Craig Chambers & The Rio Grande Band)
A groovy set of longhaired western swing -- great music by a great band, right up there with the best by Asleep At The Wheel. Lead singer Craig Chambers was a native Texan who dug western swing and led this band for several years, notably as the "house band" for the original Broadway run of the play, The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas. Chambers and the band opened the play, with Chambers as narrator -- many years later, he joined the retrodelic Time Warp Tophands, with steel player Tom Morrell. Before all that, there was this record... and it's really a gem. There are several classic tracks on here, notably the illicit substance anthem, "Mean Old Alcohol," and rollicking renditions of oldies such as Spade Cooley's "Crazy 'Cause I Love You," "Four Five Times," several Hank Thompson tunes, including "Hillbilly Band From Mars" and "Total Strangers," as well as the uptempo "Blue Blue Bonnet Lady," all given plenty of instrumental kick from top-flight folks such as steel player Doug Jernigan, Bucky Meadows on piano, and the twin fiddles of Ernie Reed and Hoot Hester. These songs were all in heavy rotation on KFAT when I was a kid (sorry, do I talk about them too much?) and it's no wonder why... This is fun stuff! A couple of tracks are skippable, but that's why turntables have tone arms... All in all, a real '70s treasure.

Rio Grande Gold "# 1" (Turquoise Trail Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Rio Grande Gold)
This band from Cerritos, New Mexico included local legend Lewie Wickham who'd led a trio, a duo and a solo career before going all-out country with these guys. This was a pretty ambitious album, spanning honky-tonk, country-pop, folk/countrypolitan ballads and a little bit of outlaw twang... Wickham was just one of several lead singers, notably latina singer Kay Kay Baca, whose chirpy voice had hints of Dolly Parton as well Dolly's sister, Crystal Gayle, who she seems to have been channeling on the perky pop of "Before My Heart Falls Prey." She sings several solo numbers, as well as a few duets with Wickham and the other male lead singer. With a wide stylistic scope and a very professional attitude, these guys had a strong almost-but-not-quite feel -- you can taste the hit potential, but the magic's not quite there in the recordings. Still, this is a good record from a very focussed, ambitious regional band, a better-than-average record from a group that clearly hoped to break through into the big time. A little softer than I usually like my twang, but definitely worth a spin.

The Rio Grande River Boys/Tex Ritter "Starring Tex Ritter" (Premier Records, 1966-?) (LP)
This is one of those bait-and-switch cheapo budget LP where a few tracks by a brand-name artist are padded out with stuff by some unknown musicians... This disc is split between some Tex Ritter tunes of obscure provenance, backed on Side Two by a handful of western songs sung by an anonymous ensemble called the Rio Grande River Boys. No info about who they were, though it's possible they were a real band and were contemporaries of Tex Ritter -- his tracks were apparently originally from made-for-tv video clips that date back to the early 1950's, so maybe theirs did, too. The tracks on this album are also to be found on an LP on the Coronet imprint.

The Rio Grande River Boys "Music From Out Of The West" (Spin-O-Rama Records, 196-?) (LP)
This disc features several of the same tracks as the split LP above, along with many western tunes also credited to the Rio Grande River Boys. Are they all by the same artists? I'm sure somebody out there knows, but alas, it ain't me.

Jerry Riopelle "Take A Chance" (ABC Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Jerry Riopelle, David Plenn & Keith Olson)
Originally from Florida, rock producer Jerry Riopelle broke into the early 1960s pop scene and established himself as part of the Los Angeles/West Coast musical elite... Although this mid-'70s album is mostly an overblown, self-indulgent rock-pop muddle, there is one track on here, Riopelle's own "Red Ball Texas Flyer," that is a genuine 'Seventies alt-country classic, a chugging, uptempo, irresistible country parody that was played constantly on KFAT, and it still brings a little smile to old coots like me from time to time. The studio musicians on this album are mostly groovy, slick, too-smooth LA regulars, but for the twangy stuff, Riopelle recruited bluegrassers such Sam Bush, Alan Munde and Byron Berline, along with flatpicker Tony Recupido, and he gave studio pro Waddy Wachtel a chance to stretch out on steel guitar. Mostly, though, this is a skippable record, at least from a twangfan's perspective.

Rising Sons "Featuring Taj Mahal And Ry Cooder" (Sony Music, 2008)
(Produced by Terry Melcher)
This semi-legendary band was an early home to two of the greatest roots music revivalists of the 1970s, folk-blues guru Taj Mahal and twang auteur Ry Cooder, who gigged together around Los Angeles for a couple of years, between 1964-66. A popular live act, they were signed by Columbia Records, but their lone album was shelved and left in the vaults for decades -- another, earlier archival edition came out on Rhino Records. Although the group was noted for their diversity and the difficulty pigeonholing them into a single genre, most of these tracks have a heavy, muscular blues-rock feel, more of a boogie-rock thing, and not quite what drew fans to the later, lighter, more subtle work of both Cooder and Mahal. Still, it's worth checking out, just so you know what was going down, man. Y'know... back in the day.

Ritchie Brothers "A Tribute To The Delmore Brothers" (Rural Rhythm Records, 1968) (LP)
(Produced by Jim O'Neal & Lee Sutton)
An homage to The Delmore Brothers, sung by a couple of guys who were actually their contemporaries... Siblings Galen Ritchie and Melvin Ritchie were original cast members on the WWVA Jamboree back in the 1930s and 40s, though their whereabouts in the intervening years is a bit shrouded in the fogs of time. They are accompanied on this folk-revival album by dobro picker Peggy Peterson and Smiley Sutter on harmonica, with the Ritchie brothers both singing and playing guitar. I wasn't able to figure out where the Ritchies were originally from, but would welcome any info!

John Lutz Ritter "Welcome To Lutz" (Cat Tail Records, 1981-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Aerts & John Lutz Ritter)
Tampa, Florida deejay John "Lutz" Ritter got his nickname from a regional hit that he penned, "In Beautiful Downtown Lutz," which is a pretty damn funny song, poking fun at the smalltown Tampa suburb of Lutz, and the stereotype the town apparently had as kind of a lost-in-time, redneck paradise... Ritter just piles it on, joke after joke, and they add up to one fine novelty song. The song was in heavy rotation at the country station where he DJ-ed, but it stands up on its own merits and is still a pretty great novelty song. Think, "Luckenbach, Texas" or "London Homesick Blues," as written by Jeff Foxworthy, and you'll be in kind of the right neighborhood... Side One of this album is all originals, including "Beautiful Downtown Lutz," while Side Two includes cover songs such as "Rocky Top" and "Rollin' In My Sweet Baby's Arms."

River City Good Tyme Band "Lonesome Wind" (Tumble Weed Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Ronnie Dobbs & The RCGTB)

The River Mist Band "Country Partners: Favorite Country Duets" (Pickwick International, 1979) (LP)
I have no info on this one, who the musicians were, etc., though obviously it was a cheapo exploitation album commissioned by the Pickwick budget label to capitalize on the country duets tradition that was still popular in Nashville in the '70s. The thing is, despite the odd provenance, I bet this is actually pretty good. I'll let you know when I finally track a copy down.

River Road "Lay Back Country Style" (1982) (LP)

(Clyde Brewer's Original) River Road Boys "Country Music High" (Longhorn Records, 1985) (LP)

River Saint "River Saint" (Van Dyke Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Gary Vandy, Pat Powers & Mike Guerra)
A Miami-based rock band, with bassist Jim Keegan and guitarist Steve McNamara splitting the lead vocals, and producer Gary Vandy chiming in on guitar. The songs are all originals, mostly second-rate, very DIY '70s rock, though some tracks definitely fall into the country-rock category, with echoes of bands like America and Firefall, albeit with more of a spaced-out, psychedelic/amateur hour "outsider art" feel. Keegan composed more than half the songs, while McNamara wrote one, and drummer Steve Brettholtz added three more. These rambling, minimally-produced tracks definitely fall short of greatness, but there is a certain naive sweetness and earnest authenticity that's appealing to fans of the era.

Riverrock "Riverrock" (SRC Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Riverrock & Ron Ubel)
Longhaired bluegrassers from Kansas City. To be honest, these guys were not top-flight pickers -- they plunk their way through standards like "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" and "Orange Blossom Special," and well as grassed-up versions of old honkytonk tunes like "Jambalaya" and "Oh, Lonesome Me," as well as few nods at rock'n'pop, like clompy bar-band renditions on the Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends" and John Denver's "Thank God I'm A Country Boy." It's all adequate, but not sizzling. They hint at bigger things with their pedal steel-tinged cover of the Byrds' "You Ain't Going Nowhere," which is the only plugged-in tune on here. Curiously enough, a couple of years later they cut a single with two songs written by fiddler/lead singer Jim Blanton, which I guess they started tucking into the album from '75 -- that's how I found mine -- and it's really quite good. The songs, "Come On In" and "Pine Mountain Railway" have an electrified, Byrds-y feel, and were a sign of things to come, when they shifted into more of a country group. Here, though, they are more or less a straight-up, amateur-level progressive bluegrass band.

Riverrock "Still Live And Pickin' " (Rockin' W Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Riverrock)
This live album shows the Riverrock band in a more stripped-down mode, playing spunky bluegrass and acoustic-swing tunes, mainly covers of country and bluegrass standards such as "Gotta Get Drunk," "Nashville Cats," "Six Pack To Go" and "Fox On The Run," as well as a trio of original songs by brothers John and Paul Mumma: "Another Girl Like You," "I Love You Now" and "Lost Road At Midnight." This LP documents a July 9, 1977 show at Putsch's Strawberry Patch, a restaurant-lounge venue in Overland Park, Kansas that hosted a variety of musical acts. The sound quality's so-so, and the performances are pretty scrappy, but it's a nice picture of a DIY local band with their fans in full force, cheering them on. The Asleep At The Wheel-ish swing songs showed a promising, vigorous direction for the band, and it would have been nice to hear more of their own material, but overall this is a nice souvenir of bygone times... Worth a spin!

Riverrock "Midwest Man" (SRC Records, 1980)
This album marked a major change of direction for Riverrock, with the band ditching bluegrass in favor of a deliberately commercialized, bigger country sound, some of it kind of Firefall-ish or Poco-esque, some of it inching into the glossy style of Top 40 bands such as Alabama. The new lead singer, Rick Harrelson, sounded like a cross between Kenny Rogers and Jonathan Edwards, matching the bland material and the equally uninspiring arrangements. On a few tunes you can hear echoes of their earlier style, with bluegrass licks and novelty lyrics coming to the fore... But mostly this one's kind of rough going... Uneven, at best.

Eddie Rivers & The Country Stones "Rock Into Country" (Eastern Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Harmon)
Formed around 1975, The Country Stones were a twangband from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where Kentucky-born lead singer Eddie Rivers had settled down; the other guys in the band -- Scott Shenk (lead guitar), Marlin Mitchell (bass), Gary Good (rhythm guitar) , Bob Winters (drums) -- lived in nearby Strasberg, PA. This was their first album, a self-released record that enjoyed some regional success in the Midwest and along the East Coast, including an appearance on the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree. I'm not sure how continuous the band's work was in between this album and the one that followed over a decade later, though apparently Rivers recorded a single or two in the early 'Eighties, which started his association with the independent Charta label.

Eddie Rivers "Straight Up Country" (Charta Records, 1989) (LP)
(Produced by Charlie Fields & Jim Tarbutton)
Making the pilgrimage to Nashville, Eddie Rivers got hooked up with an all-star cast of studio pros, including fiddler Wade Landry, John Propst (keyboards), Leon Rhodes (lead guitar), Jack Ross (bass), triple threat Bruce Watkins (banjo, guitar and mandolin) and Tommy White on dobro and steel guitar. Apparently he had a back-forty chart entry with the song "You Won The Battle," though this appears to have been the commercial peak of his career. (I've seen this album and Mr. Rivers conflated with a steel player named Eddie Rivers who appears to be a younger member of the Texas-based Asleep At The Wheel band; I'm pretty sure these are two different guys. (Though I could be wrong... it happened once before!)

Jack Rivers & The Detours "At The Sand Box, Honolulu Hawaii, Sand Island Road" (Sandbox Records, 19--?) (LP)
A veteran West Coast honkytonker from the post-WWII era, Jack Rivers (1917-1989) really made his name in Los Angeles, where he recorded for Capitol Records and cut influential versions of "Dear Oakie" and "Detour." Rivers worked his way through a variety of popular bands, most notably backing Johnny Bush as well as western star Jimmy Wakely. Although he was pretty successful in LA, from there Rivers moved around a lot, starting in the 1950s with a long stint in Seattle where he recorded for a series of small labels, including several of his own imprints. This undated album documents a Hawaiian interlude, where Rivers and his band headlined a nightclub on Sand Island, in the Honolulu harbor. It's not clear when this LP came out, although it looks early 'Seventies to me; the inclusion of "Little Old Wine Drinker Me" (a song that actor Robert Mitchum took to the charts in 1967) makes this at least a late 'Sixties outing. This edition of his band The Detours included singers Sunny Estes and Sheila Tilton, as well as Warren Johnson and drummer Jim Webb, each of whom got solo spotlight numbers.

Jack Rivers & The Detours "Alsie Records Presents..." (Alsie Records, 19--?) (LP)
Another indie-label outing, released on one of Jack Rivers' own labels. The imprint was named after his wife, Alsie Rivers.

Riverstreet "Riverstreet" (Rare Summer Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Mike Summerfield)
More of a southern rock thing by this band from Charleston, West Virginia... The group was led by lead singer/guitarist Marshall Crowder, who wrote most of the band's original material. Other members included Fred Blackwell (lead vocals), Fred Lacy (drums), John Wiseman (bass), Bugs Workman (rhythm guitar) and Rosie Workman (vocals). Not totally sure how "country" to consider these guys, bu there was definitely some twang in the mix... Also worth noting that there are other bands called Riverstreet, including a late 'Seventies band from Georgia that was basically a straight-up hard rock group.

The Rize-N-Fast Band "Recorded At The Stompin' Ground" (Nashville Remote Recordings, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Conrad Jones)
This was a live set recorded at a country venue in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, a place called the Stompin' Ground which was literally housed in a big, old barn. It seems to have had some connection to the Opry, like sort of a farm-team concert hall(?). Anyway, this band included Arthur L. Fisher, Angoe M. Derrick, Travis Fisher, Ralph A. Tonney, E. T. Jackson... not much info about them that I could find, though.

The R. J. Keen Band "Some Days Are Just So Blue" (Abattoir Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Goga & Lewis Mark)
Yeesh. It's records like this that force me to admit that I may have hit rock-bottom on this whole obscuro-country thing. I mean, I just had to check it out after I confirmed that, yes, this was a follow-up album by Midwestern folkie Larry Keen, who recorded an odd folk-pop/outlaw album a few years earlier, here officially teamed up with his pal, R. J. Pollack, who had also played on Keen's Ventilated Stetson album, back in '75. By this time, they seem to have been kicking it full-time in LA and this time around going full-steam-ahead for a gooey, 'Seventies pop-AOR sound, ala Harry Chapin/Seals & Croft/Paul Davis, complete with a disco rhythm section on several songs, and plenty of emotive anguish in the lyrics. They rehash a song from '75 ("Marco Polo") and disastrously cover Smoky Robinson's "My Girl," and presumably were doing enough coke that they'd convinced themselves that this was really great stuff. But then again, who am I to judge? I'm sure there's someone out there for whom this marginal would-be Top Forty pop is just as compelling as some marginal, would-be Top Forty country is to me. (And if you could actually follow that last sentence, congratulations! You've won your very own no-prize, courtesy of DJ Joe Sixpack!) Anyway, if you want my honest opinion, this is a dreadful record, although I suspect a soft-pop fan or two out there might really dig it. Not me, though.

The Roadrunners "Dave Dudley Presents: The Roadrunners" (Cumberland Records, 1973) (LP)
An early 'Sixties "band album" from Dave Dudley's backing crew... Alas, this budget-label set does not tell us the names of the guys in the group, though there are a few vocal tunes amid the many instrumentals, so a few of these guys got to be in the spotlight for a while.

The Roadrunners "An Evening With The Roadrunners" (Coyote Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Al Gibson, Bob Grotke & Vince Morette)
"Recorded LIVE! Island Lanes" this album was a memento of a bowling alley/bar in Grand Island, New York -- up around Buffalo -- that was owned by a guy named Norm Mondry, who plays bass in this band. I don't think the Roadrunners were much of an actual band, as there's little trace left of them online, though they probably were the house band for a while. The quartet included Bobby Chavers on rhythm guitar, Tiny Ted Froman (drums), Norm Mondry (bass) and a fellas mysteriously identified as "Jimmy G" on lead guitar. The repertoire was all country covers, with "Proud Mary" perhaps the most contemporary hit, along with chestnuts like "White Lightning" and "Ghost Riders In The Sky," some boozing ballads and a couple of Marty Robbins tunes. The recording quality is lamentably lo-fi, though in a sense that contributes to its authenticity... In addition, many of the performances seem pretty low-key, though when drummer Froman takes the mic to sing lead, he taps into a pretty robust Buck Owens-y vibe, and also cuts loose on the drums, adding a little extra bounce to their sound. I think Norm Mondry owned Island Lanes until around 1980, when it changed hands to the present owners, though he held plenty of events throughout the rest of the 'Seventies, such as a "CB radio jamboree" thrown in '77. As far as I know this was the only record any of these guys made.

The Roadside Band "Storm's About To Brew" (Southern Star Records, 1981)
(Produced by Randy Enright & Billie Kessler)
This is more of a Southern rock kinda thing... You can tell partly by the Confederate flag-colored eagle pictured on the front cover, and also by the big, bad guitars inside. But they have some surprises as well, such as their cover of the Bill Withers classic, "Ain't No Sunshine..." I'd like to see Molly Hatchet try that one, dude!

Diana Roan "Give Me Some Time" (Roan Enterprises, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Pierce Roan & Danny Baker)
This gal from Boise, Idaho sang all-original material written by the Roans and various bandmembers, with several songs arranged by producer-keyboard player Danny Baker...

Roanoke "Roanoke" (Ridge Runner Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Roanoke)
Bluegrassy, but with definite country and rock-friendly "progressive" streaks, this Texas twang band had a pretty diverse repertoire and some tasty licks, too... The group featured Michael Anderson playing bass and singing lead, Joe Carr on mandolin, Dan Huckabee (of the Dickey Betts band) on dobro, and Mark Maniscalco strummin' on the old on banjo, with guest musicians that included pedal steel player Ray Austin and fiddler Dave Ferguson. They cover songs by Norman Blake, Delbert McClinton, Walter Hyatt, Elton John and others, as well as a few original tunes written by Anderson and Maniscalco.

