User:Chrisadmire/Bluebonnet Reocrds

Bluebonnet Reocrds Bluebonnet Records is one of the longest lived of the companies specializing in old-time country recordings. It was founded by Ed Manning who, at the time had a flourishing bookbinding business. He had elaborate plans for getting his new record label off the ground. Manney hired a couple of country-western singers that he called the Bluebonnet Girls, and a piano player. The Girls were to wear dresses made of real bluebonnets and advertise the new label at a big start-up party. But there were few recording studios in Fort Worth and that business took off so quickly that the preliminaries involving the Bluebonnet Girls were postponed. Manney says he still has tapes of those girls stored away somewhere with early recordings. Among the numerous artists that recorded at Bluebonnet Studios are some of the biggest names in the country field. They included Waylon Jennings, Chuck Wagon Gang, Charlie Walker, Billy Walker, Lawton Williams, Marvin Montgomery, the Light Crust Doughboys, the Browns, Paul Blount, Jack Halcomb, and Willie Nelson. Nelson's Bluebonnet sessions were his first recordings. Some of the recordings by these artists were released on Bluebonnet or its companion Manco label and some were released on King, Victor, Longhorn, and some on various Eurpoean and Canadian labels. Manney also owns the Teenager and Spotlight labels but none of the country cuts appeared on those labels. Several years ago Manney opened an affiliate company in New Mexico. Since the bluebonnet is the Texas state flower it did not seem appropriate to use the name in New Mexico, and so the Western Heritage label was established. One of the albums on that label that will be of interest to readers of Old Time Country is an LP of Bob Wills telling his life story to Ken Hightower on radio. Some of the information on that album is not found on any other record or transcription. For Western Heritage, as for Bluebonnet, Manney did the recording and all of the mastering, pressing, and jacket fabrication.

Meanwhile, Katherine Smith, a dealer in country-western records for collectors, became interested in producing albums that would preserve the style of early country entertainers. She thought it best to record these artists in their original style because that would be the most authentic method of presenting their work. She mentioned the idea to Manney who agreed it was a good one. He also offered to do the recordings in his studio and to issue the LPs on the Bluebonnet label. Smith located various old-time country artists like Bradley Kincaid and the Girls of the Golden West and the first albums were released in the mid-1960s. Over the next several years Smith continued to locate artists and did all the advertising for this special collectors' series. Sometime in the early 1970s Manney temporarily halted production of the series. His wife's failing health and the time he spent taking care of her needs before she passed away were the main reasons for putting the series on hold. Shortly thereafter Katherine Smith began making arrangements with Manney to take over the production of the old-time series. The albums released in the 1960s had met with good response and Smith knew that many people were interested in the other LPs in the series. Furthermore she wanted to get the rest of the recordings out because she believed in the music and knew there were many good performances on the unreleased material. In 1987 all rights were transferred to Smith and she now runs the operation under the company name Bluebonnet Record Sales to avoid confusion with Manney's label. All of the 1960s recordings of the Girls of the Golden West, Bradley Kincaid, Red River Dave, and others, have been released on cassette and eight-track. Smith has not forgotten record buyers and although many companies are phasing out LPs, she plans to release many of the Bluebonnet recordings on albums. Most Bluebonnet albums feature only vocal and guitar, the way most of the artists preferred to record. This method was proven serendipitous for several artists have demonstrated that they are excellent instrumentalists as well as singers. For example, Red River Dave is one of the most fantastic pickers in the business, but this talent of his has never been displayed before. The late Dwight Butcher was also a good guitarist who sounded remarkably like Merle Travis at times. West Virginia's Buddy Starcher and Washington D.C.'s Eddie Nesbitt are also excellent guitarists and singers. Nesbitt's repertoire is also unusual, consisting of many old songs that most of the other artists no longer recall. Many of these are included on his Bluebonnet series of albums titled Lost Treasures. Readers of this newsletter will probably be particularly interested in the work of Cecil Gill because he plays a guitar style reminiscent of that used by Jimmie Rodgers and is a fine yodeler as well. When D.K. Wilgus of UCLA first heard Gill he couldn't understand why he was not up there with the greats of old-time country music. Among the other artist Bluebonnet are several bluegrass bands including the Texas Bluegrass Boys, Double Mountain Boys, and the Cross Timber Boys. There is also a fine fiddle album by Joe Deering, the undefeated Texas Champion fiddler, who passed away in 1987. Some of the most recent releases are by Bradley Kincaid and by Kenny Roberts. In fact, Roberts has a second album that will be out shortly. Due to problems with a company that recently produced several authorized reissues of Bluebonnet albums, Katherine Smith emphasizes that the Bluebonnet old-time series "has never been leased out, sold or in any way has anyone been permitted to produce them on any label in any form except on Bluebonnet." Anyone interested in purchasing any Bluebonnet albums should write Bluebonnet Record Sales, P.O. Box 281, Fort Worth, Texas 76101. Fans of old-time country music will find a wealth of enjoyable albums in the Bluebonnet catalog. Among the company's offerings are any eight-album set (BL 106, 108, 110, 113, 117, 124, 135, and 136) by the Girls of the Golden West (Milly and Dolly Good) that was recorded in the fall of 1963. Noted topical songwriter Red River Dave McEnry (best known for Amelia Earhart's Last Flight) has four albums (BL 119, 122, 141, 142) featuring both his own compositions and country standards. Buddy Starcher is heard on Bl121 Just Buddy and His Guitar and Cecil Gill, "the Yodeling Country Boy," is heard on five releases (BL 101, 114, 138, 139,140) that indicates Gill has more than a passing admiration for Jimmie Rodgers. Also of great interest are 13 volumes(BL 105, 107, 109, 112, 118, 123, 127, 128, 129, 131, 132, 133, 134) by Bradley Kincaid, "the Kentucky Mountain Boy." This collection of 161 songs was recorded in the fall of 1963. BL 127 is available on both album and cassette and the other 12 volumes are available only on cassette. Bluebonnet releases are $8.00 for one album, cassette, or eight-track, $7.50 each for three, $7.00 each for five or more. $2.00 postage is charged on each order.