The Tex Warner Story

Part 23 - 2002-2004 - Bluegrass, Folk & Country

Tex Warner — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 11:22:00 GMT

Chapter 19: Bluegrass, Folk and Country

It got harder and harder to get gigs with a five-piece band. Also because it was more difficult for me to find the right musicians, I decided to change our concept.

The press release read:

Bluegrass, Folk, and Country Music

Tex Warner is one of the pioneers of American country music in Germany. Since 1967, he has been trying to give country music a well-deserved place in the music scene without cowboy clichés and campfire romance.

He has now developed a concept in which he performs bluegrass music, folk music and country music in a small ensemble. With vocals, guitar, 5-string banjo and bass he brings these related styles to the listeners.

Bluegrass music was invented in the 1940s by Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys. The name came from the nickname of the bluegrass state Kentucky, where Bill Monroe lived. Songs like "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" from the TV series "The Beverly Hillbillies" or banjo instrumentals like "Foggy Mountain Breakdown", which was chosen as the title melody in the movie "Bonnie & Clyde", also made Bluegrass famous in Germany. One of the most important instruments of this style is the 5-string banjo, masterfully played by Joe Götz at Tex Warner.

American folk music is a wide spectrum, ranging from old ballads like "Tom Dooley" to Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" and Bob Dylon's "Blowing In The Wind".

Finally, American country music with songs by Jim Reeves, Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Horton and many others telling about the lives of the people, the railroad and the country.

My idea was to only perform with Joe (banjo) & Hardy (bass) and present country music to listen to. I would tell stories about the content of the songs, the interpreters, songwriters, in order to bring the songs closer to the listeners who are not fluent in the English language.

Our first attempt was a concert for the association Neusäß-Cusset, of which I was a member. Joe, Hardy and I played in the foyer of the Stadthalle Neusäß on 22 November 2002.

In the year 2003, we performed for the Bremische Hafenvertretung at the Transport Logistics Exhibition in Munich. It was Mai 22, 2003 from 6 to 9 p.m.

On July 3, we played at the Town Festival of Neusäß. Joe could not perform that day, so I hired the banjo picker Rüdiger Helbig from Munich.

Steppach. There will be a treat for all who like traditional American music on Sunday, November 9, at 7.30 pm: Tex Warner, one of the pioneers of American country music in Germany, plays at the Steppacher Café Ertl, Ulmer Straße 24.

The musician has put together a program in which he performs bluegrass, folk and country music together with Joe Götz at the Five-string Banjo. Not only with songs, he brings these related styles to the listeners, but also the stories behind them.

Bill Monroe and his „Blue Grass Boys“ invented Bluegrass music in the 40’s. Kentucky, where Bill Monroe was at home, is called "Bluegrass State". With the movie "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?", made in 2000, Bluegrass Music received a lot of attention again. One of the most important instruments of this style is the five-string banjo,

American folk music is a broad spectrum, ranging from old ballads like "Tom Dooley" to Woody Guthrie's "This Land is your Land" to Bob Dylon's "Blowing in the Wind", (oh)

A friend was there with his camera and recorded the concert. Here is a short sequence of it on youtube . Just klick on it. Joe and I play first "Bugle Call Rag", then my own composition "Crying Eyes" and finally Joe plays "Foggy Mountain Breakdown".

Steppach. The Country Music Evening with Tex Warner and his virtuoso banjo player Joe Götz at Café Ertl last year was a great success. The two musicians want to offer the friends of this unique music style on Sunday, April 25, another evening with numerous country songs. They will tell many stories about the creation of the songs and anecdotes about the songwriters and performers to the interested audience.

The program begins with the song "I'll sing Country Music", Tex Warner's own composition, which was released on CD a few years ago. There will also be songs that many have known for a long time, such as "You are my Sunshine" or "This Land is your Land". Tex Warner will perform songs about the railways, about prisoners like "Give my Love to Rose" and "Green, green Grass of Home" and love songs like "He'll have to go" by Jim Reeves or "I can't help it" by the legendary Hank Williams. Part of the evening is dedicated to the icon of American country music, the recently deceased Johnny Cash.

Under the motto of the evening "Bluegrass, Folk & Country", visitors will also learn a lot about the background and connections of this related music, which is brought closer to the listener primarily through its content and melody. "Unfortunately, modern country music has lost much of its original appeal due to the profit-oriented thinking of record companies," Tex Warner regrets.

25 April 2004, Joe with his 5-string Banjo and I started the year 2004 with our second concert at the Café Ertl in Steppach, near Augsburg. Again we had a full house and enjoyed it very much. We felt that there are still a few fans out there who enjoy our kind of country music.

I made plans to visit the USA again in August and meet my old friend Jimmy C. Newman in Nashville, Tennesse.

In my next blog I will talk about that.

... to be continued ...

Part 22 - 2001 The Four Corners Music Hall

Tex Warner — Fri, 29 Oct 2021 16:31:00 GMT

Chapter 18: Active again with a Band

Through my country music encyclopedia, I met a fan who knew a spot in Untermeitingen that opened in 2000 and specialized in country music. He arranged a meeting with Marianne Theil, the owner, and we were booked for September 8, 2001. The place was called "Four Corners Music Hall" in Untermeitingen near Augsburg.

This "press release" went to the local press:

TEX WARNER is one of the Country Music pioneers in Germany. For over 30 years Tex has been offering American country music at its finest. In the first 15 years Tex performed in all US clubs in Germany, because Country Music was not yet "in" in Germany. "I was country when country wasn't cool". On his many trips to the USA, he understood the mentality of American country music.

On his CD "White Cadillac and Country Songs“, none other than the legendary Fiddler of Hank Williams Sr., Mr. Jerry Rivers, played along.

On September 8, 2001, especially the friends of the Country Classics of the 50s to 80s will get their money's worth. Tex Warner performs with his band in the Four Corners Music Hall, Siemensstrasse 1 in 86836 Untermeitingen.

Tex Warner is accompanied by five of his long-time musicians, such as Hank West on the pedal steel guitar, Dieter " Joe " Goetz on his Gibson 5-string banjo, Rainer Friedberger on the lead guitar, Hardy Schuster on bass and Günter Hauser on drums.

We played from 21:00 to 01:00.

We had a good crowd at the "Four Corners Music Hall", therefore we were booked again for January 19, 2002. Unfortunately, our steel guitarist Hank West could not be there due to illness.

A friend, Helmut, immortalized the evening with this drawing.

The line-up on January 19, 2002 was:

Reiner Friedberger (lead guitar and vocal) - Joe Götz (5-string banjo and vocal) - Hardy Schuster (bass) - Günter Hauser (drums) and me.

We even wrote a song about playing at the Four Corners Music Hall:

The Four Corners Music Hall

We’d Like To Play Country, Way Back To The Roots

Feels Good To See You In Hats And Boots

From Country Food To Moonshine And Beer

Everything’s Available Here

Hi You All, - And Welcome To The Four Corners Music Hall

You Folks Who Came From Everywhere

Have A Seat In An Easy Chair

Marianne Takes Good Care Of You

She’s The Good Spirit In Many Ways

Hi You All, - And Welcome To The Four Corners Music Hall

From Texas Swing To Nashville Sound

Move Your Partner Square Or Round

Tex-Mex, Cajun – Country Rock

We’ll Shake The Bull ‘Til One O’clock

Hi You All, - And Welcome To The Four Corners Music Hall

Many Bands Have Played In Here

They Came Just Like You – From Everywhere

My Name’s Tex Warner – And My Band

We’ll Do For You The Best We Can.

Hi You All, - And Welcome To The Four Corners Music Hall

an article in the Augsburger Allgemeine

Simon Kaminski Neusäß/Westheim AZ 16.1.2002

"I guess I have a kind of mission" - a self-assessment that everyone who knows Werner Frick, alias Tex Warner, will probably confirm. Tex Warner has not only been making country music for over 30 years, he also collects books and records of all kinds about country music, wrote an encyclopedia on the subject, moderated radio broadcasts, drives a white Cadillac - in short, the man lives country. Country music? Quite a manageable genre, some might think.

Cowboy hat, fringe vest, guitar, campfire. But be careful, Country is Old Time Country, Cowboy Songs, Bluegrass, Western Swing, Honky Tonk, Rockabilly, Nashville Sound, Bakersfield Sound, Outlaw, New Traditional.

Moreover, this is an enumeration of the styles that have emerged since the 1920s, which cannot even claim to be complete. Tex Warner has been on stage since the sixties; or rather, on hundreds of stages. The native Gersthofer, who now lives in Westheim, did not stay long in the region or even only in Germany. Repeatedly his path led him to the roots of country music, to the USA. There he became acquainted with the greats of the industry and had appearances on TV and radio. There he played together with people like Jerry Rivers or Jimmy C. Newman.

In Germany, the man with the soothing voice also sang at the Blues Night Dortmund or at the Stuttgart Opera Ball. And he wasn't just content with cover versions, he also wrote his own songs.

He works tirelessly to make country music popular in Augsburg and the surrounding area and to give young musicians a platform. A difficult undertaking, as he readily admits. Therefore, in 1997 his attempt to organize regular concerts in Augsburg failed. The "Little Ole Opry" failed because of the high fixed costs. Earning real money with Country is also very difficult in Germany. "But for me this kind of music is more than just earning a living. I remember many concerts where I paid my musicians and went out empty-handed myself," Tex says.

But of course people have to live off something. From 1997 Werner Frick concentrated more on his own company for overseas transports. After the forwarding market became more and more narrow, however, he now offers his knowledge as a consultant for import/export. A transformation of the business, which again offers more time to transform into Tex Warner.

Concert in Untermeitingen

So he will play with his band at the Four Corners Music Hall in Untermeitingen next Saturday, at 21:00 h. For his huge fan base in this country, this is an opportunity to finally experience Country Classics live again with Tex Warner. Together with Hank West, Joe Götz, Hardy Schuster, Günther Hauser and Reiner Friedberger - according to his motto "The older the violin, the better its sound".

Tex Warner spends many hours in his refuge in the basement. Every inch is reserved for country music material. Arranged and catalogued in shelves and cupboards in the tightest of spaces. In addition, there are countless videos, instruments and around 400 books. A fund that continues to grow.

Anyone who touches on the subject of 'Country in Germany' in this lively archive must be patient. Tex does not spare any criticism of the development that this sector has taken with us. "Unfortunately, country music mainly takes place in beer tents - and it doesn't really belong there. Country is far more than just background music and more than the cliché of "cowboys and trucks", he defends the versatility of his music. "Successful bands like 'Truck Stop' may have done more harm than good in this respect. He makes his reservations known by name.

In addition, Tex also complains that from his point of view incomprehensible disinterest of the media in Country music. Almost a world collapsed for him when the US soldiers and their families packed and left Good Old Europe. No wonder, because the Americans naturally enlivened the scene. "I often spent more time in the barracks than at home," Tex Warner thinks back wistfully. That's now the past, but so the old master: "You can only understand country music if you know their past".

another article in Neusässer Stadtzeitung

Westheim, the country singer Tex Warner likes to lead the visitors down in his Westheim house into "music room, study, museum and library, my wife calls this room in the cellar", he explains with a smile. Here is his collection of over 50,000 country titles, about 400 videotapes and numerous extraordinary instruments, which he brought back from his travels and whose partly exotic sound he presents to his guests. Posters tell of his performances with the music with which he has been associated for 25 years: American Country Music.

"It is a unique, in the USA grown folksy music style, which tells about country, people, joys and pains of life. Country music was born from the songs of the first settlers, mixed with blues and folklore. It has many styles from Cajun music to country rock," explains the dedicated fan.

As a boy of twelve or 13, Tex Warner became aware of country music through AFN. He got his first guitar when he was 14 and started practicing immediately without a teacher, because nobody had taught him the style of music he wanted to play. He listened to the lyrics from the radio bit by bit. "Country music wasn't "in", you had to make it secretly, otherwise you would have belonged to the "primitive people", he says with a little bit of melancholy. “Country music was about family crises, and was initially intended primarily for the working class," Warner explains. "Today, fortunately, this has changed and the music has found a widespread audience.

Soon the musician had the wish to have his own band. In 1967 he was looking for like-minded musicians and through an American friend he and his five friends got the chance to make their first appearance in the then Rock und Pop Club in the Bismarckstraße in Augsburg. The response was surprisingly good.

Off to Nashville

At the invitation of a star of the American country music scene who was on tour through the U.S. clubs, Tex Warner gave up everything in Germany in 1970 and went to Nashville, where his friend introduced him to the country music scene. For six months Tex Warner stayed in Nashville, Tennessee, the Mecca of country music.

Backstage at the world-famous "Grand Ole Opry", he met many stars and began to shape his own style. Back in Germany Tex Warner built up a band again and played in the same line-up between 1971 and 1985 all over Southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland and had more than 100 gigs per year.

The first single was released in 1973 and Tex Warner recorded his first own compositions in 1984. "Music life always ran parallel to work, you couldn't live on country music alone. There wasn't enough audience here," Tex Warner regrets.

Due to professional changes, he then lacked the time to continue to deal extensively with country music. "Now I'm much freer to do something musical again", the musician looks forward to a new future. "The nice thing about country music is that you don't have to be twenty to make it," he says happily.

First and foremost he dedicates himself to the country classics of the 50s to the end of the 80s and plays this down-to-earth music in a full, large band. Here the enthusiastic audience can also dance to it. AIternativ offers Tex Warner: Bluegrass - Folksongs - Country in a three musicians line-up. This kind of music is especially suitable for small stages and is music to listen to. The band, whose members are all experienced in country music, made their first appearance last September in Untermeitingen, where they will play again on 19 January at the Four Corners Music Hall. Next April they will perform with a small cast in the Schwabmünchner Roßtränke. Here they enjoy being among the people, the feedback simply comes across better, the musicians agree. Tex Warner hopes for the near future that some things will open up in the smallest space. For the second half of the year a concert in the Stadthalle Neusäß is already planned.

Source: Jutta Kaiser-Wiatrek - city newspaper Augsburg

On 23 February 2002, we played at the Country & Western Saloon in Hirtlbach.

With me were Joe Götz (banjo), Rainer Friedberger (guitar), Hardy Schuster (bass) and Günter Hauser (drums).

In the Roßtränke in Schwabmünchen, we played again on April 20, 2002. My musicians Joe Götz (banjo) and Hardy Schuster (bass) were also there.

It read:

Schwabmüncher (zgb),

Country history and country stories could be heard at the "other" country evening with Tex Warner at the Schwabmünchner Kleinkunstbühne "Roßtränke".

Tex Warner, guitar and beautiful voice, Joe Götz, who delivered a great 5-string banjo playing and Hardy Schuster on bass led through a wide spectrum of musical styles bluegrass, folk and american country music. Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Jimmie Davis, Earl Scruggs, all were represented on this evening with their best songs and the background stories belonging to it, beautifully played and perfectly sung, so the conclusion.

Audience sang along enthusiastically

The audience sang along enthusiastically with the chorus of many songs. Not an evening for tough cowboys and the usual worn-out country songs.

It got harder and harder to get gigs with a five-piece band. Also because it was more difficult for me to find the right musicians, I decided to change our concept.

more about it in my next blog ....

Part 21 - 1998-99 My Country Music Encyclopedia

Tex Warner — Sun, 26 Sep 2021 14:10:00 GMT

Chapter 17: Encyclopedia of Country Music

1998 we had only one gig at the "Rosstränke" in the town of Schwabmünchen. We were there the first time in 1995. It was the 21st of March 1998. My musicians were Joe Götz, 5-string banjo and vocal, Hardy Schuster, bass, and as a guest Dany Vasquez, guitar/5-string banjo and vocal.

At the end of 1998, my musician friend Manfred Gschrey asked me if I was interested in writing an encyclopedia about country music. He could imagine that I could write it.

That was of course a challenge that I gladly accepted. And so I signed the authorship agreement on December 9, 1998. It said that the deadline was March 1, 1999.

Since I had no musical engagements, this project came at just the right time. Although the deadline was tight, it was feasible because I had already compiled a large number of biographies of country personalities for myself.

The book should contain about 320 to 350 pages. Now I started writing. I sat daily for hours at my notebook computer and researched and wrote.

When we were on vacation in Sun Valley, Idaho/USA, I had my computer with me and finally shortly before Easter 1999 my manuscript was finished. I had about 1,300 artists and terms from country music on 345 pages. The pictorial material came from my private record collection.

Now I only had to wait, until the book, my first, would be published.

Unfortunately, nothing further had developed from our action "Country with a heart". Each band went its own way again.

For my musicians and me 1999 was a year without engagements. Peter Eder of Radio RT.1 in Augsburg had a 3-hour Country Music show, which was very popular.

Since we knew each other, Peter always approached me when there were listener wishes and he did not have the titles in stock. Since I had a country music collection of over 80,000 titles, I could often help him. This was before you could locate songs on the internet easily.

Sometimes listeners called me and sang fractions of the songs to me or played them on an instrument to tell what songs they were looking for.

Peter Eder invited me to his show several times to be a co-moderator and tell about the history and stories of the country scene. That had given me a lot of pleasure to bring my beloved country music closer to a large audience.

In October 1999, my book was published by Lexikon Imprint Verlag Berlin.