Sandy Robb "From The Heart Of Sandy Robb" (Award Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Biff Collie & Roger Holmes)
A singer from Bryan, Ohio covering country classics like "I Fall To Pieces," some Hank Williams oldies and a version of Mickey Newbury's "American Trilogy." Several of the backing musicians seem to have been from Robb's own band, while Nashville players such as Doyle Grisham and Willie Rainsford also play on this album... The lineup includes bassist Billy Adair, Jim Baker (steel guitar), Randy Byrd (banjo), Bob Dean (drums), Jack Eubanks (guitar), Doyle Grisham (dobro and steel), and pianist Willie Rainsford

Chris Robbins "Chris Robbins" (Royal American Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Louis Owens)
A "disenchanted rock performer" from Copper Creek, Kentucky, singer Chris Robbins made the switch to country music in the late 1960s, marked by a guest appearance onstage at the Renfro Valley Barndance in 1966. He soon became a cast regular, notably playing on the weekly "Sunday Morning Gatherin' " and was still working at Renfro Valley when this album came out. This album is super-duper croony and low-key, low-energy even, with several originals, including "There's Got To Be A Better Way" and "Travelin' Clothes" penned by Robbins, and "June" and "Weary Old Man," both credited to "S. D. Cornette," who seems to have been songwriter Swany Cornette, a fellow Kentuckian whose song "Heartache Killer" was recorded by The Browns in '73. Robbins also covers a couple of Kris Kristofferson tunes and closes the album out with "Make The World Go Away," nodding towards his crooning icons. Alas, the musicians aren't identified, but we can assume they were drawn from his Renfro Valley fellow cast members, or perhaps the Nashville-based Royal American label had its own house musicians. Not a ton of info about Chris Robbins online: anyone know what became of him?

Jenny Robbins "Hello, I'm Jenny" (El Dorado Records, 1972-?) (LP)
A mystery gal who sang at least once on the Opry, and seems to have been championed by Nashville's Doyle Wilburn, who wrote the liner notes and may have produced this album. As far as I can tell, she was not related to Marty Robbins (although this album includes one of his songs) and may have actually been songwriter Sharon Higgins, who broke into Nashville in the late 'Sixties is credited as the composer of several tracks on this album. Jenny Robbins also recorded a few singles around 1970 for Doyle Wilburn's Americountry label, which was also an outlet for Sharon Higgins' material, as well as Wilburn's publishing company, Sure-Fire Music, which provided material for this album. If she was Ms. Higgins, the Jenny Robbins persona seems to have been short-lived.

Mike Robbins "...Long Time Comin' " (AVI Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Lee Silver)
I reluctantly list this one in the annals of country-rock, though mostly this review is really just a friendly warning. Keyboardist Mike Robbins apparently worked as a backing musician for artists such as Merilee Rush and Sonny & Cher, stepping here into the spotlight with a set of mostly dreadful '70s soft-pop tunes, would-be sweeping epics of sonic grandeur, but mostly... yeesh. Still, there are a few twangtunes, perhaps the best of which was the relatively straightforward "Don't Wait Too Long." If you're looking to mine individual songs from the vast pool of vastness that is all music past, this disc might yield a couple of gems, but you have to suffer through some pretty overcooked, gooey other stuff to get there... Some good pedal steel in the mix, though sadly I don't know who played on this album.

Ronny Robbins "Reach For All You Can" (Thunder Record Corporation, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Pete Drake, Eddy Fox & Bobby Dyson)
Things never quite clicked for Ronny Robbins, who was the son of superstar Marty Robbins and piggybacked on his dad's career a little bit, but seems to have tried to make it on his own. He released his first solo album on Columbia way back in 1969 -- it tanked, but he hung on in Nashville and recorded this album a decade later with a bunch of top-talent studio pros. I think it was all just for fun, though... Includes songs by his pop, one by Eddy Raven and one by Eddy Fox, who co-produced this disc.

Bobbie Roberson "Was Young Love Born To Die" (Bolivia Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Douglas, Mike Tracy & Randy Stutler)
An African-American gal from Brewton, Alabama, Bobbie Roberson sang both country and soul music, with a distinctive voice that fit perfectly into both genres. Around 1969, she met her husband Franklin Edwards while living in New York City and joined his soul band called The Founders, which also recorded on the Bolivia label. They worked in New York for about five years before she decided to return to the quiet rural life of her hometown, and it was a few years later while on a trip to nearby Pensacola that she was recruited by a local promoter to cut an album of country stuff, music she listened to and sang as a child, and had a deep affinity for. She's backed by Randy Harper on piano, Dan Lang (guitar), Tammy Odom (bass), Andrew Shelnut (drums), Buzz Stutler (violin) while Jerry Wallace provides some particularly solid backing on steel guitar. Ms. Roberson made a few waves at the time, traveling to Nashville and performing at the Grand Ole Opry, though ultimately the record failed to break through nationally. In addition to this album, she released a string of singles between 1979-81 under her own name, some were soul tunes while others were solid country tracks. And as many country (and soul) singers before and since, she turned to the church in later years and

Robert & Claudene "Lamp Lighting Time" (Davis Unlimited, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Steve Davis & Robert E. Nobley)
This is one of my favorite old-timey albums, a battered but beloved memento of the days when dollar albums still only cost a quarter (or five for a dollar, if you were lucky...!) The husband-and-wife team of Robert and Claudene Nobley were just plain folks from Roanoke, Alabama who loved all kinds of old-timey music, and they regularly went to festivals and shows with Steve Davis, the guy who started the Davis Unlimited label. Thank goodness he stuck them in front of a microphone, because the Nobelys are just so heartfelt, soulful and sincere singing these old tunes, with simple, no-muss/no fuss guitar picking and autoharp strumming. Their harmonies are plainspoken but effective, and they really bring these old songs to life, tunes like "Poor Willie," "Katie Dear," All The Good Times Are Passed And Gone" and, of course, "Lamp Lighting Time," which is an album highlight. If you love those old records by the Blue Sky Boys, Delmore Brothers and Louvin Brothers, you might want to track this one down as well.

The Robert Coady Band "Nowhere Special" (Zobro Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Peter Maletta)
Country-tinged southern rock from Orlando, Florida. Oddly enough, there wasn't anyone in the band actually named Robert Coady: the group was named after Captain Robert Coady, an MIA Vietnam War-era Air Force pilot from Florida who was shot down over Laos in 1969 and was said to have been seen alive in POW photos much later in the war. Anyway, back to the music: this is decent stuff, give or take an excessive drum solo or two. All the songs are by lead singer Lonnie Getson Brown (the "bro" in Zobro) who is backed by his pals, Andy Maksimowich (bass), Rob Echelman (drums), and Mike Lewenthal on keyboards. It's all very much in the Allman/Skynyrd/Dickey Betts style of '70s redneck twang, with desperate-sounding guitar leads and a distinctly rural vibe. Lonnie Brown kept the band together (with major changes in lineup) at least through the mid-1980s, later recording a song called "Flyin' Again," which was an explicit homage to Capt. Coady.

Bill Roberts "I Had A Dream" (Scot Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Pick & Roy Shockley)
Another mystery record from the heartland, but one packed with original material. All but one song was written by Bill Roberts, including "Nashville Country Singer," "Down And Out, Busted, Hated And Mistrusted," "Move It On Down The Road Blues," and one song penned by Julia Petty, "Butterfly Kisses And Yellow Balloons." (The liner notes thank Jack and Julia Petty, so maybe they helped finance the record?) This was recorded at RCA Nashville with a studio crew that included pros such as Lloyd Green, Harold Bradley, Pig Robbins, Ray Edenton and Hank Strzelecki... The label it came out on, however, was located in Independence, Missouri.

Billy Roberts & Grits "Thoughts Of California" (Tulip Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Hillel Resner & Billy Roberts)
This is apparently the only album by rock/folk songwriter Billy Roberts, who is the guy who wrote the '60s beat classic "Hey Joe," a big hit for Jimi Hendrix and numerous other artists. Roberts started out in the Greenwich Village folk scene, and like many East Coasters migrated to San Francisco when the decade got weirder... He played gigs at the hungry i nightclub and was a regular fixture in the Bay Area music scene throughout the hippie era. This record is very odd and idiosyncratic, a real outsider-art kinda thing, but it holds up well. The first time I heard this album, I thought it was a little too folkie for me, but revisiting it I found the country sound was much more prominent than I remembered. Side One of the LP is almost entirely twang, and has a couple of particularly memorable tunes, including the novelty number "Rebound" and the more subtle, gospel-flavored "Hide Behind." That soulful, bluesy vibe gives Roberts a sort of Jerry Lee Lewis-ish vocal quality on several tracks -- Side Two of the album branches out into other styles, not all as successful as the country stuff, though even the goofy white reggae tune has weird, interesting lyrics, and Roberts seems to have had a singular artistic vision. Sadly, he was severely injured in an auto accident in the 1990s, bringing his music career to an end. This album's a nice legacy, though... That, and of course "Hey Joe!"

Billy Roberts/Various Artists "A NIGHT AT THE WINE CELLAR" (Cabernet Recordings, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Timothy Dawe)
Roberts contributes three songs on this live album, recorded with a passel of folkie artists at the Ghiradelli Wine Celler restaurant in San Francisco. Other artists include Leo Collignon, a band called Good Morning, Skip Henderson, Joey Lent, Jim Nelson, John Palme, Patricia Pickens, Dev Singh, Wayne Smith, and a few tunes by album producer Timothy Dawe. One highlight is the Billy Roberts song "The Grip" about living with alcoholism: "For at last it's come to pass/that the grip I've got on the glass/is nothing compared to the grip/that the glass has got on me..." Mostly this record is packed with painfully earnest folk material, but Roberts' stuff does stand out.

Chris Roberts " 'Till Five In The Morning" (Frisky Records, 19--?) (LP)

Glenda Roberts & Tim Myers "On Stage" (Shiloh Productions, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Gregor)
A country-rock duo from Colorado Springs, Colorado, with pedal steel and banjo picking added by Dan Williams and Steve Daigle on drums... The set list is all cover tunes, drawing on the mainstream country-rock canon of Emmylou Harris, Michael Martin Murphey and Linda Ronstadt. No less than five of the songs come from Emmylou's '70s repertoire, along with a couple from the Patsy Cline catalog... Sounds good to me!

Hoot Roberts "Stop The World And Let Me Sing" (Owl Records, 1964) (LP)

Hoot Roberts "Invitation To The Blues" (Choco Records, 1968-?) (LP)
Honkytonk crooner Thomas Houston ("Hoot") Roberts was born in Alabama but had moved to Wausau, Wisconsin by the time he recorded this album. He had solid country roots: before forming his own band, Roberts toured with Johnny Horton, and while up North he became a protege of Marvin Rainwater, who wrote two of the songs on this album, "Now And Then" and "The King Has Fallen," which was also released as a single. Most of the other songs are covers, mainstream country ballads such as "Blue Side Of Lonesome," "Don't Touch Me," "Funny How The Time Slips Away," and "There Goes My Everything." Alas, there's not info about the album's producer or the musicians who backed him, so they may have been Great Lakes/Rust Belt locals... but that's just a guess for now.

Johnny Roberts "...Has Country Fever" (Public Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Earl Ball & Hugh Davies)
Dunno if Johnny Roberts really got that far in the music business, but he sure came out with a bang on this disc... The backing band included pros such as James Burton on lead guitar, with Jimmy Bryant, Jerry Cole and Don Lee playing rhythm, and Red Wootten on bass... definitely a pretty high-power group. Producer Earl Ball plunks some piano, with Carl Walden on pedal steel... Most of the songs were covers, though there were some originals as well. The liner notes say that Roberts was born in Grants Pass, Oregon but grew up in the Southwest, mostly in Arizona and New Mexico, and that he worked as a rodeo rider... which maybe explains his rugged good looks? He won a bull riding championship in '68, so I guess he was the real deal...

Kayton Roberts "Steelin' " (Stoneway Records, 1968) (LP)
Florida-born steel guitarist Kayton A. Roberts (1933-2017) is best known for backing country star Hank Snow for several decades, from 1968 until Snow's passing in 1999. In his teens, Roberts played in his father's local country band before setting out on his own in the early 1950s, taking local gigs on radio and TV, mostly working around Gainsville and Jacksonville before getting introduced into the Nashville scene, and easily fit in with Hank Snow's band since he was a devotee of one of Snow's previous steel players, Joe Talbot.

Kayton Roberts & Little Roy Wiggins "Twin Steel Guitars" (Stoneway Records, 1973) (LP)

Kayton Roberts & Iva Lee Roberts "Kayton And Iva Lee Roberts" (Stoneway Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)
Duet material from steel player Kayton Roberts and his wife, pianist Iva Lee Roberts (1936-2009) who worked and recorded together for many years. Their son, Louie Roberts, was also a musician, though I'm not sure if he's the same Louie Roberts (below) who was a child performer and signed to Decca in the early 1970s... It seems likely, though, since their son was said to have regularly appeared on the Grand Ole Opry. Mrs. Roberts was also a Florida native, born in Monticello, FL.

Louie Roberts "Louie Roberts" (Decca Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Sonny Deaton)
A child performer who started his career in his tweens, Louie Roberts made a go of it when he came of age, though things never quite clicked for him as a national artist. He worked with some Nashville stars, made appearances on TV, played the Opry a few times and some other high-profile gigs, and even had a major label contract in the early 'Seventies, when he was just barely in his teens.

Louie Roberts "Louie Roberts" (Round Robin Records, 1978) (LP)

Louie Roberts "Songs Of The Islands" (Round Robin Records, 198--?) (LP)
(Produced by Roy Drusky, Jim Pierce & David Roys)

Louie Roberts "Songs Of The Islands" (Round Robin Records, 198--?) (LP)

Louie Roberts "Tribute To Marty Robbins" (Round Robin Records, 1984-?) (LP)
(Produced by Sonny Deaton)
A child performer who started his career in his tweens, Louie Roberts made a go of it when he came of age, though things never quite clicked for him as a national artist. He worked with some Nashville stars, made appearances on TV, played the Opry a few times and some other high-profile gigs, though when this tribute album came out after Marty Robbins's death in 1982, Roberts appears to have been worked a gig at the country music theme park in Pigeon's Forge, Tennessee that would later become known as Dollywood.

The Paul Roberts Band "I've Never Had As Much Fun As This" (Outlet Records, 1982) (LP)

Rick Roberts "Windmills/She Is A Song" (Beat Goes On, 2009)
In between his stint with the Flying Burrito Brothers and the founding of the Top 40 country-rock band Firefall, Florida-born singer-songwriter Rick Roberts recorded two solo albums, which have been reissued together on a single CD... Another reissue coup for the estimable BGO label!

Rick Roberts "Windmills" (A&M Records, 1972)
(Produced by David Anderle)
On his solo debut, Roberts showcases his reedy voice in a grittier context than his later work with the lighter-toned Firefall, working in a variety of styles that generally hover around an artsy, folk-ish twang but also branch into roots grooves ala Little Feat ("Drunk And Dirty") and even more briefly into retro-twang, as on his cover of Charlie Walker's "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down." There are wisps of all kinds of contemporary country-rock, with a couple of CSNY dudes (David Crosby and Dallas Taylor), some of the guys in the Eagles orbit (Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Randy Meisner and Jackson Browne) as well as a few Burrito bros, like Al Perkins and Chris Hillman... So maybe it's not so surprising that there are familiar early '70s riffs and rhythms floating around in here, although Roberts sticks to an idiosyncratic songwriting style with few pop-oriented tunes. Even though there's lots of groovy twang in the mix, there aren't many songs you'd really hum along to or sing in the shower. Still, there's a lot of country-rock royalty on here, and it's a well-produced album. Not totally my cup of tea, but worth checking out.

Rick Roberts "She Is A Song" (A&M Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Chris Hillman)
Roberts took a more overtly "rock" approach on this album -- there's still plenty of twang-talent in the mix, but it's all cosmic and ornate, kinda like a late-edition Byrds album, perhaps. Oddly enough, the songs are still pretty idiosyncratic and less pop-oriented than you might imagine from a guy who led such as facile, successful AOR band as Firefall, and that's probably to his credit. The guy was versatile. Of note among the usual suspect crew in the band backing him is Texas folk-country pioneer Steven Fromholz, singing harmony on a tune or two... And this time around they got Joe Walsh to bang out some guitar riffs as well... Includes a version of Paul Siebel's "She Made Me Lose My Blues," as wella s Roberts' Christian rock anthem, "The Captain." Give her a spin, if you're up for it.

Roy Roberts "Country Star" (House Of Roton Records, 1981-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bryant Headen, Hank Poole, Roy Roberts & Albert Simpson)
The first solo album from North Carolina blues picker Roy Roberts, who started his career playing guitar for silky R&B crooner Solomon Burke, but also spent about a decade or so as a legit country musician. This album features Roberts as the principal songwriter, singing and playing lead guitar backed by a local Tarheel band that included Don Ammes (keyboards), Billy Crenshaw (drums), David Floyd (keyboards), Vaughn Freeman (bass), Charles Gilreath (rhythm guitar), and steel guitarist Larry Nalley. The label was Roberts' own imprint, with an address in Greensboro, though it was recorded at a studio in Charlotte, NC.

Walt Roberts "Draggin The Bow At The Grapevine Opry" (Grapevine Opry Records) (LP)
(Produced by Phil York)
Fiddler Walt Roberts hailed from McAlester, Oklahoma, but was a regular on the Grapevine Opry in Texas... He's backed here by other members of the "opry" revue: a full band including Johnnie High, Joy Newman (piano), Bud Carter (steel guitar), Pat Dacus (guitar) and others, Brad Davis (guitar) and Greg Davis (banjo). They work through classic instrumentals such as "Old Joe Clark," "Black Eyed Susie" and "Draggin' The Bow," as well as covers of country tunes like "Faded Love" and "Together Again." According to the liner notes, this was Roberts' first album.

Robey Falk Bod "Kentucky Gambler" (Epic Records, 1973) (LP)
The uniquely-named rock trio of Bill Robey, Don Falk and Bod Noubarian are emblematic of the wild diversity of the early 1970s, dipping into hard rock, bubblegum, prog and, yes, even some pretty decent country-rock twang. The country material is only on a few tunes, but it's pretty good. The studio crew includes Weldon Myrick, Bobby Emmons, Buddy Spicher, all playing at their peak. This record is pretty challenging, at least to those who dislike bands that are "too hard" to pin down... But if you're the kind of person who's always said, "Oh, why can't bands play whatever they want to and try all different kinds of genres?" then this one is definitely for you. Viva la '70s!

Robin & Micki "Cowboy's Sweetheart" (Ripcord Records, 19--?) (LP) *

Mike Robin "Hard Times Knockin' " (Mootrey's Studio Recordings, 1977-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ricci Moreno)
Not a lot of info about this guy, other than that he was from Freeport, Illinois and made it onto the radar of producer Ricci Moreno, who had done a few sessions with reputable country stars. Moreno lined up an A-list Nashville studio crew, including Jim Baker (steel), guitarist Jack Eubanks, drummer DJ Fontana, Bunky Keels, Willie Rainsford and others. All the songs are Mike Robin originals, except for "Trucker's Heaven" which is credited to Hayes Maxwell. Not sure of the year, but it definitely looks late 'Seventies, possibly early '80s.

