Hank Garland
Encyclopedia
Walter Louis Garland better known as Hank Garland, was a Nashville
studio musician who performed with Elvis Presley
, Patsy Cline
, Roy Orbison
and many others.
, Garland began playing the guitar
at the age of 6. He appeared on local radio shows at 12 and was discovered at 14 at a South Carolina record store. He moved to Nashville at age 16, staying in Ma Upchurch's boarding house, where he roomed with upright bassist Bob Moore
and fiddler Dale Potter.
At age 19, Garland recorded his million-selling hit "Sugarfoot Rag", although some attribute the song to Bernie B. Smith, Jr., published two years earlier by M.M. Cole/BMI as "Bernie's Reel". An instrumental version was the opening theme for ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee
from 1955–1960. Garland appeared on the Jubilee with Grady Martin
's band, and on Eddy Arnold
's network
and syndicated
television shows.
He is best known for his work on Elvis Presley's recordings from 1957 to 1961 which produced such rock
hits as "Little Sister", "I Need Your Love Tonight" and "A Big Hunk O' Love". However, Garland also worked with many country music
as well as rock 'n roll stars of the late 1950s and early 1960s including Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee
, Mel Tillis
, Marty Robbins
, the Everly Brothers
, Boots Randolph
, Roy Orbison and Conway Twitty
. He also played with jazz artists such as George Shearing
and Charlie Parker
in New York and went on to record Jazz Winds From a New Direction, showcasing his evolving talent.It is also believed that he is the first to explore the use of the Power chord in popular music.
At the request of Gibson Guitar
company president, Ted McCarty
, Garland and fellow guitarist Billy Byrd strongly influenced the design of the Byrdland
guitar (seen in the photograph).
In September 1961, he was playing for the soundtrack of Presley's movie, Follow That Dream when a car accident left Garland in a coma
that lasted for a week. With the help of his wife, he re-learned how to walk, talk, and play the guitar though he never recovered sufficiently to return to the studios. It was believed electroconvulsive therapy
, prescribed by his doctors, may have caused more damage to his brain, but little evidence exists to support this theory. Garland's brother, Billy, claimed the crash was actually an attempted murder by someone in the Nashville music scene, but there is no evidence of that. Garland was widely respected by his peers and Nashville producers such as Chet Atkins
, Don Law and Owen Bradley
.
Garland died on December 27, 2004 of a staph infection in Orange Park, Florida
. He is survived by two daughters, Cheryl and Debra.
His life and times was the subject of the partially fictional independent film Crazy.
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
studio musician who performed with Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
and many others.
Biography
Born in Cowpens, South CarolinaCowpens, South Carolina
Cowpens is a town in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,162 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cowpens is located at ....
, Garland began playing the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
at the age of 6. He appeared on local radio shows at 12 and was discovered at 14 at a South Carolina record store. He moved to Nashville at age 16, staying in Ma Upchurch's boarding house, where he roomed with upright bassist Bob Moore
Bob Moore
Bob Loyce Moore is an American session musician, orchestra leader, and bassist who was a member of the legendary Nashville A-Team during the 1950s and 60s.-Biography:...
and fiddler Dale Potter.
At age 19, Garland recorded his million-selling hit "Sugarfoot Rag", although some attribute the song to Bernie B. Smith, Jr., published two years earlier by M.M. Cole/BMI as "Bernie's Reel". An instrumental version was the opening theme for ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee is the first U.S. network television program to feature country music's top stars, and was the centerpiece of a strategy for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as America's country music capital...
from 1955–1960. Garland appeared on the Jubilee with Grady Martin
Grady Martin
Thomas Grady Martin was one of the most renowned, inventive and historically significant American session musicians in country music and rockabilly....
's band, and on Eddy Arnold
Eddy Arnold
Richard Edward Arnold , known professionally as Eddy Arnold, was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
's network
The Eddy Arnold Show
The Eddy Arnold Show is the name of three similar American network television summer variety programs during the 1950s hosted by Eddy Arnold and featuring popular music stars of the day...
and syndicated
Eddy Arnold Time
Eddy Arnold Time is an American musical television series syndicated to local stations from 1955 through 1957. The show consisted of 26 half-hour filmed episodes starring Eddy Arnold in different roles within a musical narrative...
television shows.
