Gene Crownover

Drew Howard · Post by **Drew Howard** » 20 Jul 2023 4:40 am

I love the Bob Wills TV 1963 show on YouTube with Gene Crown over and Maurice Anderson. Can anyone share their tunings at that point? Thanks!

David Wright · Post by **David Wright** » 21 Jul 2023 4:17 am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avZvaSamNXo

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 21 Jul 2023 10:30 am

Gene Crownover. One in a long line of Bob's great steel players. Check out Liberty 7194, "Mr. Words and Mr. Music Bob Wills and Tommy Duncan," early, late period Bob. Bob and Tommy absolutely have not lost a step, and adding to that, Jody on fiddle and Gene on steel, and Tad Lambert on take-off guitar. I like the lush production out of Radio Recorders.

Also, Liberty LST-7303 "Bob Wills Sings And Plays" with Tommy, Jody, Gene, and, on "A Maiden's Prayer," the great Johnny Patterson on guitar:

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 21 Jul 2023 12:18 pm

I knew Gene from the times that Alvin Crow (and the Pleasant Valley Boys

) played at Cain's, and Curly Lewis fronted the opening band that included Bob Kiser, Glenn Reese, and Gene Crownover, among other members of Johnny Lee Wills' band. Gene was very open and outgoing; I dug him.

We became friends when I told him "I think I might have heard some Joaquin in your playing tonight."

He replied "Naw, that was just some Leon having a good night! LOL!"

I think his tunings were standard C6 and McAuliffe E13, IIRC. But it was almost 50 years ago, so...

I'm certain that some or most of the older OK Forumites knew Gene and could add to his story.

Slim Heilpern · Post by **Slim Heilpern** » 22 Jul 2023 8:30 am

David Wright wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avZvaSamNXo

That's a fantastic clip!

The first Bob Wills album I ever heard/owned was Mr. Words and Mr. Music. It was 1971 and I was 16 years old attending Berklee in Boston and playing guitar in a hippie country swing band in Middletown CT on weekends. I'd become aware of Wills via Merle Haggard's tribute album and this was the only Bob Wills album I was able to find at that time. Tag and Gene blew me away big time, and I still love that album to this day.

- Slim

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 24 Jul 2023 10:37 am

(Many thanks to Herb Steiner and Slim Heilpern for correcting my post. Thanks again). Bobby Koefer is a whole other post. One time, Emmons, was introducing "Night Life" at a steel convention and he told the story of how he got the "Night Life" changes from Bobby Koefer. Emmons dropped in a nightclub when Bobby Koefer was on the bandstand. Emmons heard Bobby play those changes, went back to Nashville, and cut "Life Life." In Emmons's own words (and sense of fun and humor) "I stripped him clean.")

[ Side note - Do you hear Neil Young in Johnny Patterson's playing? ]

The Bob Wills Band: Home of the Take-Off Guitar:
(Yes, I know I'm leaving out a guitar player or two, or three. . . . )

Tag Lambert
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFHceF0SSW8

Cotton Whittington
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtbZ8dp2AIw

Junior Barnard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?

Eldon Sheldon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1fwL5fWUVI

Jimmy Wyble
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtyhjHltNgU

Johnny Patterson (far left)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLeKpLp0sMs

Johnny Patterson / Henry Shropshire / Buddie Emmons - club date Missouri ca. late 1953 (Thanks, Steve Fishell)

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 24 Jul 2023 10:56 am

robert kramer wrote:The Bob Wills Band: Home of the Take-Off Guitar:
(Yes, I know I'm leaving out a guitar player or two, or three. . . . )

Tag Lambert
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtbZ8dp2AIw

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Just a correction of Bob Kramer's post. The left-handed guitarist shown is Cotton Whittington. This is from a 1951 Snader Transcription. The steel player in the video is Bobby Koefer.

Tag Lambert came later in Wills' career.

Slim Heilpern · Post by **Slim Heilpern** » 24 Jul 2023 11:11 am

Herb Steiner wrote: Just a correction of Bob Kramer's post. The left-handed guitarist shown is Cotton Whittington. This is from a 1951 Snader Transcription. The steel player in the video is Bobby Koefer.

Tag Lambert came later in Wills' career.

Thanks for the correction Herb, was wondering about that. Is this Tag in this picture with Bob? This is from the Time Changes Everything album where Tag is the vocalist:

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 24 Jul 2023 11:52 am

Not Tag Lambert in the photo. I think the guy could be an executive with Kapp (but not producer Paul Cohen), or a prominent DJ or something like that. Wills is dressed casually, so who knows?

Slim Heilpern · Post by **Slim Heilpern** » 24 Jul 2023 12:16 pm

Thanks Herb, found this on the interwebs:

Better?

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 24 Jul 2023 1:32 pm

Thank you very much, Mr. Steiner. I hate when I get things wrong. I will correct my post and use your photo and Mr. Heilburns's photo of Tag.