Faron Young and Marty Robbins newsletter — 8 October 2008
RESEARCHING MARTY ROBBINS IN GLENDALE, ARIZONA
My sister and I just returned from a great research trip. Kayo and I met people who knew Marty and people who keep his memory alive through the “Friends of Marty Robbins” organization. Thanks to Jo Wenger for arranging a meeting at the Shot of Java coffee shop. She took us to the building that once housed Upton’s Malt Shop, where Marty met Marizona in 1946. We walked the streets Martin David Robinson walked as a youth. We saw the general area where twins Martin and Mamie were born alongside the Arizona Canal. We visited with Andrew Means, who wrote Mamie’s story, “Some Memories.” I’d been seeking the photo booklet Mamie published in 1985, and librarian Anne Owens provided me with a copy. We ate at La Perla, where Marty used to eat. We found the empty lot in Phoenix where his dad built a shack for the family in 1930. It’s still an empty lot. And Kayo had her photo taken at Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s jail in downtown Phoenix.
REX ALLEN DAYS
Kayo and I drove to Willcox for Rex Allen Days. There we met Juanita Buckley, who is in the process of reestablishing the Marty Robbins museum she moved from Glendale. Rex Allen, Jr., put on a wonderful 2 1/2 hour show at the high school auditorium. He sang songs of his own and of his dad, and two of his sons flew in from their colleges to sing also. My favorite song was the Bellamy Brothers’ “Old Hippie,” a duet by Rex and his frontman, a retired attorney. The two had a band in high school and reunited after 35 years. They put their own spin on the song. Charlie Rich, Jr., performed several of his dad’s songs–and looked almost like him. Special guest was Johnny Western, who always sounds great singing the theme songs from old TV westerns. He talked about my Faron Young biography and mentioned that I’m now writing about Marty Robbins. He skillfully turned a story about Marty into one of the jokes Marty used to tell. One woman introduced herself to me as someone who reads my newsletters in Doug Davis’s Country Classics newsletter.
LETTERS
Maurice Bowers sends this note for Ritchie Clarke: “As to your not being able to find any Faron records in the shops, if you would like to email me I can sort you out with contacts of where you can obtain these records. I would also like to say hello to Frank Jennings and Jean Earle here in the UK as I have not heard from them in several years.”
Debra in the UK asks, “Did Marty Robbins ever record for Capitol records and if so what was the album name?” The answer is no. His two labels were Columbia and Decca/MCA.
Arie den Dulk writes from Holland, “I’ve bought the Bear Family 5 CD set of BUCK OWENS ACT NATURALLY. In the accompanying book by Richard Kienzle, there’s a picture of Buck Owens, flanked by Marty Robbins and Freddie Hart. There’s also a small reference to Marty Robbins about Marty being a fellow trucker who sang Eddy Arnold ballads. They jammed at the Astor Hotel in Phoenix with Marty playing steel guitar and Buck singing Hank Williams’ songs!”
October 11th, 2008 at 11:13 am
CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT EVER HAPPEN TO MARTY ROBBINS BAND ?
WHEN DID HE PASS AWAY AND WHAT WAS THE CAUSE OF HIS DEATH ?
October 11th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
Marty died of a heart attack (his third major one) at age 57 on December 8, 1982. Some of his band members are retired, some are still in business, and some are no longer alive. A few I haven’t found and don’t know what happened to them.