Travelin' Blues Boy CD

Gary Williams
The Travelin' Blues Boy CD

Gary Williams was born in 1938 in Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the States.
As a child he became fascinated by the music of the 'Blue Yodeler', Jimmie Rodgers.
At age 16, by now playing guitar well and appearing live on local station KXOI television shows - Williams decided to attend the second edition of the 'Jimmie Rodgers Memorial Celebration' in Meridian, Mississippi.
After an exciting road trip - which ultimately earned him the nickname 'Traveling Blues Boy' - he got a chance to perform as part of the festival, as does a yet unknown guy named Elvis Presley.
Back in Spokane, he continued to perform on the radio and in the summer of 1955 was signed by the Town Hall Party, the most popular country music television show on the West Coast.
A year later, he appeared several times on an ABC television show in Nashville, was invited by the Louisiana Hayride and the Ozark Mountain Jubilee, and eventually sang a few Rock 'n' Roll songs as part of the Ranch Party on television.
Finally, in 1957, he made his first recordings for Verve Records.
His single Travelin' Blues Boy / I'm Gonna Return featured Merle Travis and Wesley Tuttle on guitars.
That same year, Verve released the successful LP album 'Teen Time' featuring Ricky Nelson, Jeff Allen and Gary Williams, among others, which gave his career another boost.
From 1957 to the summer of 1960, Williams was constantly on tour.
He eventually took a job at Spokane's radio station KPEG as a disc jockey and produced his self-titled album for the Manito label.
In the years that followed, Williams released numerous records and toured extensively in the Northwest with his band, the Travelin' Blues Boys.
Over the course of his career, Williams probably wrote more than 600 songs, with releases on at least 14 record labels.
His songs were covered by Webb Pierce, Freddy Hart and Bobby Wayne and others.
34 of his very best recordings which were originally released on Verve, Panorama, Ed Mosley's Manito label out of Spokane, WA, Connie Sue, and Gary's own Empire label have been selected for this CD.
From the 1960 LP Gary Williams on Manito come seven outstanding tracks, including the rockabilly smash Walla Walla State Prison.
A long overdue tribute to a first class yet underrated artist!