Gene Watson: Biography - 1960s
It is difficult to imagine the world of country music without the vast
contribution that Gene Watson has made to it. Between his major label debut
on Capitol Records in 1975 and the present day, Gene Watson has excelled
with his traditional slant within country music.
Biography: 1960s
In January 1961, when he was 17 years old, Gene Watson
married Mattie Louise Bivins; they had two children - Gary Wayne was
born in 1962 & Terri Lynn was born in 1964. It was at this time that Gene
had to lie about his age in order to get a job building missile silos in
Abilene, Texas.
Five years later, in 1966, Gene moved to Dallas, where an
uncle helped him get his first professional job as a singer at a club called
The Palms.
However, Gene still didn't take the possibility of making a living at music
seriously, until he moved to Houston where he formed a band called Gene
Watson & the Other Four, a band that included one of his brothers (Eddie
Watson on vocals) & three of his cousins (George Watson on drums, Pat Watson
on bass guitar, and Donnie Watson on vocals, rhythm guitar & bass).
Gene & the Other Four landed a recording deal with Houston-based Tonka
Records, for whom they recorded the songs 'If you can't come, just call',
'You're what's happened to me' & 'Please don't laugh at me'. According to
the information displayed on the Tonka record label, the first two tracks
were written by Gene Watson himself.
It was also at this time that Gene decided to drop Gary from his name. Gene
maintained that people were calling him Larry & Gerry, so he decided to use
his middle name (Gene) instead - even then, people assumed his name was
Eugene, which it wasn't. The band, Gene Watson & the Other Four, however,
did not last very long and was soon disbanded.
While in Houston, Gene found work as an auto body repairman & painter in
order to support his wife & two children. It was at this time that Gene
experienced lots of lean times, and lived from hand to mouth & from
apartment to apartment. In order to make some extra money, Gene decided to
form a new group which he called Hailball Express, in honour of a Ford
automobile that he drove. (Hailball is a local Texas expression for a
hailstone).
It was while singing & performing with Hailball Express at The Dynasty Club
in Houston that Gene came to the attention of two Houston businessmen, who
were very impressed with Gene’s vocal prowess. Gene had been performing at
The Dynasty Club in Houston, Texas for most of the 1960s.
Russ Reeder was a record distributor and Roy Stone owned a record store.
Together they formed Wide World Records which was based in Houston, Texas.
Wide World Records’ full address was 2817 Laura Koppe, Houston, Texas 77016.
Russ & Roy persuaded Gene to record, initially in Houston and later in
Nashville.
Gene Watson’s initial release for Wide World Records was 'I’ll run right
back to you' coupled with 'Autumn in June' in 1969, the latter track was in
fact written by Gene’s cousin Bill Watson. Both tracks were pleasant country
ballads & were produced by the legendary producer Jack Clement.
Gene Watson’s next single release coupled 'John's back in town' (a song composed by
the late Waylon Jennings with
Bill Mack), with 'Florence Jean'.
As it turned
out, it was Waylon Jennings who had been one of the artists who had recorded
'Love in the hot afternoon' before Gene’s rendition of the song
emerged in 1975.
Waylon Jennings'
version of 'Love in the hot afternoon', was never released as a single,
but his version of the song can be found on the 6-CD box set 'Journey:
Six Strings' (Bear Family
Records, 1999); this box set also includes Waylon's version of 'Farewell party'.
On a further note, Waylon Jennings' version of his own
composition 'John's back in town' can be found on the 6-CD box set 'Journey: Destiny's Child' (Bear Family Records,
1999); this box set features Waylon Jennings recordings made between 1958 &
1968.
Details of further Gene Watson single releases, including 'The birds & the bees' coupled
with 'My eyes are jealous', can be found on the Gene Watson
vinyl
singles discography page.
The quality of these initial vinyl singles from Gene Watson is first rate,
in terms of musicianship, vocal prowess & production values. Gene’s choice
of song material from the very beginning of his career could never be
faulted.
Gary Gene Watson:
The popularity of Gene Watson, at least within the Houston area of Texas,
was growing apace at this time, thanks to Houston radio stations KENR, KIKK
& KNUS (who played his records on a regular basis) & because of Gene’s
various personal appearances in the area.
It was while Gene was working at Wide World Records that he saw the release
of his first full album of material - the self-titled debut album 'Gene
Watson' was recorded & released in 1969.
The album includes some of the material previously released on vinyl single,
along with some new tunes. 'Gene Watson' is a
first class release, containing as it does, some truly authentic,
traditional country music. The record is very much a collectors’ item, so if
you see it in a record store, do snap it up. You’ll find that it’s a worthy
addition to your country music collection.
The release of 'Gene Watson' did little more
than further Gene’s loyal local Texas following, but over the next couple of
years, he continued to record & release further fine vinyl singles, this
time for a new label called Resco Records which, like Wide World Records,
was also based in Houston, Texas.
The formation of Resco Records came about as a result of differences between
Russ Reeder & Roy Stone, who both decided to go their separate ways. When
the two managers split, Roy Stone chose to take the masters they had
recorded & subsequently re-released the 'Gene
Watson' album under his own label - Stoneway Records - in 1970.
Gene Watson Biography:
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