Betty Jean Robinson - see artist profile

The Robinson Family "Live At Petticoat Junction" (Mockingbird Records, 1976) (LP)

The Robinson Family "...Of Georgetown, Kentucky" (Blue Jay Records, 1982-?) (LP)

The Robinson Family "At Home With The Robinson Family" (Blue Jay Records, 1983-?) (LP)
I'm not much one on the whole har-de-har-har laughing at "funny looking" people on old LP covers things... (Times change; different strokes, etc.) That being said, this Oklahoma family band's matching outfits are pretty hilarious, particularly the too-too tight white jeans worn by the gals. Plus, it doesn't hurt to have a semi truck in the background. The Robinsons, as it turns out, were diehard mambers of NATSO -- the National Association Of Truck Stop Operators, an industry group founded in the 1960s -- and it might not surprise you then that they have a trucker tune or two in their repertoire, including "She's A Driver, She's A Lady," one of several originals written by various family members on this album. Other highlights include "Oklahoma City Blues" and "I Never Liked Country (Till I Met You)." Breaker, breaker, 10-4, good buddy!

Jim Robinson "Construction Man (Job #001)" (Cram-Itup Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Johnson, Jim Knight & Dan Meisner)
A not-quite-all-that-goofy collection of songs about the construction industry from a guy who really knew what he was talking about. Robinson was a skilled electrical engineer who supervised large projects across the United States and in several foreign countries, notably in Indonesia, as recounted on songs such as "Palembang." Robinson was apparently from Texas originally, and tips his hat to the Lone Star State and nearby Mexico on tunes like "Houston, Texas U.S. Of A" and "South Of War-Ez." It's not clear where this travelin' man was hanging his hardhat when he cut this disc, though several of the musicians were from Oklahoma, including steel guitar player Ira Caple (1933-2012) and harmonica player Larry Megill, who was a founding member of the band Oklahoma Thunder, which was active at the time. Also included are Billy Dozier on guitar, drummer Dwayne English, banjo picker Ronald Farrar, and bassist Leon McCormick. This album gets a lot of attention from the "don't all those country records look so goofy" patrol, but it's actually pretty solid, musically speaking.

Lillian Southard Robinson "Leave A Little Sunshine Through The World" (Custom Fidelity/Robinson Records, 1971-?) (LP)
(Produced by G. Carl Robinson)
This is one hundred percent the kind of super-goofy "private press" album that those clever hipsters like to make fun of... I don't really want to join in that chorus, but I will admit that this is definitely not a record I would put on when company was over, or, really, if anyone else was in the room. Mrs. Robinson was an older woman, I'd guess somewhere in her seventies, and according to the liner notes written by her husband, she'd been writing poems and songs by the truckload for many years, and although this was her first album, she had previously cut a few singles, including some country-gospel tracks recorded in Nashville. With backing by a group called Jim Hardy's Gospel Country Band, Mrs. Robinson plows through a dozen of her own original compositions, separated into one album side of gospel material and the other a set of patriotic and regional pride songs, including a trio of tunes that literally sing the praises of California, Texas and Tennessee. Though there's no date on the disc, this appears to have come out around 1970-71, when several of these lyrics were copyrighted. It's hard to assess the songs themselves, because her vocals (which are challenging to begin with) are inexplicably poorly recorded and pretty much indecipherable; this stands in contrast to the much crisper recording of her awesome anti-drug, pro-Jesus single, "Get Your Fix On Faith Avenue, Man," which was cut several yeas earlier in Nashville. The poor sound quality may be somewhat tragic, because what would otherwise be priceless novelty material is instead made notorious because of the egregious technical flaws: the band sounds fine, but she seems to have been recorded down in the bottom of an empty well in an abandoned cow pasture. Oh, well. I'm not sure, but there's probably a fairly good chance that the backing band was also known as Jim Hardy & His Country Rockers, in which case they were from around Memphis, which also matches up with Robinson's own Tennessee roots.

Rick Robinson & The Bayou Boys "Rick Robinson & The Bayou Boys" (Belmont Records, 1978) (LP)

Rick Robinson & The Bayou Boys "I Spent Last Year In A Barroom" (Belmont Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Flint & Buck Mitchell)

Ronnie Robinson & Sound Company "Don't Envy Me" (Starr Records, 1976-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Casey & Marvin Jones)
This album includes four original songs by Ronnie Robinson: "Back Door Of My Mind," "Don't Envy Me," "She's Walking" and "Try To Understand Me Melissa," as well as covers of classics by Hank Cochran, Willie Nelson, Buck Owens, Hank Williams, and Leroy Van Dyke's "Pass Me By." The record label was based in Columbus, Ohio, though I'm not totally sure where the band was from...

Jackie Lynn Robison "A Portrait Of Jackie Lynn Robison" (Fabor Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Fabor Robison)
I guess this gal was the wife of Fabor Robison, an influential early rock'n'roll and country producer who racked up an impressive string of hits in the 1950s and '60s. Robison famously sold the rights to his masters at several points in his career, and ran his own label with the proceeds. I think we can safely categorize this disc as a vanity project: I found it pretty painful to get through, though more charitable listeners might get a kick out of it.

The Roches - solo, duo & trio

The Rock City Singers "Country Classics" (Mercury/Cumberland Records, 1964) (LP)
One of several anonymous, made-in-the-studio "bands" assembled for Cumberland Records, a budget-line imprint that Mercury used to capitalize on the early 1960s folk boom... The repertoire is a mix of folk tunes like "John Henry" and country oldies originally recorded by artists such as Jimmie Davis, Merle Travis, Webb Pierce and Little Jimmy Dickens. Your guess is as good as mine.

Tim Rock "Backseats, Bedrooms & Bars" (Starbuck Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Brado, Mimi Fitzgerald, Tim Rock & Jim Wolf)
A mellow, six-song country-rock EP, featuring plenty of rootsy tunes, including two songs by Hearts & Flowers founder Larry Murray ("Headed For The Country" and "Mama Lu"), a version of Billy Joe Shaver's "Black Rose," a tune from Donnie Fritts and a couple of originals by Tim Rock and his guitar player Bill Hayes. Rock was a record producer from Seattle's mid-'70s rock scene, known for his work as an audio engineer at a studio called the Music Farm; as far as I know this was his only album.

Rockcastle River Company "Pat Horine & The Rockcastle River Company" (Rockcastle Records, 1975) (LP)
John Denver fans might like this one. Independently released, for sure, but not as country as one might hope... This Indianapolis, Indiana trio took their cues from classic '60s folk groups such as the Kingston Trio or the Chad Mitchell Trio, with lots of frightfully earnest songs about drifters and dreamers, and a couple of novelty numbers like "Rubber Car," which closes the album out. From a twangfan's perspective, about the most country tune on here is "I'm Tired Of Being A Cowboy," which still has a pretty folkie feel, slightly tempered by a Michael Martin Murphey-ish vibe. Lead singer Pat Horine seems to have been the guiding force behind this band, although for next album he let go of top billing and they just went by the band name. As far as I can tell, most of the songs on here were originals written by the guys in the band; also worth noting is that guitarist/banjo player Nick Heyl later worked with a re-imagined, early '80s lineup of The Kingston Trio, producing a couple of their records. Not sure what the second Rockcastle River album sounds like...

Rockcastle River Company "From Maine To Texas With..." (Rockcastle Records, 1976) (LP)

Rockcastle County Line "Presenting..." (1981) (LP)
(Produced by Mike Graham)
More country, less folk on this one, though it is the same band as the "Rockcastle River Company" with Pat Horine, et.al. Includes covers of classics like Doug Kershaw's "Louisiana Man," Steve Young's "Seven Bridges Road," and "Sweet City Woman," by the Stampeders. There are also some original tunes, such as their "Coca-Cola, Biscuits And Grits" and one called "Muncie, Indiana." (Which seems to have been their stomping grounds at the time: this album was recorded in Indianapolis...)

The Rockin' J Wranglers "Original Western Show" (Rockin' J Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Crouch & Don Cary)
A souvenir album from a "chuckwagon" dude ranch in Post Falls, Idaho called the Rockin' J Ranch. The campfire quartet included Dean Eacker (fiddle), Russ Eacker (bass), Dan Hibbard (rhythm guitar) and Bob West on lead guitar, working through a standard mix of folk tunes, cowboy oldies and one regional pride song, "Here We Have Idaho," the state song. The Rockin' J was owned by Jim Crouch, and apparently Dean Eacker had worked there as the ranch foreman for fifty years(!) by the time this record was made... No date on the disc, but it looks early '80s. Recorded at Eastern Washington University, in Cheney, WA.

The Rockin' R Cowboys "On The Bandstand" (Rockin' R Records, 196-?) (LP)
Straight outta Austin -- Austin, Minnesota, that is -- comes this charming live album by a family band mostly made up of the Rinehart siblings: singer-guitarist Bill Rinehart, lead guitar Steven Rinehart and sister Terri Rinehart on drums, along with their dad, Harold Rinehart, who sings on a tune or two, and managed the band. Recorded live at Red's Dogpatch Inn in Troy, Minnesota -- though they don't say exactly when -- the liner notes indicate that this show was performed after the group had been playing together for three years, while 14-year old Steven had been playing guitar for six years, starting when he was eight... and he's pretty good! He's got some nice, classic licks, and a definite rock influence, although he does get a little note-happy sometimes. Bill is an okay vocalist, with a deep, resonant voice that sounds more manly and gruff than his twenty-one years; old Dad, on the other hand, drifts into Ernest Tubb-ish territory, and guest singers Fritz Mehmen and Judy Keenan also have okay voices, but lacked the ooomph of true country professionals. The liner notes say that this band had been together three years when they cut this disc -- apparently they were together in one form or another through the end of the 'Sixties, as seen by the single below.

The Rockin' R Cowboys "Steve And His Rockin' R Cowboys" (Rockin' R Records, 196-?) (7")
This six-song EP reprises Fritz Mehmen's novelty number, "The Mule Song," but forges into new territory with a set that includes Merle Haggard's 1969 hit, "Okie From Muskogee," and honkytonk oldies like "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down" and "Release Me," which are both sung by poppa Harold. There are a bunch of new performers working with the Rineharts here, including guitarist Don Pederson, fiddler Lloyd Rosecke and singer Connie Jo Valasek, as well as a duo calling themselves Cindi & Jeanne, The Country Cousins. No date on the disc, but I'd guess it's from around 1970 or thereabouts, based on the repertoire. Not sure if the rest of the family was still in the band at this point; sometime later, Steve Rinehart moved to Washington state.

The Rockin' R Cowboys "A Tribute To Harold Rinehart" (Mark Records, 1973-?) (LP)
(Produced by Joel Nelson)
This was probably the Rockin' R Cowboys' swan song, recorded live on New Year's Eve, 1973 at the Eagle's Club in Austin, Minnesota... (Does that mean New Year's Eve 1972-73, or 1973-74? It's unclear, though the set list skews a bit towards the earlier end of the decade, with covers of "Bad Moon Rising" and "The Key Is In The Mailbox," as well as older tunes from the 'Sixties like "Apartment No. 9" and "North To Alaska.") Anyway, this is billed as a tribute to family patriarch Harold Rinehart, though he is credited on the album, along with his son, guitarist Steve Rinehart, as well as Jerry Morse, Don Pederson and Bill Schmid. I guess Mr. Rinehart must have passed away right after the show was recorded, while the album was in production; the liner notes laud him, but are short on hard info. His other son, Bill Rinehart, was listed as a guest performer, so it looks like he had officially left the band by this point. Anyone know what Steve Rinehart did later on?

Rocky & Hal "Hoot 'En-Naughty" (T Records, 19--?) (LP)
Raunchy country comedy, recorded live at a venue called the Wintergarden in Bellingham, Washington. Rocky and Hal -- who don't give their last names -- play banjo and guitar on a set that is proudly proclaimed as "Definitely not suitable for radio broadcast: ADULTS ONLY." The duo apparently worked out of both Spokane, Washington and Lewiston, Idaho... thanks to Teh Northwest Music Archives for info on the other albums, listed below.

Rocky & Hal "Action After Midnight" (T Records, 19--?) (LP)

Rocky & Hal "Act III" (T Records, 19--?) (LP)

Rocky Mountain Oysters "Oyster Stew" (Barnstorm Records, 1980) (LP)
A progressive bluegrass band from Sioux Falls, South Dakota with strong Celtic influences seen in the inclusion of several tracks of jigs and reels, as well as some old-timey stuff and more traditional material. The group included Tim Coates on fiddle, John Donahoe (banjo, fiddle and mandolin), Neil Isaacson (bass and guitar), Tom Scheffer (fiddle) and Charley Smith on mandolin and guitar, with all of the fellas chiming in on vocals. They cover Paul Simon's "The Boxer" and also introduce an original by Charley Smith called "Another Country Song." Dunno much about these folks, though they were apparently pals with the folks in the Red Willow Band, who give them the thumbs-up in the album's liner notes.

Rocky Top "Rocky Top" (Jester Records, 1975-?) (LP)
A truly local twangband from Billings, Montana, with an unapologetic set of contemporary cover tunes from the early-to-mid 1970s laid on top of a few 'Sixties chestnuts such as "You Gave Me A Mountain" and of course the band's namesake, "Rocky Top." The group included lead singer Alice Fay, along with bandleader and lead guitarist Chuck Kocher, Marv Allen (drums), Wayne David (bass), as well as veteran session player Harley Brendal (1939-2000) sitting in on pedal steel. In addition to hits like "Rhinestone Cowboy" and Johnny Rodriguez's "Ridin' My Thumb To Mexico," there's a hefty dose of Waylon & Jessi, as heard on their versions of "I'm Not Lisa" and "Just Pretend I Never Happened." They even cover a little bit of pop, with a cover of Roberta Flack's 1973 hit, "Killing Me Softly." The liner notes inform us this was the group's first -- and as far as I can tell, their only -- album. Although there's no date on the disc, it looks to be from 1975 or thereabouts, largely based on the repertoire.

The Rocky Top Band "Rocky Top Band" (1982) (LP)
Sadly, I couldn't find any information about this uber-indie country-rock band -- like where they were from, where they recorded this album, etc. -- other than that this record came out in the early '80s. And yes, they played "Rocky Top," but also country-rock hits like "Midnite Flyer" and JJ Cale's "Tulsa Time." The band included Randy Hayward, Howard Jensen, Dale Murray, Rick Murray and Earl Shoemberger (sp?) and are obviously not the same as the Billings, Montana band who recorded as "Rocky Top" about a decade earlier. Anyone out there know more about these guys?

Michael Roden "Born In A Whirl" (1978) (LP)
(Produced by Michael Roden)
Country-rock/soft pop from upstate New York... Roden's Stony Creek Band featured Randy Rollman on pedal steel, but also included instruments such as the maracas, congas, clave, clarinet, etc., so maybe it's not totally "country"?

The George Rodgers Trio "Favorites Of..." (Pheasant Records, 1975-?) (LP)
(Produced by William Beasley & Tom Sparkman)
This trio from Springfield, Oregon included singers George Rodgers and Cookie Cook, as well as pedal steel player Jimmie Kelley, who showcases his work on several original instrumentals -- "Patterns Of The Past," "Skipalong" and "Vile Inn Boogie." There are also covers of oldies by Cindy Walker, the Carter Family, and a version of Bill Mack's "Drinkin' Champagne," along with some pop stuff, like Burt Bacharach's "Close To You." But, dang it! After I already made the decision not to make a Springfield-based Simpsons reference, I notice that there are two songs on here -- "If Only" and "Please Forgive Me" -- written by someone named Ralph Wigham (!) D'oh!!

Rodney's Glory "Rodney's Glory" (Tidesfall Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by George Messenburg)
A bluegrass-adjacent string-swing trio from Columbia, Maryland, made up of multi-instrumentalists Bill Snyder (guitar, mandolin and autoharp), David Earl-Clark (dobro, lead and slide guitar and mandolin) and Mark Evanko on bass and fiddle. This set is heavy on original material, all of it credited to Bill Snyder, including tunes like "Less Lonely," "One More Scene" and "Summer Of '21 (Hobart Smith Song)," along with a few cover songs such as "Stand By Your Man," and traditional tunes "Black Jack David" and "The Cuckoo." The group seems to have been short-lived: they did some college-circuit gigs in the Spring of '74 after this album came out, but Bill Snyder was performing solo by the end of the year. As far as I know, this was his only album.

Marlys Roe "All The Way" (Dellwood Records, 1977-?) (LP)
(Produced by Link Wray)
Singer Marlys Roe started her musical career while still living in South Dakota, as the lead singer of a local rock band called the Talismen, where Roe credibly emulated the sultry pop-soul sound of Dusty Springfield... She recorded a couple of late 'Sixties singles for ABC Records, a major label deal that generated some buzz, but not enough to make it on the national scene. (Although her early singles definitely weren't country music, she did get to work with producer/pianist Glen D. Hardin, who later helped anchor the Emmylou Harris Hot Band...) Ms. Roe later married drummer Jerry Kroon, a fellow South Dakotan who made his way to Nashville and became a prolific session musician. Relocating to Music City, Roe also got into the country scene, cutting a couple of singles for GRC and later this album, which is often referred to a "tax scam" record, though it could also more charitably be called a demo disc, featuring a brace of tunes by Bobby Bond, Don Cook, and Mitch Johnson... (Thanks to the Bad Cat blog for providing some background info on Ms. Roe's biography...)

Randy Roe & The Renegades "Bottom Of The River" (Sincere Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Joel Johnson & Ted Pitts)
I wasn't able to track down much biographical information about Vernon A. ("Randy") Roe, though he seems to have lived around Augusta, Georgia and performed regionally, including in South Carolina, where this album was recorded. He put out at least one single under his birth name in the early 'Sixties, with a band called Vernon Roe And The Cherokees, though later he adopted the "Randy Roe" stage name. According to this album's chatty liner notes (written by Opry emcee Grant Turner), Mr. Roe tried his luck in Nashville for a few years, then moved again, and was doing gigs in Augusta, Georgia around the time this album came out. His band included his wife, Louise, on bass and their eleven-year old son Rocky on drums, with outside help from Mike Stirling on lead guitar, and legendary local steel player Bill ("Lefty") Joiner, who was also known for his fiddling. There was at least one single attached to this album, though it included a track called "You Were Right And I Was Wrong," which is not included here. Many of the songs here are Roe's originals, along with some written by his wife.