The book:

In the last third of the 19th century, country music was often performed at so-called "barn dances", dance events in barns. From these the today famous "Grand Ole Opry" developed, which was originally called WSM "Barn Dance". Many of these artists did not perform for money, it was just for fun. However, these performances paved the way for the professional artists. Often they went with the "medicine shows" through the country. These were travelling merchants with tents, where medicine was sold, which could heal all sorts of aches and pains. People were attracted by the musical attractions.

Nevertheless, country music was not everywhere in the USA. It comes from the Appalachian Mountains, from the cotton fields of the South, from the small settlements where the traditional, down-to-earth people live. Folk music, later called country music, originated from the music of the English, Scottish and Irish settlers who brought their songs, fiddles and accordions with them into the new world. The music was most popular in the southeast and south of the USA. There, people did not live so crowded, they believed in God and worked hard in agriculture. This shaped the lyrics of their songs.

Many years have passed since the first recording in 1919. There were many changes. If the fiddle used to drown everything out in barn dancing, it is now the beat of the electric guitars. Today, with thousands of radio stations playing country music and television stations broadcasting exclusively country music, country artists have a much greater chance of becoming known. It used to be very difficult to sell outside the Southern States. Many music styles are very short-lived. Country music has evolved since the beginning, but the principles have remained the same. George D. Hay, the founder of the "Grand Ole Opry" in Nashville, Tennessee, which has been active since 1925 until today, already had the philosophy: Keep it down to earth, boys, down to earth. Country Music is here to stay.

The keywords:

The Country Music Encyclopedia covers over 1,300 Country Music personalities from 1868 to 1999, including such stars as Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Dolly Parton, but also many unknown musicians and of course Country Music "Made in Germany". For every musician you will find a selection of his songs and albums. The different styles, like Cajun, Bluegrass, Old-Time, Gospel, Comedy, Rockabilly etc. are explained, you can find record companies and labels, instruments and terms from the music, the important clubs and labels, in addition producers and Songwriter, festivals and Internet addresses, literature tips and Country Music organizations.

The author:

"Country music is my life," says Werner W Frick, who is also known by his stage name Tex Warner. A look back confirms this fact. Born on 16 February 1946 near Augsburg, Werner W. Frick has been involved with American country music since the age of 13. From 1970 to 1971, he spent several months in the USA to learn country music where it originated. Through his friend and Grand Ole Opry artist Jimmy C. Newman, he met many stars backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in the old Ryman Auditorium. Since 1977, Werner Frick has been a sterling member of the CMA (Country Music Association) in Nashville, Tennessee and visits the USA regularly. Werner W. Frick is not only a country musician and fan, but also an expert in the history of country music. He also explains the history of country music on a radio station.

On April 6, 2000, a story about my new book appeared in the Augsburger Allgemeine (Newspaper).

(AZ 6. April 2000 #81)

(msi). "Country music is my life," says Werner W. Frick, better known to the people of Augsburg under his stage name Tex Warner. One, who has been involved with this style of music since he was twelve, has now decided to pass on his knowledge - with an extensive encyclopedia about this American music style.

"You can only understand country music if you know its history," Frick tells his readers right at the beginning of the book's 345 pages. And so, he also begins with an "introduction to the history of country music", whose roots can be found with rural "entertainers" who entertained their families with fiddle sounds and songs.

1300 personalities

The keywords from A as in "Academy of Country" to Z as in "Zydeco" contain interesting facts about around 1300 personalities/ including stars such as Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Garth Brooks and many artists unknown to us. A selection of songs and records is listed for each musician. There is information about the styles like Cajun, Bluegrass, Rockabilly or Gospel, about record labels, producers and songwriters, festivals and books.

There is also a section dedicated to country music in Germany. Werner W. Frick, member of the Country Music Association in Nashville, does not spare any clear words: "Even if the musicians master their instruments excellently, it lacks the real country touch with many soloists and bands". It is important to understand the American mentality and way of life. Frick also doesn't spare praise for formations like the "Cadillac Cowboys" or the "Why Not Band".

In the appendix of the encyclopedia statisticians, get their money's worth. Frick has not only sorted the "century of country music" by year, but also the most important films with the stars of down-to-earth music. Finally, the artists are listed according to their native states - from Alabama to Wisconsin.

On 12 May 2000, I presented my new book in the bookshop Bolkert in Augsburg.

I brought my guitar with me and by means of video projection, I talked about the content of the book and sample songs of the country artists described in it.

It became a successful event and I was also able to sell a number of books there.

There were no gigs to be played for the rest of the year 2000.

Someone who bought my book contacted me in 2001 and encouraged me to get a new band together and start playing my kind of country music again.

I will tell you about that in my next blog.

... to be continued ...

Part 20 - 1996/97 - "Country mit Herz" a 3-day Country Music Festival

Tex Warner — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 08:06:00 GMT

On 9 February 1996 my friend Jerry Rivers, the fiddler of the legendary Hank Williams, Sr. gave a guest performance with Hank's daughter Jett Williams in Günzburg.

Bobby Andrews (of the Drifting Cowboys) - my wife Heidi - Hank West (my steel guitar picker) - Jerry Rivers and me

It was our last meeting, because Jerry Rivers died on October 4, 1996.

On March 13, 1996, we played at the Sheraton Hotel in Munich for a "Get Together" at a fair for about 800 guests. My musicians were Hank West (steel guitar), Joe Götz (banjo), Ricky Baltes (lead guitar) and Günter Hauser (drums).

Shortly afterwards, on March 16, 1996, I organized a country music concert at the Stadthalle Neusäß with my company imextra. I also hired the country band "Nashville Train", who played "modern" country music and us for "traditional country music". The idea was to get a bigger spectrum of visitors.

My musicians were:

Tex Warner, vocal & Guitar - Joe Götz, 5-string Banjo - Hank West, Pedal Steel Guitar - Hardy Schuster, Bass and Günter Hauser, Drums.

On 20 June, I was invited to give a lecture on country music at the Schießstätte in Augsburg, which I gladly accepted, as country music appeared very little in the German media.

Country & Western Music

Many of Augsburg's active Country & Western scene had gathered to listen to Tex Warner's lecture, the undisputed expert on C&W music. Their expectations were certainly exceeded, as Tex has an archive of more than 60,000 and over rarest material.

From this, he had prepared a professional multimedia lecture, which was based on documents, starting from clips from the year 1919 (!) to the year 1954. The information about the films, pictures and music often caused amazement and smiles in the audience. Tex, who is a member of the C&W Music Association, has the background knowledge to explain some of the manifestations of this music. After the lecture, which was initiated by the Nashville Train Fan Club, an association for the promotion of C&W music, there was a lively exchange of ideas and Tex agreed to continue the lecture due to the wave of enthusiasm.

Tex agreed to repeat the lecture for a wider audience. Among the numerous musicians present from C&W bands such as "Country Fever" and "Nashville Train" as well as "Tex Warner", a project was immediately outlined which is sure to make big waves. On June 20, 1996 at 8 p.m., it will happen again at the Schießstätte!

Karl Pösl

At that time, there was at least the AFN (American Forces Network), the American radio station, which could be heard on FM/UKW and still brought some Country Music. Every Saturday there was the "American Country Countdown", where the latest top 40 songs of the Billboard Country Hits were presented. It lasted about 3 hours. Gene Price was the host of the show.

On November 7, 1997, we were booked for a gig in Stuttgart at the Maritim Hotel. It was a bigger event. I rented a minibus and so we drove together from Munich to Stuttgart.

There were Joe Götz (banjo), Klaus Waschke (fiddle & guitar), Hank West (steel guitar), Hardy Schuster (bass) and Günter Hauser (drums).

In April of 1997, the Country Music bands in Augsburg organized a special event, called

“Country with a heart”.

The bands were:

Bud Hennessie featuring Fred Krs (who had been the fiddler in my band from 1971 to 1986)
Country Fever
Pick Up Ramblers
Tex Warner
Why Not Band
and
Cadcatz

Each band donated two songs to be included in a sampler CD. One song “Let’s Get Together” was played and sung by all participating groups and singers. The CD was sold and the money donated to the Augsburger “Kartei der Not”, a charity organization.

The open-air festival lasted for three days.

Wolli Graf (Country Fever) - Manfred Gschrey (Nashville Train) and Tex Warner

The local Augsburg TV Station aTV invited us to talk about this big open air event and asked us to perform live on TV, which we enjoyed to do. Country Musicians should be friends and not competition. We have tried to prove that.

My musicians were Günter Hauser (drums) - Tex - Hardy Schuster (Bass). Not in this picture were Hank West (pedal steel guitar) and John Paiva (lead guitar)

Here is a picture of all participants of the Country Music Event.

Unfortunately it was not possible to have a second festival.

... to be continued ...

Part 19 - 1994/95 - The New Tex Warner & His Band

Tex Warner — Sat, 10 Jul 2021 06:36:00 GMT

Chapter 16: Tex Warner and his Band

A new poster with "Tex Warner and his Band" in order to be more free in the choice of musicians.

In 1994 we only had one gig, and that was more of a charity event. We wanted to play some country music for the prisoners of the JVA Augsburg.

In Country Music there are many songs telling about prisoners and their fates.

Therefore, we performed there in March 1994. We were James Belcher (drums), Michael Siebert (bass), Hank West (pedal steel guitar), Klaus Hoffmann (guitar) and Joe Götz (5-string banjo).

Even the press had a good word for our performance in prison. (AZ of 12 March 1994 - number 59)

(sil). The country sound captivates and frees at the same time: its boundlessness has also captivated Tex Warner, who now and then deviates musically from conventional ways. With songs, which according to his words "have all situations in life to the content", he now gave a guest performance in a dining hall in the Karmelitengasse. He offered a taste of his skills to 130 inmates of the prison (JVA).

The Augsburg native is called Werner Frick in real life and already played behind bars as a guest star, where, according to the artist, large parts of his lyrics are at home. In his opinion, this is one more reason to play for those around whom these songs relate to. The prisoners' interest in escaping everyday life for at least two hours was correspondingly great.

The listeners were carried away by the performances to spontaneous and impulsive reactions. The prison choir joined in with the self-composed "Weeping Eyes" by Tex Warner with wild howling. The more rousing "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" from "Bonnie and Clyde", on the other hand, stopped some of them from sitting on their seats. And the sudden outbursts of emotion were plausibly explained at the request of the institution teacher Roman Janta: "Southern temperament" was cited as a reason, as was the need to "go along with music".

According to the director of the institution, Hans Lange, such events can only take place two to three times a year due to the higher personnel requirements. And also the financial side plays a decisive role, which is why one is dependent on free engagements of a Tex Warner. With James Belcher (drums), Michael Siebert (bass), Hank West (pedal steel guitar), Klaus Hoffmann (guitar) and Joe Götz (banjo) he succeeded in presenting many facets of country music.

Measured by the autograph requests after his performance, Tex Warner believes that the performance was well received. The only drawback: the acoustics in the dining room. The lyrics were hardly to be understood in the last rows, while the "Folsom Prison Blues" broke through the prison walls and was clearly audible on the street.

On 21 January 1995, we had our first appearance in a nice small art restaurant "Roßtränke" in Schwabmünchen.

After a complete band with drums appeared to be too much and too loud to the owner, we decided to perform without drums.

Hank West (Steel) - John Paiva (guitar) - Joe Götz (5-string banjo) - Michael Siebert (bass) and me.

(AZ of 28 January 1995 - number 23)

Schwabmünchen

A large fan community made a pilgrimage to Schwabmünchen's cabaret pub "Roßtränke" to indulge in country music once again. There "Tex Warner" and his band performed for the first time. The crowded listeners got their money's worth. The fact that country music is still very popular with us proves that the owner Justl Guadagnini had to send people away due to lack of space. Only those who had reserved in time were able to enjoy this musically well-structured and skilfully performed concert.

The band around "Tex Warner" comes from the area between Augsburg and Munich and offered country music from the USA of the 50s to 80s. Tex Warner himself often visits the United States, has many friends there and has been "on the road" with his music for many years. In his explanations of the songs he proved to be an experienced connoisseur of country music. With songs by the late songwriter and singer Hank Williams as well as Johnny Cash, but also with original compositions by Tex Warner, the five well-coordinated musicians met the taste of their fans. With steelguitar, bass, 5-string-banjo, leadguitar and rhythm guitar they also played old classics like "Jambalaya" by Hank Williams or "I walk the line" by Johnny Cash.

Besides the melodious vocals of Tex Warner (rhythm guitar) the only American of the band, John from Road Island, should be mentioned on the lead guitar. His solo to "Jonny be good" by Chuck Berry was a pleasure in itself. But also the three other musicians (Hank, Joe and Michael) contributed to the fact that this country evening was a "real hit".

Günter Köhler

On 7 April 1995, I was booked as DJ for a country festival in the Messehalle in Augsburg.

Since I have a huge selection of country songs that was not a problem. It was one more experience.

(anü). Tex Warner and his band had a brilliant performance last Friday at the Stadthalle Neusäß, where he entertained 250 guests with his American Country Show for the benefit of the Kiwanis Hilfsfonds Augsburg e.V..

Tex Warner, who is Werner W. Frick and lives in Neusäß, supported the aid funds of the Kiwanis Club, of which Warner himself has been a member since 1968.

The missing fee did not harm the enthusiasm of the professional band. Spiced with witty announcements, the six musicians presented a journey through the world of "classical" American country. In each song, Warner explained the origin of the songs or the typical instruments such as banjo and pedal steel guitar, which is often called Hawaiian guitar because of its sound, but in reality is a typical instrument of country music.

Besides well-known songs by Hank Williams or Johnny Cash, Warner also intoned his own songs from his CDs. The audience clapped along enthusiastically when the three Munich guys, Michael Siebert on bass, Hank West on steel guitar and Markus Stadler on banjo, as well as Tony Lush, the drummer from Sydney, and the excellent guitarist John Paiva from Rhode Island, played well-known country hits.

For more than two hours, the audience enjoyed the varied show, where each of the musicians had a solo performance. According to the president of the Kiwanis Club Augsburg, Günter Sonnenwald, the proceeds of the evening - about 3000 Marks - will be donated to the aid fund of the Kiwanis Club Augsburg. "The club, which is spread all over the world, has made it its task to help quickly, especially in the regional area, where there is social need.

Fred Rai invited to his Country & Western Festival in the Western City Dasing. We played there on Saturday, May 6, 1995.

On September 23, 1995, we performed for the second time in the Schwabmünchener "Roßtränke".

This time my musicians were:

Hank West (Pedal Steel Guitar), Klaus Waschke (Lead Guitar & Fiddle), Joe Götz (5-string Banjo) and Michael Siebert (Bass).

Part 18 - 1991/93 - The Multi-Media Show

Tex Warner — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 06:18:00 GMT

Chapter 15: The Multimedia Show

In 1992, I wanted to produce a multimedia show "A Journey through the USA". In 1988 we had already premiered it in the show we did at the prison in Landsberg am Lech using a slide projector and cable remote control.

I had bought an LCD video projector. It was portable, but very heavy and bulky.

We rehearsed in my company's warehouse, where we could practice undisturbed. It was Fred Krs, Fiddle - Klaus Hoffmann, Guitar - Rainer Effenberger, Bass - Joe Götz, 5-string Banjo - Hank West, Pedal Steel Guitar - James Belcher, Drums and me, acoustic guitar and vocal.

Han

Behind James, our drummer, you can see my "White Cadillac", the car I wrote a song about back in 1987 when I bought it. It was a 1987 Cadillac Brougham, quite a beauty.

On 28 November 1992 the time had come. I booked the Barbara Saal in Augsburg, a school auditorium that seated about 600 people. The Augsburg newspaper supported the project. We had a full house and a successful evening.

(huda). Tex Warner, who was born near Augsburg, discovered his love for American country music at the age of 13, so no wonder that his second home became the United States, especially the area around Nashville, Tennessee, the Mecca of country music.

In the first part of the concert in Barbara Saal, Tex Warner and his band introduced the different styles of country music. Songs by Hank Williams, the role model of many country singers, were of course a must. The songs ranged from Bluegrass, Honky Tonk and Western Swing to Tex's own ballads. Rather sad and thought-provoking songs about the everyday life of Americans outside the big metropolises of the United States alternated with groovy solo interludes in which the musicians were able to prove their skills. Hank West on the Steel Guitar, Joe Götz on the five-string Gibson Banjo and the fiddler Fred Krs fascinated the audience. Klaus Hoffmann in the function of the "Pastor of the Evening" presented religious ballads, similar to the famous gospel songs. James Belcher played his rousing drum solos.

In the second part of the evening, the audience was invited to a musical journey through the United States. Well-known street scenes from the American cities and nature impressions, in which the vastness of the country was emphasized, accompanied the potpourri of well-known songs. Tex Warner's performances in smoky pubs are over and he has in mind concerts at larger events in front of musically more demanding audiences. The musician already has enough ideas for future concerts in his head.

On 6 May 1993 we had only one performance in the former Ludwigspassagen (a Mall) in Augsburg.

That was it, nevertheless we did not give up.

Without the income from my regular job we would not have survived it financially.

In 1994 I designed a new poster and was hoping for some gigs in the year to come.

.. to be continued ...

Part 17 - 1990 - My first CD Production

Tex Warner — Fri, 07 May 2021 11:12:00 GMT

Chapter 14: The First CD

We did not have any gigs in 1990. I dedicated myself to mixing and designing our CD.

