Does Anyone Remember these Steel Players?

Jerry Hayes R.I.P. · Post by **Jerry Hayes R.I.P.** » 15 Jan 2002 11:19 am

I just purchased a CD by Merle Travis called "The Best of Merle Travis, Sweet Temptation (1946-1953)". It's got the original Capitol cuts of Merle's with the usual known steel players such as Speedy West, Joaquin Murphy, and Noel Boggs who recorded a lot in the 40's but there's a couple of guys who I haven't heard of and I wondered if anyone could shed some light on them. On Travis' record of Divorce Me C.O.D. and So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed, the steel player is a guy named Pete Martinez. Also on Sweet Temptation the steeler was named Phil Marx. I've never heard of either one of these guys but they both played pretty dang good stuff on these records which were big hits in their day. This is a great CD as it gives all the credits for each song. Even the date it was recorded and the original Capitol record number.
[This message was edited by Jerry Hayes on 15 January 2002 at 11:29 AM.]

Jim Eaton · Post by **Jim Eaton** » 15 Jan 2002 11:23 am

NO!
JE:-)>

P Gleespen · Post by **P Gleespen** » 15 Jan 2002 11:27 am

Jim Smith · Post by **Jim Smith** » 15 Jan 2002 11:29 am

Sorry, I'm drawing a blank!

Reggie Duncan · Post by **Reggie Duncan** » 15 Jan 2002 11:29 am

[This message was edited by Reggie Duncan on 15 January 2002 at 09:00 PM.]

Jerry Hayes R.I.P. · Post by **Jerry Hayes R.I.P.** » 15 Jan 2002 11:30 am

I hit something and the dang thing posted before I'd even typed anything!

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Have a good 'un! JH U-12

Reggie Duncan · Post by **Reggie Duncan** » 15 Jan 2002 11:33 am

Something is screwy with posting. I have typed several postings today, and some haven't showed up.

Ray Montee (RIP) · Post by **Ray Montee (RIP)** » 15 Jan 2002 1:21 pm

I thought I knew, but I guess I was wrong!

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 15 Jan 2002 4:24 pm

I know Pete Martinez. He lives in Wichita Falls TX and was inducted into the Texas Steel Guitar Hall of Fame last year. In addition to recording with Travis and others, he worked with Jimmy Wakely until 1950, when he moved back to Texas and began working for the WF Independent School District. He had a very early Bigsby that was stolen a few years ago, but he's getting back into playing.

Phil Marx, however, I am unfamiliar with.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Jody Carver · Post by **Jody Carver** » 15 Jan 2002 4:39 pm

Herb
Is he "Groucho"s brother by any chance

To get serious,,,I have heard this name before. There were numerous steel players on the West Coast years ago. Many were middle of the road players. Eddie Busch is another
who comes to mind.

Marx was a semi pop -hawaiian style player I had heard his name mentioned at Fender years ago. Boggs,,Murphey,Les Anderson,Speedy, were
primarily most popular and did most of the recording work.

I beleive (not sure) that Marx did a session
with Johnny Mercer on Capitol records ,,,the tune was "The Covered Wagon Rolled Right Along"..Also he did sessions with Red Engle
& Jo Stafford when they both were doing a "parody" of pop tunes with a "hillbilly mock" type thing.

Jo Stafford used the name Cinderella G. Stump
and Marx's name was somehow connected as the steel player.

Freddy Tavares mentioned many players to me that I never heard of,,,most of them were doing studio work in and around LA.

It was told to me that most of the players mentioned in the posts on this thread were "better readers" than the more popular
players such as Joaquin,,,Boggs etc and they
had more work connected with recordings that required reading.

I dont know of a steel player that at one time or another was not in some way shape of form a Fender player. Leo would drop names on me like....did ya ever hear so & so play?
My focus was on the players I mentioned...and I didnt pay too much attention to the others.

Miss Molly recorded by Tex Williams on Capitol had a steel player,,,and it may have been Marx.

Man if Jason dont know,,,,who does??

The night I went with Leo to hear Noel play
there were a number of pro steel players in the club,,I met a few that I have never heard of and according to Noel,,,they were fine players. But the known players got most
of the work with the Western groups ,,Texas Jim Lewis,,,Cooley,,Foy Willing,,etc.

Tavares was really the "chairman of the board
of steel players. If Freddy didnt know them
well,,,,,they didnt exist,,I have heard every name mentioned here by Freddy. Funny how I know people who have never heard of Freddy being a fine steel player. You ought to check out his fine playing with Foy Willing Riders od The Purple Sage on Capitol.

One of my favorites is "Anytime: and you ought to hear the licks played by Freddy as he called them "Hot Hawaiian" check that out.

[This message was edited by Jody Carver on 15 January 2002 at 05:41 PM.]

Jason Odd · Post by **Jason Odd** » 15 Jan 2002 4:43 pm

Herb is of course right about Martinez, he's on various Wakely transcriptions between 1946 and 1950, probably pops up in some films as well. Herb?

Phil Marx....... I dunno?

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The future ain't what it used to be

Dave Mayes · Post by **Dave Mayes** » 15 Jan 2002 5:41 pm

Jerry, what cuts does that CD credit to Joaquin ?
I think the steeler we see in the early Merle soundies ( Vestapol) is Eddie Martin - I think. Maybe I'm wrong. Does Eddie Martin turn up in the credits ?

