Buddy Lane's Western Memories

This is the way it happened
The Dawning of the Age of Aquarius

    January 23, 1944-------This was the big day for that little fellow named Buddy Lane, born on St. Simon Island, Brunswick, Georgia. His birth occurred during the first quarter of the new moon phase. It almost occurred in a rowboat when crossing a large expanse of water. Under the sign of Aquarius, the eleventh sign of the zodiac, Aquarius means a water bearer, fitting the phenomenon of his place of birth, and also having some reference to a person's legs. Astrology deals in the study of synchronicities, meaning that Buddy's sign is coincidental with his birth near the water, at the correct time, and is analogous to his magnificent future as an entertainer. As his legs took him to many towns and establishments to entertain, he made records and sang his cotton picking heart out. This mini biography unfolds and relates to his part in country music history.

    Five weeks after Buddy's birth, his dad and mom decided to move to Plant City, Florida. They bundled up little Buddy and started the trip from St. Simon and across the water. During this crossing they experienced stormy seas and were splashed on by the tumultuous waves. The family moved to Safety Harbor after a brief stay in Plant City. The water and buffeting waves plus moving twice is predictive and somewhat characteristic of Buddy's life to come.

Buddies first taste of music
    Buddy had talented brothers and sisters. His older brother Bill won two scholarships, one in music, and the other in football. His dad and mom, both instrumentalists, were from farming families accustomed to living off of the land. His father, a laid back country boy, sang a song–The Preacher and the Bear–that inspired Buddy to sing country music songs.

The Preacher went out-a-huntin,
twas on one Sunday morn.
Twas agin his religion, but he carried his gun along.
He kilt himself a very nice quail and also a hare.
And on the way returning home,
he met a great big grisly bear.

Now the bear marched out in the middle of the road
and looked at the man you see--well the man got so excited,
he climbed up a cimmon tree.
The bear, he sat down on the ground and the man climbed out on a limb
and cast his eyes to the lord in the sky and here's the words he said to him.

"Oh lord you delivered Daniel from the lion's den,
also ole Jona from the belly of the whale
and the Hebrew children from the fiery furnace,
as the good book do-declare." He said, "Lord, if you can't help me
for goodness sakes don't help that bear"!


    This foot stomping memorable song was the guiding light for Buddy and resulted in his down to earth renditions of western country music. The country music lovers that were touched by his melodies will always remember how poignantly they suggest the passing of time and place. Whenever a spare moment was available, singers like buddy provided a western foot stomping song or a melody to touch the dreams in a persons life. His parents regularly took him to Nashville's "Grand Old Opry" where his uncle (the police chief) managed to scrounge front seats for buddy and his parents.

1952 Sing and Play     Buddy transformed into a bonafide music nut when he was eight years old. Somehow, from the day he was born he managed to be near music. He played musical instruments in the high school's instrument band, such as the piano, trombone, guitar, ukulele, accordion, trumpet, saxophone, and harmonica. He was like a fly drawn to sugar when it came to composing and singing to music.

    As the years passed by his voice developed from a juvenile tone to a deep baritone with tantalizing moods of expression. It was like being on a sojourn thru life where everything seemed to happen in a natural way. This was truly the age of Aquarius and he was the result of the first quarter of the new moon phase during his birth. When buddy sang his audience listened; as he was equally talented in classical, rock and roll, and folk songs. No one knew if he was going to belt out a rousing western or croon a country love song. Many times his renditions would have an unforgettable opening line that would set the mood but he liked those foot stumping guitar pieces which eventually led him to stardom.

1958     It was a year to remember, for this was the year that he put forth a lot of effort to develop his voice. Many times at the age of 14, he stood on a large tree stump in the back yard of his parents home. It was there he recited and preached his Sunday school lessons to a yard full of Rhode Island Red chickens. His chicken audience scratched their feet in the gravel and clucked their approval. Between picking up cracked corn, staying out of reach of the self appointed but very handsome rooster in the yard, they showed their appreciation for his preaching. They usually laid a bunch of brown eggs; enough to pay for new guitar strings once in a while.

1959 Interlude to fame     Safety Harbor was the place to be, as told from memory lane. Earl Denton, a police officer, told the story about a sea creature he witnessed walking out of the water near the old pier adjacent to the spa. He claimed the creature had a monstrous form and scared him enough to shoot at it whereby it disappeared into the water. It sounds like it was Big foot or one of its relatives. Maybe the dark shadows during the night near the mangroves played tricks on Earl, or was it true?