Wolfgang Städele (Studio 80) - Rainer Effenberger - Tex Warner - Jerry Rivers

The cover of my CD (My 1987 Cadillac Brougham served as model)

My friend Jerry Rivers wrote the liner notes for the booklet inside the CD

The booklet included the words of the songs and pictures of the musicians. Five of the songs were my own compositions. One of the songs is very personally, it tells what I like to do the best:

I'll Sing Country Music

I'll Sing Country Music The Only Way I Know

With Feeling And Understanding Of The People And The Land

I Believe In Country Music The Way Hank And Lefty Did

Back When I Was A Little Boy And Hardly Understood

I Love The Sound Of The Steel Guitar And Hear The Flat Top Ring

I Always Dreamed Of Being A Star And Living Just To Sing

I'll Sing Country Music The Only Way I Know

With Feeling And Understanding Of The People And The Land

I Do Believe In Music That Folks Can Understand

I Have To Feel It Deep Inside And You Will Hear Me Say

I'll Sing Country Music The Only Way I Know

With Feeling And Understanding Of The People And The Land

After the release of the CD "Tex Warner ... White Cadillac and Country Songs..." some very positive articles appeared in country music magazines.

Translation:

Respect, respect! There are a number of country musicians in our country who have a certain special position in the country scene. It is not so important how they do something, but that they produce something which is not heard of every day. One of these people is Werner W. Frick, who presents a fine production by German standards under his stage name "Tex Warner"

Ten country music songs as Tex Warner likes it, as he has been bringing it to the people for years. His preference is unmistakably for the traditional style, and here Warner knows how to convince as a songwriter in addition to his vocal qualities ("I'll Sing Country Music", "Crying Eyes", "Lonely Countryboy", "A White Cadillac"). But also the Nelson songs "Funny How Slips Away", Kristoffersons "For The Good Time" and Williams , Jambalaya" show Warners efforts to interpret credibly. Steeler Steve Porter completes the CD with the „Steel Guitar Rag“.

And something else makes this in our country recorded production interesting. "Faded Love" by Bob Wills provided Tex Warner with a special text, which he dedicated to his most prominent studio musician. His participation in "White Cadillac And Country Music" enhances the CD in a special way. When Jerry Rivers, Fiddler of the legendary drifting cowboys of Hank Williams, stayed in Germany last year, Warner didn't hesitate long and took his famous guest into the studio.

On December 10, 1990, "I'll Sing Country Music" and "A White Cadillac" reached spot 17 and 18 on the playlist of Radio Gong in Munich.

1991 started very quietly. We only had one special performance on July 13 on the occasion of the children's party of the “parents' initiative of children suffering from cancer” in Augsburg.

My musicians were: Rainer Effenberger, bass - James Belcher, Drums - Tex - Klaus Hoffmann, guitar

and me playing my "Oscar Schmidt" autoharp.

My long-time fiddler of my former band "The Westernaires" - Fred Krs joined us as a guest with his fiddle.

In September 1991, I visited my friend Jerry Rivers again in Nashville, Tennessee. Jerry worked at the artist agency Buddy Lee Attractions in Nashville, when there were no gigs to play.

Together with Don Helms, the steel guitarist of Hank Williams, Sr., Bobby Andrews (bass), the son of the great guitarist Pete Wade, Michael (guitar) and drums they accompanied Jett Williams as "The Drifting Cowboys Band".

Jett Williams, born on January 6, 1953 as Antha Belle Jett, only learned in the 1980s that she was Hank Williams' daughter and had a right to her father's inheritance. Her lawyer, Keith Adkinson, helped her through all court instances and won. He also became Jett's husband in 1986.

I had the opportunity to be with Jett Williams, Jerry Rivers and the band on some gigs in Virginia.

During my trip, Don Helms rode with me in my car, the band in Jerry's bus. Jett Williams had her own luxury bus.

It is a shame I did not have a recording device with me because Don told me a lot about his time with Hank Williams.

He also wanted to write a book about his experiences, which he published in 2005. "Settin' The Woods On Fire" (Audrey's Dream Inc. Nashville).

Don Helms also reviewed some CDs with his memories of Hank Williams and Nashville. They are rarities.

In 1992 I got some of my musician friends together to organize a special concert.

I will tell you more about it in my next blog.

... to be continued ...

Part 16 - 1989 - My Friend Jerry Rivers - Hank Williams' Fiddler

Tex Warner — Fri, 09 Apr 2021 06:42:00 GMT

Chapter 13: Jerry Rivers

Tex Warner - Hank Williams, sr. (the painting behind us) - Jerry Rivers

at Jerry's house in Goodlettsville, Tennessee

I knew Jerry Rivers, the fiddler of Hank Williams, Sr., who died in 1953, and met him in October 1989 at his home in Goodlettsville, near Nashville, Tennessee.

Jerry had planned to come to Germany for a few weeks in November and asked if he might be able to do some gigs with me.

I thought it was great, since I did not have any engagements for my musicians and me at the moment. So I agreed with him. I already had some ideas.

While I was in Nashville, I asked Jerry to record a couple of jingles for me that I could use on German radio for our concerts together.

Here is what it sounded like: click to listen to the jingle

As a member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Munich, I knew that in November 1989 another dinner dance would take place at the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in Munich. That is why I had already checked in June 1989 whether they were interested to include a Country Music Show. And they said yes, they would. It was to take place on 17 November 1989.

For November 14, 1989, we were booked for a company event and for November 16, I organized a charity event in Augsburg.

Klaus Hoffmann - Jerry Rivers - Tex Warner - James Belcher (on drums) - Rainer Effenberger

I did not have much time to prepare the three gigs. My musicians were Klaus Hoffmann on lead guitar, Rainer Effenberger on bass and James Belcher on drums. And of course our star guest Jerry Rivers at the Fiddle.

Jerry Rivers booked a flight for himself and his wife June for November 4, arriving in Munich on November 5 at 10:00 in the morning.

I had previously asked Jerry Rivers if he would be willing to play his fiddle on our CD, which was still in the studio in Bad Wörishofen waiting to be finished.

He agreed immediately and did not want a fee for it either. It was the first time for him that he took part recording a CD. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the compact disc was to replace the vinyl long-playing record.

Therefore, I booked the studio for August 9, 1989. Drums, bass, steel guitar, guitar and my pilot vocals had been available since February 1988, I took Klaus Hoffmann, Rainer Effenberger and Jerry Rivers with me into the studio.

Jerry Rivers - Klaus Hoffmann - Rainer Effenberger - Tex Warner at the Studio 80 in Bad Wörishofen

We finalized bass and guitar and I sang the final vocals. Klaus and Rainer sang the back-up voices.

Wolfgang Städele (Studio 80) - Rainer Effenberger - Tex Warner - Jerry Rivers

Additionally I wanted to record my "Story of My Old Fiddle". It is a story about the violin I bought in a pawnshop in Jacksonville in 1971 and Jerry played the melody "Faded Love" by Bob Wills as background music.

Now the advertising had to begin for the charity concert on 16 November 1989.

I got full support from Peter Eder, who hosted a weekly country music show on RT1-Hitradio in Augsburg. I could get a live interview with Jerry Rivers.

Also the local press supported our project very much.

Tex Warner invited the star from Nashville

(spr). The Tex Warner from Augsburg has achieved a coup of a special kind. The singer, who is one of the pioneers of American country music in Germany, was able to win the legendary Jerry Rivers from Nashville for a concert in the Fugger city.

The name Jerry Rivers is linked to the father of commercial country music, Hank Williams. In 1948 their collaboration continued, with countless tours and all Hank Williams recordings. Also as the boss of his own group, the "Drifting Cowboys Band", Fiddler drew Jerry Rivers' attention worldwide. He celebrated great success with us especially with his performance in Freddy Quinn's TV show "Country Time".

The Westheim based country singer has been singing this music for over 25 years. He made his first steps with a band in 1968 when it was called "The Country Boys". Three years later, a continuous upward development began. In the meantime, the formation called itself "Tex Warner And the Westernaires". The musicians played up to one hundred shows per year. Tex Warners advantage: his professional performance away from the usual cowboys and western clichés. He arranged his country music in the way it originally wanted to be understood: The listener should enjoy the richness of melodies and understand the content of the songs. Tex Warner is also breaking new ground on Thursday, November 16, at 7.30 p.m. in the St. Thaddäus Saal on Kobelweg 1. For this evening he has worked out a two-hour stage show, which will initially deal with the life of the country music star Hank Williams in a musical slide show. In the second part of the show: Jerry Rivers himself! A delicacy for all who love good country music. Tex Warner: "Country music has nothing to do with cowboys and machos. It's an original American art form similar to jazz". The guest performance with Jerry Rivers should contribute to raising the level of this musical genre. By the way: The total proceeds of the event go to the Augsburg parents' initiative of children suffering from cancer. One more reason to visit the concert.

We were able to hand over a check for DM 1,500.00 (approx. 750 Euro) to the parents' initiative of children suffering from cancer in Augsburg.

...to be continued ...

Part 15 - 1987/1988 - The New Image

Tex Warner — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 07:50:00 GMT

Chapter 12: The New Image

In 1987, a part of my country music career ended. Some of my longtime musicians left my band "The Westernaires" after 17 years.

I had to think of something else to continue. I decided to use only the name "Tex Warner".

Otherwise, people would ask about the musicians of the "Westernaires" in the stage name "Tex Warner and The Westernaires".

When my American pedal steeler Steve Porter received orders to be transferred back to the USA at the beginning of March 1988, I also lost this top musician.

However, I wished to produce a CD, which featured Steve's Pedal Steel Guitar.

I booked the studio in Bad Wörishofen for February 27, 1988, and wanted to start with the CD. We rehearsed intensively because I wanted to record some of my own compositions. Among others the song "Crying Eyes".

A friend of Steve's, Larry Cobble, was present at the rehearsals and suggested playing the song at a slower tempo, as he thought it would make it sound better. He was right.

It was Steve Porter on the pedal steel guitar,

Klaus Hoffmann - background vocal, electric guitar and bass,

Rainer Effenberger - background vocal, acoustic guitar and bass and

James Belcher - drums.

On 27 February 1988, we went into the studio and started recording at 10:00 a.m. I had booked 10 hours. It was important to me that we finished the instrumental versions with the Steel Guitar.

I wanted to do my vocal recordings and mixing later.

We recorded nine tracks. There were five new compositions by me

I'll Sing Country Music

Crying Eyes

Lonely Country Boy

A White Cadillac

as well as

I Can't Help It

Funny How Time Slips Away

For The Good Times

Jambalaya

and a Steel Guitar Instrumental with Steve

Steel Guitar Rag

One day later, on February 28, 1988, Steve was already on his way to the USA.

I would perform with different musicians in the future. I had a new 8-page brochure designed.

The band name "and The Westernaires" was omitted.

On August 8, 1988, we appeared in the State Prison in Landsberg/Lech. I had thought up a very special show for the prisoners.

I wanted to present a musical journey through the United States of America. With songs and pictures about various areas of the USA.

I put together a number of slides and had the pictures projected onto a screen behind us on stage. I controlled the slide projector with a foot switch. For each song about five pictures should be shown on the screen. In 1988 you had no video projection, you had to use a slide projector and slides. I constructed a foot pedal with a build-in counter, so I could control the picture from the stage. It was a little awkward to handle but it worked.

The journey started in New York and went west to California and via Texas, Louisiana, Virginia back to New York. Duration of the journey was approx. 60 minutes. After that, we played Country Songs for another hour without any projection.

My musicians were Klaus Hoffmann on lead guitar, James Belcher on drums and Andy Jakob's brother Rudy on keyboard. I wanted to have Andy, but he was not available and sent his brother.

In 1988, the SOSO publishing house published the book "Die Augsburger Pop Geschichte" (A history of bands located in Augsburg). At that time there were over 400 groups that played all kinds of genres. There was also a story about my band in it.

it read:

TEX WARNER AND THE WESTERNAIRES

AMERICAN COUNTRY MUSIC & SHOW

Country music. The group sees their style somewhere between Hard Country, Honky Tonk Music and Nashville Sound. By this they mean the direction of GEORGE JONES, JOHNNY CASH, CHARLEY PRIDE and WAYLON JENNINGS. "We represent country music that we feel and appeal to listeners of all ages and backgrounds," says band founder Werner W. Frick alias TEX WARNER. The band tries to give their music its own touch. TEX WARNER did their first steps with a band in 1967, when they were still called TEX WARNER AND THE COUNTRY BOYS. "We were just able to play six songs when we made our debut appearance." Slowly the formation found followers, played in American and German clubs. In 1969 Marianne Van Pelt joined and the group changed their name to TEX WARNER AND THE WESTERNAIRES. A steady upward development began in 1971. TEX WARNER had previously spent several months in the USA, where he had been replaced by the "Grand Ole Opry" star JIMMIE C. NEWMAN had the opportunity to exchange experiences with many country greats. From now on TEX WARNER AND THE WESTERNAIRES played up to one hundred shows per year. They performed at advertising events, at festivals and in the regional program of the ARD and played with BOB LUMAN, HANK THOMPSON, KITTY WELLS and the WILBURN BROTHERS. In 1973, the band recorded the single "Kiss An Angel Good Morning/Orange Blossom Special". Four years later TEX WARNER became a member of the Country Music Association in Nashville. To produce the songs he had in mind, he founded the record company TAW-Records. The first MC he released was called "It's Country Music Time, Volume I". In the studio were Tex Warner, Alfred Ruddigkeit, Fred Krs, Rainer Effenberger, Lacy Brandtner and Hank West. The follow-up MC "It's Country Music Time, Volume 2" was recorded in 1984 with Tex Warner, Alfred Ruddigkeit, Fred Krs, Rainer Effenberger, Robert Ruddigkeit and Mike Dunn. At the same time, the single "Alone In A Crowd/Whispering Pines" was released. Tex Warner answered the question why he is committed to country music. "The feeling and honesty in the songs convinces me. However, as a musician and singer, you cannot copy country stars. How can I transmit my own feelings when I imitate someone else?

Discography: Singles: Kiss An Angel Good Morning/Orange Blossom Special (1973); Alone In A Crowd/Whispering Pines (1984); MCs: It's Country Music Time, Volume 1 (1981); It's Country Music Time, Volume 2 (1984) Cast: Tex Wamer (voc, git, autoharp), Steve Porter (git), "Bear" James (dr), Alfred Ruddigkeit (voc, git), Klaus Hoffmann (voc, bs), Günter Meyer (git, keyb, voc) Ex-member songs: Klaus Banhardt (git), Franz Gartner (git), Merton Van Pelt (git, voc), Marianne Van Pelt (bs, voc), Betty Thomason (voc), Ken Hughes (dr), Fred Krs (fiddle), Rainer Effenberger (bs, VOCI Dolf Hintermayr (dr), Reinhard Buhl (dr), Andy Van Tienen (dr), Robert Ruddigkeit (dr), Robert Ruddigkeit (dr)

In the meantime, Alfred was no longer part of my band. Now we were in this line-up.

Klaus Hoffmann - Bass & Vocal

Günter Meyer - Guitar and Keyboard & Vocals

James Belcher - Drums & Vocals

and myself, Acoustic Guitar and Vocals.

Steve Porter, our steeler was back in the USA. Organizing gigs became more difficult.

Let us see what the New Year will bring.

... to be continued ...

Part 14 - 1986 A New Beginning

Tex Warner — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 09:40:00 GMT

Chapter 11: The New Beginning

Now Günter Meyer played - vocal, guitar and keyboard, Steve Porter - pedal steel guitar, Klaus Hoffmann on bass and vocals, Alfred Ruddigkeit - vocals and lead guitar, his son Robert Ruddigkeit, drums and me.

I also had professional photos taken and advertising cards made. The Tex Warner logo was newly created.

On May 8, 1986, we played again during the German-American Volksfest in Augsburg and on July 18, 1986 again the Western Night in Penzing.

In mid-1986, a music club opened in the city of Augsburg. The name was "Nashville Club". On Saturday, 22 November 1986, we played there for the first time.

We had to set up in the cellar at about 6 p.m. and then played alternately with the DJ for 30 minutes from 9 p.m. to 4.30 a.m. the next morning.

The year 1987 started with some gigs at the "Nashville Club" Augsburg. The first one on February 14. My musicians were Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar/vocals), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums), Steve Porter (pedal steel guitar), Sonny Burg (bass).

I did not have a steady band anymore, I was performing with different musicians, Therefore I had a poster printed without pictures of the musicians.

It was still called "Tex Warner & The Westernaires", but only with my picture.

A time with various musicians followed.

On March 3, 1987 we played the "Nashville Club" with Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar/vocals), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums), Steve Porter (pedal steel guitar), Klaus Hoffmann (bass) and Günter Meyer (keyboard/vocals).

With another cast, we played again at the "Nashville Club" on March 21: The musicians were

Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar/vocals), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums), Steve Porter (pedal steel guitar), Marty Hamilton (bass) and Roy Finch (guitar).

On April 11, a German-American Country Music Festival took place in the Greiner Festhalle in Aindling.

On 5 May 1987 again in the "Nashville Club" with Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar/vocals), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums), Steve Porter (pedal steel guitar), Klaus Hoffmann (bass).

On 9 May 1987 at the "Nashville Club" with Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar/vocals), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums), Steve Porter (pedal steel guitar), Klaus Hoffmann (bass).

The German-American festival in Augsburg in the American housing area "Centerville" took place on June 7, 1987 from 09:00 - 15:00 h with our Country Music for the Frühschoppen.