Jody Carver · Post by **Jody Carver** » 15 Jan 2002 5:50 pm

Dave
Some of those credits are not accurate. I have seen my name on many credits as the steel player on sessions back here and I was
not within 100 miles of the sessions on that day.

One LP comes to mind with a "popular western" singer years ago, Jimmy Dale,,he was on Continental records,,I did 2 sides with him,,,,on that LP and the credits were given to me and not the other 2 steel players
who played a heck of a lot better than I.

I called Continental and asked them to correct
this,,,they didnt care,,like "so what" who knows the difference.

The steel player who did most of the recording back here for years and years was a man by the name of Vaughn Horton writer of "Mockingbird Hill"....he did all of then
Gov.Jimmy Davis recordings as well.

Dont take those credits you see to the bank.
They are many times inaccurate.

Andrew Brown · Post by **Andrew Brown** » 15 Jan 2002 7:52 pm

Phil Marx was a steel guitarist from San Antonio. He played in the TEXAS TUMBLEWEEDS (later the TX Top Hands) during the war years and later with Tom Dickey and the Showboys (ex-Tune Wranglers). As a vocalist/rhythm guitarist he played w/Smiley Whitley and the Texans and sang on one of their records: 'Forgive Me'/'The Moon, The Stars, and You' on GOLD STAR ('48) -- right after returning from the West Coast. He also played a little w/Harry Choates in '50. There is a picture of him playing w/Choates in Bandera on the Choates' CD entitled "Five Time Loser." After that...who knows? He died in San Antonio around 1980 I think.

Andrew Brown · Post by **Andrew Brown** » 15 Jan 2002 7:54 pm

Oh yeah...Pete Martinez played w/Tex Ritter in the mid-40s (as did Phil Marx)...he started out with the Miller Brothers circa 1941...he's probably best known for the many recordings he made with BILL MACK on Imperial and Starday in the 1950s...

Kevin Hatton · Post by **Kevin Hatton** » 15 Jan 2002 8:15 pm

Phil Marx. The illegitimate STEEL PLAYING Marx brother that Gummo talked about that one time in the interview for Harpers Weekly.
Obviously the black sheep of the family.[This message was edited by Kevin Hatton on 15 January 2002 at 08:15 PM.]

nick allen · Post by **nick allen** » 16 Jan 2002 12:51 am

I have a similar (cassette) Travis compilation, and the tracks with J. Murphy are "Fat Gal" and "I Like My Chicken Fring Size".
Nick

Jason Odd · Post by **Jason Odd** » 16 Jan 2002 8:32 am

Andrew Brown, izzat AB from the SWM Yahoo list, the Texas 60s list, etc?

Jerry Hayes R.I.P. · Post by **Jerry Hayes R.I.P.** » 16 Jan 2002 11:38 am

Hey Dave,
Joaquin is credited on Cinncinnati Lou, No Vacancy, and a version of T for Texas. Speedy West is on Dry Bread and Kinfolks in Carolina.....
Nick,
On this CD Fat Gal has Noel Boggs on steel and he's also on Lawdy What a Gal..
I think these are the actual credits as it has the Capitol record number, how high they placed in the charts and how many weeks they were on the charts plus it's a Capitol CD.

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Have a good 'un! JH U-12

Steven Knapper · Post by **Steven Knapper** » 16 Jan 2002 6:23 pm

No one mentioned this but Groucho Marx was a VERY compentent 6 string guitar player!!!

Jody Carver · Post by **Jody Carver** » 16 Jan 2002 6:32 pm

Nick I beleive Jerry is correct. It was Noel Boggs on Fat Gal & I like my Chicken Fryin size.

Nick since you liked my poem so much here is another.

Rigga Rigga Ree ,,,kick er in the Knee
Rigga Rigga Rass,,,Kick er in the other Knee

,,,Jerry is correct,

dont :fret: Nick
yo da man anyway,,any place anyhow,

Al Johnson · Post by **Al Johnson** » 17 Jan 2002 9:22 am

Some of you are very sharp Pete was one of my favorites, way back, Jimmy Wakely called his name out many times. Phil Marx, in the 1940's did a lot of recordings with Tex Ritter, as well as Wesley Tuttle and many others, he did alot of studio work in the 40's set up by Wesley Tuttle. Even recorded some steel instrumentals with the Tuttle band Phil Marx did some good stuff. Some great music back then. Al

Al Johnson · Post by **Al Johnson** » 17 Jan 2002 9:30 am

Sorry Jody, according to the discography in the Merle Travis box set from Bear Family, Pete Martinez did the fine steel work on the Covered wagon Rolled right along. Featured singer was the great Johnny Mercer, one of the owners , at the time of Capitol records and the writer of many hit songs including "Moon River". Seems as if Merle used only the best steel players. Why not? Right!

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 17 Jan 2002 10:05 am

Pete is in his 70's and at his induction into the TSGHOF last year, he introduced his steel teacher, who was incredibly excited and looked like a Confederate veteran! Had to be in his 90's!

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Jody Carver · Post by **Jody Carver** » 17 Jan 2002 10:43 am

Al ,,dont be sorry,,,Im glad you told me. I dont have any of those re-issue things. I had
heard it was someone else...Pete was a great player,,,,but then again,,,I thought they were all great,,,and still do.

Thanks for the update my friend,,,appreciate
your "knowledge" did he play a Fender?