Happy New Year!! This periodic newsletter commemorates the lives of Faron Young and Marty Robbins. Live Fast, Love Hard: The Faron Young Story was published in 2007 by the University of Illinois Press, and I’m currently writing Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty Robbins for publication in 2012.

FARON AND MARTY SIGN RECORDING CONTRACTS
Marty was 25 years old when he signed his Columbia recording contract on May 25, 1951, in Phoenix. His first recording session occurred that November in Hollywood. Faron was 19 when he signed his Capitol Records contract in Shreveport on January 2, 1952. He went to Nashville in March for his first recording session. In June, Faron moved to Nashville to be on the Grand Ole Opry, beating Marty to Nashville and the Opry by six months. By the time Marty and his family arrived at the end of 1952, Faron had been drafted into the U.S. Army. Marty had already served three years in the U.S. Navy and was a World War II combat veteran. (more…)