The Country Music Friends Kötz held their fourth Country Music & Western Festival from 19 to 20 June 1987. We were part of it on Saturday, June 20, 1987.

Also, we played the Western Night on 10 July 1987 in Penzing, as in the years before.

Our drummer Robert Ruddigkeit informed me in August 1987 that in the meantime he had joined another country band and would leave us on September 1, 1987.

Now I had to look for a drummer again.

Through my musician friend Klaus Hoffmann, I met James Belcher from Georgia, USA, who is a jazz player, but would like to play with us. Therefore, I hired him.

We rehearsed and played on 12 September 1987 in Senden/Iller with the following line-up: Alfred Ruddigkeit (vocals/lead guitar) - Klaus Hoffmann (bass) - James Belcher (drums) - Roy Finch (guitar) and me.

The next performance was on 1 October 1987 in Kirchheim/Teck. This time Steve Porter was on the pedal steel guitar.

In "No Name City" in Poing near Munich we performed on October 17th 1987 with Jim Beever (drums) - Alfred Ruddigkeit (vocals / lead guitar) - Klaus Hoffmann (bass) and Steve Porter on the pedal steel guitar.

With the same line-up, our year ended on 31 October 1987.

When I met a friend on a business trip to London in November 1987, who was having big problems with his girlfriend and we were sitting in a pub where a live band was playing, he told me about it.

He asked me to sing the song "Green, Green Grass of Home" with the band, which I was happy to do for him. When I came back to our table, I saw him crying bitterly.

Back at my hotel, the Woodward Moat House in Oak Hill, Essex, I could not sleep and wrote the song "Crying Eyes". I recorded the melody with my voice recorder so I would not forget.

A year later, in February 1988, we recorded the song for our first CD in the studio.

Crying Eyes (click to listen)

Last Night I Met A Man Who Was Unhappy In His Life

We Had A Drink Or Two And There Was A Teardrop In His Eye

And He Explained To Me The Story Of His Life

He Told Me About The Love That He Had Never Known

Crying Eyes Of A Broken Man

Crying Eyes That Couldn't Understand

The Sorrows He Lived Through

And The Loneliness He Knew

Crying Eyes Of A Broken Man

Crying Eyes That Couldn't Understand

Crying Eyes Were All I Ever Saw

He Was Longing For A Good Wife To Go Through Good And Bad

But It Seemed That He Gave Up On God's Helping Hand

His Eyes Were Crying And He Wasn't Lying'

When He Talked To Me

He Just Needed Someone To Tell His Troubles To

... to be continued ...

Part 13 - After 15 years the band broke up

Tex Warner — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 09:02:00 GMT

For February 2, 1985, we were booked for a gig in Lucerne, Switzerland. Angelo Burri was the organizer and he had booked the band "Nugget" and "Tex Warner & The Westernaires". Angy Burri was what they called “the only real Indian” in Lucerne in Switzerland.

We had two performances of 45 minutes from 21:00 - 21:45 h and from 00:55 - 01:40 h. The Festhalle was fully booked up to the last seat. We were able to sell a large number of our new Music Cassette.

It wasn't that easy, because if you plan to perform in Switzerland, you need a work permit and every instrument needs certificates for customs. It should prevent that the musicians sell their instruments in Switzerland.

Lex Randy, a Western Knife and Lasso artist, who had arranged this gig for us, performed with his wife Eve.

Since he also lived in our area, he booked a bus and so we drove together, some with our wives, to Lucerne.

Also in 1985, we played the Frühschoppen on the Augsburger Plärrer. It was Sunday, April 7.

On 13 April, we played in the Landhaus Sigel in Rederzhausen from 20:00 to 01:00 o'clock.

We also played at the German-American Volksfest on 19 May 1985.

On 21 June 1985, we played again at the Western Night in the officers' home Penzing.

During the "Memminger Mile 1985", we played an outdoor evening event in front of the Pilsstube "Zapfhahn" on June 28.

In addition, here we were at work. It was July 28, 1985, when we played for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg.

One day before that we played for the fishing club Haunstetten at the Ilsesee.

For the Bürgerliches Brauhaus in Augsburg we were "in action" on 19 May and 15 August 1985.

There a technical novelty was tried out for the first time. It was a device, which switched off the current if the volume of the band was too loud, which was not necessary however with our music.

In order to increase our bookings, I advertised in an artist catalogue. At that time I didn't know that two of my musicians had plans to leave the "Westernaires" after 15 years and hundreds of gigs that we played together.

In October 1985, a larger report about us appeared in the "Country Express", a German country music magazine.

This is what it read:

Tex Warner and The Westernaires

It began in the summer of 1958. Werner Frick, just 12 years old, switched on the radio. With the title "I'm Sorry For You My Friend", sung by Hank Williams, the disc jockey said goodbye and asked to listen to him the next day at the same time. Werner soon found out that he was listening to the American station AFN with Country & Western Music. These sounds fascinated him, Werner didn't miss a single show and even kept a record of the titles presented. The times of the "Johnny Bond Show", the "Hillbilly Guesthouse" and the "Stickbuddy Jamboree" became fixed dates in the daily routine of the growing Werner Frick. Between 4 and 5 o'clock he stole away from the apprenticeship to watch his beloved shows on the radio.

At the age of 12 Werner made the decision to learn an instrument himself. For eight months he had to deliver a lot of newspapers. In 1958 the time had finally come: under the Christmas tree lay the brand-new Framus guitar.

In 1967 Werner joined the Texas Club in Munich. Here he received the name that accompanied him during his active career as a musician: Tex Warner (Tex from Texas Club and Warner derived from the first name Werner). The first tentative attempts to sing and play country music in front of an audience also began in the club. Soon the stage fright disappeared, a second man was found and they toured together through the clubs of the near and far surroundings.

In 1968, after his military service, Tex Warner started his first attempts with a band. The main problem at that time was the lack of facilities and the fact that there were hardly any opportunities for country musicians to earn money. Tex was lucky, he found four interested people who had the necessary equipment. There were three rehearsals a week, slowly but steadily things went up. The repertoire had reached the number of six titles when they ventured to their first performance. The audience reacted not so excited. Tex and the band tried it in different clubs, security and routine grew with each gig. The fees were not so great, 2 to 5 US dollars per head and evening. The band name TEX WARNER AND THE COUNTRY BOYS established itself in the club scene.

In 1969 the band broke up, a musician went back to England, the end seemed pre-programmed. Once again chance played a decisive role. An American couple joined Tex Warner, and the Westernaires were born. At least the band name has lasted since that time,

In July 1970 the American musicians returned to the States, the band was once again at its end. Tex used the time for a six-month trip to the USA. Most of this time Tex spent in Tennessee, better said in Nashville. Here he met the Cajun star Jimmie C. Newman, who introduced him to some country greats. Warners biggest wish to be "Backstage" at the Grand Ole Opry came true. It was like a dream to meet and talk to stars like Marty Robbins, Tex Ritter and Hank Snow.

From the USA Tex contacted a musician in Augsburg in the spring of 1971, the reason being the formation of a new band. In April of the same year the band went public with Fred Krs (fiddle), Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar), Dolf Hintermayer (drums) and Rainer Effenberger (bass). In 1974 Dolf Hintermayer died shortly after an appearance of heart failure, for him Reinhard Buhl took over the place at the drums for two years. Andy van Tienen replaced him in 1977. Today Robert Ruddigkeit, son of the guitarist, is the drummer of the band.

From 1971 it went steadily upwards. Tex Warner and the Westernaires performed up to 100 gigs a year, traveling from Nuremberg to Dortmund. They performed in clubs, at advertising events, festivals, in the ARD regional programme and even in the Württemberg State Theatre in Stuttgart. Together they performed with country greats like Bob Luman, the Wilburn Brothers, Hank Thompson and Kitty Wells.

1972 saw the release of the first single by Tex Warner and the Westernaires: "Kiss an Angel Good Morning / Orange Blossom Special". In 1975 the profession demanded a temporary band abstinence from Tex Warner, an American lead singer took over the Westernaires until 1977.

In 1980, Tex Warner founded the small record company TAW-Records to realize his own musical ideas. The first MC was released in 1981 with the title "It's Country Music Time Vol 1" (TAW 81001). It features the musicians Tex Warner (vocals / guitar), Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar), Fred Krs (fiddle), Rainer Effenberger (bass), Lacy Brandtner (drums) and Hank West (pedal steel).

The cassette "It's Country Time Vol. 2" was produced in 1984. Participants were Tex Warner (vocals / guitar), Alfred Ruddigkeit (vocals / guitar), Fred Krs (fiddle), Rainer Effenberger (bass), Robert Ruddigkeit (drums) and Mike Dunn (dobro). The recordings were recorded in a studio in Bad Wörishofen (Order No. TWA 84002). At the same time, Tex Warner released a single, "Alone In A Crowd" / "Whispering Pines" under the order number TAW 84101.

In the winter of 1985, Rainer Effenberger and Fred Krs left the band at their own request. Once again, a change of musicians was due; Günther Meyer (bass / guitar / organ / vocals) and Mike Dunn (dobro / autoharp / guitar / harmonica) quickly became band members. The music style of the formation around Tex Warner is traditional, that is titles known by George Jones, Johnny Cash, Charley Pride or Waylon Jennings. A repertoire is played that appeals to the audience. The band Westernaires around Tex Warner is proud of their own sound.

Uli Gramer

* * *

Chapter 10: The separation

1986 was going to be a difficult year; we hardly had any gigs to play.

Rainer, our bassist and Fred Krs at the fiddle, both left as part of the "Westernaires" in order to join Bud Hennessie from Landsberg who needed musicians for his new band, I had to reorganize my band once again.

It was not easy. Alfred Ruddigkeit (guitar) and his son Robert Ruddigkeit (drums) stayed with me, but we had no bass player.

Therefore, I bought myself an electric bass and tried it on bass, which wasn't so great.

However, I had already booked a festival gig in Bad Ischl for the weekend 16th to 18th May 1986.

Dave Dudley, who was accompanied by the band "The Drifters Caravan" from Frankfurt, had arrived as a star guest from the USA. We had two sets to play on Sunday, May 18 from 17:10 - 18:00 and from 01:10 - 02:00.

When we arrived in Bad Ischl, we were accommodated in the Gasthof Gstötterwirt in Bad Ischl.

The inn was a disaster. We traveled with two cars, Alfred with his wife Marianne and son Robert and I with my wife Heidi and Günter Meyer, who played guitar.

When we checked in early in the afternoon, we found out that we were getting two rooms, one for two people and one for three people.

However, we were four men and two women. They told us we would get another room and should come back later. So we spent the afternoon in Bad Ischl and came back in the late afternoon.

They did not have another room and one room you could not lock the door, the lock was defect.

So the two ladies took the double room and we 4 musicians took the 3-bed room with an additional roll away bed. The room was in a terrible condition.

With this, we should spend two nights. From Saturday to Sunday, we experienced a terrible night, The musicians, who played Saturday, came home relatively drunk and loud at 3 o'clock in the morning and raised hell until dawn.

It was clear to us that we would not spend another night here. Our last gig from 01:10 to 02:00 was rescheduled earlier, so that we could drive back home the same night and did not have to stay at that terrible place.

So we drove back the 300 km to Augsburg during the night. An unforgettable experience.

... to be continued ...

Part 12 - 1983 - 1984 - Our 2nd Album

Tex Warner — Tue, 01 Dec 2020 16:19:00 GMT

1983 began with a performance at "Theo's" in Gessertshausen on 21 January.

The Volksbank Markgrönningen booked us for three performances on 15, 17 and 18 March 1983 for a company anniversary.

On 26 March, we played again at "Egon's" in Gessertshausen near Augsburg. April 17, we were booked again in the "Schaller Beer Tent" at the Augsburger Plärrer to play the Matinee. It was a lot of fun and the audience danced on the benches.

The "German-American Volksfest" took place from May 11 to 23rd 1983 on the grounds opposite the American High School in Augsburg and we played there on Sunday, May 15 1983. The atmosphere was great; many American soldiers came and loved our Country & Western Music.

The company "Conci Jeansware" in Augsburg asked us to do an advertising campaign for h.i.s. jeans.

On June 12, we were guests of Fred Rai in his Western City in Dasing.

Our already traditional Country Music Show at the officers' club in Penzing was scheduled for June 24, 1983. As in previous years, it was a very nice event and the audience was great.

On 2 July 1983, my company BTG celebrated its 10th birthday and we could not miss it.

It took place in the "Congress Hall" in Augsburg for our customers and business partners from all over the world.

It was at the same time that I had new printed material done for our band. We had a professional photographer take pictures and a graphic artist designed the autograph cards for us.

The Kiwanis Club Augsburg organized its traditional 3-day beer festival at the Ziegelstadel in Stadtbergen and here we played again for the matinee.

The furniture store "Krügel" in Augsburg booked us for a concert on 6 August 1983.

Fred Rai arranged a Mexican night on September 10 and we were part of the party.

In the afternoon, we entertained the friends of Country Music on stage in the open air.

In 1983 we had no bookings with the US Armed Forces.

1984 started with a "Western Ball" in the Löwenbräukeller in Munich on March 4.

On 6 May 1984, we played again at the Osterplärrer in Augsburg. The biggest beer tent with approx. 3,000 visitors.

At that time we had our 2 x 150 Watt Power mixer and 4 loudspeakers and it was completely sufficient.

In the meantime, we were booked more and more for German events. On 27 May and 3 June 1984, we played again for the German-American Volksfest.

On 30 June, we played in the morning for a company event and in the evening for the Johaniter Unfallhilfe in the Barbarasaal of the Stetten Institute Augsburg.

On July 8, the Kiwanis beer festival took place again, this time in Stadtbergen in front of the multipurpose hall, and we performed our music for the "Frühschoppen", as in the previous years.

Also, the traditional Western Night in the officers home Penzing took place on 13 July 1984.

Chapter 9: In the Studio

We wanted to record a new music cassette, so we went to Studio 80 in Bad Wörishofen in September 1984 and recorded a number of tracks.

The musicians:

Tex Warner - Vocal & Acoustic Guitar

Fred Krs - Fiddle

Alfred Ruddigkeit - Lead Guitar

Rainer Effenberger - Bass

Mike Dunn - Dobro

Robert Ruddigkeit - Drums

Rainer - Robert - Alfred - Tex - Mike - Fred (standing)

The songs:

Alone In A Crowd - Arms Full of Empty - Cotton-Eyed Joe - White Lightning - Wabash Cannonball - Abilene - Soul of A Honky Tonk Woman - Kaw Liga - Walking The Floor Over You - Rocky Top - Orange Blossom Special - Battle of New Orleans - The Wreck Of The Old '97 - Danny Boy - Help Me Make It Through The Night - Cajun Time and Folsom Prison Blues

From these songs the two cassettes, "It's Country Music Time Volume 2" and "Tex Warner's Westernaires" were released.

For the single, we recorded my original composition "Alone In A Crowd" b/w "Whispering Pines".

It was a shock when we found out that Ernest Tubb died at the age of 70 in Nashville on September 6, 1984, exactly when we recorded "I'm Walking The Floor Over You" in the studio.

Because this title was his signature song. The song "Walking The Floor Over You" was composed by Ernest Tubb and recorded by him on April 26, 1941 at Biggs Studio in Dallas, Texas.

By the way, Ernest Tubb also sang this song in a movie, which premiered in 1943. The movie had the title "Fighting Buckaroo" and Ernest Tubb also played in it.

* * *

On October 4, 1984, I flew back to the USA to attend the 18th Annual Country Music Association Awards in Nashville, TN. You had to be a member of the CMA to get tickets for the show on CBS TV.

It took place at Grand Ole Opry House on Monday, October 8, 1984. We picked up the pre-ordered tickets from Opryland in the morning. At that time there was a dress code (Black Tie) to attend the awards ceremony.

Ralph Emery did some greetings before the show and the show started punctually at 20:00 h. Dolly Parton opened the evening with a song. Kenny Rogers led through the evening. Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson sang the title song from the movie "The Songwriter", which started this week.

Loretta Lynn sang a tribute to Ernest Tubb, who died on September 6, 1984.

Crystal Gayle and Kenny Rogers sang a duet and the Statler Brothers presented the nominees for the prize "Best Female Vocalist" in an original and funny way.

The performance of Ray Charles and Ricky Skaggs and B.J. Thomas, who introduced the new album "Friendship", was great.

After the show, the "Post Awards Party" started at the Opryland Hotel. Over a long red carpet, the way led us there. You could meet many country stars at the party.

We met Chet Atkins, Willie Nelson and Ray Stevens. Around 2 a.m. we left the party and made our way home to the hotel.

On this USA trip we stopped in San Francisco, CA and I bought my Martin D18 guitar for 956 US $ at "The Fifth String" in Berkeley, California.

On November 2, 1984, I flew back to Germany.

* * *

Back we went to work, because for December 15, 1984 a bigger event was planned in Augsburg.

Together with the two other country bands that existed in the meantime, we wanted to organize the first Augsburg Country Music Concert with the Augsburg Country Bands. This was the last show for the year 1984.

... to be continued ...

Part 11 - The Years from 1981 to 1982

Tex Warner — Thu, 26 Nov 2020 16:16:00 GMT

1981 began with a performance at the Waikiki Café in Augsburg on the 29^th of January.

This was followed by a special event on the 1^st of May 1981.