He is best known for his work on Elvis Presley's recordings from 1957 to 1961 which produced such rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
hits as "Little Sister", "I Need Your Love Tonight" and "A Big Hunk O' Love". However, Garland also worked with many country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
as well as rock 'n roll stars of the late 1950s and early 1960s including Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee
Brenda Lee
Brenda Mae Tarpley , known as Brenda Lee, is an American performer who sang rockabilly, pop and country music, and had 37 US chart hits during the 1960s, a number surpassed only by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ray Charles and Connie Francis...
, Mel Tillis
Mel Tillis
Lonnie Melvin Tillis , known professionally as Mel Tillis, is an American country music singer. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s, with a long list of Top 10 hits....
, Marty Robbins
Marty Robbins
Martin David Robinson , known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist...
, the Everly Brothers
The Everly Brothers
The Everly Brothers are country-influenced rock and roll performers, known for steel-string guitar playing and close harmony singing...
, Boots Randolph
Boots Randolph
Homer Louis "Boots" Randolph III was an American musician best known for his 1963 saxophone hit, "Yakety Sax"...
, Roy Orbison and Conway Twitty
Conway Twitty
Conway Twitty , born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was an American country music artist. He also had success in early rock and roll, R&B, and pop music. He held the record for the most number one singles of any act with 55 No. 1 Billboard country hits until George Strait broke the record in 2006...
. He also played with jazz artists such as George Shearing
George Shearing
Sir George Shearing, OBE was an Anglo-American jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for MGM Records and Capitol Records. The composer of over 300 titles, he had multiple albums on the Billboard charts during the 1950s, 1960s, 1980s and 1990s...
and Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
in New York and went on to record Jazz Winds From a New Direction, showcasing his evolving talent.It is also believed that he is the first to explore the use of the Power chord in popular music.
At the request of Gibson Guitar
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
company president, Ted McCarty
Ted McCarty
Ted McCarty was a pioneer of electric guitar design and production. This began when he was chosen as vice president of the of Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1949, then later as president in 1950. He remained president until 1966. This period became known as Gibson's golden age of electric guitars...
, Garland and fellow guitarist Billy Byrd strongly influenced the design of the Byrdland
Gibson Byrdland
The Byrdland is an electric guitar, made by Gibson. Its name derives from the names of guitarists Billy Byrd and Hank Garland for whom the guitar was originally custom built by Gibson.-Thinline series:...
guitar (seen in the photograph).
In September 1961, he was playing for the soundtrack of Presley's movie, Follow That Dream when a car accident left Garland in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
that lasted for a week. With the help of his wife, he re-learned how to walk, talk, and play the guitar though he never recovered sufficiently to return to the studios. It was believed electroconvulsive therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy , formerly known as electroshock, is a psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Its mode of action is unknown...
, prescribed by his doctors, may have caused more damage to his brain, but little evidence exists to support this theory. Garland's brother, Billy, claimed the crash was actually an attempted murder by someone in the Nashville music scene, but there is no evidence of that. Garland was widely respected by his peers and Nashville producers such as Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, Don Law and Owen Bradley
Owen Bradley
Owen Bradley was an American record producer who, along with Chet Atkins and Bob Ferguson, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sound in country music and rockabilly.-Before the fame:...
.
Garland died on December 27, 2004 of a staph infection in Orange Park, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. He is survived by two daughters, Cheryl and Debra.
His life and times was the subject of the partially fictional independent film Crazy.
Discography
- After the Riot at Newport (with The Nashville All-Stars) (1960)
- Velvet Guitar (1960)
- Jazz Winds From a New Direction (1961)
- The Unforgettable Guitar of Hank Garland (1962)
- Holiday for the Harp (with the Daphne Hellman Quartet)