Tex Roe "Sings Fire Shootin' Pony And Other Highway Songs" (Mark IV Records, 1970-?) (LP)
(Produced by Link Wray)
A set of trucker tunes from New York state honkytonker Tex Roe (aka John Frederick Robarge, 1922-2001) whose career stretched back to the 1940s... Based around Syracuse, Roe hosted radio and TV programs, was a cast member of the WWVA Jamboree, and appeared on numerous shows such as the Ernest Tubb show as well as on WSM, the home of the Grand Ole Opry. Over the years, he recorded a handful of songs that charted nationally, including numerous 78s and 45s, although this was his only full album.

Chuck Rogers "...Sings Tied Down" (Frolic Records, 19--?) (LP)
A later-life recording full of all-original material by an old-timer from Tennessee. Chuck Rogers (ne Ross Arwood, 1926-1986) was born in Madisonville and worked for many years in Knoxville radio, with stints in other states, dating back to the 1940s. Initially nicknamed Tennessee Slim, he cut a number of singles in the hillbilly era, including a grim WWII ballad from 1944, entitled "Why Did They Bury Daddy In The Philippines." By the early 'Fifties he'd started performing under the name Chuck Rogers, and claims to have discovered honkytonk superstar Ray Price -- Rogers even penned one of the first two songs Price recorded, "Jealous Lies," back in 1950. Another one of his songs, "Tied Down" was recorded by Lulu Bell & Scotty, back in 1952. The liner notes imply these are newer (1970s?) recordings (though some might have been a mite more vintage) and he was still living in Knoxville when this album came out...

Jack Rogers "Sings Country Music Hits... The Road" (Modern Sound Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by William Beasley & Tom Sparkman)
A groovy set of trucker tunes from singer Jack Rogers, who had previously released some singles on the Nashville-based Modern Sound label, which was an offshoot of Spar Records. Rogers was not a top-flight vocalist, and some of these tracks are a little rough around the edges... But actually, that's kind of cool, if you're in the market for authenticity and earthiness. The backing musicians retain a little chunkiness as well. The songs are mostly (if not all) covers of hits -- "A Tombstone Every Mile," "Giddy Up Go," "Give Me Forty Acres," "Six Days On The Road," etc. -- though there might be a one or two originals, such as "Almost To Nashville..." Unfortunately, there are no composer credits anywhere on the album. Anyway, this is an enjoyable album, at least if you're able to cope with a few imperfections here and there. Plenty of twang!

James Rogers "Live At Saddles" (Commonwealth Recording Group, 19--?) (LP)
Guitarist James Rogers lived in Tennessee, but cut this album while playing a gig at the Saddles restaurant in Richmond, Virginia. The repertoire includes some country stuff, such as "Silver Saddles," "American Trilogy" and "Tennessee," though also a few showcase guitar songs such as a medley of Mason Williams' "Classical Gas" and "Malaguena."

James Rogers "Night At the Tivoli" (Producers Incorporated, 1985) (LP)
This seems to be the same guy, although by now he had a home address in Rock Spring, Georgia... This was a live set, recorded at the Tivoli Theater, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with a backing band that included David Brooks (synthesizer), Billy Reynolds (drums), Dennis Talley (banjo and guitar), and Greg Throstle (steel guitar). It's only partially country, with a medley of "Rocky Top" and "Foggy Mountain Breakdown," as well as some patriotic stuff and odd pop songs and standards. Some of the same material from his previous LP reappears here, such as "Malaguena" and a version of the '70s novelty number, "Toad Suck."

Jody Rogers "Rainbows And Rodeos" (Southern Pride Records, 19--?) (LP)
Rogers was a deejay on Fort Myers, Florida radio station WHEW-102-FM (aka "The Country Giant")

Johnny Rogers "Memories" (Trail Records, 1979-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bobby All & Rick Salyer)
A semi-crypto gospel album, with overt Christian songs such as "His Name Is Jesus" and "Precious Lord, Take My Hand," alongside several Nashville oldies that seem to be recast as sorta-kinda sung to God: "Please Release Me," "Make The World Go Away" and "I Can't Stop Lovin' You." Recorded in Kingsport, Tennessee, this seems to have featured mostly local musicians, or at least lower-rung session players. A special spotlight is thrown on fiddler Elan Lu Chalford, along with Bobby All on guitar, Art Bain (piano), Tim Compton (bass), Randy Manis (drums) and Eddie Tipton playing rhythm guitar). Not sure where Mr. Rogers was from, though the album was produced at Tri-State Recording, in Kingsport, Tennessee... It's probably also worth noting that the Trail Records was primarily a gospel label, notably releasing album by the Cooke Duet family band.

Joyce Rogers "Little Old Ladies Can" (National Foundation Records, 1986) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Dollar & Jim Cartwright)
A Patsy Cline soundalike from Newaygo County, Michigan, Joyce Rogers was a protege of country second-stringer Johnny Dollar, who produced most of these tracks before he passed away in '86. She wrote all the songs and they have a familiar feel, again with many building on the old Patsy Cline formula of blending rich country roots with perky, muted rock'n'roll, which by the 1980s had a definite retro feel, almost a Sha-Na-Na-ish vibe. But she sings nicely and this is well-produced, with strong performances by the studio crew, particularly steel guitar players Sonny Garrish and Mike Cass, who really out some feeling into it. Though commercially inclined, this record may have been a little out of step with the synthy, antiseptic stuff coming out of Nashville at the time, though I'm sure that's fine with most of us -- right? Anyway, this isn't a super-original sounding set, but it's an admirable indie offering. Also, kudos on the songwriting -- I'm not sure if she ever sold any of her songs, but she sure made a good go of it.

Kenny K. Rogers "Lonely Heart" (RPI, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Rich Richardson & Kenny K. Rogers)
Not to be confused with the evil entity known as Kenny "Sauron" Rogers, this fella from Peoria, Illinois sang mostly covers, although he wrote four of the tunes on here, including the title track as well as several gospel-themed numbers. Other than that, a complete mystery album!

Roseanna Rogers "Ole Hank" (KA$H Records, 1985-?) (LP)
(Produced by Clyde Beavers & Don Silvers)
Not a ton of info about this country gal from Brunswick, Maine... She headed south and spent some time in Nashville, recording this album at Clyde Beavers studio, with backing by producer Don Silver, who wrote most of the songs on this album. The backing band included some notable pickers, with Ray Cobb on guitar, Ray Corwin (steel guitar), Doug Jernigan (steel guitar), Benny Kennerson (piano), David Laubaugh (drums), Steve Mauldin (bass) and backing vocals by Sudie Callaway and Lois Johnson... Not long after this album was recored, Ms. Rogers cut several duets with Nashville elder Bill Phillips, though those singles weren't included on this album, and don't seem to have been collected anywhere (hint, hint...) Rogers eventually returned to Maine and performed regionally, most notably in a band with Everard Dodge, and in 2010 was inducted into the Maine Country Music Association's Hall Of Fame.

Roy Rogers, Jr. "Just Call Me Dusty" (Vistone Records, 1982) (LP)
The son of western film stars Dale Evans and Roy Rogers, singing some ballads, honkytonk and western swing, backed by a band called the Highriders which Matt Starner, Larry Carney and others... Roy Junior also recorded some stuff on albums headlined by his folks.

Tex Rogers & Jimmie Collins "...And Western Gospel Crusaders" (Century Custom Records, 1965) (LP)
A gospel duo with a long, winding road to salvation. Collins and Rogers had both previously worked in secular country, notably with western artists such as Ken Maynard and a band called the Pals Of The Purple Sage. Though born in Pennsylvania, Rogers got his nickname because he grew up near East Texas, Pennsylvania, an oddly-named dot on the map near Allentown; Jimmie Collins was originally from Chilicothe, Missouri, and may have worked in various midwestern and southern bands during his youth. They released this album through a custom press label in Saint Louis, with backing by C. B. Kelton (piano), Dale Sims (bass and fiddle) and guitarist Eddie Suey, and some others who are not identified (a steel player, etc.) Although the album cover says the fellas are "with The Grissom Sisters," this is actually a split LP, with the Grissom Sisters (small town farm gals from Maroa, Illinois) singing on Side One, and Tex and Jimmie featured on Side Two. The connecting tissue here seems to be Mr. Kelton, who had a long-running gig as a lounge musician at a place called the Brown Jug, in Decatur, Illinois, which is due south of the Grissom gals' hometown of Maroa. Eddie Suey also lived in Decatur, and later formed a southern gospel group called the Journeymen with Kelton as his pianist, and later moved to Nashville. Both sides of this disc are quite poorly recorded and mixed, though the tracks with Collins and Rogers have real resonance and a pleasant real-hick gravitas. Authentic as all get-out, really, though maybe not that easy on the ears.

Tex Rogers & Jimmie Collins "...And Western Gospel Crusaders" (Songs Of Calvary, 1969-?) (LP)
On this album, it's just Collins and Rogers singing both as a duo and individually, backed by an entirely different set of musicians, including fellow believers Gene Shelby (on "electric Hawaiian guitar"), Effie Shelby (guitar), Mary Lou Stewart (vibraphone), Royce Collier (bass), and Judith Collier (piano). The label address is from Oakland, California, where I think they were living at the time: the recycled liner notes remind us of Jimmie Collins's born-again conversion in Alameda, CA, back in 1951, eighteen years earlier.

Troy Rogers & Harmony "Troy Rogers And Harmony" (TRH Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Troy D. Rogers)
A teenage band from Warsaw, Missouri fronted by talented guitar picker/multi-instrumentalist Troy Rogers and lead singer Darlene Hayes. Not exactly when they recorded this album, but they covered the outlaw anthem, "Luckenbach, Texas," along with two hits by Kenny (Sauron) Rogers -- "Lucille" and "The Gambler -- so I'm thinking this was from around 1979-80, somewhere in there. The kids in the band were all apparently seventeen years old when they cut this disc, with one original song, "Second Chances," written by second guitarist Jim Hayes, while everything else was cover songs, including a number of charmingly clunky instrumentals. I also kinda dig the folk-ish, strummy acoustic version of "I Wish You Were Someone I Loved," which has a John Denver-y feel to it. Hey, anyone know if Rogers did anything after this?

The Walt Rogers Four "The Walt Rogers Four" (Walor Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Walt Rogers & Jay Andy Thompson)
Originally from Bascom, Florida, fiddler Walt Rogers settled down in Portland, Oregon after traveling around for years as a sideman in various bands. In 1969 he put together the Walt Rogers Four, with his fiddle backing three female singers, including his wife, Lorri Rogers, who had been his partner on the road throughout the early 'Sixties. The repertoire includes country chestnuts such as "Green Green Grass Of Home" and Kenny Rogers's "Just A Yodel For Me," but is more remarkable for the many rock and pop cover tunes, given inventive arrangements and buoyed by Walt Rogers' solid, sizzling fiddle. "Hitchin' A Ride," "Leaving On A Jet Plane," Jackie DeShannon's "Put A Little Love In Your Heart," and a couple by Creedence Clearwater, "Looking Out My Back Door" and "Proud Mary" show a with-it hipness that belies the geeky appearance of the band on the cover. One of the best tracks is his version of "Orange Blossom Special," a song that makes me involuntarily flinch when I see it on an album: Rogers puts his heart into his fiddling, getting a very soulful tone, while the drummer gets in some really cool, inventive licks. To be honest, the vocals are kind of uneven... I won't name names, but while Rogers and one of the gals are pretty good, the other half of the team have some pretty iffy moments. Regardless, this is a cool album from an accomplished and ambitious country lounge band, and a groovy document of the ever-rootsy Pacific Northwest country scene.

The Walt Rogers Four "Complete And Onabridge" (Walor Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Walt Rogers & Jay Andy Thompson)

Bob Rohan "Bad Bob" (1983) (LP)

Bad Bob (Rohan) "Bad Bob And His Good Friends" (Self-Released, 2001)
Good-timin' western swing and the local spirit of independent Texas music are alive and well, as heard in this fun album by fiddler and songwriter Bob Rohan. He pays dutiful homage to the spirit of Bob Wills in a rousing version of "Deep In The Heart Of Texas," and on his original tune, "When You Play The Fiddle In Texas (You Better Know All The Tunes!)" It was the charm of his original material that caught my attention -- especially on great novelty tunes like "She Took A Blowtorch To My Workbench" and the similarly-themed "Daddy's Pad (When Momma's Mad)," which extols the virtues of sleeping in the cab of your truck when domestic tension looms. Fans of humble, obscuro alt.country greats such as Deadly Earnest, Alvin Crow, Chuck Wagon & The Wheels, or Cornell Hurd will find a lot to celebrate in this album -- this ain't super-slick Nashville pop, it's just a guy with a friendly-sounding voice and a bunch of pals who can pick some nice country music, and it's pretty cool. This is the kind of independently-produced album you used to hear a lot more often; nice to know someone out there still has the magic formula.

Bad Bob (Rohan) "Bad To The Bow" (19--?)

Bad Bob (Rohan) "Prairie Rose" (Self-Released, 2008)

Clarke C. Rohn "Country" (Redhill Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Clarke Rohn)
A fairly rootsy country album from La Mirada, California's own Clarke C. Rohn, a modestly talented singer who performed around the Long Beach area for several decades, on TV and at clubs and private events, hosting a variety of Southern California talent on various occasions. Rohn self-recorded and self-released this album, with a strong backing band, particularly on the pedal steel. The repertoire is a mix of covers from artists such as Moe Bandy and Ray Price, as well as some original material, notably a gospel song called "Instant Happiness," which Rohn co-wrote with Stacy Farrell, the owner of the nightclub where Rohn had a residency at the time this album was made. Although he doesn't dazzle as a vocalist, Rohn's heart was in it, and you can hear hints of Mickey Gilley and Willie Nelson in his phrasing -- honkytonk at its core, but with sophisticated leanings. A nice document of a resolutely local performer in his early years...

The Rohr Sisters "Send Me A Rose" (Jomar Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by The Tibor Brothers)
Sisters Lanel and Lanet Rohr grew up in Gladstone, North Dakota, about fifteen miles down the road from the Tibor Brothers recording studio in Hebron. Chances are the Tibors were the backing band on this album, as well as the producers. Side One is all secular, classic county, while Side Two was all gospel. Included are three originals, "Send Me A Rose" and "I Thank God," written by Lanel, and "Show Them The Way" penned by both sisters.

Donnie Rohrs "Country Music USA" (Pacific Challenger Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Chuck Whittington, Terry Dwyer & Gary Brandt)
A charmingly rough-hewn, amateurish country-meets-oldies album by middle-aged singer Donnie Rohrs, a native of Sanborn, Iowa who also recorded several singles in the 1970s, on equally obscure labels. He sings some old-school rock'n'roll -- songs like "Party Doll" and and adaptation of an old Chuck Berry song -- but mostly this is an idiosyncratic but honest country record. There are definitely rough patches on a few songs, but he's so enthusiastic and sincere you can't help but like him, and several songs hold up well as oddball novelty numbers... Rohrs has a chunky good-ole-boy sound that brings Jerry Reed to mind, as well as Joe Stampley, in his more R&B-oriented moments. I think this album took him a long time to complete, and some tracks sound like they were recorded in very different sessions -- one of the best songs is an original that Rohrs wrote called "Waltzes And Western Swing" where the band sounds really solid and the pedal steel has a much richer, deeper tone than on other tracks, which sound more rock-flavored and bar-band-y. Regardless, the guy was authentic and totally home-grown. My copy included a flier for membership in his fan club, with the kind of artist bio that lists things like his winning talent contests in junior high, and wowing the crowd in eighth grade with his Elvis impersonation. I love that kind of stuff. Rohrs went out west to record this one at the Sun-Dwyer Studios in Riverside, California, which was a short-lived vanity pressing service that was around in the late '70s and early '80s.

Matt Rolf & Robyn Rolf "Matt And Robyn Rolf" (Tambor Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Jimmy Tarbutton & Chad Watson)
I am, generally speaking, a bit leery if not downright suspicious of "kiddie" albums where some tiger-dad or tiger-mom dresses their children up in western outfits, books professional studio time, and pushes the kids in front of a microphone to make some cutesy souvenir album, or possibly promote their aspiring musical careers... They can't all wind up being Brenda Lee or Nickel Creek. I have to admit, though, that on the first couple of tracks of this album, I thought perhaps this sibling duo from Corder, Missouri, might be an exception to the rule: older brother Matt Rolf had a confidence and relatively skillful phrasing that made me think maybe there was more going on here than a couple of kids who were brave enough to bum-rush the stage at a county fair. That charitable impulse came crashing down as soon as they set Matt up on a stripped-down solo rendition of "You Light Up My Life," a version so bad it makes you realize that, as horrible as the original hit single was, the song is so much worse than you realized. From that moment on -- after I had to walk over to the stereo and move the needle over -- it was hard not to hear this as just another ill-advised set of adenoidal pre-teen clangor. Though the kids were from around Kansas City, they traveled out to Nashville to cut this session with some b-list pros, including pianist Gene Sisk and steel player Bobbe Seymour, and others. This has an almost-but-not quite quality, though in all honesty it probably has more appeal to "world's worst records" bloggers than to actual country fans. Oh, well.

Matt Rolf & Robyn Rolf "Live: Across The Country" (Tambor Records, 19--?) (LP)
Perhaps predictably, the Rolfs found work as a duo on the Branson "opry" scene, and toured together for over twenty years. I'm not sure when this album was made, though at some point it came out as a CD. Presumably they had matured as artists... Matt Rolf got married in the late 1990s, and around 2003 he and his wife Lisa formed a band (with their kids) called Matt's Family Jam, and thus the cycle began all over again.

The Rollin' Country Rock Band "Rollin' Country" (Atomic Records, 1980) (LP)
These longhairs from Salt Lake City, Utah cover some roots and rock stuff, such as "Hello Mary Lou," "Redneck Roots" "Under My Thumb" by the Rolling Stones.

Larry Rollins "Suppertime" (Little Nashville Records, 1977-?) (LP)
I'm not entirely sure, but I think this was the first full LP from Indiana troubadour Larry Rollins, a determined performer who established himself regionally, and led his own band for many years. According to the liner notes, Rollins was born in Norman, Indiana and started singing at school events and local talent shows from a very early age. He led a band in high school, and cut his first single around 1963, when he was still seventeen. Rollins served in the United States Army from 1966-68 and continued to play music while stationed in Europe, then eventually moved back home and settled down in Tampico, IN. He became one of the local country artists in the orbit of the Little Nashville mini-opry and shepherded many local musicians through the ranks of his band. Although he also wrote and sang plenty of secular stuff, this was an all-gospel album, with a slew of classics, including songs from Ira Stanphill, Hank Williams, and several standards from the Stamps-Baxter catalog. The only musicians identified backing him here were a vocal duo, sisters Kathi and Shannon May.