We were invited to play on the Augsburger Plärrer in the Schaller tent for a morning show for about 4,000 people.

We played from 10:30 to 14:00 and the atmosphere was very good.

It was the first time that American country music was performed at the Plärrer.

In 1981 we had no more gigs in the US clubs, but we strengthened our presence on the German market.

On May 31, 1981 we could be heard in the large Beer tent of the furniture store Hery in Gersthofen.

Chapter 8: New drummer again

We were about to change drummers again. After Andy quit and the son of our guitarist Alfred was interested in playing drums and had already made progress, I hired him for a few gigs. Robert did quite well.

Fred Krs, fiddle - Rainer Effenberger, bass - Robert Ruddigkeit, drums - Tex Warner - Alfred Ruddigkeit, lead guitar

From June 13 to 14, 1981, the Künstlerdienst Stuttgart booked us to provide entertainment for the Kraftwagen Handelsgesellschaft Nufringen. It was a great event and we had a lot of fun.

Robert - Rainer - Tex - Alfred - Fred

On 23 June 1981, we celebrated our 10th band anniversary and organized a concert in Augsburg.

In 1981, I founded my own record label "TAW Records" and released our first music cassette "It's Country Music Time Vol. 1". Cassettes were in demand at that time. CD's were not available in 1981.

The songs were:

Bile Them Cabbage Down

Y'all Come

Walk On By

Green Green Grass Of Home

Cajun Baby

Down Yonder

Ole Slewfoot

Is Anybody Going to San Antone

Silver Wings

Catfish Capers

The musicians were:

Tex Warner, vocal & guitar

Fred Krs, fiddle

Alfred Ruddigkeit, lead guitar

Rainer Effenberger, bass & background vocals

Hank West, pedal steel guitar

Laszlo Brantner, drums

This was followed on 4 July 1981 by a concert in the American Officers Club, organized by the Kiwanis Club Augsburg-West,

and on 19 July we played a morning matinee for the Kiwanis Club of Augsburg at the "Ziegelstadl" in Stadtbergen.

We played for the sixth time for the German Officers’ Club on 17 July 1981 in Penzing.

August 29, 1981. We were booked for an evening by a tennis club in the Lautenbachhof in Bad Teinach.

Our last event of the year was on 3 October 1981 for the Rodeo-USA Wildwest Fest at the US Officers' Club in Augsburg.

* * *

Our activities in 1982 started on March 13 in "Egons Domizil" in Augsburg.

The article in the Augsburger Allgemeine appeared March 19, 1982 and read:

Last Saturday EGON ROTH could hang the favorite sign of all restaurateurs on the door of his DOMIZIL: "Sold out". In addition, indeed, at the country evening with "TEX WARNER AND THE WESTERAIRES" even standing room was scarce. Some people did not think they were at a carnival ball just because of the excellent atmosphere. Many country fans had also appeared in real Western style in cowboy hat. Howdy, Howdy! And TEX with his "Westernaires" could fully confirm their reputation as the best band of this profession. Not only the country freaks, but also many celebrities met at EGON. (Excerpts)

On April 1, we appeared at the Café Regent in Augsburg, which used to be Café Eickmann.

In addition, this year on April 25, 1982 we played our morning show in the Schallerzelt at the Augsburger Plärrer, after we had celebrated great success last year.

We played only 3 gigs for the US Armed Forces in 1982:

On 1 May in the Top 5 club in Augsburg,

on 24 June in the Nato Community club in Oberammergau and

on 4 July 1982 for the Independence Day of the USA in the Flint barracks in Bad Tölz.

In April 1982, this article appeared in the Country Corner magazine.

This is what it said:

"Nowadays, many try to jump on the country train, which had gotten going quickly, and to profit from those who tried to prepare the ground for the country boom with years of hard work and small-scale tinkering, and who certainly got more ridicule than money.

One such country fan is Werner Frick. In 1967 he founded his first band and gave himself the stage name Tex Warner. In 1970, he went to Nashville for a while to study country music, then the band was formed, and for 11 years, the musicians have remained almost unchanged: Fiddler Fred Krs makes his violin sound like a steel guitar; his old fiddle tunes are especially inspiring. His son-in-law Rainer Effenberger plays the electric bass and Fred Ruddigkeit is the lead guitarist. The drummer was Dolf Hintermayr, who died in 1973, later Lazy 'Brantner (the brother of Fiddler Nipso), Reinhard Buhl and today Robert Ruddigkeit. Buhl also led the band when Tex stayed away from music for professional reasons from 1975 to 1977. They performed a lot in US clubs and accompanied some stars from over there like Bob Luman, the Wilburn Brothers, Hank Thompson, Kitty Wells and others.

In 1973, a single with the titles "Orange Blossom Special" and "Kiss An Angel Good Morning" was released. In general, the band retired from the club circle. They focused more on German events, concerts, discos, and advertising gigs and so on. To promote this business, Tex set up a record label, called "TAW Records" in 1981 and published a cassette with ten tracks that he recorded with the Westernaires, Country Standards mostly framed by fast fiddle tunes. Today they only play once or twice a month. In summer, "Texas" wants to return to the States once again to experience country stuff on the spot and to gain new inspiration for his band. This will certainly benefit a second cassette, which is to be expected after a "No. 1".

Eberhard Finke"

We performed for the action group Maximilianstraße Augsburg on 23 June 1982 in the courtyard of the Fuggerhaus.

On July 16, we played again in the officers' club in Penzing, which was a lot of fun like every year. As always, the organization was perfect.

For 17 July 1982, we were booked in the Gasthaus Sonne in Bäumenheim. Unfortunately, we had to find out at the end of the event that the restaurant was broke and could not pay us.

Without further ado, we had the entire income of the evening given to us, which was not, however, the amount of our fee. This was the first time in our many years of experience with restaurants.

To the traditional beer festival of the Kiwanis club Augsburg, we played the Frühschoppen again on August 1, 1982. As every year, it was very well attended and the audience very well received our music.

This year ended with our concert on 6 October 1982 for the MBB Sportheim in Augsburg. They celebrated their 25th Anniversary.

... to be continued...

Part 10 - Country Music Festivals 1976 - 1980

Tex Warner — Thu, 05 Nov 2020 16:12:00 GMT

In 1976, the USA celebrated its 200th birthday and so on this occasion a festival was organized which took place from the 1^st to the 2^nd of May 1976. Together with the musicians of Chuck Herrmann's band I performed there.

At this event an LP was recorded and distributed by Bear Family Records.

Johnny Cash spoke the introdution and each Performer had one song on the LP.

My song was "Cajun Baby"

The sound of this recording is not very good. It was recorded live at the Festival. I didn't know that a record was made and about 30 years later I found the LP on the internet.

On the 1^st of June 1976 we played for the first time in Penzing near Landsberg for the Uffz. Vereinigung Fliegerhorst Penzing, a German Air Force Base.

That was where Johnny Cash was stationed in 1954 when it was still a US Air Force Base.

From 1976 to 1986 we played there every year for their "Western Night".

In 1976, I had to limit my musical activities a bit, because of my daytime job in freight forwarding.

* * *

Chapter 7: Country Music in Germany

Fred Krs - Rainer Effenberger - Andy Van Tienen - Tex Warner - Alfred Ruddigkeit

In 1977 we had to look for a new drummer again. His name was Andy Van Tienen.

The gigs with the US armed forces were declining and so we had to look for new possibilities.

* * *

In the fall of 1977 I flew to the USA to attend the DJ Convention from the 9th to the 14th of October and to see the CMA Awards Show.

As I was accepted as a member of the Country Music Association in Nashville, Tennessee in 1977, I was allowed to attend the shooting of the TV Show in the new Grand Ole Opry House.

It was another week of country music from early in the morning until late evening.

At the end of October 1977 I sold my Opel Admiral and bought a 1973 Opel Diplomat 5,4 Liter V8. Our trailer for our equipment had become old and did not pass the Inspection anymore.

Now we had to use our own personal cars to the gigs and/or rent a minibus.

The annual "Western Night" in Penzing took place on the 23^rd of June 1978.

On 16 July 1978 we played for the Kiwanis Club of Augsburg on the occasion of their annual beer festival at the Ziegelstadl in Stadtbergen.

On 29 June 1978 I had contacted the Agency Lippmann & Rau in Frankfurt to take part in the Marlboro C & W Festival.

Actually we got the answer by September 1st that we would be able to perform at the Circus Krone Bau in Munich on October 30th 1978.

Fred - Rainer - Andy - Tex - Alfred

Joe Götz played his 5-string banjo with the bluegrass band "The Barn Players". Back then we had no personal contact. Years later Joe played his great banjo with me.

In October 1978 I was contacted by CBS Schallplatten GmbH that they were interested in making recordings with me.

They sent me a cassette with a recording of Don Williams, "I Recall A Gypsy Woman", which they wanted to record with German lyrics.

So I went to Frankfurt on the 5^th of January 1979, guitar under my arm. When I arrived at the studio I was told that I should only sing the German lyrics to a playback recording.

As I had never sung with playback before and was not used to singing in German, I had my problems with the arrangement. After several attempts they gave up and sent me back home.

In a letter dated January 11^th , 1979, Mario Aita, the manager of A&R Pop Local, told me that they could not decide to sign me to an artist contract. Since they were only interested in German-speaking country music, it wasn't so disappointing for me.

In March 1979, I was contacted by the music publisher Intersong GmbH and asked for material. This didn't work out either, because they were only interested in interpreters and songwriters who wrote German lyrics.

On the 21^st of April 1979 we played again for the US Armed Forces at the NCO Club Memmingerberg.

On May 15, 1979 we performed at the discotheque Maratonga in the Hanauer Straße in Munich. This kind of clubs was not suitable for our country music. They played disco music and we had to play our country show in between live.

On June 14, 1979 we played for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg-West at the American Officers Club in Leitershofen near Augsburg.

Also for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg we played that year on the 30^th of June for the "Frühschoppen". Like every year a successful gig.

The "Officer's Club" Penzing invited us also this time on the 6^th of July 1979 to play our Country Music Show at their Western Night. As it is always an "Open Air" event, it depends on the weather, whether outside or inside. Sometimes we had to start outside and when it started to rain we had to move inside.

The Stadtsparkasse Augsburg invited us on the occasion of their series "Sparkasse in Concert" to a concert in the auditorium of the Reischleschen Wirtschaftsschule.

The date was the 12^th of October 1979. The Augsburger Allgemeine brought an article about this event.

(Excerpt) "Singin' yeah yeah jippie jippie yeah..." the audience sings and claps along enthusiastically to the well-known melodies presented by Tex Warner & The Westernaires in the auditorium of the Reischleschen Wirtschaftsschule. As part of the "Sparkasse in Concert" event series, the Stadtsparkasse had invited to an evening with country and western music, American folk songs and two square dance groups from Munich.

A real treat was served to the friends of American "folk music". Tex Warner (from Gersthofen and his real name is Werner W. Frick) & "The Westernaires" presented a cross-section of their wide-ranging repertoire. From melancholic songs like "Green, green Grass of Home" and evergreens like "Geisterreiter" to temperamental songs like "Yellow Rose of Texas". Well-known examples of this musical style were presented by Tex Warner and the Westernaires with a lot of momentum and received enthusiastic applause.

The "Music Shop" in downtown Augsburg booked us for 4 x 30 minutes of country music on November 12, 1979. That was the end of 1979 for us.

* * *

1980 began with a performance on January 5^th at the NCO Club of the Flak Kaserne Augsburg. Our gigs in the US clubs became less and less, because now Country Music was not so much in demand anymore.

But for us a new time began for the German audience. Since we became more and more known, we played four times in 1980 in the "Music Shop" Augsburg, on the 17^th of January, 8^th of May, 12^th of June and on the 4^th of September 1980.

We were guests at the "Golden Girl Club" in Augsburg on February 13, 1980. Also for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg we played almost traditionally their Frühschoppen for their beer festival on the 13^th of July 1980.

We played the Western Night in Penzing musically for years, and we were booked again this year for the 11^th of July 1980. Unfortunately this performance was disturbed by the carelessness of a guest.

He had pulled out the jack plug of a loudspeaker during our performance and thrown it onto the damp grass. Immediately there was a short circuit in our amplifier and one channel didn't work anymore. The costs for the repair were taken over however by the organizer.

Further appearances in 1980 were on the 19^th of July in Stuttgart, 30^th of August in the "Country Club Tanz Café" Türkheim and on the 13^th of September on the "Steinwender Ranch" in Stettenhofen.

The highlight in 1980 was of course the second Marlboro Country Music Festival on the 5th of October 1980 in the Augsburg Congress Hall. They were

- Blue Mountain Tune from Gräfelfing

- Tex Warner & The Westernaires

- Caroll Flynn from Munich

- Willy Ray & The Saddle Sores from Munich

- Original Black Bottom Skiffle Group from Munich

- Country Company from Munich and

- Bums Rush

We came in second.

... to be continued ...

Part 9 - The New Line-Up in 1974

Tex Warner — Thu, 15 Oct 2020 15:09:00 GMT

Chapter 6: The new line-up

Now we had to find a new drummer in a hurry, because we had a lot of gigs to play at the time.

Rainer Effenberger - Reinhard Buhl - Tex Warner - Alfred Ruddigkeit - Fred Krs

On March 1st 1974 we found Reinhard Buhl, who had already been involved with Country Music before, namely with Charley Thurman and Ray Tice.

Again I had a new poster printed. As all the musicians had their picture on it, Dolf had to be replaced with Reinhard.

From the 11th to the 17th April of 1974 I went with my guitarist Alfred and his family to London to visit the 6th International Festival of Country Music in Wembley.

Unfortunately my favorite country singer George Jones and his wife Tammy Wynette could not perform because he received a call from his daughter in the USA that his mother had died in Texas. So they flew back to the USA early on Sunday morning.

Alfred and I returned from London on April 17, 1975 to meet Kitty Wells and Johnny Wright at the Sheridan Barracks in Augsburg on April 18, 1975.

NCO Club Herzogenaurach was on April 19 and Memmingen on April 20, 1974.

On 4 May 1974 we were invited by the "Munich Dip and Divers Square Dance Club" to perform.

On May 25, 1974 the VFB Stuttgart booked us for an event at the ADAC racetrack Stuttgart.

On 20 July 1974, we were booked again in Duisburg in the Mercatorhalle. This time we played a show for the "Jugendring der Stadt Duisburg" from 19:30 to 23:00.

In between we played again and again in Fürth, Kornwestheim, Munich Rod & Gun Club or Flint Kaserne in Bad Tölz.

It was a great pleasure for us when we were filmed by a SWR television team on October 26, 1974, during a performance at the NCO Club of the Wilkin Barracks in Kornwestheim.

A story about "Tex Warner & The Westernaires" was filmed and then broadcasted. Here is the soundtrack of the report. Unfortunately in 1974 you could not record video yet. (click to listen)

The American audience was asked what they thought of the German country band. The answer was: This is the best country band we've heard in a long time. They would be the closest to the original American country bands. A great compliment for us.

At the end of 1974 we left our music agency Charly Held and from January 1975 on we booked all US-Shows through the Meindl Agency in Munich.

1975 began with gigs in the NCO Club Sheridan Augsburg, NCO Göppingen and Starlite Club Ulm.

A special experience was that we were booked for a show at the Württembergisches Staatstheater Stuttgart on the occasion of the "opera ball" there on 25 January 1975.

It was really something special.

On Friday, February 14, 1975 we had a gig at the Cooke NCO/EM Club Göppingen.

In the middle of February 1975 I received a call from intermaster Musik-Agentur from Berlin, who was interested in recording a LP with us.

On February 20, 1975 we played with "Little" Jimmy Dickens at the McKee Barracks in Crailsheim. He played a tremendous show. Especially when he performed his tear-jerker "Raggedy Ann", everybody had tears in his eyes. He recorded that song in 1970.

Jimmy Dickens had his first Top Ten Record with "Take An Old Cold Tater And Wait" in 1949. He became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1948. I met him several times at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville when I was invited by my friend Jimmy C. Newman backstage at the Opry. He performed there regular until his death in 2015 at the age of 94. 1983 he was inducted to the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee.

On March 22nd 1975 we went to the studio in Munich and recorded 10 tracks in a 3-hour session. The musicians were:

Fred Krs - fiddle, Rainer Effenberger - bass, Alfred Ruddigkeit - Lead Guitar, Hank West - Pedal Steel Guitar, Laczy Brandtner - drums and myself on Rhythm Guitar and vocal.

On April 1st 1975 I received a letter from Berlin that Mr. Fuchs was going to Mannheim to have our recordings released by BASF Records.

Also the promised contract was announced shortly. Unfortunately neither the contract nor the production of the LP were realized.

BASF Records stopped their record production in the middle of 1975, because they only made losses with their music division. I didn't hear anything from Horst Fuchs anymore, despite repeated inquiries.

My 1967 Opel Admiral caused problems traveling with the trailer, so I bought a used white 1972 Opel Admiral 2.8 litres with trailer a hitch.

Bob Luman was at the NCO club Nellingen in May 1975, where we appeared together.

His first Top Ten Hit was "Let's Think About Living" in 1960. The song also charted in the Pop Top Ten. That started Bob Luman's career. In 1972 he had a #4 Hit with "Lonely Women Make Good Lovers".

He died at 47 in 1978. He was a great entertainer.

On 1^st , 8^th and 15^th August 1975 I played with Chuck Herrmann's Country Band in the "Käuzchen", a music club in Munich.

