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Connie Walker (Musician)
[edit](May 5 1931 -July 7, 2012) parrents Fred and Annie Walker. Known as CW Walker.
He was raised near Shallowater Texas. He began playing the guitar at 14 years of age. His Brother Tevis Walker (Bass Fiddle) and Hilton Walker (fiddle) would join his first band.
Married Margaret Smith of Lubbock in June of 1950
Began The Western Rhythm Boys in 1950
He changed their name to The Texas Drifters in 1953
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From Left to Right Marvin West (steel Guitar), Bill Jackson (guitar), Connie Walker front center (guitar), Kenneth Seals (drums), Hilton Walker (fiddle), Tevis Walker (Bass Fiddle).
Connie would go to work everyday and on his lunch break go the KDAV Radio station with Pappy Dave Stone and play a 30 minute show.
The Original Texas Drifter Band Members were Connie (guitar), Hilton Walker (fiddle), the late Smokey Robertson (fiddle), Kenneth Seals (drums), Tevis Walker (bass fiddle), and Marvin West (steel). The Late Wally Moyer Sr. played with the Texas Drifters when Marvin West was unavailable. Moyers toured with Connie and the band when they toured with Slim Whitman in Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. The late Smokey Robertson played fiddle with Connie’s band for many, many years.
He also backed up Hope Griffin on The Hope Griffin Show on television.
His daughter Karen sang on the tv show when she was 5 singing How Much is That Doggie in The Window.
Connie played several venues in Lubbock, including The Cotton Club, the 16th and J club also known as the Bloody Bucket, Sled Allens Arena, Fair Parks Coliseum and many more. He played many shows on flatbed trailers on Broadway during the 50’s as well.
The Texas Drifters were well known not only in Texas and New Mexico but from Nashville Tennessee to Los Angeles California.
They were the Opening Act for Slim Whitman on two of his western tours in the 50’s.
Slim offered Connie an opportunity to go on his European tour but Connie said, “It was hard enough to be away from home three months at a time and to be gone longer was just not worth it."
Slim had a ’54 Plymouth station wagon, one of the other guys had a Mercury and Connie had a Chrysler. All instruments and bales of hay for the stage.
The band broke up when some of the members went into the army and navy.
Connie joined the Texas Hot Shots, a band organized by Hi Pockets Duncan. In 1956 Duncan organized a Battle of the Bands with The Texas Hot Shots and The Bob Wills Band at the Cotton Club in Lubbock. Playing in turn, an hour at a time the Battle of the Bands went on until the early hours of the following Sunday Morning.
The Texas Hot Shots also opened for Hank Williams at the Cotton Club in the mid-fifties. Connie had a 1951 Gibson Jumbo. He let Buddy Holly use it on stage one night in Lubbock and said Buddy scratched it to pieces. He sent it to the Gibson factory and had double pick guards put on it after that happened. Over the years Connie’s band backed up Tex Ritter, Hank Williams, T Texas Tyler, and many more.
After the war. The Texas Drifters reorganized and were on the road for the next sixteen years. During that time they toured with Billie Williams, the sixteen year old widow of Hank Williams Sr.
In 1959 they got a sit down job in Springerville Arizona. The band played six nights a week.
Goldust Records - Tell Me Why, Darlin' Why
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Connie wrote and recorded Tell Me Why, Darlin’ Why and Misery Everyday on Goldust Records in New Mexico.
There were over 6,500 copies sold.That is an impressive number of sales for a 45 record sold only in local record stores and with no national distributor.
The Country Opry - Hereford, TX
[edit]In 1964 Connie moved his family to Hereford Texas where he opened Walker’s Used Cars. For a few years the world of music took a back seat to family and business but music was never apart from the Walker family circle. Connie and Margaret’s children, Wayne, Karen, Jeannine, and Elaine (the daughters are a trio, The Walkers) follow in their fathers talented footsteps. They can be heard each fourth Saturday night at the Country Opry in Hereford Texas. The Texas Drifters are the stage band for the family Opry and the music is as good as ever.
The band members are Lynn Broadus (guitar), Harry Duncan (guitar), Wayne Walker (bass), Bucky Broadus (drums), Connie Walker (guitar), and Fred Walker (steel guitar). Former Judge, Glen Nelson, plays fiddle with the band much of the time. The Band will miss the late Smokey Robertson fiddle player and helped build the Country Opry with Connie.
The Texas Tech Southwest Collection in Conjunction with the WTMA included Connie Walker as a star in the constellation of West Texas musicians of the ‘50s. Don Williams, Buddy Holly and Bob Wills are in good company with Connie Walker. Smokey Robertson was with him for the making of The History of West Texas Music.
The West Texas Music Association and The West Texas Sound Volume 1 Number 12 published in April 1991 had an Article featured about Connie Walker in The Sound Around by Sue Swinson.
The Country Opry was open from 1988 until 2001 every fourth Saturday of the Month, 13 years free to the public, family entertainment that offered a different band every 30 minutes. Many musicians got their start there. The Opry featured Buddy Boswell and the Union Mill Opry, Tommy Hancock, Larry Buchanan (the Balladeer from New Mexico), and many more.
Connie and Tommy both had bands during the same time period in Lubbock in the 50’s and were friends. Various other musicians and friends included Cecil Caldwell, The Maine’s Brothers, Weldon Turpin, Hoyle Nix, Jody Nix, Charlie Phillips. He and his family attended the induction of Tanya Tucker in 1988 into the Walk of Fame as well as George Ashburn in 1997.
Every Saturday of the Month you would fine Connie Walker and his band singing somewhere. The first Saturday was Littlefield, Emil Macha, Waylon Jenning’s cousin featured the Walkers on his radio program many times. Connie even knew Waylon back when he was working as a mechanic in Littlefield.
The Second Saturday was the Olton Jamboree, The 3rd Saturday was the Meadow Musical in Meadow Texas, George Ashburn was a great friend of the family.
Years of Chuckwagoning
[edit]Connie’s music also went further from the sit down jobs. He played around Chuckwagons from 1990 until 2001. Many times, he entered his Chuckwagon in the National Cowboy Symposium and Celebration in Lubbock and won 1st place. He also competed in Ruidoso, Red River, Alpine Texas, Amarillo Coors Ranch Rodeo just to name a few. He was the chuckwagon for Michael Martin Murphy’s West Fest in Palo Duro Canyon and Stillwater Oklahoma several times.
In 1995 he received The Cowboy Culture Award at the National Cowboy Symposium and Celebration. Presented by Alvin Davis at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center.
He contributed many years to music in and around Lubbock. He returned to Lubbock in 2001. He died July 7, 2012 in Lubbock Texas. His legacy lives on.
His daughters The Walker’s recorded their first album Blue Diamonds and Red Roses at Jerry’s studio in Hereford Texas. They recorded their second Album Forevermore at Caldwell Studios in Lubbock in 1993.
His Granddaughter Teresa Stephens is carrying on his legacy playing the fiddle in Amarillo Texas. She has performed with several bands including Palo Duro, Dixon Creek Band , Lee Sheetz and Borderline. As well as creating an Album with Palo Duro call Cowpokes, Horses & Old Glory.
His drummer Bucky Broadus and nephew now has a son Logan Broadus who is the lead guitar player for Randall King. The Music Lives On.