Larry Rollins "The Best Of Larry Rollins" (Little Nashville Records, 1982) (LP)

Larry Rollins "Traditional Country" (L. R. Records, 1983-?) (LP)
Although he had an impressive track record as a songwriter, Indiana bandleader Larry Rollins devoted most of this record to versions of classic country tunes, real oldies like "Crazy Arms," "Fraulein," and "Mansion On The Hill." A couple of more current numbers help date this release: Rollins covers John Anderson's "Would You Catch A Falling Star" (which charted in '81) as well as "I Found Jerry Reed's Bird," an answer song to a then-current hit. He tries to one-up Reed on his imitations of various Nashville stars, both on that track and one entitled, simply, "Impersonations." Finally amid all the parodies and homages, there's a Rollins original called "Come To Nashville." Rollins also had a knack for tapping local talent... In addition to his core band of lead guitarist James Allen, drummer Karl Lutz, steel player Gary Pugh and pianist Roger Smith, this album also showcases fiddler Glen Duncan, who grew up in Columbus, Indiana and went on to be a nationally-known bluegrass star and in-demand Nashville session player.

Larry Rollins "Smooth Country" (L. R. Records, 1984-?) (LP)

Larry Rollins "That's Country Lovin On A Saturday Night" (L. R. Records, 1985-?) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Rollins, Kurt Ericson & Mike Graham)
This mid-'80s twangband had a honkytonk edge, with commercial sensibilities... Songwriter Larry Rollins led these locals from Indianapolis, Indiana, a group he called The Little Nashville Express Band which most notably included a young fiddler-singer named Julie Maners (aka Lisa Germano) who was a couple of years away from a gig in John Mellencamp's band, and from her own solo career as a 1990s indie auteur. Also in the band was steel player Gary Pugh and lead guitar James Allen and pianist Roger Smith... They played an interesting mix of material, including two originals by Rollins, a cover of the Moe Bandy single, "It Took A Lot Of Drinking (To Get That Woman Over Me)" (a minor hit in 1984) and a Hank Williams medley closing the album out, after a tune by David Miller called "Ain't Gonna Play Your Cheatin' Heart Again." Rollins had a long career -- he recorded several singles on various labels, including one for NSD's Soundwaves imprint; years later, Mellencamp would include a song by Larry Rollins on the country-themed soundtrack to his film, Falling From Grace.

Larry Rollins "Highway To Heaven" (L. R. Records, 1986-?) (LP)
(Produced by Kurt Ericson, Mike Graham & Larry Rollins)
This was Larry Rollins' second all-gospel album, with tunes from Hank Williams, Mosie Lister and classics such as "Where Could I Go," "Daddy Sang Bass," and one called "I Found My Jesus And He Wasn't Even Lost." There are also two originals credited to Mr. Rollins, "Have You Heard About Jesus" and "Highway To Heaven," each one kicking off one of the album sides. The all-locals crew backing him included James Allen on lead guitar, Kenny Aronoff (drums), Lincoln Hamilton (rhythm guitar), Garry Pugh (steel guitar), Tony Reid (fiddle), and Roger Smith on piano, and two groups providing backup vocals, the Stidd Sisters and the Wray Brothers. (Of intense interest is whether these Wray Brothers were the same family group from Arkansas that included siblings Scott Wray and his brother Floyd Wray, who went by Bubba and later became Top Forty star Collin Raye... It's possible they drifted over to Indiana and worked in the Little Nashville scene, but I don't have any evidence -- yet -- that these were the same guys...)

Carol Roman "Little Richie Johnson Presents..." (Little Richie Johnson Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Little Richie Johnson)
A housewife from Broomfield, Colorado, Carol Roman was a country gal who grew up in Pennsylvania, then pursued a career in music which led to work as a backup singer for Hank Williams, Jr. and other '60s/'70s stars. After retiring to the Denver suburbs, she fell into the orbit of Southwest promoter Little Richie Johnson, who produced this record and provided many of its original songs. The album includes one original song written by Ms. Roman, "I Just Wanna Be Free," as well as three songs from another composer in Johnson's roster, Nadine Moore, who penned "Let It Be," Sweet Freedom" and "Take Your Wings And Go." Unfortunately, the musicians in the backing band aren't mentioned, though as far as I can tell, Ms. Roman didn't have a band of her own at the time.

Lulu Roman "Now Let Me Sing" (Rainbow Sounds, Inc., 1974-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Cline & Jim Grier)
An admittedly painful album by Hee-Haw cast member Lulu Roman, was a Texas gal whose career dated back to the 1950s, when she cut a string of straight country singles, but failed to click as a headlining artist. Later in life, Roman -- who had a thyroid problem that contributed to her weight gain -- settled into a "fat gal" schtick and played that role for many years on Hee-Haw. Like Johnny Cash before her, Roman struggled with drug addiction and straightened out after she got religion, eventually moving into the Southern Gospel field. This is an all-gospel album, recorded in Dallas, Texas with a hometown studio band that included local luminaries such as Smokey Montgomery, Marc Jaco, and guitar picker Tom Morrell, along with the Bob Cline Singers. The title track and "Oh How He Loves Me" were both co-written by Lulu Roman, along with someone named Dearman. She also covers a couple of Andre Crouch songs, a version of Fanny Crosby's "Blessed Assurance," and a couple credited to someone named Wolfe, again, no first name given.

Lulu Roman "Hee-Haw's Lulu Sings For Her Friends" (Rainbow Sounds, Inc., 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Grier, David Boothe & Larry Nix)
This disc is kind of a transitional effort, mixing secular country and pop covers with gospel songs... A Dallas native, Roman once again draws on local talent such as Smokey Montgomery, steel player Maurice Anderson, bassist Marc Jaco and drummer Perry Skidmore... They deliver a professional, if somewhat by-the-numbers backing, mainly in a soft-sounding post-countrypolitan mode which, if you ask me, doesn't support Roman's rather husky vocals as well as a more robust, uptempo style might have done. The inner gatefold features "scrapbook" backstage photos of a number of huge country stars that Roman had hung out with -- Roy Clark, George Jones, Jerry Reed, Connie Smith and others -- but several self-deprecating comments sprinkled throughout cast a shadow on the project. For example, a picture taken with Tennessee Ernie Ford reads, "Ernie...(and) 16 TONS!!" which strikes me as a little depressing... Overall, body issues aside, this is an okay album, although it didn't really wow me.

The Romaniuk Family "Country Carter Style" (Point Records, 1968) (LP)
Hailing from Canada, the Romaniuk Family band consisted of Ann Romaniuk (born 1916), Ed Romaniuk (b. 1930) and sister Elsie Romaniuk (1927) who all grew up in a coal mining family in rural Foothills County, Alberta and like many folks back then, spent their youth glued to the radio. In 1935 their dad bought a few brand-new 78s of the fabled Carter Family and thus launched a lifelong obsession, plunging Ed Romaniuk in particular into an ardent emulation of the Carter Family and the country music sound they pioneered. Billed as "the Canadian Carter Family," the Romaniuks performed regionally and on the radio, recording their first singles in the mid-1950s, followed by an (exceptionally rare) EP in 1959 and this first full album in 1968. At the time they had a weekly radio show on CBC station CJYR, which had just signed on in '68, and held their slot up until 1970, around the time their second album came out. The Romaniuks were doggedly faithful to their idols and typically devoted about half of each album to Carter Family classics, tucking in a few of their own originals as well as a traditional tune or two. In 1957 they screwed up their courage and drove all the way to Virginia to search for their heroes, actually meeting A. P. Carter, who was charmed by their sincerity and wowed by their sound. Years later, in 1971, Ed Romaniuk made another cross-continental pilgrimage, this time out to California, where he met Sara Carter, who he hung out and shot the breeze with, along with her husband, Coy Bayes. Most remarkably, the long-retired Sara Carter consented to let him record their bull session, which included them playing a few tunes together -- a historic event, as it was apparently the last recording Sara Carter ever made, outside of a brief fling during the waning days of the 'Sixties folk revival. (Special thanks to Mike Tod of The Folk podcast, whose episode on the Romaniuks brought to light the existence of the Sara Carter tapes... Kudos! And also... a Record Store Day 7" single someday?)

The Romaniuk Family "Songs We Love To Sing" (Point Records, 1970) (LP)

The Romaniuk Family "Romaniuk Family" (LEI Records, 1974) (LP)

The Romaniuk Family & Stella Bayes Morris "The Romaniuk Family And Stella Bayes Morris" (Old Homestead/World Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by John Morris & Garry McDonall)
Late vintage Romaniuks, collaborating with Stella Bayes Morris, a sister-in-law of Sara Carter who lived in Lockeford, California (near Stockton) and was one of the many inheritors of the Carter tradition. The album's repertoire is a mix of their originals, hers, and a few oldies, with Ed Romaniuk playing the autoharp and guitar, Ann Romaniuk on harmonica and Canadian fiddler Bob Fraser chiming in as well. Also issued in Canada under the title Country Echoes.

The Rompin' Stompin' Texans "Dance Time 'N Texas (Or Anyplace Else)" (Stoneway Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)
Well, hell yeah. Especially when this particular batch of Lone Star stompers includes steel player Herb Remington and fiddler Clyde Brewer, along with some of the fellas who played on various Stoneway label releases, such as vibesman Gene Meyers and guitar picker Danny Ross.

Ron, Jeff, Frank, Ray & Mike "Makin' Tracks Together" (BOC Records, 19--?) (LP)
Cover tunes by a Missouri quintet that included Ron Mahan... They play stuff by Merle Haggard, Ray Price and Jerry Reed... Recorded sometime in the '70s, methinks, at the Mack's Creek studio, near Branson.

Roger Rone "Hell To Hold" (LDR Records, 1989) (LP)
(Produced by Bobby Bradley & B. Vaughn)
A neo-trad singer in the style of Randy Travis, Rone and his band, Country Fury were from Akin, Illinois, a microscopic crossroads in the south end of the state, between Saint Louis, Missouri and Louisville, Kentucky. They played locally and recorded a couple of singles before heading to Nashville to cut this album at Bradley's Barn under the sponsorship of Bobby D. Reed, the owner of the True Records label, which released the single "Holdin' On To Nothin'," a song that made it into the back forty, peaking at #83 in Billboard.. All but two of the songs here were written or co-written by Reed, with Roger Rone contributing two of his own... While this album was part of the last gasp of Nashville's '80s indie labels, it's a nice legacy for a hard-working local artist...

Linda Ronstadt - see artist discography

Elvin Rooks & The Bluegrass Ramblers "Live At The Commons" (Elgett Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Guy F. Preston & Steve Hood)
Uber-indie bluegrass/twang from Columbus, Indiana... Lead singer Elvin Rooks and his band work through a lively set which includes a cover of John Prine's "Paradise" as well as grassed-up versions of straight country songs by Carl Smith, Buck Owens, Bob Wills, as well as classic bluegrass tunes from Flatt & Scruggs, Reno & Smiley, and one original by Elvin Rooks, "Bum In King's Clothing."

Jim Rooney "One Day At A Time" (Rounder Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by John Nagy & Peter Troisi)
A stalwart of the 1960's folk'n'bluegrass scene kicks back and gets loose with a country-flavored set, full of plenty of sweet picking and on-purpose not-great vocals, a resolutely DIY-sounding, back porch style that makes the music all the more delightful. Jamming with him are his "partners in crime," East Coast truegrasser Joe Val, guitarist Steve Bruton and Rooney's longtime collaborator, Bill Keith, playing banjo and pedal steel. The music stretches from folk and bluegrass to honkytonk and outlaw music, with songs by James Talley, Hank Williams, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson and hillbilly old-timers Wiley & Zeke... A strikingly diverse set for a guy who's best known as a bluegrass revivalist. Highlights include Rooney's bouncy original composition, "Do You Think It Will Ever Go Away," which has some groovy, Merle Travis-styled guitar licks. This is an album you have to place yourself in the right wavelength to enjoy, but once you do, it's very rewarding.

The Ropers "Current Country: 20 Hit Songs" (QMO Records, 1973-?) (LP)
This cheapo-label disc is so sketchy they actually put the band's name in quotation marks... Truth in advertising, I guess. Anyway, if you wanna go a couple of notches lower than Crown Records and K-Tel, this looks like a doozy of a disc, with covers of early 'Seventies chart toppers like "Behind Closed Doors," "Blood Red And Going Down," "Satin Sheets," and "Superman," in versions of very questionable provenance. Plus, it also came out on 8-Track tape!

The Rose Canyon Band "Destiny" (RCB Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Sierakowski & The Rose Canyon Band)
This country-rock band band from Oshkosh, Wisconsin was a four-piece -- Gary Ormsby (lead guitar and vocals), Mike McKenzie (drums), Scott Sherman (bass) and Steve Becker (lead guitar, banjo and pedal steel) with additional musicians on piano, sax and fiddle. The songs are all originals, written or cowritten by various bandmembers, including tunes like "Rolling Wheels," "Border Bound," "Highway Rider," and the rather prosaic "Rockin' In The Country." Maybe they weren't the most imaginative songwriters, but they were definitely deep into the longhair twang scene... Not bad for Oshkosh, b'gosh!

Carol Rose "Hi... I'm Carol Rose!" (Misty Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Holmes & Bill Yorty)
According to the liner notes, Carol Rose Johnson was born a coal miner's daughter -- not from Butcher Holler, but rather Oak Creek, Colorado, up in the northern end of the state. She seems to have been living near Grand Junction around the time this album came out, and was backed by a makeshift band called Little Bit Country, which featured steel guitar an harmony vocals by a fella from Cortez named Bob Mueller, who recorded an album of his own around the same time, with an uncredited Ms. Johnson singing a duet on one track. I'm not sure which of these albums came out first, though it seems likely there's some overlap between the musicians in his backing band and hers... The Mueller album had no credits, though hers does: in addition to Bobby Mueller, the group included Juan Antonio (piano), Brian Brandstetter (harmonica), Stormy Lee (drums), Jim O'Connor (bass), John Velarde (piano and strings) and lead guitar by "Bobby T," aka Robert T. Tyrer (1936-2015) a Grand Junction local who contributes one of the album's originals, "Love The Hell Right Out Of Him," and seems to have been the bandleader. Carol Rose contributes two more songs, "Hurtin' Again," and "Together We Can Make It," while bassist Jim O'Connor penned the album's opener, "Tears Of A Broken Lady." The cover songs include versions of "Crazy," Terry Fell's "Truck Driving Man," one from Hank Williams, and a torturous version of Nat Stuckey's always-awful "Sweet Thing," with Carol Rose and Bobby T trading battle-of-the-sexes badinage. The general vibe is lively and pleasantly amateurish, if a little bit chaotic... At first blush, Carol Rose seems like a fairly weak singer, but she and the band are fully committed and enthusiastic, and by album's end I was mostly won over, eventually seeing her as somewhat in the same mold as Skeeter Davis. Worth a spin, particularly for the original material.

Doug Rose "Doug Rose" (Snail Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Doug Rose & Tom Underhill)

The Rose Family "Presenting The Rose Family" (O&R Records, 19--?) (LP)

James Anthony Rose "James Anthony Rose" (Stallion Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Luckey Walker & Jim Rose)

Juanita Rose "Juanita Rose" (Lee Mac Records, 1974-?) (LP)
Born and raised in Kinston, North Carolina, singer Juanita Rose worked in radio and television broadcasting and at local venues before she was recruited by Hank Snow to become a member of his touring band. She spent six years on the road before moving to Wichita, Kansas, where she was living when she cut this disc. It's mostly cover material, although there are a couple of tracks that might be originals: "Think Of All The Fun We'll Have" by Grace Bridges and "Six Weeks Every Summer" by Fran Powers. Ms. Rose also cut at least one single before making this LP, including one that had one of her own original songs, "She Dropped The World In My Hands," which unfortunately isn't included here. Also missing is any information about the musicians backing her for these sessions, although they may have been Kansas locals, possibly even members of the Plainsmen band, which worked under the auspices of the Lee Mac label's owner.

Rita Rose "...Sings Potter County, Pennsylvania" (Jewel Records, 1977) (LP)
A gal from Catawissa, Pennsylvania, singer Rita Rose pursued a career in music, heading to Tennessee straight out of high school, and landing a spot on Cas Walker's show, "The Farm And Home Hour," a Knoxville television program that famously helped Dolly Parton start her career. While in Knoxville, she recorded at least one single, then returned to Pennsylvania where she hosted her own TV show, with sponsorship from Datsun Motors. She recorded this album with her husband Bruce Rosenbaum -- aka Bruce Rose (1940-2017), who managed her career and also sings on a couple of tracks. She tackles several country standards, oldies like "Folsom Prison Blues," "Harper Valley PTA" and "Silver Threads And Golden Needles," as well as the title track, and original written by a friend from Idaho. Not sure if there are other originals on here, though her single from 1970 had two tracks credited to "Rose-Yorks," so it's possible there are original tunes on here as well.

The Rose Sisters "Songs From The Lord Done Country Style" (Horizon Records, 19--?) (LP)
Sisters Charlotte and Fay Rose were born in Murray, Kentucky, though apparently they grew up near Detroit, and were living in Michigan when they cut this album at a studio in Nashville. The disc is packed with all-original material, with all but one song composed by Charlotte Rose, and the remaining number written by Rev. Ray Nahurien, who shared her publishing company. I've only seen and not heard this one, but I suspect there's a strong debt to the Carter Family, what with the autoharp-guitar combo pictured on the back. Not sure if they recorded any other material, but this looks pretty sweet.

Susy Rose "Susy Rose And The Southern Soul" (19--?) (LP)
An eleven-year old singer from Prospect, Ohio, Susy Rose was backed by a band mostly made up of guys from places in Indiana such as Connersville, Portland, and Ridgeville, along with one guy from Greensville, Ohio. The musicians included Dan Cochran on lead guitar, Darrell Hall (bass), Kenny Partin (rhythm guitar), and John Welker on drums. The repertoire was mostly pretty standard fare, tunes like Wanda Jackson's "Let's Have A Party," the Hank Williams oldie, "Jambalaya" and Jack Greene's "There Goes My Everything," as well as some gospel numbers, including one credited to Rose called "That's Our Saviour." She is also credited as having composed the novelty number, "Welfare Sugar Daddy," though I have serious doubts that an eleven-year old actually wrote that particular topical tune.

Rosebud "Are Ya Crackin'?" (Nightmare World Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by N. Cole Harrison)
Mostly bluegrass and western swing covers by this longhair band from Atlanta, Georgia... The group included Rocky Hutchens on banjo, John Kornhauser (vocals), Buck Peacock (lead guitar), Jim Tolles (bass and fiddle), and drummer Charles Wolff. Yeah, sure, they play "Dueling Banjos" and "Rocky Top," but also some kookier tunes like "Jug Band Music" and zippy stuff like "Take Me Back To Tulsa." There might be a couple of originals as well ("On My Way Home"?, "Talk To Me Oh Lonesome Heart"?) but I couldn't find composer credits to confirm this theory...