    Philippe park was famous for its Seminole Indian Pageants titled "Florida Aflame," historical dramas about the Seminole Indians. The audience bought tickets at one of three windows in a cement and mortar pavilion. From there they walked up a flight of stairs inside the pavilion and reached the top of a hill where long logs were positioned in tiers for their seat selection. Above an open air natural landscaping amphitheater the spectators watched the exciting enactments. They also noticed something else, lo and behold, who should appear but Buddy Lane doing his best to be a prop boy.

    As he ran back and forth with stage props Buddy carried his guitar under one arm and his harmonica in his hip pocket in case they needed some musical renditions after the master of ceremonies recited an Ode about "Count Odet Philippe." If the audience squirmed too much while balancing on their hard log seats, buddy would get their attention off of their sore bottoms by singing a lively tune. Incidentally the seats were all the same price no matter how large the log was. When the actors and actresses needed a prop they called for little Buddy as he was affectionately called. During one of Buddy's visits to the park he claims a black Indigo snake chased him as he rode his bicycle to the pageant ceremonies. The snake was large enough to fill a milk pail and long enough to spill over the sides. Now doesn't that sound like a bunch of blarney?

1962 Eventualities     Popping in and out of social events was common place with buddy because he just could not refuse to help entertain. This year was the opportunity for 4 young girls to compete for the honor of Miss Safety Harbor. Mary McMullen claimed the crown as Ernie Lee, a popular TV star on channel 13, made the announcement that she was selected to reign as queen. Ernie was the master of ceremonies that night and guess who was there to perform; you guessed it, that rascal "Buddy Lane." While Buddy was plunking away on his guitar Ernie Lee belted out western songs. Unknown to the audience, Buddy had to be on his toes when performing with Ernie Lee, as Ernie enjoyed playing pranks on his friends. Buddy had all of the characteristics of a vagabond teenager with a yearning to be a star.

    Mary's sister, Betty Jo, was present to watch the award. Betty Jo, a very active florist, operates BJ's Flower Basket floral shop on Main street near the spa. Her shop is still going great guns with fantastic floral arrangements for the holidays and special events.

1964     His band had gone professional. Having gained a reputation in the Tampa Bay area, he signed a contract to write songs exclusively for the Little Bay Publishing Co. Two of his original compositions were "Crowded City" and "Day by Day." Buddy was on station WYOU every Saturday afternoon where he wowed the audiences with a multitude of Western renditions. The station had two large plate glass windows facing the street that allowed full view of their studio. Many times buddy's fans would gather and watch as he performed during the program. It was not uncommon to see and hear the crowds cheer and applaud during his county music renditions. He had many requests to sing any song and dedicate the song to them. It was inspiring to have a dedicated following that loved his songs or just wanted to hear his baritone voice.

1966 Restless and ready to roam     The Joyland Country Music Night Club opened with country music singer Bobby Lord and a host of others, including Buddy Lane. Buddy's first major stage appearance was at the Joyland. The staff band "The Countrymen" provided the music for dancing and Buddy, with his guitar, played and sang "Crowded City" and "Day By Day." It's interesting to note that the Joyland club had a revolving stage where different performers could present their act as soon as the previous one finished. The stage setting was where Buddy and Willy Nelson spent many moments together performing to the audiences. Willy was famous for one of the most popular songs at the time entitled "Crazy."

1967 California here we come.     Before going to California, Ernest Tubbs and Buddy discussed the why-for and why-not they had encountered in western music at the Columbia restaurant in Tampa as they ate meals together. Those were the good old days when sticking together meant bonded friendships. Now that he was dry behind the ears, it was time to expand and leave his young years of development behind. He and his band left for California where his first appearance was at the "Club Dream Bowl" in San Pablo, California—Buddy Lane's "Cavalcade Show Band" featured Joe Byrne's "Fiddle on Fire." In March of 1967 his first appearance was with Ernest Tubbs, Sanland Brothers, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Buck Owens which spurred him on to one success after another.

1968 Dream a while     Buddy's first featured group named The Mavericks appeared at the Club Dream Bowl in 1968. Because of his remarkable success he made the front page of the "Western News" a paper dedicated to country music and its stars. He appeared many times with the Judy Lynn's Shows at the Club Dream Bowl in the new Country Lanes establishment in San Pablo, California. Also being a country boy at heart buddy hung out at any entertainment barn he could find including "Dons Red Barn"which was a place of renown. It may have been the smell of fresh cut hay or fresh cow pies that prompted him to have his own calf named "Prissy"to romp around the fields. Buddy claimed to save the life of his calf during one of his communes with nature. I don't know what Prissy did to create such an electrifying moment in Buddy's life, but it happened and Prissy never ended up on someone's plate as roast beef.

