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From the Vault...
11/25/2012
#1335 |
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info
Pee Wee King
"Pee Wee King's Country Hoedown"
© Bloodshot Revival/Soundie Records
Year of Release: 1999
Rating:
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track listing
Disc One:
This Is Pee Wee King
I Love The Way You Roll
Them Eyes At Me
The Reason I'm In Love
With You
Ramblin' Blues
I'm Goin' Back To The
Middle Of The
Middle West
One Way Street
I'll Never Love No One
But You
You Tried To Ruin
My Name
Get Together Polka
Rootin' Tootin' Santa Claus
There's A Moon
In The Sky
Slowpoke
Empty Vows
Oh Monah
Blow Out All The Candles
Between You And The
Birds And The Bees
And Cupid
Western Limited
Brother Drop Dead Boogie
Doghouse Blues
Cowboy Special
Steel Guitar waltz
'Tain't What You Want
Hog Wild Too
I Don't Know Why
I Should Love You
Postage Due
Subdued Wood
If And When
We've Just About
Reached The
Half-Way Point
Disc Two:
Fool's Gold
Silver And Gold
Sweetest Little Girl
Darling Don't Cry
Flower Of Texas
I Wanna Say Hello
Let Me Hold You
When You're Blue
Where Oh Where Has
My Little Love Gone
I Need A Lot Of Lovin'
Where Were You
Last Night
I'm Just A Gad-About
Song Of The Early Settlers
Take These Shackles
From My Heart
The Calendar Song
Don't Apologize To Me
Charleston Alley
Opportunity
Rich In Love
I Can't Feel Those Kisses
In Your Letters
Mohegas
Tadpole
Your Kisses Aren't
Kisses Anymore
Tennessee Tango
Darling Stop Playing
With My Heart
Tears Tears Tears
There's That Man
With The Stopwatch
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Pee Wee King
"Pee Wee King's Country Hoedown"
A coincidence: On November 25, 1951, Country artist Pee Wee King reached #1 on the (Billboard) Country Songs
chart with "Slowpoke." It would remain at #1 for 14 weeks, and would be his only #1 Country song of his career.
On November 21, 2012, the album Pee Wee King's Country Hoedown became WSVNRadio's 1,335th Album Pick of the Week.
Pee Wee King's real name was Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski, born on February 18, 1914, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
His father was a polka musician, who taught Julius how to play the fiddle. King toured with Gene Autry and appeared
in Autry's movies in the 1930s. He joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1937. He,along with Redd Stewart composed "The Tennessee
Waltz," which became a Country music standard, and was recorded by Patti Page. Page's version would become one of the
most famous songs in popular music.
Gene Autry, along with J.L. (Joe) Frank, became King's mentors. (Joe Frank would later become his father-in-law.
Standing at just below 5'7", Frank offered his stage first name, Pee Wee. The last name King would be from the influence of
a Polish-American musician, Wayne King. By 1934, King was a member of Log Cabin Boys, as they toured with Gene Autry. In late
1936, he would be in a new band, The Golden West Cowboys, and remained with them for about ten years. From 1947 to 1952, Pee Wee
King saw the heyday of his career: He had co-written "The Tennesse Waltz," Other huge hits would follow, as he co-wrote
them: "Bonaparte's Retreat," "Slow Poke" and "You Belong To Me." (Surprisingly, both "Bonaparte's Retreat"
and "You Belong To Me" are not included on the Country Hoedown CD.)
The recordings heard on Country Hoedown were made in about 1952 for Standard Radio Transcription Services and were
designed for sale or lease to radio stations around the country. The music here assumes sharper perspective when it is recalled
that the early 1950s was the era of Hank Williams and his deep-dyed honky tonk sound, and of Bill Monroe and his bold experimentaqtions
with the emerging bluegrass sound. It was also the heday of cheating and drinking songs in country music. Nothing of these styles
and none of those sound appear in the music of Pee Wee King. The Golden West Cowboys were a versatile band with an ecletric repertory,
but their music was essentially a smooth, well-executed version of Western Swing, closer in spirit and arrangement to Spade Cooley than
to the music made by Bob Wills. There are no cheating or honky tonk songs here (except perhaps for "Doghouse Blues"), and certainly
nothing that can be described as cry-in-your-beer music. In the program notes that accompanied the transciptions sent to radio stations,
prospective djs are cautioned to listen to "Sweetest Little Girl" (a song that comments on divorce) before they play it.
From the liner notes of Pee Wee King's Country Hoedown; by Bill C. Malone.
Pee Wee King's years of activity in Country music was from 1948 - 1954. He may not be a household name, but I'm sure he is an
inspiration to all fans of Country music, young and old.
Yes, it's true about Pee Wee King's sound: It's not honky tonk as in Hank Williams Sr. No real "depression" songs, such as cheating
and drinking. This is "happy-go-lucky" Country. Gene Autry, and the early Eddy Arnold come to mind while listening to this 2-disc set.
There are some short "jingles" at the beginning, middle and end of this set -- very good for use on DJ radio shows.
There isn't one bad song on this set. Even the instrumentals (as few as they are) are quite impressive to listen to.
Not many other albums of Pee Wee King's music is available on CD, as this was the only one I could find. (I just looked again, and there
is a 6-cd box set from Bear Family Records, entitled Pee Wee King And His Golden West Cowboys.) "Slowpoke" could be that
of a novelty. Back then, most of Country tunes were of comedic nature, until the cheating and drinking themes went in full tilt.
Pee Wee King would later be inducted in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (1970), and the Country Hall of Fame (1974). He passed
away of a heart attack on March 7, 2000. He was 86 years old.
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Review or any portion may not be reproduced
without written permission. Cover art is the
intellectual property of
Bloodshot Revival/Soundies Records
and is used for reference purposes only.
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