Rosebud "By Request Only: Take His Money And Throw Him Out" (Warped Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Hoban & Jack W. Traver, Jr.)
Recorded live at Muhlenbrink's Saloon in Atlanta, Georgia... I'm not sure what year this album came out, but the Muhlenbrink's venue closed in 1979... So presumably it was sometime before then... Lotsa hippie humor in the liner notes (as on the first album) so there's that layer of historical grooviness as well...

Arnold Rosenthal & Company "Live" (Warped Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Oliver)
A fairly kooky, lighthearted, slapdash live album by a dubiously country band out of Los Angeles, led by pianist Arnold Rosenthal, who may have been a minor player in the early 'Seventies country-rock scene. He's backed by three musicians -- bass player Howard Deere, Marilyn Donadt on drums, and Steve Westmoreland playing guitar -- although I doubt this was a real, coherent, working band. This set was recorded in November, 1975 in conjunction with a novelty single that included two originals by Mr. Rosenthal, "The World's First Jewish Country Singer" and "Your Dog (Lives A Better Life Than Me)." Both songs are also included here, though I think the single versions were studio tracks, as opposed to these live tracks. Anyway, even though Kinky Friedman beat him to the punch several years earlier, "Jewish Country Singer" is the obvious album highlight, a torturous tale of a nice Jewish boy led astray into a life of twang (complete with little bursts of "Hava Nagila"). The rest of the record is weird mishmosh of styles... It's about half country, with covers of "Another Teardrop Falls," "Holding Things Together," "Please Mister Please," "Polk Salad Annie" and "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song," augmented by some seemingly random pop and soul covers ("Respect Yourself," "Philadelphia Freedom," etc.) This may have been recorded at a place called Arnie's Lounge, located in Sylmar, California and thanked in the liner notes,,, Anyway, this is an unusually chaotic souvenir album, a truly slapdash set which inexplicably includes a five-minute long drum solo -- not in the middle of a song, mind you... just a drum solo -- and an overall vibe of not taking anything too seriously. I guess the guy had money to burn? I'm not sure if he's the same musician, but this may be the same Arnold Rosenthal who who played bass on one of Jesse Ed Davis's albums and was in a late 'Sixties edition of Gary Lewis's band, the Playboys, penning a novelty song called "I Saw Elvis Presley Last Night," which Lewis recorded in 1969. He later formed a business called Songs That Teach, and released at least one CD of children's music connected to that enterprise.

Marion Rosette "Western Song Round-Up" (Fairyland Records, 19--?) (LP)
This album of western-themed kiddie songs is possibly a little off-brand, but hey, everybody's gotta start somewhere. Back in the 1950s and '60s, cowboy movies and TV westerns were enduringly popular with American kids, and running parallel to the grown-up world of hardcore honkytonk and lofty Nashville pop was an undercurrent of cowboy music made for small children, mostly drawing on folk-oriented material. This set is strictly made up of public domain-ish oldies, chestnuts like "Oh, Suzannah," "Home On The Range," "I've Been Working On The Railroad," "Red River Valley" and the like... But That's even more interesting since the artist, pianist Marion Savage Rosette (1900-1991) was well known as a composer of original material. Classically trained, Mrs. Rosette was a soloist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, though that was actually a side gig: her real work lay as a pioneering creator of children's music, which she did on the record label she started with her husband George, as well as work for hire done for numerous other labels, as well as educational groups and radio and television shows, most notably for the Captain Kangaroo program, where she wrote songs such as "City Mouse And Country Mouse" and "Katie The Kangaroo." So why not put a little twang in the mix, too? This appears to be her only set of cowpoke tunes, though some tracks off this album also came out as singles.

Rosewood "Rosewood" (A DonRan Production, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Richard Curran & Craig Donaldson)

Rosewood "Rosewood" (Dark Star Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Ray DeLeon & John Wheeler)
This longhaired SoCal country-rock trio featured Bob Bartosh on vocals, Wayne Johnson playing bass and John Wheeler picking banjo and lead guitar... They recorded their album live at the El Paso Cantina in Riverside, California, covering a mix of material, from "Fire On The Mountain" and "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" to "Mack The Knife" and a medley of Beach Boys songs.

Rosewood Junction "Rosewood Junction" (Rosewood Junction, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Bobby Dennis)
Although the trio of Sam Caster, Jim Underwood and Brad Watson are pictured on the cover of this album outside of an old train depot in Rosewood Junction, Colorado, they were actually from Dallas, Texas, where they worked most of the year. They also toured extensively in Colorado, Idaho and particularly in Nevada, where they had a regular gig at Harold's Club, a casino up in Reno. Rosewood Junction first formed in 1973, when Underwood and Bob Foreman, of the band Stonewater Edge, partnered with Rick and Cheryl Sparks, from another group called Young Country. That lineup fell through, and while Young Country went on to record an album of their own, Underwood put this band through a couple of change-ups before recording this set of bluegrass'n'country-rock. It's mostly cover songs, stuff like "Aime," "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere," and "Louisiana Man," as well as originals such as "Oh Damn The Bluegrass Band." The main trio is joined by Maurice Anderson on steel guitar, drummer Johnny Montagnese, and Alison Snyder on piano... As far as I know this was their only album, although Brad Watson released at least one record under his own name, with Rick Sparks playing steel guitars for him. [Note: some sources identify this album as "Railway Express," because that phrase appears on the front cover; it's not on the inner labels, though, so I think this is actually a self-titled album, i.e. "Rosewood Junction."]

Bobby Ross "Voice Of America" (Constellation Records, 1988) (LP)
(Produced by Dick Bradley, Mike Stidolph & Jeff West)
A Vietnam vet bitterly revisits the war over a decade after it ended, with a set of original songs such as "No Home For The Brave (In The Land Of The Free)," "Saigon State Of Mind," and "Finally Welcomed Home." Many are rueful songs about the tough time many vets had coming back to the States, where turmoil at home and their own disillusionment made their reentry into civilian life particularly jarring. The album is dedicated to a rifle platoon in the 101st Airborne Division, which presumably Bobby Ross served in, and Mr. Ross went to Nashville booked an all-star session, with heavyweight pickers such as Bela Fleck, Sonny Garrish, Brent Rowan and Willie Rainsford, and some interesting backing vocalists, including future Top Forty star Billy Dean and Dolly's little sister, Stella Parton. To be honest? The super-professional backing band sounds a little at odds with Mr. Ross's impassioned but deeply amateurish vocals; I don't doubt his sincerity, but he was pretty limited as a singer. Also, these songs are about as subtle as a five-ton pile of thumbtacks, and they mostly follow a very similar trajectory: some poor, patriotic hometown guy went off to Vietnam and either died or came back all messed up, but nobody in America seems to care. That was, sadly, a true story for many vets, but after about the fifth song with the exact same theme, and the same sluggish vocals, you might start wondering if this project would have been better as a single, not an album. In one of the more over-the-top tracks, Ross sings about the twenty-fifth reunion of a high school class where pretty much every single guy in school got drafted or enlisted, then died in the war, got PTSD, was disabled, or lost a buddy. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think that big of a percentage of the population served... and didn't anyone go to college or get a deferment? Anyway... This is a very heartfelt record, but it may test the strength of even the most devoted listener.

Charlie Ross "The High Cost Of Loving" (Accord/Town House Records, 1982) (LP)
In the late 1960s, Mississippi-born Charlie Ross was a rock-pop musician, scoring a few minor hits with the band Eternity's Children, and he continued to record as a solo artist in the early '70s. He finally "went country" mid-decade, and had similar success on the Country charts, with a 1976 remake of one of his pop songs, "Without Your Love" proving to be his biggest hit, peaking at #13, after the original version was in the Pop charts earlier that same year. This album followed, though he wasn't able to match his earlier successes, and Ross went back into broadcasting, with this album being his swan song as a performer.

Danny Ross "Flattop Pickin' " (Stoneway Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)
Slick pickin' from a guitar slinger out of Houston, Texas. A flattop specialist, Danny Ross played in local clubs and on the radio; he also led his own band for many years, backed a few stars from Nashville and may have done some touring as well. Way back in 1956, honkytonk legend Johnny Bush worked as Danny Ross's sideman, playing drums in his Houston-based band. Around the same time, Danny's brother, Minor Robinson Ross (1923-2004), operated an influential Texas indie called Minor Records which helped launch the careers of national stars such as Mickey Gilley and Claude Gray. Minor Records also released several excellent late-'Fifties singles that showcased Danny Ross playing rock-solid honkytonk, picking and singing very much in the style of Faron Young. In later years, Mr. Ross became part of the Stoneway label's self-contained circle of artists, and did some session work backing other Lone Star locals on a few Stoneway albums.

Danny Ross "Flattop Guitar Man" (Stoneway Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)
A smooth, very professional set of guitar tunes... a little too refined for me, though fans of fancy picking will find plenty to enjoy here. Danny Ross still has down home roots, and while this is a fairly reserved set, it's less Chet Atkins, more Fred Carter, Jr., with maybe just a hint of Doc Watson in the mix. The set has several of his own tunes, including "I Love You So," "Me And Buck" and one called "Gumdrop." Good stuff.

Danny Ross "Danny On Nylon" (Stoneway Records, 1973-?) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)

Danny Ross "Still On The Flattop" (Stoneway Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)

Danny Ross "Flattop x Two" (Stoneway Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by R. M. Stone)
Coming full circle, in a sense, Danny Ross recorded this set at Gilley's Sound Studios in December, 1977, releasing it the following year as well as splitting off a few singles in '78 and '79. The lineup included Danny Ross playing lead guitar, Chubby Wise (rhythm guitar), Donny King (rhythm guitar), Terry Ontiberoze (drums) and Buck Henson on bass.

Dennis Ross & The Axberg Brothers Band "Dennis Ross And The Axberg Brothers Band" (197-?) (LP)
An iconic, hard-working roadhouse band from Lubbock, Texas, with a tough mix of rock, blues and twang. The three principal members -- bassist Jim Axberg, drummer John Claude Axberg and singer Dennis Ross -- have worked together for decades, including this album from the late '70s (or early '80s?). The disc is packed with original material -- although John Claude Axberg and Dennis Ross trade off on lead vocals, Ross takes the spotlight here as the primary songwriter, penning eight out of eleven tracks. Jim and John Axberg each contribute one song, with the last one coming from Wright Waldrop, who was not a member of the band. The group was rounded out, though, with lead and slide guitar player Daniel Elzner who is awkwardly given a side credit on the album cover and inner label. It's worth noting that the Axberg brothers had a long history on the Texas rock scene, originally forming in a 'Sixties garage band called The Only Ones, which recorded a few tunes that have been reissued elsewhere.

Jack Ross & Woody Bowles "Sedalia" (Room Service, 1973) (LP)
A Nashville-based folk duo, featuring Indiana-born Jack Ross and Nashville native Woody Bowles. A decade later, Bowles really made his mark in Music City as the manager of the Judds, helping elevate them from obscurity to mega-superstardom. Who'da thunk it, way back in'73?

Jack Ross "Quite The Handyman" (Room Service Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Ross)
Perhaps more on the folkie side of things... Most of the songs are Jack Ross originals, along with a version of Kris Kristofferson's "Jody And The Kid," and "Hobo's Lullaby," which most folks probably know from the Arlo Guthrie version. Some of the tracks on here were previously released on his Sedalia album, listed above. (Of note to Nashville fans: future super-producer Kyle Lehning plays piano and helped engineer and mix the album...)

Lanny Ross & The Dave Ain't Here Band "Hot Country" (Nugget Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Lanny Ross)
A nice set of indie twang from the New Mexico scene... This is mostly all original material written by L. R. Gerald (presumably Lanny Ross?) with lively, enthusiastic backing by a local Albuquerque band with plenty of pep... Fiddles, pedal steel, harmonica and twangy guitar back Ross' homespun vocals. Plenty of good tunes, as well, including winners such as "Sweet Steel Guitar," "Hardhat Days, Honky Tonk Nights, Hillbilly Bands" and the cleverly-titled "Skoal Brother." Definitely worth tracking this one down.

The Rosslyn Mountain Boys "The Rosslyn Mountain Boys" (Adelphi Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Dawson & The Rosslyn Mountain Boys)
This DC-area country-rock/boogie band worked the Mid-Atlantic country-folk scene for the better part of a decade, and recorded a few albums and played a bazillion gigs (not counting the occasional reunion gig...) The band sported several several ex-rockers and nurtured some country pickers who would later make a go of it in Nashville. Steel player Tommy Hannum, who had played with Emmylou Harris in her pre-Gram Parsons folk days, and who went on to be a notable session player in the '80s and '90s, is one of the most notable bandmembers, at least from a country perspective: he gets some sweet licks in on a tune or two. Another mainstay of the band was pianist Peter Bonta, who became a prolific Americana session player and engineer, and joined Bill Kirchen's band in the 1990s. This debut album is uneven but charming; I remember hearing the best songs off it getting airplay on KFAT, back in the days before "alt-country" existed... It's work checking out, if you ever run across a copy, though you shouldn't make any heroic efforts...

The Rosslyn Mountain Boys "Lone Outsider" (Schitzophonic Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Dawson, et.al.)
By the time this album came out, they'd pretty much worked the kinks out of their performing style... The steel playing, in particular, is pretty sweet, and undeniably true to country roots... There are several nice songs on here, although nothing really reaches out and grabs you -- that's probably mostly due to the modest production values... Nothing sounds bad, but the music lacks immediacy. Nonetheless, this is a nice document of one of the East Coast's great also-ran twang bands

The Rosslyn Mountain Boys "Different Skyline" (Sosumi Records, 2006)

The Rostvit Sisters "In California" (Claiborne Music Productions, 19--?)
A gospel offering by a family-band vocal quartet that later aligned themselves with the western-themed Flying W dude ranch in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group featured older sisters Lora Jean and Sharon, along with identical twins Fay and Janice Rostvit, who moved with their family from Minnesota to Colorado in 1954, and won a regional talent contest in 1960, launching their musical career, which lasted for several years. They seem to have been primarily a gospel group, though their album for the Flying W Ranch (below) was almost all secular western material.

The Rostvit Sisters "On Tour" (Claiborne Music Productions, 19--?)

The Rostvit Sisters "...Sing At The Famous Flying W Ranch" (Flying W Records, 1964-?)
Since the Rostvit family lived in Colorado Springs, having the gals perform with the Flying W Ranch seems like a natural fit. The repertoire is mostly secular, western-themed chestnuts, along with a couple of gospel numbers and a blithe version of "Mister Sandman," which had been a pop hit for the Chordettes in 1954. Unfortunately this album was rather poorly recorded -- it sounds like a tin can telephone call -- but the gals are also a little bland -- perky and they harmonize well, but their arrangements aren't very adventurous. An early '60s edition of the Flying W Wranglers backs the sisters, though sadly the liner notes don't inform us which individual musicians play on these tracks; they do add a little twang to an otherwise fairly staid pop-vocals presentation. Decent, but nothing earthshaking. (Note: in later years, Faye and Janice co-wrote a book called Twin Reflections, which looks back at their career in gospel music... Apparently this version of the quartet only lasted until about 1966, when the gals quit touring in the United States in favor of an international ministry that took them to Africa and elsewhere; I'm not sure if they also continued recording together as well.)

Elliot Rothpearl "Sippin' Slow" (Rumplestiltskin Records, 1988) (LP)
(Produced by Elliot Rothpearl & Ed Sloan)
Dunno much about this guy... He seems to have been from upstate New York and wrote most of the songs on here. Lots of pros on here backing him, including Lloyd Green playing pedal steel and Buddy Spicher on fiddle, while Rothpearl plays guitar, banjo and mandolin... Also notable is Chip Taylor chiming in with some background vocals... The arrangements are good, though in all honesty, Rothpearl's vocals don't always hold up well.

The Roundtown Boys "Deadheads And Suckers" (Swallow Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by The Roundtown Boys)
A lively set from a youthful oldtimey band out of Fresno, California... The driving force is singer-fiddler Evo Bluestein, who along with his brother, mandolin picker Jemmy, grew up as part of the long-lived Bluestein family band, a pillar of the Central California bluegrass scene. Evo stands out as a dynamic and devoted old-timey fiddler, as well as a master of the reedy, nasal intonations of the genre... The Boys pay obvious homage to the New Lost City Ramblers, matching their wildness, fervor and wit, also dutifully noting each of the scratchy old 78s they used to build up their repertoire... Pretty darn good little record!

Bobby Rowan "Johnny Cash Song Hits Sung By Bobby Rowan" (Arc Records, 196-?) (LP)
This one's kind of self-explanatory, right? On the Canadian Arc label.

Peter Rowan - see artist discography

The Rowans - see artist discography

Dorothy Rowen "...Sings Your Favorites" (1967-?) (LP)
A lounge act with a healthy dose of country standards such as "King Of The Road," "Mountain Dew," "Make The World Go Away" and "Your Cheating Heart," alongside a few pop tunes like "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" and "Twilight Time." More country than not, I'd say. Not much info about Dorothy J. Roughen (1923-1993) other than that she was playing a gig at the Springs Motel, in Lexington, Kentucky when she cut this album; a few years later she wrote a rah-rah song for the Wildcats football team called "We Believe," which came out as a single in 1970. This one pops up in a lot of different places, but I'll thank The Motel Lounge blog, because I dig their vibe.

Lloyd Rowland "The Running Man" (Cannon Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by David Hearn)
Hailing from Phoenix, Arizona, guitarist Lloyd R. Rowland worked in local country bands in the late 1960s, cutting this "solo" album with his pal, Bob Norine sometime in the early '70s, probably around 1973. The album includes covers of country and pop hits such as "Delta Dawn," "City Of New Orleans" "Games People Play" and "If We Make It Through December," as well as a couple of originals, "Constant Sorrow" and "Running Man," both credited to Rowland.

Lloyd Rowland "In Dreams" (Cannon Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Lloyd Rowland)

Gary Rowles/Various Artists "This is Oregon Country" (Flat Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Gary Rowles)
A historical and sometimes humor-filled celebration of the soggy state of Oregon, with songs such as "Oregon, My Oregon" and "Wet Oregon," which just about says it all. Though his allegiance was to the Soggy State, Rowles also had roots in LA... In fact, he played lead guitar for Arthur Lee and Love for a couple fo years back around 1971!