    During his fast-paced life Buddy played The Town Pump a place that occasionally catered to a tougher bunch of patrons. It was located on a corner in down town San Francisco. Its trade mark were two rather large swinging saloon doors that gave it an air of western tradition. There was an article in the paper about a bunch of Indians called "The Alcatraz Indians" who tried to capture and take over the island of Alcatraz. They were unsuccessful and canoed back to the mainland of San Francisco. It was there they stormed into The Town Pump saloon and preceded to wreck the place while buddy's group was performing. His group ducked behind the stage while the pillagers smashed the place and killed three of the patrons. His early departure was not noticed as the band sneaked out the back way. Wow-ee!     Buddy was an enterprising western fan and entertained the wild west movie buffs by riding shotgun during the filming of one of Dale Robertson's Wells Fargo stagecoach series. He always had his fingers in some kind of pie to keep life interesting.

1969     Acclaimed as one of the best New Country Acts Of 1969, the Buddy Lane Show featuring his band "The Wild West" appeared on television as the exclusive guest star on the nationally syndicated "Judy Lynn Show." John Kelly, Judy's manager said, "Buddy was one of the finest new vocal talents and had one of the tightest bands in country music." Buddy's band was backed up many times by the Kentuckians, a country band of great renown. The Wild West was constantly on the move, and made so many appearances that he and his group were plumb tuckered out most of the time.

     Being the dedicated performer that he was and his need to entertain he arrived at the Golden Nugget, Las Vegas, Nevada. His band the "The Wild West" appeared for a run from June 19, to July 2, 1969. Wow what a time they had entertaining live wire audiences. During the interim of not doing anything with the few hours left each day, they stole those hours and managed to entertain the Armed forces at six military bases. It kind of makes your head swim to imagine what it was like for them to have so very little time to take off their boots, pop some corn, chaw tobacco, and rest a spell. Somehow, they managed to keep their boots on and put on a show. They appeared on one of the huge round stages at the cowboy rodeo grounds in Salinas, California. The stage was divided into three stage areas to accommodate all of the performers such as Buck Owens, Conway Twitty, Molly B, and Charlie Lovin. It was the largest country show in that area and seated about 15,000 people at each of the performing acts.

1970-December 12     Buddy played with a western group called Wagon Wheels to a packed house. The place was steaming with activity and noise. The house was filled to the brim like a sardine can. There were so many patrons that if anyone had sneezed it would have pushed a half dozen people out the front door. Buddy swore to this on a stack of five stud playing cards while standing on a bale of hay.

    Buddy was acquainted with Roy Clark and Sheb Wooley. Remember Sheb? He wrote that fantastic eye opener song "Purple People Eater." Also, who could forget Jerry Lee Lewis, Faron Young, Freddie Hart, Bob Wills, Jack Green, and Stony Edwards; all friends of Buddy Lane during his rise to stardom. They were not bosom buddies dedicated to each other. However, by being in the same jet stream, they contributed to each one's notoriety in the western field of music.

    Jan 12-13, 1971,Buddy was booked with Stony Edwards, a Capital recording artist. They were both managed by Ray Sweeney, Attorney at Law. Ray Benson's group "Asleep at the Wheel" was just getting started in Western music circles and Buddy recommended them to Ray Sweeney, his manager. Buddy suggested he bill Benson's group with Stony Edwards during Stony's tours. Buddy was instrumental in the Benson group becoming well known in country music. Not much was known about Buddy's generosity in backing up and helping fellow musicians in their time of need. Even today there has never been a malicious thought in Buddy's daily life as a performer.

    The Zodiac sign of Aquarius was true blue and created a place for Buddy. He had his own recording studio in Mountain Groove, Missouri, where he recorded about 300 albums. Sixty of them were 45 rpms. During this time he received a Blue Grass Gospel Award from SPBGMA: An association dedicated to "Self Preservation of Blue Grass Music Appreciation." This award was an earned and privileged honor: it was not presented unless the person or group had been outstanding in the field of Blue Grass Gospel music.

1967-1979     Pushing hard, Buddy was plain tuckered out and decided to relinquish the fast lane living and move back to Florida. He found a place to live in Tarpon Springs where he married Carol. Still looking for quiet and contentment, he and Carol moved to a peaceful neighborhood in Seminole, Florida, where he plans to stay.

Aquarius put life into Buddy     Buddy sprang up from the bales of hay and organized a new band called The Crossroads. It's nostalgic in a way to have his band's calling card symbolic of his first rise to fame, and once again on another crossroads in his life, represents his new band staring in country music. They are making music again and going strong. They have been the top country 50&60's Rock variety group in the area. Busy and popular they play concerts, clubs, lounges, private parties, and are seen frequently at weddings. When not performing he fills much of his time with his wife and also his model railroad display. This layout of three train levels is superb and has been written about in a popular model railroad magazine.


Buddy Lane's Western Memories are indeed memorable.
It's hard to forget a star from the past.