CD - VA - White Bucks To Stetson Hats

Tracks
Benny Ingram - Jello Sal,Benny Ingram - How Can I Keep You Lovin' Me,James Mask & His Impalas - Hootchie Coochie Gal,James Mask & His Impalas - Cuban Queen,James Mask & His Impalas - Sweetest Little Girl,James Mask & His Impalas - Cute Little Queen,James Mask & His Impalas - Let The Juke Box Die,James Mask & His Impalas - Save Your Love,James Mask & His Impalas - Stolen Honey,Rick Emerson & The Sidewinders - Dance With Me,Rick Emerson & The Sidewinders - Side Winder,Rick Emerson & The Sidewinders - Anna,Rick Emerson & The Sidewinders - Gully Washer,Chuck Akin - Roberta,Bob Perry - Weary Blues Goodbye,Bob Perry - Two Tiny Rings,Bob Perry - The Rest Of My Life,Bob Perry - Can't Hardly Wait,Bob Perry - Don't Say Those Things,Bob Perry - It's The Way You Are,Bob Perry - The Time Has Come,Bob Perry - She's The One,Merle Ray & The Southern Rockets - Save The Last Dance For Me,B J And The Boys - Roll That Rig.
Chicago Based Bandera Records Opened For Business In The Fall Of 1957, Soon After Bernie Harville Had Completed His Military Service With The Us Navy.
Bernie Had Been A Committed Country Music Fan Since His Early Teens. Before Being Drafted In 1953, He Moved To Texas From His Home In Chicago In Order To Gain Better Access To His Many Country Music Idols. He Soon Got Involved In Songwriting And Ended Up Running Sonny James' Fan Club. While Serving At Sea With The Navy His Continuing Interest In Country Music Led Him To Act As A Country Music Dj Broadcasting Over The Ship's Pa System As 'Hoot' Harville And On Discharge He Went To Work As A&R Man For The Tiny Ohio Based Country Music Label Spangle Records, Recently Set Up By His Old Navy Pal O'brien Fisher.
Lack Of Funds Hampered The Spangle Operation And Bernie Soon Returned To Chicago To Start His Own Label Bandera (Named After An Early Slim Whitman Hit 'The Bandera Waltz') With His Mother Violet Muzsynski. A Deal With Vee-Jay Records For Jerry Butler And The Impressions, Who Had Been Discovered By Violet, Provided Funds To Start Bandera And Finance The Recording Of Bernie's First Discovery, The Great Hillbilly Singer Bob Perry. Chet Atkins Was Hired To Produce Perry's Records Which Were Cut At Rca Studios In Nashville, Utilising The City's Top Session Men.
Although Bandera Never Achieved Any Real Commercial Success, The Shoestring Operation Managed To Record Many Fine Hillbilly, Blues And Gospel Artists Thanks To Bernie's Hard Work And Enthusiasm And His Mother's Contacts In The Music Business.
Chicago's Position As A Leading Hub For The Blues During The 1950s Tends To Overshadow The Fact That A Substantial Country Music Scene Also Flourished In The City At The Same Time, With Many Hillbilly Bands Traveling From The South To Play In The Clubs And Bars That Catered For The City's Migrant Southern White Population. These Bars And Clubs Proved A Rich Source Of Talent For Bandera. Benny Ingram Who Cut The Label's Most Sought After Single. The Rockabilly Classic Jello Sal Was Discovered By Bernie And Vi In One Of These Local Clubs, With His Band The Sidewinders, Playing To Just A Handful Of People.
Between 1958 And 1963 Bandera Recorded Lots Of Fine Country, Hillbilly And Rocking Sides And This Cd Is Dedicated To This Body Of Work. Apart From The Fine Bob Perry Nashville Recordings And The Classic $1000 Jello Sal This Collection Includes Several Wonderful Sides By The Obscure Mississippi Hillbilly Singer James Mask, Who Was A Member Of The Benny Hess Band In Texas During The Early 1950s.
Other Rarities Included Here Are The Highly Rated Truck-Driving Rocker Roll That Rig By B.J. & The Boys Also Fine Sides From Merle Ray And His Southern Rockets, The Sidewinders As Well As Chuck Akin's Prized Cover Of The Frankie Ford/Huey Smith Classic Roberta.
Compiler Ray Topping Has Penned An In-Depth Sleeve Note, Which Gives Us The Background To Bernie Harville's Fascination With Country Music. He Has Also Spoken With James Mask And Gleaned Some Interesting Details On His Early Days Playing In The Delta Area Where He Appeared On Shows With Elvis Presley As Well As Several Other Sun Records Artists During The Mid-50s.