Johnny Roy & The Roy Boys "A Session With Johnny Roy And The Roy Boys In Nashville" (NRS Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Mathes)
A just-the-basics honkytonk band from Cincinnati, Ohio made up of three Kentuckians -- Johnny Roy (lead singer and emcee), Jacky Roy (drums), Doug Bowling (steel guitar) -- and a couple of guys from Ohio, Gary Eichler (bass) and Paul Toney (lead guitar). The repertoire is over half Merle Haggard songs, though there also seem to be a few originals: "Fool In The Corner" and "Once That Was Me" by Jim Walters and one called "If They Hadn't Invented The Bottle" by Bill Parsons, and while not credited, "Two Dollars In The Juke Box" is probably the Eddie Rabbitt song that became a hit in '76. There's no date on this disc but based on the repertoire it looks like it's an early 'Seventies offering, I'm guessing somewhere between 1971-73. Johnny Roy also cut some singles on Nugget Records that were recorded at the same Nashville studio sometime around 1974, but this album seems like it's earlier than that. The liner notes say that the group was formed in 1957, but if so, it was with a completely different lineup, as Johnny Roy is the only guy in the cover photo who looks remotely old enough to have been in a band back then; the other Roy Boys all look like they're in their twenties.

Lee Royal & The Sawdusters "Lunch Time At The Saw Mill" (Timber Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by John Dougan & John Busbice)

The Royal Serenaders "Songs Country To City" (Anderson Records, 1968-?) (LP)
A real mystery disc here... Based in Anderson, Indiana, the Royal Serenaders were a pretty basic, down-to-earth local dance ensemble, a four-piece band that mixed pop/dance instrumentals with country material, including vocal renditions of standards such as "Born To Lose" and "Don't Touch Me," as well as instrumental versions of "Welcome To My World." On the pop side, they played chestnuts such as "Danny Boy," "Jersey Bounce" ad "September Song," as well as their own "Royal's Theme." The bandmembers are identified only by their first names in the no-frills album art: Leonard (pedal steel), Harry (guitar), Jerry (drums), and Bud on bass. The last guy was Bud Cinder, a local appliance store owner who seems to have been the group's leader and frequently got billing in local show notices published during the summer and fall of 1968 in the Anderson Herald newspaper. (He may have also experimented with calling the group the Rainbow Serenaders on a few occasions, but the "royal" version was what they stuck with on the album...) Very little info about these guys, though -- the album itself had a plain white back cover with a red sticker slapped on that gave the song titles, and that's about it. The Anderson label was a prototypical small-town private label, mostly recording country and gospel singles by amateur local musicians, and was named after the tiny town of Anderson, which sits midway between Muncie and Indianapolis. As far as I can tell this group was only together for a short while though they played at several community events -- Legion post shows, retirement homes and whatnot.

The Royale Western Singers & Orchestra "Country And Western Hits" (Royale Records, 195-?) (10" LP)
An interesting oddity from the ultra-cheapo budget label, Royale Records. If I had to guess, this early stab at putting together an album was probably drawn from various 78s... The set includes western (cowboy) standards like "Red River Valley" and "Blue Tail Fly" along with honkytonk weepers such as "Why Baby Why" and "Yes I Know Why," as well as Elvis-era rock songs like "I Forgot To Remember To Forget," "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Blue Suede Shoes." Royale was known for (endlessly) repackaging old recordings by folk/western singer Red River Dave, and he may be on at least a few of these tracks. (Don't quote me on that, though!) The "Royale Western Singers" name was also used on at least one 7" EP, of all country material.

Roy Royston "Roy Who?" (Starwest Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Roy Royston & Blaine Allen)
A native Oregonian, Roy Royston grew up in Eugene, moved to Portland and eventually to Longview, Washington, where did regional bar-band gigs starting in the early '80s at places like Hillman's and Scotties Lounge. This album was recorded at the legendary Ripcord Studios in nearby Vancouver, WA, and like his live act, it was a mix of rock oldies and country. It includes four songs written by Royston -- "Falling In Love (Doesn't Come Easy)," "Dancing To A Slow Love Song," "Quivering Lips" and "Stormy Weather" -- as well as covers of "Statue Of A Fool," "Unchained Melody," Jody Reynolds' teen tragedy classic, "Endless Sleep" and even a version of Dick Feller's "Some Days Are Diamonds." No info about when this album came out or who was backing him, alas.

Van Rozay "...From San Jose" (Golden Vanity Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Steve Mackay & Van Rozay)
An eclectic acoustic album from an easygoing local in the Northern California orbit of San Francisco and Santa Cruz... Mixing jazz and twang influences, Rozay gets in some fancy, clever guitar picking amid a set of original songs that wobble between slightly forced kookiness and more romantic inclinations. I suppose this falls mainly into the folkie fold, though I think he may have been shooting for a Dan Hicks or Jerry Jeff Walker kind of vibe. The list of musicians collaborating on this album spans Bay Area rock and jazz players such as Merl Saunders to folkies and bluegrassers such as Kate Brislin and Kathy Kallick, and even Commander Cody alumni Bill Kirchen kicking in on guitar, as well as steel player Bobby Black. A lot of the songs seems a little too much like inside jokes, but there's a mellow feel to this album that's kinda nice. More folkie than what I'm usually into, but one worth knowing about.

The Rubber Band "Stretch It Out" (A & R Record Manufacturing, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Carl Warren)
This Oklahoma band was led by bassist Buzz Carter and piano player Paul Thacker, with lead guitar by Lloyd Brooks on, Steve Walters on drums, and steel guitar by a guy named John Bell. Carter and Thacker started the group in the early '70s, doing gigs as early as '72, and later played together (as late as 2016) in a country/oldies band called the Shadow Riders. They seem to have been from Lawton, Oklahoma or thereabouts, and probably played gigs in North Texas and the Panhandle. As far as I know, this was their only album.

Rube Rubin & The Westerners "Kansas City Star & King Of The Road" (Crown Records, 1965-?) (LP)
Well, yeah, you would assume with the big, blazing banner album title that this would be a full-on Roger Miller soundalike/ripoff disc... But, alas, it's a little more cobbled-together than that, with those two cover songs matched up with a bunch of random "western" tunes ("Careless Love," "Letter Edged In Black," "Wabash Cannonball," etc. all doubtless dredged up from deep in the Crown Records vaults. And Rube Rubin? Your guess is as good as mine.

Rube Rubin & The Westerners "Engine, Engine #9" (Crown Records, 196--?) (LP)
It worked so well the first time... And, no, I haven't been able to Google up any info about Mr. Rubin... or his Westerners.

Ruby "Sings Sweet 'N' Swingin' " (Nashville Cats Productions, 1976-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Vest)
This vanity pressing, dollar-bin LP was a bit of a mystery... In the liner notes, Ruby is only identified as "Ruby" but she seems to have been connected to The Kendalls, who note they know her as a friend, as well as professionally, which made me wonder if maybe she sang backup for them. Also chiming in on her behalf are Nashville second-stringer Sonny Wright, impressionist Urel Albert, and steel players Curly Chalker and Jim Vest, who both play on the sessions. The Music City studio crew also includes Cliff Parker on lead guitar, Willie Rainsford plunkin' piano, Bob White on fiddle and Jack Leonard on bass; drummer Jerry Kroon was a South Dakota boy who started out making indie albums with his family band, then made it in Nashville as a studio musician. Despite the wealth of talent, this is actually a pretty sedate offering -- Ms. Ruby was an okay singer, but never quite lights a fire with her vocals, and the band mostly seems to be going through the motions. The repertoire is pretty interesting, though: there are several standards, stuff like Hank Williams' "Mind Your Own Business," "Sweet Dreams," "Crazy" and "Release Me," but also a flavorful offering of original material which reveals this to be one of those country music demo albums that were so prolific in the '60s and '70s. Highlights include "Back Porch Heart," one of two Doodle Owens tunes, as well as "I Can't Get Over Getting Over You" (by Willie Rainsford), a couple of songs credited to Calvin Miller ("Lay Your Head Down" and "He Makes Everything All Right") and a saucy-sounding composition by Susan Parsons, who also sings backup on this album. So, it turns out, after more research time than I'd care to admit, that "Ruby" was Mrs. Ruby Key of Platte Woods, Missouri. She was the wife of Larry Key, a country music deejay (and local amateur musician) who was nicknamed "the KC Thin Man," and was working at station KBIL at the time this album was produced. As far as I can tell, Mr. Key doesn't play on this album, but he did autograph the copy I found at my local Record Hut.

Jesse Rucilez "The First Of Jesse Rucilez" (Ripcord Records, 1977-?) (LP)
(Produced by Gene Breeden & Blaine Allen)
A confident and robust country crooner, roughly in the same camp as Conway Twitty or Mel Street, Jesse Rucilez fronted the Rucilez Brothers Band, which played regularly around Reno, Nevada in the late '70s. The album includes covers of Marty Robbins' "You Gave Me A Mountain," "Listen To A Country Song" (originally recorded by Lynn Anderson), Doug Kershaw's "Louisiana Man," and pop tunes like "My Way" and Fats Domino's "I'm Walking." There are also a few originals, including two songs credited to Eddie Hawkins: "We Don't Need Tomorrow" and "Oklahoma Pride." Also worth noting is one by Willie Nelson's first wife, Shirley Nelson, "No Place To Go." Alas, there's no info in the liner notes about who played on this album, but it's a pretty good bet that Ripcord's Gene Breeden was sitting in on guitar... It's a well-produced set, with a few flowery arrangements, but a pretty solid country core. I'm not sure what happened to Mr. Rucilez -- after this album came out, he seems to have vanished from sight; his son, Jesse Lynn Rucilez, is also a musician, playing in some local rock bands over the years, as well as authoring several self-published novels.

Andy Rucker "Andy" (Ancor Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Louis Redding & Jack Logan)
A folkish country singer from Richmond, Kentucky, Andy Rucker is (impressively!) backed here by Faron Young's band, the Deputies. The songs are mostly covers, with one written by Rucker: "Where Could My Heart Be" and one by album producer Louis Redding, " No Regrets For Loving You." There's also a big medley of Merle Haggard hits, along with covers of "Summertime" "Danny Boy" and "Me And Bobby McGee." Not sure of the exact year this came out -- anyone have more info about this one?

Andy Rucker "From Kentucky To The Reef" (Ancor Records, 1984-?) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Osborne)
An ambitious but iffy album. The song selection is what drew me to this one, with covers of a lot of great tunes from folks such as John Prine, Jimmy Buffett, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, the Eagles and Shel Siverstein... There's even a version of Guy Clark's "Homegrown Tomatoes" (which helps date this album as being from at least 1983, when Clark released the original version of the song...) The thing is, though, this is a notably flawed album, with iffy vocals though fairly solid musical backing... Rucker provides spoken introductions to several of the songs, referring to certain ones as the "most requested" in that peculiar way that suggests that maybe his musical career wasn't all that extensive, but he wants to make it sound that way. (Indeed, he even puts the word "audiences" in quotation marks when talking about his performances in the Florida Keys, where he was living at the time this album came out...) In contrast to his other album where he was backed by Nashville session pros, here the band seems to be all back-home locals, recording at Silverwood Studios, in Winchester, Kentucky. The musicians include Wanda Barnett on violin, Rex Hart (drums), John Ireson (bass), Dave Lowe (banjo), Wendell Zopfi (keyboards) and various and sundry others, with Andy Rucker on banjo, harmonica and autoharp. Anyway, this could be considered one of those "real people" albums with has a charming warts-and-all authenticity that some folks might find charming... It's not horrendous, by any means, and he certainly had good taste in material, but take his fame and fortune with a grain of salt.

Gene Rucker "Ring Her Bell... And Nashville Picker" (Chantel Records, 198--?) (LP)
(Produced by Gene Breeden)
Rootsy twang from the Pacific Northwest... Mr. Rucker was from Washington state, and availed himself of the services of Vancouver, WA expatriate Gene Breeden's Nashville studio, with a familiar studio crew including Gene Breeden, Terry Crisp, Benny Kennerson, Geno Keyes and Bruce Watkins, to name a few... Intriguingly, all of the songs on here were written or co-written by Idaho songwriter Dale Miller (who also recorded with Breeden and his buddies). Two songs feature lyrics by Verna Hodgson, an otherwise obscure figure in the musical world -- my guess is she was from Idaho as well. One thing I'm curious about: this album has a catalog number that indicates earlier releases on the Chantal label, though the only other one I've seen mention of is a single from this album... Anyone know anything about that?

Arnie Rue "Arnie Rue" (Big Bear Records, 1977) (LP)
In addition to playing live gigs, recording this country album and several singles, Azuza, California's Arnie Rue also dabbled in local Republican politics, running for a state Assembly seat... He may have also worked in radio for a while, and had a couple of minor Billboard hits in 1979, "Spare A Little Lovin' (On A Fool)" (which hit #56 on the charts) and "Rodle-Odeo-Home" (#74) which sounds like something Ned Flanders would sing. Rue was a pleasant-sounding indiebilly artist, with an unusual voice, but a nice one, sort of in the tradition of singers like Bill Anderson, who you wouldn't expect to carry a lyric as well as he does. Nice stuff if you can track it down; it would be nice if someone could reissue this album along with some of the singles that followed.

Billy Rufus "Another Country Morning" (Guinness Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Eubanks)
All originals, mostly composed by Billy Rufus, with two written by Woody Bowmar, who was apparently a staff writer for some Nashville publishing company.

Bobby Runnel "A Winning Streak Of One" (Hawk Records, 19--?) (LP)

Bobby Dakota Runnel & The Desperadoes & Company "Well... It's About Damn Time!" (Scratch Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Brad Aaron, David Farrel & Bobby Runnel)
Longhaired twangster Bobby Runnel was an ex- garage rocker who cut several indie recordings in the late 'Sixties and led a band called the Faux Pas III, which had a long run playing gigs in and around Akron, Ohio. Runnel was apparently originally from Arkansas, although he was working clubs in Lafayette, Louisiana when he released this set of shaggy outlaw twang, backed by his band The Desperadoes, which came together in 1976 and broke up in the early '80s. There was no fartin' around here with some big trip to Nashville: Runnel and his buds kept things mega-local, recording this souvenir set with a hometown crew in Bogalusa, Louisiana. The core of the band seems to have been a trio with Bobby Runnel on guitar, T. Roy English on drums, and bassist R. G. Thompson, along with whole slew of other folks helping out on various instruments, backup vocals and whatnot, notably steel player John Heidrick, Bobby Napier sawing some fiddle, and extra guitar licks by Mike Leger. A lot of outlaw tunes about cowboys (including a cover of Ed Bruce's "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys") and a version of "Woman, Sensuous Woman," along with a ton of original material written by Runnel. He had a sense of humor: this album includes tunes like "It's Hard To Be A Cowboy," "Mama, We're Still Playing Cowboys," and "Where The Hell's Them Cookies Gone?" After the Desperadoes, Runnel formed a group called the Dixie Outlaws; apparently he passed away several years ago, as did other members of the band, notably

Rural "One By One" (Mole Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Cottrel & David Hern)
Oddball twang and semi-Southern rock from Ames, Iowa. This disc is packed with original material, most of it written by lead singer/multi-instrumentalist Jay Saul, who had one of those adenoidal, Seventies-nerd voices, matched with one of those singular-vision artistic vibes that somehow seems to make it work. Interesting material. The band included Jay Saul on guitar, mandolin and steel, along with Doug Campbell (drums), Charlie Grau (fiddle and guitar), Ralph Stephens (drums), Tom B. Till (piano) and additional backing vocals by Jim Healey and Sue Osborn. Worth checking out.

Rural Delivery "R. D. Breakdown" (HARC/Horizon Audio Recording Company, 1982) (LP)
A self-described newgrass band from Washington state, noteworthy here for recording (yet another) cover of "Friend Of The Devil," along with "Ghost Riders In The Sky" and tunes by country folks like Gene Autry and Hank Thompson. Most of these guys aren't familiar to me, though Rick Ahrens went on to play in a bunch of lesser-known bands.

Rural Route 4 "Saturday Night & Sunday Mornin' " (Mokan Productions, 1985) (LP)
(Produced by Dan Israel)
A rural-themed barbershop quartet from Kansas City, Missouri, harmonizing their way through a set of sentimental secular songs and vintage gospel classics... I'm sure these guys must have been part of some local mini-opry, though if so, the liner notes don't mention it... First organized in 1971, the group was part of the Society For The Preservation and Encouragement Of Barber Shop Singing In America, and competed in numerous annual barbershop contests, doing their best circa 1976-77. This edition of the quartet featured Jim Bagby (baritone), Don Kahl (tenor), Calvin Yoder (lead), Willard Yoder (bass), with Bagby and Kahl replacing founding members Rufus Kenagy and Everett Roth, whose departures are acknowledged in the liner notes.

Teri Ruse & The Roosters "People Pleasin' Country" (Custom Fidelity Records, 1972-?) (LP)
(Produced by James Ackroyd & Jim Ruse)
A mystery disc. Led by bass player Teri Ruse and lead guitarist Jim Ruse, the Roosters were a plain, old bar-band country outfit from Thousand Oaks, California, just north of Malibu. At the time this album was made, they were holding down a gig at the local Straw Hat Pizza Palace, which apparently footed the bill for this album. The rest of the band included drummer Al Janov and steel player Doug Dalley. Not a lot of info about any of these folks, alas. Not sure when this one came out: the Straw Hat logo on the cover includes the date 1970, but that corporate emblem could have been made years before this disc actually came out; the Custom Fidelity numbering system is pretty mysterious. The Roosters were definitely playing at Straw Hat in 1971 when they put out a single called "Candy Is Dandy," on the MagneSonic label, recorded by gogo boot-wearing Hollywood actress Lynn Harper, who also recorded a full album on Alshire Records around 1972. Many thanks to The Thousand Oaks Public Library for reaching out and providing a link to a 1971 local news article that produced a wealth of information about the Ruses. Apparently they had been playing together since the 1950s, and performed at the Tex Williams ranch as "The Country Sweethearts." According to the article, they had written several songs, including "Candy Is Dandy," and MagneSonic may been their own private label. The article makes no mention of this album, which make me suspect it came out later, perhaps in 1972 or possibly '73. None of their original material is included on this disc, which is all cover songs.

Johnny Russ "Memories" (Ramblin' Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Russ & Wayne Woosley)
Singer Johnny Russ and Willie Glazier formed their band the Ramblers and for several years made a go of it in Nashville... This album is packed with original songs written by Russ, as well as a couple of covers. He seems to have been aiming at kind of a Joe Stampley kind of sound -- a smooth country balladeer taking occasional dips into white Southern soul. Russ didn't quite have the vocal ooompf to take things to the next level, but this is a pretty solid set overall, and on a few tunes he hits a pretty resonant emotional tone, notably on his version of Ann J. Morton's "Life Without You." A sincere, sometimes haunting, set by a struggling second-stringer... Worth checking out if you're into Top Forty-oriented Nashville hopefuls.