On Friday, August 22^nd 1975 we played at the Community Club in Neu-Ulm. As we started to go home, our car went on strike after a few kilometres. The fuel pump had given up.

We just came near a repair shop. In the meantime it was about 03:00 o'clock in the morning. So we waited in the car until the workshop opened at 07:00 o'clock. The owner of the workshop could help us at least so far that we could drive back home.

Unfortunately we had to cancel our performance on Saturday, 23 August 1975 at the NCO Club Hohenfels. In all over 50 years of performing this was the only time we had to cancel a gig.

On the 12^th of September 1975 I visited "The Johnny Cash Show 75", which took place in the congress hall of the German museum in Munich.

In 1975 we had several gigs for German audiences, because in the meantime country music was gaining foothold.

We played for the German-American Volksfest on the 8^th of June 1975 in Augsburg and for the Kiwanis-Club Augsburg on the 11^th of July 1975.

The Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper was also interested in us.

Their music is completely geared to the Western and Country sound, and their clothing leaves no doubt: "Tex Warner and the Western Aires" have taken the Wild West into their hearts. It's no wonder that the five-piece band performs mainly in American clubs.

"Although we all come from Augsburg, we are less well known in the Fuggerstadt than in Stuttgart, Nuremberg or Munich, for example. Reinhard Buhl, a business economist by profession and a drummer in the band, can't really explain this trend. "Probably many people don't even know that we exist."

The record industry, however, became aware of the musicians a long time ago. One and a half years ago Tex Warner and his Western Aires recorded their first single "Kiss an angel good morning". Television also showed interest in the group. "Süddeutscher Rundfunk shot a ten-minute show with us", reveals Reinhard Buhl.

However, all five consistently refuse to make music their main occupation, "It should remain our hobby, that's why we also perform on weekends".

Once a week Werner W. Frick (bandleader and singer), Rainer Effenberger (bassist), Fred Ruddigkeit (guitarist), Fred Krs (violinist) and Reinhard Buhl (drummer) meet for rehearsals. "Then we rehearse new songs and play our repertoire again."

On "tour" we always go with our own car. Last year the band had over 4000 kilometres on their back. From Bad Tölz via Stuttgart to Nuremberg - the name "Tex Warner" seems to have become a household name here. msch

Source: AZ

In 1975, Heinz Ulm asked us if he could become our music agent. The business with the US-Army was booked through the Meindl Agency in Munich and for German appearances we had nobody.

Our first performance through our new agency Heinz Ulm was on January 15, 1976 in the Perpendikel in Friedberg.

On the 16th of January 1976 we had the second one in the Kornhaus-Saal in Kempten /Allgäu.

And finally the third performance in the Westfalenhalle in Dortmund on the occasion of the 1st Dortmund International Folk & Blues Night. What we didn't know was that we were announced as a group from the USA. The audience numbered approx.. 5,000 people.

For this performance on 6 March 1976 I didn't take my own musicians with me, I hired Chuck Herrmann from Munich with his band.

Tex - Willi - Martin - Chuck

Chuck on lead guitar, Willi Huhn on bass, Martin Sauer on drums and Hank West on pedal steel guitar. Me on the acoustic guitar and vocals.

I did not want to use my car and trailer, so I rented a minibus. That way we all could go to Dortmund quite comfortable with the instruments in the back of the bus.

... in my next blog I will tell you about another change in my band "The Westernaires" ...

Part 8 - 1973-1974 - Performing with Country Stars

Tex Warner — Thu, 08 Oct 2020 14:51:00 GMT

Some highlights in 1973 were when we were allowed to perform together with country stars from USA. They played a "floor show", mostly 60 minutes and used our PA system.

Jnnie C Riley ha # 1 hit with "Harper Valley P.T.A" in 1968 and was the only one whose first recording immediately rose to # 1 on the Billboard chats. Unfortunaty it was her only #1 hit. The song was written by Tom T. Hall.

In 1968 she received a Grammy Award as "Country Female Vocal" and the Country Music Association (CMA) Award for the "Best Single of the Year 1968".

She charted in Billboard until 1976. With her, we performed on April 25, 1973 in the NCO club in Nellingen.

Hank Thompson was a guest at NCO Airfield Nellingen on 2 May 1973. And we were allowed to be there with him.

Hank Thompson had his first #2 hit in 1948 with "Humpty Dumpty Heart". His "Signature Song" became the song "The Wild Side of Life" in 1952, which rose to #1. Hank Thompson had hits in the country charts until 1983.

In 1989 he was inducted into the "Country Music Hall of Fame" in Nashville, Tennessee. He died November 6, 2007.

Here I am talking with him during a break (I'm the one on the left).

Through a music agent, we were booked for June 2, 1973 in the Hotel Schloss Berg at the Starnberger See. On 23 June 1973, we played for the Yacht Club in Possenhofen.

We still played most gigs for the US Armed Forces all over Southern Germany. We played mostly every Friday and Saturday in the NCO Clubs.

On 16 September 1973, we played at the NCO Club Dolan Kaserne Schwäbisch Hall with the Wilburn Brothers, Teddy and Doyle Wilburn.

The Wilburn Brothers had their first "Top 10" hit together with Webb Pierce "Sparkling Brown Eyes". Other #4 hits were "Trouble's Back In Town" in 1962, and "Roll Muddy River" in 1963. Their last hit was "Arkansas" in April 1972.

The first article about us appeared in the Augsburger Allgemeine Newspaper in summer 1973.

This is what it said

One of the pioneers of German country and western music comes from Augsburg: Tex Warner, with his real name Werner Frick. Since 1967, he has been systematically trying to establish this style of music in Germany with increasing success. Now his efforts have finally been crowned with success: "Tex Warner and the Westernaires", as his group calls itself, have recorded their first single: A-side "Kiss an angel good morning", B-side "Orange blossom special", a reinterpretation of an old Johnny Cash title. It's worth listening to both sides. Country and Western fans will especially enjoy the B-side. The violin solo gives the song the right Country and Western feel.

Until 1967, the "messenger of Western music" had moved alone from cowboy club to cowboy club and from parties to small events, had accompanied himself with the guitar. Tex founded his first group, „Tex Warner and the Country Boys“, in 1967 and their first gigs were in US barracks. In 1969, the members of the band changed, and from now on, it was called "Tex Warner and the Westernaires".

Slowly the successes came also with German listeners. At first country and western music was a bit strange to them. But with time they liked it more and more. In October 1970, Werner Frick flew to the USA for six months and met in Nashville/Tennessee with such important musicians as Jimmy C. Newman, Johnny Cash, Mister Guitar Atkins and Marty Robbins. Frick was roaming through the studios, listening to rehearsals and performances. During this time he also began to write songs himself.

When he returned to Germany in 1971, he founded a totally new group, which has remained the same in the line-up until today: Werner Frick (Tex Warner), vocals and guitar, Dolf Hintermayer, drums, Fred Ruddigkeit, lead guitar, Rainer Effenberger, bass, and Fred Krs, fiddle, all from Augsburg. In 1972, Tex Warner and his band drive over 14,000 kilometers with a caravan through southern Germany. He accompanied such famous people as Jeannie C. Riley ("Harper PTA") and Hank Thompson. In October 1972, "Tex Warner and the Westernaires" played a one-hour radio program in the USA.

On September 25, Tex will fly to Nashville again, just in time to celebrate the 48th birthday of the radio show "Grand Ole Opry". Tex is also a member of the British Country Music Association and has a diploma in square dancing.

The band invests a lot of money in their original clothes. The suits and shirts are bought in America. The members wear Stetson hats, western boots and the "Bandana", as the western scarf is called. At the end of the year Tex wants to make a record with his own songs and then maybe even a LP. He takes his compositions to America to have them reviewed by the greats of country and western music.

On September 25, 1973, I flew to the USA. My stops this time were Munich - New York - Baltimore - Atlanta - Chattanooga - Nashville and back via New York to Munich on October 20, 1973.

The 48th Birthday Celebration of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee took place from October 17 to 21, 1973. The agenda reads like a "Who's Who" of country music.

Of course I took part in all the events because I wanted to see and hear as many performers as possible.

The program:

Wednesday, 17 October 1973

19:30 The Early Bird Bluegrass Concert

22:30 United Talent - Shure Brothers Show

both in the Ryman Auditorium (Opry House)

Thursday, 18 October 1973

11:30 - 14:00 WSM Luncheon & Opry Spectacular

15:30 - 17:30 CMA International Country Music Show

in the Municipal Auditorium

17:30 - 19:30 Sho-Bud/Baldwin/Gretsch Birthday Celebration

at the Ryman Auditorium (Opry House)

19:30 - 22:00 United Artists Party & Show

in the Municipal Auditorium

Friday, 19 October 1973

08:00 - 10:30 Decca Records Breakfast & Show

12:30 - 14:30 Dot Records Luncheon & Show

in the Municipal Auditorium

20:00 - 22:00 Friday Night Opry

at the Ryman Auditorium (Opry House)

Saturday, 20 October 1973

08:00 - 10:30 RCA Record Division Breakfast & Show

12:00 - 15:00 Capitol Records Luncheon & Show

17:00 - 20:00 Columbia Records Show

all in the Municipal Auditorium

from 21:30 Grand Ole Opry 48th Birthday Celebration Show

at the Ryman Auditorium (Opry House)

On Sunday, October 21, 1973, we could spend time in the former Opryland, USA, a country music amusement park.

The park was built outside of Nashville in 1972. (In 1997 the park was closed and a huge shopping center "Opry Mills" was built).

***

On October 22, 1973, I flew via New York back to Munich. Our next gig was on 26 October 1973, we performed again at the NCO Club in Nellingen. October 26 we were at the Sheridan NCO/EM Club in Augsburg and on 27 October 1973 at the NCO Club in Böblingen.

Our trailer had only two small 8-inch wheels with a inner tube, but was relatively heavily loaded with the PA system and drums. So often on the Highway a tire burst.

Perhaps also because we were going sometimes a little too fast.

If the tire blew, there was nothing else left for us, as that one of us hitchhiked to the next rest stop or workshop, got a new tire and came back again by hitchhiking. Finally, we had the idea to always carry a spare wheel and spare tubes with us.

On 3 November 1973 we had a very special appearance. We were invited to play Country Music at the ball of the Press Club in Duisburg's Mercatorhalle.

During the big break of the Bundeswehr Big Band under the direction of Günter Noris we were supposed to play a midnight show from 00:00 to 01:00. We could present our music to a broad German audience. It was great.

After the show we had a little fun in our hotel room until early morning.

On November 9, 1973 we played again in the 49er Club in Fürth, on November 10 in the NCO Club Crailsheim, on November 16 in the NCO Club Sheridan Augsburg, on November 17 in the NCO Club Dolan Kaserne in Schwäbisch Hall, on November 23 in the Starlite Ulm, on November 24 in Memmingerberg, on November 30 in the NCO Club of the Cooke Barracks in Göppingen.

1973 ended with six more gigs in US Army Clubs.

It was difficult to travel in November 1973, when the driving ban was imposed because of the oil crisis. We could only perform with special permissions, because we played on Saturdays until after midnight and so could only drive home in the early Sunday hours. And there was the Sunday driving ban.

November 1973 there we had a new poster.

In 1974 I had a red stage suit made according to an American Western pattern, which attracted a lot of attention.

We had our first gig on January 4, 1974 at the NCO Club Sheridan in Augsburg. On January 5, we drove to Fürth to perform at the NCO Club of the Johnson Barracks. During the night, it snowed so much that we needed 5 hours instead of 2 hours on the way home.

In addition to our regular appearances for the US Armed Forces, we were also booked in the meantime often for German events.

On my 28th birthday, 16 February 1974, we played at the EM/NCO Club in the Wiley Barracks in Um. We had a great audience and had to shake many hands at the end of the event. We drove back around 02:00 o'clock.

The next morning I got a call that our drummer Dolf had died of heart failure at the age of 53.

It was a shock, because only 4 hours before we had said goodbye to each other after the show in Ulm.

... to be continued ...

Part 7 - 1972-1973 - Our first Single

Tex Warner — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 14:49:00 GMT

On February 17, 1972, we played the music ball at the Tarantel Siedlerhof Augsburg, which at the time belonged to Charly Held.

In 1972, we played approx. 100 gigs in Southern Germany for USAREUR Commercial Entertainment, which booked all bands for the US clubs.

On October 7, 1972, I flew back to the USA. This time via Montreal to Nashville, Tennessee, to attend the Disc Jockey Convention and the 47th birthday of the "Grand Ole Opry." My friend Jimmy C. Newman in Nashville had made it happen.

My next stop was my friend Ray in Big Spring, Texas, who allowed me to perform at the Rod & Gun Club in Augsburg in 1968, and so to speak, started my country music career.

Ray's father knew the owner of a radio station and organized an interview with me. I had a cassette of my band's recordings with me and could play them over the radio station.

The Owner of the radio station gave me a whole lot of Country Music Radio Shows on Vinyl records. That was the way they were distributed to the radio stations back then.

Immediately we received many calls from listeners who wanted to invite me to their place. Because they wanted to get to know the country singer from Germany.

I enjoyed horseback riding on "Old Red", one of Ray's horses. This was in Big Springs, Texas.

From Texas, I continued via Denver, Colorado to Iowa. There I visited my old friend Joe Lally, who was also stationed in Augsburg and spent a lot of time with us at the Rod & Gun Club in the Flak barracks.

At the end of the trip, I visited my former lead guitarist Van, who has since moved to Bel Air in the state of Maryland.

On November 9, 1972, I returned via Montreal back to Munich.

* * *

The weekend after that we performed again at the NCO Club Sheridan in Augsburg. On November 18, 1972, we were in Crailsheim in the NCO Club of McKee Barracks and on November 27 in the Starlite Club in Neu-Ulm.

On February 9, 1973, the casino clubs around Augsburg booked us.

On February 15, 1973, we played in the Casino Club Harthausen,

on March 2, 1973 in the Raublinger Alm near Raubling.

After our appearance on February 23, 1973 in the NCO Club Nellingen, we tried on Saturday, February 24, 1973 a "carnival ball" at the premises of our music agent Charly Held. The location was the Siedlerhof in Augsburg-Bärenkeller for German audiences.

Country & Western Music was little in demand at the time. It was a try, but we better stuck to the US Clubs where our music was more appreciated.

We played from 20:00 until 03:00 in the morning. However, we quickly realized that Country Music and Carnival did not match so well. It was just an attempt to gain a foothold on German audiences.

On February 26, 1973, we recorded our first single at the Trixi Studio in Munich. The session lasted from 19:00 h to midnight.

The two titles were "Kiss An Angel Good Morning" and the instrumental "Orange Blossom Special" played by our Fiddler Fred Krs. Alfred Ruddigkeit (Lead Guitar), Fred Krs (Fiddle), Rainer Effenberger (Bass), Dolf Hintermayr (Drums) and myself (Vocal and Rhythm Guitar) were in the studio.

The following day we went with a photographer to Grafrath. There was a Western Town called "Hot Gun Town". We had pictures made for the cover of our record. Unfortunately on July 10, 1973, the western town was completely destroyed by a fire.

The single was played in a number of jukeboxes in the Augsburg area and was very well received by the audience. Even the "Bayerischer Rundfunk" played it. I also got an interview with AFN Munich, the American soldiers' channel. They were located in the historic "Kaulbach Villa", Kaulbachstrasse 15 in Munich. Rick Demarest recorded the interview in Munich and Bill Swisher, a DJ of AFN Frankfurt, then aired it. This it how it sounded back then. (click here to listen)

.... In the next part of my blog you will read about our experience with country stars who toured the American NCO/EM Clubs .....

Part 6 - Back in Germany 1971

Wed, 09 Sep 2020 14:46:00 GMT

Chapter 5: Back in Germany

When I returned to Germany at the end of April 1971, I immediately contacted my musician friend Alfred Ruddigkeit.

While I was still the USA, I asked him to find some musicians who would be interested to play country music with us. Song lyrics and sheet music were already sent to him from the USA.

In fact, Alfred had put together a band:

Alfred Ruddigkeit, vocal and lead guitar -

Fred Krs, fiddle -

Rainer Effenberger (Fred's son-in-law), vocal and electric bass and

Dolf Hintermayr on drums. They all were excellent musicians. So it was time to practice.

Initially, this took place in my room in my parents home.

I still had friends in Cramerton, the American quarters in Augsburg, where the soldiers lived with their families. There we could practice in the attic.

Later we rebuilt a cellar in my parents' house into an exercise room.

I had imported stage costumes for everyone from the USA and soon we were ready to make our first appearance. In order to play the US clubs, we needed an agent who could book acts for USREUR. Alfred knew Charly Held in Augsburg and in fact, he could help us.

Charly had a poster printed and off we went.

On May 21, 1971, barely a month after I was back from the USA, we performed at the NCO Club in the Sheridan Barracks in Augsburg.

They wanted us back, and so we were booked again for June 4, 1971. On June 10, 1971, we had a gig in Schwäbisch Gmünd at the Bismarck barracks.

On June 12, 1971, back in Augsburg at the Reese Rocker Club and the weekend after that on June 18th at the NCO Club Nellingen, on June 19th at the McKee NCO Club Crailsheim. Now we played every weekend, Friday and Saturday.

On July 2, 1971 in NCO Club Sheridan Augsburg.

On July 3, 1971, we played for the first time for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg in the Schimpflewald. I became a member of the Kiwanis Club of Augsburg in 1967 and was proud that my band was invited to perform for the Club.

In addition, we were booked for July 4, 1971 at the Rod & Gun Club Augsburg for Independence Day of the USA.

On July 10, 1971 McGraw Barracks Munich, July 16, 1971 NCO Sheridan, July 17, 1971 Geschefsky NCO Karlsruhe. It was followed by NCO clubs Oberammergau, Flak NCO Augsburg, 21 October 1971 Officers' Club Augsburg.

We had to use several cars to transport instruments, equipment and musicians.

We found an old small trailer that was pretty damaged. Alfred and I set out to make the trailer suitable for our purposes. We worked on it in the garage and in the yard of my parents home every weekend.

On 18 November 1971, it was finished. The trailer could be registered and used to travel.

I had an Opel Admiral, to which I had attached a trailer hitch and now we could accommodate the PA system with drums in the trailer and the instruments in the trunk of my car.

So we traveled comfortably, all the musicians in the car and the rest in the trailer. I was the designated driver. I bought a coffee percolator for the car, which could be connected to the cigarette lighter.

Each trip to the gigs, one of the band members brought five pieces of pie and I prepared the coffee. Our trips usually took two hours or more to the destination and the coffee percolator took about 30 minutes for the coffee to be ready. Now everyone of us had a piece of pie and some coffee while I was driving.

We played the NCO Club of the Flint Barracks in Bad Tölz, Hindenburg NCO Ansbach, NCO Dachau, Johnson Barracks Fürth, and many more.

On January 25, 1972, we were booked for two shows in the former Jet Set at the Schwaben Center Augsburg. We played from 20:45 to 21:00 and from 01:45 to 02:00.

For this, we made about 300 euros; for those times a good fee.

... to be continued...

Part 5 - Traveling within the USA

Tex Warner — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 14:40:00 GMT

November 1970, I continued my trip on the Greyhound Bus via Nebraska - Wyoming - to Salt Lake City, Utah. I visited the world famous organ of the Mormon Tabernacle and the huge Mormon Church. After a short stopover there, I continued with the Greyhound Bus on to Reno, Nevada. There I saw for the first time the many casinos and the neon signs. It was impressive.

The distance from Salt Lake City to Reno is approximately 560 miles or approximately 10 hours by bus. At a rest stop on a lonely track, we took a break. I had to go to the bathroom and when I got back, I saw my bus start up and leave. I had left my suitcase and my movie camera in the bus and now I was in an awkward situation.

Without further ado, I approached a man standing in the parking lot with his car and told him my story. He offered me to follow the bus and get me back on it at the next stop. This was not so easy. After about an hour's drive we had caught up with the bus and I was able to get on it again. That's what you might call "American hospitality".

On the route from Reno, Nevada to San Francisco, California, the Greyhound bus had to cross a border in Stateline, on the Nevada / California border, and all passengers were asked if they had fruit or vegetables on board. It was not allowed to import food from other states to California. One was afraid of pests that would come into the country. That's the only time I experience a border control in the USA.

In San Francisco, I visited my friend and musician Van and his wife Marianne and stayed there for a week. Although it was winter, the average temperature in San Francisco is about 14 degrees Celsius. My friend was a soldier stationed in Presidio, the historic military base.

He played in my country band "Tex Warner & The Country Boys" from 1967 to 1969. He played Lead Guitar and his wife Bass. Because his wife played with us, we changed our name from "Tex Warner & The Country Boys" to "Tex Warner & The Westernaires".

From San Francisco I headed east again across the United States. Again over 4,500 kilometers in Greyhound Bus to Atlanta, GA. Most of the time I went by bus at night to save on accommodation costs.

During the day, I spent the time visiting the cities and especially the record shops. The journey took me through Nevada - Utah - Wyoming - Colorado - Kansas - Missouri - Indiana - Kentucky - Tennessee to Georgia.

It was just before Christmas 1970, so I decided to spend Christmas with my dear friends Freeman & Betty in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. There I was welcome at any time. It had even snowed and we were able to build a snowman.

After New Year's Eve 1970, I took the Greyhound bus to Atlanta. There I was to pick up our truck in a workshop and bring it to our next destination, Tallahassee, Florida.

Unfortunately, I had not paid attention and forgot to refuel enough diesel. Just before Tallahassee, where I was to meet Ivy & Millie again, the tank was empty. I did not have enough cash left, and my travel checks were in my house trailer, which was already in Tallahassee, FL.

I stopped a car who took me to the next city. From there, I called my friends and told my story. They came to my aid and so we were able to safely drive the truck to our trailer park.

After two weeks in Tallahassee, we headed to the next town, Tampa, Florida, about 450 km south. It was in February 1971.

Tampa was the site of the Florida State Fair, a big event packed with rides, entertainment, exhibits, farm equipment and products, and of course, country music.

I had to go there. The presenter of the Country Music Show was Country Star Bobby Lord, who grew up in Tampa.

He was a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1960. A few of his hits were "Without Your Love" (1960) - "Life Can Have Meaning" (1964) and "Rainbow Girl" (1969). He had his own TV Show in 1966.

The attraction was Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton, who were very successful at the time as a duet. Their number 5 hit was at that time "Just Someone I Used To Know". I was lucky to be there and get to know them.

Another very successful country star was Sonny James & The Southern Gentlemen. He delivered a terrific show, especially with his "Trick Fiddle" show. Sonny James became a Grand Ole Opry Member in 1965. He had 16 consecutive #1 hits in a row from 1967 to 1971. His first #1 hit was "Young Love" in 1956. It was also a #1 hit on the Billboard Pop Charts.

What a feast for me, the boy from Germany who loved Country Music so much.

At the Trailer Park in Tampa, I met a German-Canadian family. They had a son who could write lyrics. So I helped him out singing his songs and he even got a chance to get me on the Morning Show on a Tampa TV Station.

The father came as a young man from Germany by ship to Canada. He was a puppeteer and had a puppet theater. There was no such thing in Canada and he became well known there and even appeared on Canadian television. What surprised me was that both parents still had a very strong German accent after so many years in Canada.

In Tampa I went to see the "Bounty", the ship from the movie "Mutiny on the Bounty".

The "Jungle Gardens" in nearby Sarasota were really worth a visit.

After a few weeks in Tampa, FL, we went to Jacksonville, FL. Again, 320 km with both house trailers, pickup truck, truck and car.

In a pawnshop in Jacksonville, I saw a beautiful violin hanging there in the window.

I thought, if that instrument could talk, what could it probably tell. I just could not help myself, went in, and bought it for a few bucks. Later, I wrote a story about it and recorded it on a CD.

It was already March 1971 and I still did not know whether Ivey would help me stay in the USA. That was my intention and he could have helped, since I was ready to do this traveling work.

Unfortunately, he then told me that it was not possible for him to help. This was quite a shock, all my plans and hopes for a life in my beloved USA dissolved.

Then I grabbed my "footlocker", suitcase and guitar and told him "good-bye".

My visa was valid until April 24, 1971 and I had no idea how things should go now. I did not have much money left. I bought a Greyhound ticket and headed towards Nashville, Tennessee.

From there, I called my friends Betty & Freeman, who still lived in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, on the Tennessee border. Immediately they let me know that I was always welcome.

They were currently packing and traveling to Doerun, Georgia. I should just come and go with them to the Deep South, to Georgia.

Since their own family were already eight people, it would not matter to have one more. They had a big station wagon where we all would fit in.

So we drove, Betty, Freeman, the 5 daughters Kaye, Debbie, Jeannie, Penny and Tammy, as well as Randy with his 2 years and me to the south.

I stayed with Freeman's parents. It was not a problem; I got a cot set up in the evening. The hospitality of these families was incredible.

At this time of year, the temperatures are between 25 and 30 degrees Celsius with high humidity. Air conditioners did not exist. Wet towels were placed around the fan for the night, so the warm nights could be cooled down.

I was passed around to all relatives and we played and sang quite often country songs.

I was able to really put myself into the world of the southern states and understood more and more, how much country music moves people there. I drove back to Fort Campbell with Betty & Freeman and spent a few more days there.

Then I booked a Greyhound ticket from Nashville, Tennessee to New York City for the last time .

I just had a few bucks left over, for coffee and burgers and still 2 days left to fly out of JFK New York. I arrived on the Greyhound bus in Downtown New York, I visited an all-night movie theater and spent the night there.

The movie "Patton" with George C. Scott and Karl Malden was just popular, so I saw the movie through the whole night repeatedly.

I was not allowed to fall asleep in the cinema; there were guards who were looking that there were no bums there. I had stored my guitar, fiddle and luggage at the Greyhound Station.

The next day I went to the airport and waited 24 hours for my departure. There I wrote the song "Alone in a Crowd". I was alone in a city of millions.

In September 1984, we recorded this song in the studio and it was released as a single. My former bassist Rainer Effenberger arranged the song for me. You may watch it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-wnnU2DWXk

Alone In A Crowd

Some People Say You Must Be Happy

If You've Got Money To Burn

But They Really Don't Understand

Some People Never Learn

I'm Alone In A Crowd Got No One That Cares

It Seems Like A Bad Dream To Me

I'm Alone In A Crowd Got No One That Cares

I'm All Alone In A Crowd

There Are Some Things That Money Can't Buy

Like True Love And Happiness

But Where Most People Waste Their Time

They're Stuck In Loneliness

spoken:

While I’m Walking The Streets of This Big City

I Can Really Feel The Words Of This Song Coming To Me

Seeing The Bright Lights And People Passing

Thinking Only Of Themselves

On April 24, 1971, I flew with my guitar and my Florida Fiddle in the luggage, with Loftleidir Airline via Reykjavik back to Luxembourg. There, I was picked up by my parents and driven home.

... to be continued...

in my next blog I started my new country band in Germany

"Tex Warner & The Westernaires"

Part 4 - In the USA 1970 - 1971

Wed, 22 Jul 2020 14:36:00 GMT

Chapter 4: 1970 - 1971 in the USA

After all my American musicians had to return to the United States in 1970, I was searching for musicians again. After meeting guitarist Alfred Ruddigkeit in Grafrath, I was able to sing one set of country music with the band in which he played. They usually played contemporary pop music.

I always wanted to immigrate to the USA and now this wish might come true. An American colonel who took guitar lessons from me had a brother in the USA who might be able to help me. He was a photographer and had great difficulty finding a helper who was willing to travel with him.

At that time, you could only get a work visa if the employer gets confirmation from the State Employment Office that the candidate does not take the job away from any US citizen. That was our big hope. The friendly colonel had all my documents (certificates etc.) officially translated and authenticated. I applied for a B2 visa, which allowed me to enter the country indefinitely for multiple entries as a visitor for 6 months each.

For September 25, 1970, I booked a flight from Luxembourg via Reykjavik to JFK New York / USA. Flying with the Icelandic airline was the cheapest option at the time.

My parents and my brother and his wife took me to the airport. My most important luggage was my guitar (my brother's wife carried it for me).

A last look from the airplane's door and off it went.

I arrived at the JFK airport in New York in the evening. My flight to Atlanta, Georgia was from New York's La Guardia Airport. To reach my plane, they put me in a large helicopter and flew me to La Guardia.

As this was my first trip to the USA, I had not worried about where I would be taken. At least I arrived at my destination, the United States of America.

I reached the last plane to Atlanta and arrived there around midnight. The flight took about 3 hours.

My expected future employers were already waiting for me at the airport and invited me to dinner at the Black Angus Steakhouse in Atlanta.

That was another surprise. You could eat in the USA almost around the clock. We are in a different time zone than New York, in Georgia it is an hour earlier. I still own this small pipe of the steakhouse.

Following the late dinner, we drove to my new home in a Chrysler Imperial Convertible. My new home was a trailer park in Norcross, Georgia, about an hour's drive from downtown Atlanta.

Ivey and Millie, the photographer and his wife, lived in an 18-meter long and three meter wide House Trailer, which was very comfortably furnished.

My "Mobil Home" was a little smaller, in the front area was the photo lab and behind it my room.

The big trailer was pulled by a truck and mine with a GMC pick-up truck, with which I was allowed to drive privately.

My task was to help develop the negatives in the laboratory and to finish the photos. In addition, I was allowed to take part in the preparation tasks, such as setting up benches. Ivey's business idea was to take pictures of groups of people in companies and then sell them to the persons who were in the pictures. As I was not yet allowed to work for money I just helped them for bed and board.

At that time, however, we were only able to take and develop black and white photos, which did not matter. We stayed mostly 14 days in one place and then moved on to the next town.

In the Atlanta area, however, we stayed almost 4 weeks, as there were of course many companies and Ivey was a great seller. He was able to sell snow to an Eskimo.

As I was able to develop my own photos and in my trailer was the lab, I took pictures of myself with a remote device and developed my first "press photos".

I had bought an original handmade leather jacket with fringes on an Indian market, which I was very proud of.

In November 1970, Ivey told me that he and his wife would fly to British Honduras until the beginning of January 1971. Both were deep-sea divers. That meant for me, I had to see how I could spend the time until they were back.

I booked a greyhound ticket with which I could travel all over the USA and could stop whenever I wanted to.

My first stopover was Fort Campbell, Kentucky at the Tennessee / Kentucky state border. There my friends Freeman & Betty were stationed. They already had five daughters and a baby son, but it did not matter if there was one person more, they said.

From there, it was only about 60 miles to Nashville, Tennessee.

Therefore, I made my way to Nashville. I wanted to visit my country music friend Jimmy C. Newman. His address at that time was 380 Indian Lake Road at Hendersonville, TN, 20 miles from Nashville.

It is a small town where many country stars lived. Since I did not have a credit card at the time, it was not possible to rent a car. Therefore, I took the bus to Hendersonville and took a taxi to Jimmy Newman's house.

Blue-eyed as I was, I let the taxi drive away, without knowing if Jimmy was even there, because I had not called them before. I rang the doorbell and Jimmy's wife Miss Mae opened.

I told her that I came from Germany and had met Jimmy in Augsburg. And that he said if I came to Nashville, I should visit him. Jimmy had told his wife about me and so at least she knew who I was.

Unfortunately, Jimmy was not at home, he was just at a friend's home to buy a horse. Jimmy bred Appaloosa horses. Miss Mae asked if I could not come back another time.

I asked her to call me a taxi because I did not have a car. Then she said: I should wait in the house for Jimmy to come home.

It was the weekend and Jimmy had a gig that evening at the Grand Ole Opry, which was still held in the old downtown Ryman Auditorium.

When Jimmy C. Newman came home, he immediately asked me if I would like to go to the Grand Ole Opry with him.

You bet, how I would like to go. I knew how the Grand Ole Opry Show was presented because I used to listen to it on my radio back home for many years on AFN Munich.

To actually be there where all my heroes in country music performed was a once in a lifetime experience at that time.

With Jimmy as my "door opener" I could meet many country stars backstage. It was like walking on clouds, I would get to know the stars personally and talk to them.

The members of the Grand Ole Opry were allowed to bring guests to the backstage area of the Ryman Auditorium.

I got to know a lot of country singers that I only knew from AFN Munich in Germany.

I met:

Hank Locklin, his greatest hits were "Send Me the Pillow You Dream On" in 1958 and "Please Help Me I'm Fallin '" in 1960. What impressed me immensely was when I met Hank Locklin at the Grand Ole Opry a year later , he greeted me with "Hi Tex, How's it going '". I never thought he would recognize me, even though he kept seeing new faces all the time.

Lester Flatt, he had just recently separated from his longtime partner on the 5-string banjo, Earl Scruggs. With him, he had great successes from 1952 to 1968 together. In 1962 Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs had their only #1 hit on the charts with "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" (the theme song of the TV series "The Beverly Hillbillies"). Another big one was "The Foggy Mountain Breakdown", which became the title song of the movie "Bonnie & Clyde" in 1968.

Roy Acuff, the first country singer on the Grand Ole Opry, who had sung songs in 1937. Previously, it was almost exclusively instrumental performances. He later received the title: "The King of Country Music". Roy Acuff appeared at the Grand Ole Opry almost every weekend until his death on November 23, 1992 at the age of 89. My first impression of Roy Acuff was not the best, I found him very reserved and not so friendly, at least that's how it appeared to me.

Hank Snow, who was called "The Singing Ranger" and who had many hits since 1949. He had 41 Top10 hits, including six songs as # 1. His greatest success was "I'm Moving On". He was a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1950.

Through Jimmy C. Newman, I was able to speak a few words backstage with many Grand Ole Opry members. It was the "who's who" of country music.

Everyone was very nice to me and they were interested to meet a country singer from Germany.

I especially remember my meeting with Tex Ritter. He was one of my very special heroes.

I loved his deep voice, and especially his stories, like "The Deck of Cards" from 1948 or "I Dreamed of a Hillbilly Heaven" from 1961.

I kept playing his patriotic album "Sweet Land of Liberty" often, as well as that Album "Songs from the Western Screen".

At that time it was not easy to get these albums in Germany, they had to be imported especially from the USA.

Bud Wendell was the Opry Manager at the time and Grant Turner and Hal Durham spoke the announcements of each show.

I also got to know the legendary Opry Stage Manager Vito Pelletieri, who held this position from 1934 to 1977.

During break, Jimmy took me to "Tootsie's Orchid Lounge," a small pub on Broadway. From the exit door for the artist at the back of the Grand Ole Opry you could reach the back entrance of "Tootsie's" through the car park.