The Russell Brothers "Take Me Home Country Roads" (Jewel Records, 197-?) (LP)

The Russell Brothers "Live At The Big Red Barn" (Jewel Records, 1974) (LP)

The Russell Brothers "Magnify The Lord In Songs" (Jewel Records, 197-?) (LP)

The Russell Brothers "Country Grass" (Jewel Records, 197-?) (LP)

The Russell Brothers "Operation Boogie-Grass" (Grass Country Records, 1980) (LP)

The Russell Brothers Boogie Grass Band "On The Run" (Old Homestead Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by John W. Morris & Tony Stubbs)

Charlie Russell "...And The Jones Hatband" (JHB Productions, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Emmitt Brooks & Charlie Russell)
Bandleader Charlie Russell was a deejay at KHEY radio, in El Paso, Texas... He's backed by John Harding (on lead vocal, fiddle, who also contributed to some of the songwriting), Charlie Russell Jr. (bass), Wynn Pinkham (steel guitar), Conrad Morales (drum), Debbi Russell (on "guest" vocals). This mid-'Seventies album is notable for including an early version of Terry Stafford's "Amarillo By Morning," which was later a hit for fellow Texan George Strait.

George Russell "Snake River" (Green Linnet Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Peter Oshtroushko)
George Russell was a guitarist from Scott's Bluff, Nebraska who became part of the Minneapolis folk scene... This album is a little less country than most of the records I'm looking at, but along a bunch of his own originals, he also covers some Jimmie Rodgers tunes such as "Peach Pickin' Time In Georgia" and "Columbus Stockade Blues." The backing band includes Peter Ostroushko, Butch Thompson, Barry St. Mane (on banjo), Mike Cass (dobro and steel guitar) and folkster Bill Staines contributes liner notes.

Gregg Russell "Stars" (Winter Song Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by David Wings)
A live album capturing a restaurant show in South Carolina "recorded live under the trees, Harbour Town, Sea Pines Plantation, Hilton Head Island." Looks more folkie though this includes covers of nominally country stuff such as "Grandma's Feather Bed," "Country Roads" and "Rocky Top," as well as pop golden oldies like "Please Come To Boston" and "Love Potion Number Nine."

Gregg Russell "Bridges" (Winter Song Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Gregg Russell & David Wings)
Tilting more towards a soft-pop sound, this nonetheless features the pedal steel work (and saxophone) of David Irwin, along with an unidentified drummer and "all other instruments" played by Gregg Russell. Apparently this time around all the songs were Russell's own originals, including a couple, "Atlanta Lady" and "The Singer's Wife," which he'd recorded on his previous live album. The drums are credited to "DrumDrops," which may have meant Russell used some kind of a drum machine, or pre-recorded rhythm tracks -- there's a whole series of "DrumDrops" albums by a guy named Joey D. Viera, though I dunno if there's a direct connection or not... Gregg Russell recorded at least one other album a few years later, though that one looks so non-country, I think we can safely leave it out of our survey.

Leon Russell - see artist discography

Mel Russell "Truck Drivin Man" (Mountain Empire Records, 1983) (LP)
Latter-day trucker tunes from Bristol, Virginia... Couldn't find out much about this guy online... I think "Mel Russell" may have been a stage name.

Russ Russell "New Orleans Country" (NoCo Records, 1979) (LP)
Includes "Willie Ain't Writing No Sad Songs," which I assume is a Willie Nelson tribute song... Anyone know for sure?

Russ Russell "Dixie Country" (NoCo Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Linnemann)
A honkytonker from New Orleans, Russ Russell had a gig at a place called The Branding Iron, in Jefferson, Louisiana, fronting a band called The Rustlers... This is an album of all original material, including a few patriotic tunes: "Red White And Blue (Means Freedom To Me)" and "America, This Cowboy Still Loves You," as well as the rather icky-sounding, "All This Time I Thought She Was Too Old." He's backed by an all-star studio band: Doug Jernigan, Benny Kennerson, Dave Kirby (guitar), Bruce Watkins (guitar, fiddle), Billy Linneman (bass) and Clyde Brooks on drums. He also seems to have had sponsorship from the Dixie Beer company... nice work if you can get it!

Tom Russell - see artist discography

The Russell Twins "Double Country" (Derrick Records, 1975-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Davis)
Twin sisters Janet Russell and Janis Russell Farkas apparently hailed from Kalamazoo, Michigan, though they released this album on a label based in Tulsa, Oklahoma better known for rough-hewn honktonk and country-pop singles from the early 'Seventies. The liner notes by producer Bill Davis tout the musical chops of the studio band, but don't mention any of them by name (sigh) though he does imply some of them may (or may not) have been Nashville pros... The songs are mostly covers, although three original songs are credited to Janis Russell Farkas: "Love Letters," "Hang Up That Phone (And Put Away That Dime)" and "What In The World's Gone Wrong." All three songs were registered with the Library Of Congress with a copyright date in October, 1974, which sometimes means a recording date as well... There are also autographed copies floating around that are hand-dated 1975, so split the difference if you wish. As far as I know, this was the only recording by the Russell gals... but you never know!

Garry Rust "...And The Rust Country Band" (Rust Country Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Garry Rust, Bill Cashman & Fred Porter)
This band from the Tucson, Arizona twang scene played a few choice covers, such as "Amanda" and "Y'All Come Back Saloon," as well as plenty of original material. Among the bandmembers were lead singer Garry Rust, pedal steel player Ted Hockenberry, Steve Call on rhythm guitar and pianist Duncan Stitt, who played in several other local Arizona bands during the '70s and '80s.

Betsy Rutherford "Traditional Country Music" (Biograph Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Arnold S. Caplin & Gordon Sheehan)
Old-school Appalachian acoustic country tunes from a Virginia gal whose dad led a backwoods stringband back in the Depression era. Though Ms. Rutherford was born in Galax, her father, Clarence Wroten, was from North Carolina, and performed on the radio in various cities, including Charlotte, Greensboro and Winston-Salem... She sticks to pretty well-known standards, stuff like "Amazing Grace," "Rain And Snow," "John Hardy," "The West Virginia Mine Disaster," and the like. She sings and plays guitar, with backing by John Coffey, Neil Rossi," and several other old-timey-lovin' folk revivalists, though as the liner notes tell us, "to Betsy Rutherford, old-time mountain music never had to be revived, because it was always alive." Amen to that!

Tim Rutherford "Broken Promises" (Lea Ann Records, 19--?) (LP)
This one's a real mystery disc... An album about coal mining and coal miners written by a fella from rural Huddy, Kentucky who says in the liner notes he came from a family of miners. Probably more of a folkie thing, this is a super-off the radar record, with no mention of it anywhere, outside of a couple of listings on sales sites. I found several Tim Rutherfords living in small towns in Kentucky, but no thread to connect them, and no direct links to this record. Really, your guess is as good as mine.

David Ruthstrom "Moonshine Dreamer" (Goldust Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Emmit Brooks & David Ruthstrom)
More folkie than the stuff I'm into, but still worth mentioning here... Although he traveled to the Emmit Brooks studio in Las Cruces to record this album, songwriter David Ruthstrom hailed from West Texas -- when he performed at the 1975 Kerrville Folk Festival, he was listed as a Lubbock lad. He seems to have been a protege of Lone Star folk guru Allan Wayne Damron, who he thanks in the liner notes... The set list includes a couple of Ruthstrom's originals, "In My Lady's Eyes" and "Moonshine Dreamer," though he also covers Bob McDill, Michael Martin Murphy and John Stewart, as well as a version of John Phillips' "Me And My Uncle," which is probably best known to many as a staple of the Grateful Dead's 'Seventies shows. Although this seems to have been Ruthstrom's only solo album, be later formed a musical partnership with Jeannie Robertson.

Bob Ruzicka "What The World's All About" (Signpost Records, 1972) (LP)

Bob Ruzicka "Cold Hands, Warm Heart" (MCA Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by David Briggs)
Canadian singer-songwriter Bob Ruzicka was the host of some 1970's folk-scene music shows up North, and he put out several albums, at the same time penning hits recorded by Valdy and other Canadian country and pop artists. This album is a mix of AOR pop and ponderous, message-heavy folk. He sounds sort of like Gordon Lightfoot, but with a heavier touch -- too self-serious and searching for profundity. A little bit of twang, notably on one song where he gets into sort of a Mickey Gilley mode, but mostly this isn't my cup of tea. Nice album title, though.

Bob Ruzicka "Soft Rocker" (RCA, 1973) (LP)

Bob Ruzicka "Dude" (RCA, 1975) (LP)

Bob Ruzicka "Landfall" (Mustard Records, 1973) (LP)

Bob Ruzicka "Loose Talk" (Mustard Records, 1973) (LP)

RW & Donna "Country" (Rite Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dan Burton & Lan Ackley)
A secular set by "RW & Donna," aka the Nashville-based duo of Donna Blackwood and her husband, Ron Blackwood, who was best known as the youngest member of the fabled Blackwood Brothers southern gospel group. Although their careers were mostly devoted to religious material, here RW & Donna work their way through an all-covers set of early 'Seventies country hits, singalong favorites such as "Let Me Be There," "Please Mister Please," "The Top Of The World" and "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song." Over the years R.W. moved between various incarnations of the Blackwood Brothers and his own Blackwood Singers band, eventually moving from Tennessee to the warm embrace of the Branson, Missouri/Ozark oldies opry scene. I'm not sure when this album came out, but I'd guess sometime around the mid-'Seventies.

Herb Ryals "Country Lovin' Album" (Rymon Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Mike Shockley)
A self-released set from Albany, Georgia, with all of the songs composed by Mr. Ryals... Best known as a soul music songwriter, Ryals also had success as a white soul/pop vocals artist, with a number of moderately successful singles in the 1960s and was, methinks, mostly dabbling in country for this album. Ronnie Light plays guitar, with Willie Rainsfield on piano and Larry Sasser on pedal steel, and a trio of gal backup singers that included Ginger Holladay. The songs are all Ryals' originals, including "How Should I Spend My Time," "Mind, Make Some Sense" and "You're Not Getting Older."

Jamey Ryan "Jamey Ryan" (Woodstone Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Virgin)
Perhaps best remembered as the gal who married Patsy Cline's widower, Charlie Dick, Texas-born Jamey Nell Ryan signed to Columbia Records in the late 'Sixties, and recorded a few singles for them and later for the Showbiz label. Nothing quite clicked, though, perhaps because so much of her career was spent living in Patsy's shadow -- singing Cline's material with masterful vocal likeness that both showcased and obscured Ryan's own powerful voice. Jamey Ryan landed a gig as the "girl singer" on Country Carnival, a syndicated variety show hosted by Del Reeves. She divorced Charlie Dick in 1972 and kept at her music career for a while, signing to Atlantic Records, though again, she couldn't quite hit the bigtime. She eventually retired from show business, although she did some voice work, including dubbing a version of "Blue Christmas" for the 1984 Patsy Cline biopic, Sweet Dreams. Although she was from Texas, Ryan had apparently moved to Saint Louis sometime in the mid-1970s: this album sports a mailing address in the Cross Keys Shopping Center in suburban Florissant, Missouri. Along with covers of Donna Fargo's "You Can't Be A Beacon" and several Tanya Tucker songs, the album includes two of Ryan's old songs, "21 Inches Of Heaven" and "The Worst Of The Hurt Is Over," although I think these are re-recordings rather than the Columbia originals. Seems like a reissue retrospective is long overdue!

The Betty Rydell Trio "Setting The Pace At Paul's Place" (Universal Audio Recording, 19--?) (LP)
A folkie trio from Minneapolis, doing showtunes, novelty numbers and a wee bit of country in there as well. Singer and multi-instrumentalist Betty Rydell was a farm kid from rural Minnesota whose first paid gig was playing country sets at a local truck stop, where she also worked as the cook. While still a teen, she gravitated towards bigger towns and even bigger cities, ultimately moving to Minneapolis where she performed at the Flame Cafe, and also landed a spot on the Sunset Valley Barn Dance, sponsored by radio station KSTP. From there, Rydell hit the road, touring with several different regional bands and marrying musician Bob Friedl. They continued to tour nationally, baby in arms, until their son was old enough to go to school, then they settled down back in Minnesota, continuing to play gigs at county fairs, supper clubs and other local venues. This album was recorded at Paul's Place, with Rydell on vocals, mandolin (and several other instruments), husband Bob on guitar and Jake Braziel rounding out the trio, on Cordovox and bass. There's no date on this album, but the liner notes refer to Betty and Bob having been married for eleven years, so based on her bio, I'd guess this came out around 1969-70 (although it looks much earlier...) since they met in 1958. Anyway, the material includes "evergreens" like "The Impossible Dream," "Ob La Di" by the Beatles, movie themes from "Midnight Cowboy," "Zorba The Greek" and "Hair," and country stuff including "Folsom Prison Blues" and "He Taught Me How To Yodel."

Betty Rydell "Betty Rydell" (Encore Productions, 197--?) (LP)
Although she and Bob Friedl divorced in the early '70s, Betty Rydell kept up her career and has recorded and self-released numerous CDs, in addition to this old LP. She covers hits like "Me And Bobby McGee," John Sebastian's "Darling Companion," and "Till I Can Make It On My Own," which was a hit for Tammy Wynette in 1976. I'm not sure when this album was released, but it's at least a late-'70s offering. (Thanks to Ms. Rydell's website for filling in details of her biography!)

Jim Ryder "Cowboys Stay In The Saddle Just A Little Bit Longer" (Crow Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Tim Flaherty)
This British bronco buster may have been the same "Big Jim" Ryder who played in a few English blues and rock bands in the early 'Sixties... At any rate, he was in a country mode here, singing some outlaw-ish material (David Allan Coe's "Divers Do It Deeper," "Lyin' Eyes," "Willie, Waylon And Me") along with a slew of more traditional, mainstream country ("Muleskinner Blues," "Wabash Cannonball," "American Trilogy"). Couldn't find much info about Mr. Ryder himself, although my eyes popped open when I saw that Peter Frampton was playing lead guitar on this album(!) Turns out it's a different guy -- Peter J. Frampton, not Peter K. Frampton -- but he and some of the other guys on here, notably bassist Alan Crookes, drummer Martin Duffy and producer Tim Flaherty worked together in a series of bands throughout the '80s, recording as The Cliffsons and as Poacher, a group best known for recording a hit version of Oscar Stuart Blandemer's "Darlin'," one of the all-time great English country tunes. This disc seems to have a curious backstory as some sort of business promotion, with a note on the back cover proclaiming it "sponsored by Marcol Incentives and Industrial Gifts." (Your guess is as good as mine.) At any rate, this seems to have been a dry run for the Poacher band, but if anyone out there has more info on this country collective, I'm all ears.

Len Ryder "Way Out West In Waikiki" (Frontier Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Lang & Don McDiarmid)
A groovy, fun, brisk live album from Canadian steel player and singer Len Ryder, recorded as a memento of his residency at a country bar in Honolulu called the New Frontier. A veteran of Evan Kemp's band in Vancouver, Ryder had a deft, Speedy West-like touch and keeps this small combo humming... The biggest surprise, though, is that this isn't an instrumental album but instead showcases a ton of swell original songs, with various bandmembers singing lead. Though the liner notes only discuss Ryder and the club, the other musicians seem to have included John Ott and spotlight vocalist Muriel Tilton, a yodeling local gal who -- as one half of the Tilton Sister duo -- recorded several singles in the late 'Fifties/early 'Sixties on Bertram International, a pop-'n'-country-oriented Hawaiian label that I would very much like to learn more about. This is a great record with a solid West Coast country sound... Not super-sure when it was recorded, but my copy has a 1971 date handwritten on it, though this looks more like a mid-'Sixties kinda record, maybe 1966 or so(?). According to the liner notes, Ryder had been holding down this gig for several years before they made this record, though he did eventually return to Canada and remained active in several bands over the decades.

Curt Ryle/Various Artists "Longhorn 25th Anniversary Album" (Longhorn Ballroom, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Dewey Groom & Keith Rust)
Oklahoma-born multi-instrumentalist Curt Ryle anchored the band for this set recorded in honor of the Longhorn Ballroom's twenty-fifth anniversary. A gigantic music hall, the Longhorn was a fixture of the Dallas, Texas country scene, built in the late 1950s as a homebase for western swing legend Bob Wills. Music promote Dewey Groom managed the Longhorn for about a decade before becoming the full owner in 1967, and commissioned this anniversary album, which showcased Curt Ryle as a guitarist and songwriter. The backing musicians were presumably the early '80s house band, younger dudes who included Buddy Brady on fiddle, bassist Van Crane, Donnie LaValley on steel guitar, piano plunker Kenny Martin, Shane McCauley on drums and of course Curt Ryle. While Mr. Groom croons on some oldies ("Faded Love," et. al.) he mostly lets the spotlight fall on the young'uns, and this album is packed with original material -- six songs written or co-written by Curt Ryle, including two co-composed with Kenny Martin. Not long after this was recorded, Ryle headed for Nashville, where he found success as a sideman, songwriter and producer; some of his most successful tunes include "Storm In The Heartland," a mid-1990s single by Billy Ray Cyrus, and several songs recorded by Clinton Gregory. Although Ryle's "first" album wasn't released until 1999, I think we can plug him here as well.

Bob Ryman "Hot Licks Fiddlin', Foot Stompin' Music" (Chumley Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Russ Hicks)
Originally from Texas, fiddler Bob Ryman hoofed it over to Nashville to cut this album, joined by Russ Hicks on pedal steel, Wayne Moss on bass, pianist Ray Cobb, Buddie Blackmon on banjo and guitar, with a little bit of drum thumpin' by Sy Edwards. The repertoire is mostly what you'd expect -- showcase fiddle tunes like "Old Joe Clark," "Orange Blossom Special," and "Soldier's Joy," as well as originals by Ryman, including "Inflation Blues" and "A Little Bit Of Country." Ryman has recorded several albums since this one, branching out into various styles, including his own original compositions, though this early album is pretty firmly anchored in bluegrass and country roots traditions.

Fred Ryon & The Happy Tracks "Recorded Live At The Holland Homestead" (Happy Tracks) (LP)
Although poorly recorded, this live album is a swell snapshot of an earnest country quartet from Michigan who were devoted to an old-timey sound, even though they played a lot of contemporary (late 1960s, early '70s) country material. Along with a version of "Wreck Of The Old 97" they include covers of hits by artists such as Little Jimmie Dickens, Kenny Price, Charley Pride, Connie Smith, and oldies such as Johnny & Jack's "Girl Of My Dreams" and Hank Snow's toungetwisterdelic "I've Been Everywhere." The band included Bill Grandstaff, Fred Nelson, Fred Ryon and bandleader Roscoe Wray, and their rough-edged performances radiate vitality and good cheer, as well as a pleasant dose of amped-up amateurism. The brief liner notes are from Arvin and Doris Holland, local country and bluegrass show promoters who started their own tentpole venue, the Holland Homestead, out on their farm near Waldron, Michigan. They ran a musical revue on the farm called the Country Music Roundup from 1971-79, and hosted Ryon and his group sometime at the start of that run... There's no date on the album art, but I'd guess 1971-72, since they play Bill Anderson's "Where Have All The Heroes Gone," which was a hit in 1971. Nice stuff!

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