In the upper part of the pub, the musicians and singers of the Grand Ole Opry sat and drank beer etc. On the wall were many autographs from musicians who had tried to gain a foothold in Nashville, as well as autographs from the famous Country Stars.

At Jimmy Newman's request, I immortalized myself on the wall. Is it still there today?

After the show, Jimmy took me back home. I then stayed a week and Jimmy showed me Nashville and the place where in 1972 the new Grand Ole Opry would be built with the Opryland Park.

One afternoon, Jimmy invited me to a barbecue at the ranch of Bud Logan, the singer and bassist of the Blue Boys - the band of country star Jim Reeves, who died in 1964. After not having cowboy boots, Bud drove me to the nearest Acme Boot Outlet and bought me some black cowboy boots. I still have them.

Jimmy took me for a horseback ride with Don Pierce, then owner of Starday Records.

Afterwards we ate at Tex Ritter's restaurant "Tex Ritter's Chuck Wagon".

Jimmy Newman had just bought a 670 acres ranch near Christiana, TN in Rutherford County and showed it to me. He wanted to call it "Singing Hills Ranch" and breed horses and cattle.

* * *

From Nashville, I took the Greyhound bus across the USA.

In Denison, Iowa, I visited my friend Joe, who was stationed in Augsburg in 1968 as a soldier in the Flak barracks Augsburg. As no alcohol was sold in Iowa at the weekend, we had to go to Omaha, approximately 70 miles away, in the state of Nebraska.

... to be continued...

Part 3 - Tex Warner & The Westernaires in 1969

Tex Warner — Wed, 01 Jul 2020 14:32:00 GMT

Chapter 3: Tex Warner & The Westernaires

However, things turned out differently. One couple who sat in the audience were Van and his wife Marianne.

He was a gifted guitarist and his wife could play electric bass.

In addition, he knew a drummer named Ken Hughes.

In June 1969, the new formation of the band was created. It was Frank (rhythm guitar and vocals) - Van (lead guitar and vocal) - his wife Marianne (bass) - Don (drums) - and myself (front man and rhythm guitar).

Our next gig was on Saturday, October 18, 1969 at the Flak Taro Club in Augsburg.

I hired another American soldier. Wayne Glover played the guitar and supported me vocally.

Our fee was $ 12 US. The exchange rate was 1 US $ = DM 4.00 (today about 2 Euro). For 5 musicians it came to each about 5 € (10 DM).

Tex Warner & Van

On October 31, 1969, we played for the Halloween party at the Rod & Gun Club with our new drummer Ken, who was a friend of my lead guitarist Van.

Beginning November 1, 1969, we had a new agreement with the manager of the Rod & Gun Club. We received a check for US $ 30 for the first two hours, and for the rest until midnight, the hat went around.

At the beginning of the month, our earnings were always better than at the end of the month. On this first of November 1969 our total income (hat and check) was about 100, 00 Euro.

We played there every Friday and Saturday. On November 22, 1969, Bill Winsett became one of the Country Boys as a singer and guitarist.

On November 28, 1969, we played for the first time for a German Club, the Rock & Pop Club Augsburg.

In an issue of the Augsburger Allgemeine, this article appeared about our appearances at the Rock & Pop Club "

Texas sounds with Tex Warner

When listeners of a concert try yodeling, the performances need not necessarily be Bavarian folk music. This can be seen in the performances of "Tex Warner and His Country Boys", a German-American amateur group that has dedicated itself to hillbilly music and performs every second Friday night in the "Pop Club" on Bismarckstraße. Hillbilly, also called Western or Country Music, was originally down-to-earth folklore in the American West and developed into a special genre, which became known in Germany by the relevant broadcasts of the American Station AFN. If you want to take a break from the beat, you'll love Tex Warner's western music and songs like "Deep in the heart of Texas". By the way, the band name "Country Boys" is incomplete insofar as a young lady in the group plays along and sings along. -Ski (source AZ Augsburg)

And now that a girl was playing in the band, my new band got a new name:

"Tex Warner & The Westernaires".

This was our first business card

In addition to our regular appearances at the Rod & Gun Club, we played on December 6, 1969 in the Reese Rocker Club and on December 12, 1969 in the American Officers' Club. Our total income per performance was about 150.00 US $.

In the fall of 1969 Jimmy C. Newman, a successful Grand Ole Opry star came to Augsburg to the NCO Club at the Flak Barracks. I went there with an American friend to enjoy the concert.

My friend talked to Jimmy about my band during the break. Jimmy let me sing a few songs in his next set. As I was well known to the soldiers in the meantime, I was received with a lot of applause. I started talking to Jimmy after the show and took him back to his downtown hotel.

He had another show the next evening, a Sunday. I showed him Augsburg and surroundings during the day. When we said goodbye, he gave me his home address and unlisted phone number and invited me to his home whenever I should come to Nashville.

This resulted in a long friendship until his death on June 21, 2014.

At the same time, I got to know an American couple that came to the Rod & Gun Club frequently, Betty & Freeman Thomason. Betty was a great singer and came every weekend to sing with us.

On December 19, 1969, she performed with us at the Reese Rocker Club in Augsburg.

Our cast was Van (lead guitar and vocal) - his wife Marianne (bass) - Ken (drums) - Bill (2nd lead guitar and vocal) - Betty (vocals and guitar) - Frank (rhythm guitar and vocals) and me (Front Man and Rhythm Guitar).

We continued to play regularly at weekends at the Rod & Gun Club Augsburg.

I remember an incident when Van wanted to build a new amp for his guitar. He bought a kit and told his wife Marianne that it was mine. She should not know that he had spent money on it.

On January 24, 1970, Frank performed with us for the last time. He owned the PA system and as I could not afford to buy one originally, Frank was part of the band. However, he allowed us to continue using his PA system and we paid him 5.00 Euro per rental. Later, I bought it from him.

On February 7, 1970, we were hired to perform at the Nelson EM Club in Ulm.

Our performance on February 14, 1970 at Memmingen Consolidated Open Mess Club in Memmingerberg was unfortunately the last with Betty as a singer, because she got pregnant with another child.

Finally, I became a member of the American square dance group "Cloaks & Daggers" and graduated with a diploma as "Bachelor of Square Dancing" on June 9, 1970

With Betty & Freeman I developed a close friendship, which continued even after they received orders to return to the States in the summer of 1970.

Together with Betty, we painted with glitter colors on a big fleece sheet our first band banner "Tex Warner & The Westernaires". Out of sheer enthusiasm, we did not notice until it was finished, that we painted the "N" in "Westernaires" upside down.

In the meantime, I met Carl & Pearl Butler in Augsburg. They were known for their hit "Don’t Let Me Cross Over" (# 1 of the Country Charts 1962).

They performed in the "Transient Billets", the American Hotel in Augsburg.

Carl Robert Butler was born on June 2, 1927 in Knoxville, Tennessee, his wife Pearl Dee Jones on September 20, 1927 in Nashville, Tennessee.

They married in 1952. Between 1962 and 1969, they had great success as a duo. In the 1970s, they settled down at their ranch "Crossover Acres", near Franklin, Tennessee.

For us followed more regular appearances in the Rod & Gun Club, our "home base". On April 11, 1970, we performed at the "American Hotel" on the Reinölstraße in Augsburg.

Through the Kiwanis Club Augsburg I met Tony Lötschert, and so it happened that we played on May 30, 1970 in "Hot Gun Town" Grafrath. Our fee was Euro 350,00. There I met Alfred Ruddigkeit for the first time, who later played an important role in "Tex Warner & The Westernaires". On July 10, 1973, the western town was destroyed by an arson attack.

I have nice memories of the evenings after the performances at the Rod & Gun Club. Usually there was an invitation to come with my guitar to the apartment of individual fans and to play country songs there until late in the morning. Once we were apparently too loud that the neighbor below knocked on the ceiling with the broom stick .

Later, it should become a longer-lasting friendship. Johnny and his wife Lucille with their nine children became very good friends, whom I later visited several times in Chattanooga, Georgia and in San Antonio, Texas.

On 3 July 1970, we had our last show at the Rod & Gun Club Augsburg. In addition, on July 4, 1970, we played a charity show for the Kiwanis Club Augsburg.

The most important musicians of Tex Warner & The Westernaires were Van & Marianne. Unfortunately their time in Augsburg was ended. They were transfered back to the USA and I had to fear again:

How should I continue with my beloved country music?

to be continued...

Part 2 - Tex Warner & The Country Boys

Tex Warner — Wed, 17 Jun 2020 09:15:00 GMT

Chapter 2: Tex Warner & The Country Boys

In 1967, I founded my first Country & Western band: "Tex Warner & The Country Boys".

We were five young musicians (keyboard - lead guitar - electric rhythm guitar - drums and me as front man with acoustic guitar).

It was hard to find musicians who wanted to play country music. I knew a drummer who said: "You can’t make any money with Country music".

12 years later, he played drums with Nashville Train, a country band founded in 1979 by Siegfried Liepert.

We practiced a lot, but did not have the chance to perform because Country Music was not in on the German market.

Our first big German gig took place in Meitingen. Klaus, my lead guitarist, was a member of the tennis club there and was able to convince the board that we were the right band for a show performance at a club event.

We could not convince the audience with the six songs we practiced - Germany was not yet ready for Country Music.

I had a lot of friends among the US Soldiers who were stationed in Augsburg at that time. I was lucky to own an old car, a 1957 Opel Rekord and every time my American friends were able to get a weekend pass we took off.

My American friend Ray was very skilled in leatherwork and showed me how to make a leather strap for my guitar. The necessary tools were available at the US Service Club in Augsburg (today's abraxas Club).

I was proud of my ability. I still use this guitar strap today after more than 50 years.

In 1967, my friend Ray from Big Springs in Texas finished his military service in Augsburg. He asked us to play our Country Music at his Farewell Party at the Rod & Gun Club. The club was inside the Flak Kaserne Augsburg.

That was a chance we wanted to take. The club boss Andy Anderson liked us and he said we could play at the Rod & Gun club every weekend. (The Rod & Gun Club did not have to book with Special Services and could decide for itself)

He did not have any money, but we could play for an hour and he would let his hat go round.

Since we really wanted to play, we accepted.

After a month, the audience wanted to hear more music and the club boss was able to get some money for an hour and the rest with the hat going around.

At the beginning of the month there was always more in the hat than at the end of the month, sometimes $ 5 for each of us, sometimes only $ 2. However, it was fun.

Unfortunately, my friend Klaus, the lead guitarist and most important of my musicians, went to England professionally in early 1969 and so I thought that's it, my career as a country singer is already coming to an end.

to be continued...

Part 1 - The Beginnings

Tex Warner — Wed, 03 Jun 2020 08:37:00 GMT

Chapter 1: The Beginnings

It was in 1958 when I first heard of the music called "Country Music". I grew up in a small town near Augsburg/Germany. I was just 12 years old and my brother was two years older. He was a fan of the emerging Rock 'n' Roll. He always listened to the American Forces Network station "AFN Munich" on our family radio. It was the radio station for the American soldiers who were stationed in Bavaria. The station could be received on our FM radio.

I, on the other hand, was a diehard Freddy Quinn fan. Freddy Quinn sang melancholic songs that I liked very much. I was not interested in Rock'n'Roll at all. I bought every new record from my parents's allowance and listened to the radio show hosted by Fred Rauch on the "Bayerischer Rundfunk" radio station.

One day after school, I turned on our radio and listened to American music. The first song I heard was "I'm Sorry for You My Friend," sung by Hank Williams.

It was the last song of the radio show "Hillbilly Guesthouse" on AFN Munich and the DJ said, you should tune in again the next day at the same time to hear the Country & Western Music Show. I was touched by the last title and so of course, I tuned in again the next day at 16:05.

I had already learned some English at school, so I was able to follow the words of the disc jockey quite reasonably.

From then on, I was fascinated by American Country Music and listened to this program every afternoon. I had a little book, in which I entered every day, which titles were played and how I liked them.

At that time, many American soldiers were stationed with their families nearby. My parents just had built our family home in 1950. Soldiers with families could live outside the barracks. My parents rented the rooms on the first floor to an American family.

That was especially interesting for me. I had Basic English language skills, but now I have been able to improve my vocabulary significantly.

In addition, the American family, who came from Texas, were also Country & Western fans. Ray Price had just released his new LP in 1960 and our tenant had bought it.

They gave it to me to listen to. I remember as if it had been yesterday that I kept playing the record over and over on the portable turntable they gave me.

In 1958, I had bought a cheap guitar from the money I earned delivering newspapers. Soon I dreamed of starting my own hillbilly band. It should take a while.

In 1963, I started my apprenticeship as a forwarding agent with Schenker & Co. in Augsburg. I bought a transistor radio and often snuck into the bathroom in the afternoon and listened to the AFN Country Music show.

Every Saturday night the Grand Ole Opry from Nashville, Tennessee could be heard on AFN. That was more important to me than doing something with friends. I became addicted to country music.

In 1963, I bought my first "Western" shirt to look a bit "professional".

Unfortunately, you could hardly buy any sheet music for Country Music in German music stores. By chance, I found a songbook by Hank Williams.

On the back of the book, I could see that there were two more Hank Williams songbooks available.

The Hank Williams Songbooks were available through the Acuff-Rose publishing house, so I decided to write to their address in England and asked if I could buy them there.

The answer was that they cannot sell me the songbooks, but they would send me both free of charge.

In 1963, Don Pierce, the head of Starday Records, founded a record club dedicated to country music. You had to order two LPs each year to keep his membership. In addition, you received free LPs. When I read that in the Country Song Round-up magazine, I immediately joined the club.

The Country Song Round-up Magazine was available quarterly at the American Bookstore on post.

Germans usually were not allowed to shop there, but somehow I managed it.

Later, I subscribed to the magazine in the USA, and until the year 2000, I have been collecting almost every issue since 1958.

In 1965, I was drafted into the German military. I spent the first three months of basic training in the Pinder barracks in Landshut as a Private. These barracks were used partly by a German unit as well as by an American unit. Therefore, I could always go to the American movie theater and improve my English.

After a month, I was asked if I could play an instrument and so I mentioned that I have a guitar with me.

We formed a 5-piece band and practiced for the upcoming maneuver party where we should perform. Here I could sing a song for the first time for a bigger audience.

It was the current Bobby Bare hit "Detroit City". Unfortunately, I was transferred to the Edelweiss barracks in Mittenwald, Germany after basic training. There I worked in the office and spent my remaining 15 months of military service.

My Army buddy Franz, whom I met while stationed in Mittenwald, introduced me to the Texas Club in Munich. The "Texas Club" was a cowboy club.

The club's president, called Don Nino Ramirez, also played guitar, so I had a chance to sing and play my songs. In 1967, I became a member and got the name "Tex Warner".

"Tex" for Texas Club and "Warner" because of my first name "Werner".

After my military service, I met some American soldiers who were stationed in Augsburg. As a result, I had the opportunity to see the country stars that came to the Augsburg NCO and EM clubs live. Without an American sponsor, you were not allowed to get into the barracks and clubs.

One of the first stars was Bill Anderson, one of the most successful songwriters and singers whom I got to know in Augsburg in 1966.

Bill Anderson's real name was James Williams Anderson III who was born November 1, 1937 in Columbia, South Carolina. He worked as a DJ in Georgia. He had his own TV Show in 1966 and was a member of the famous Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee since 1961. He wrote most of the songs he sang and wrote hits for other country acts. The story says, according to Bill Anderson, that he wrote his first songs while living in Commerce, Georgia at the Andrew Jackson Hotel. On a summer's night in 1957 he wrote "City Lights" atop the roof of that hotel. The rest is history, the song was recorded by Ray Price in 1958 and became a #1 hit. It stayed 13 weeks at #1 and altogether 34 weeks on the Billboard charts.

Bill started his own career as country singer in 1958 with his first hit "That's What It's Like To Be Lonesome", a #12 Billboard hit. Funny, Ray Price recorded this song in 1959 and brought it to #7.

When Bill Anderson appeared on stage at the Reese NCO Club the evening I met with him, he was already a star with more than 20 hit singles.

I always carried a little book with me in which I collected autgraphs of the country stars I had met. That's where Bill Anderson signed his name. Later in an interview with the magazine "Country Song Roundup" he remembered that situation and wrote about me and my little scrapbook. I was very proud of that. (CSR Vol. 20, No. 104 February 1968)

Another Grand Ole Opry Star Don Gibson came to that Military Club to perform. Don Gibson wrote 2 monster hits in only 20 minutes, the story goes. He sang those two songs among many others he had written: "Oh Lonesome Me" and "I Can't Stop Loving You".

Both songs were back to back on one and the same single in 1958 (RCA 7133) and become huge hits on both country and pop charts.

A few other country stars followed, like Leroy Van Dyke (The Auctioneer), Charlie Walker (Pick Me up on Your Way Down), Faron Young (Hello Walls) and many more.

When Faron Young appeared at the NCO Club at the Sheridan Kaserne in Augsburg, I had the opportunity to talk with him during the breaks.

He was a very open-minded person without star allure. When a fan burst in and held a Faron Young long-playing record to get an autograph, Faron gave me the record cover and told me to write my autograph on it as well. I did that with pride. It would be interesting who owns this record today with my signature in the USA.

Faron Young and Charlie Walker signed my little book also.

to be continued...