WWVA Jamboree
Encyclopedia
WWVA Jamboree, renamed Jamboree U.S.A. in the 1960s, and the Wheeling Jamboree in 2009, is a pioneering American radio
show that featured country music
from 1933–2008, and again since January 2009. It has been broadcast from Wheeling, West Virginia
on WWVA
, the first radio station in West Virginia
, with the current incarnation now originating on locally-owned Wheeling station WKKX
. Numerous acts and stars passed through the annals of the WWVA Jamboree; some reached fame and fortune while others fell into oblivion. It is second only to the Grand Ole Opry
as the oldest country music broadcast in the United States.
—that he was dubbed Silver Yodelin' Bill Jones. The new program director, George W. Smith, was appointed in 1931 and he quickly saw the potential of country music. Other acts such as ballad singer Fred Craddock and His Happy Five and the traditionalist Elmer Crowe joined the Jamboree. The professional trio of Cap, Andy and Flip also signed with WWVA in 1932.
. He died in 1941.
Sponsored by Georgie Porgie Breakfast Foods, Hugh Cross joined the Jamboree in 1935. Cross, who was an experienced radio and recording artist, teamed up with Shug Fisher
and they formed Hugh and Shug's Radio Pals. They left WWVA in 1939 for WLW
in Cincinnati, Ohio
. In March, 1935, announcer Murrell Poor was added to the Jamboree cast. Frankie More, who was sponsored by Pinex Cough Syrup, signed with the Jamboree in 1936. The name of Frankie More's band, the Log Cabin Gang, varied between Log Cabin Boys or Log Cabin Girls during the "Gangs" period on the show. The most prominent member of the Log Cabin Gang was the banjo player Cousin Emmy. The Log Cabin Gang left the Jamboree in 1941.
Grandpa Jones
signed with the show in 1936 and joined the Rhythm Rangers, but he left the following year. He returned for a short stint in 1941 and 1945. In May 1937, Doc Williams and the Border Riders joined the program. The Border Riders became the Jamboree's most popular act of 1938. Joe Barker and the Chuck Wagon Gang came to the Jamboree in 1937. They remained favorites with the audience until 1950. In December 1937, the western singer Big Slim McAuliffe became a member of the Border Riders. In 1939, Lew Childre joined the Jamboree staying almost four years. An aspiring young star, Floyd Tillman
was one of the members of Childre's group. Among other performers who passed through the Jamboree during the 1930s were the duets of Hank and Slim Newman, Chuck and Don, Handsome Bob and Happy Johnny; and the cowboy bands Slim Cox and his Flyin' X Roundup, and Tex Harrison's Texas Buckaroos.
, Charlie Monroe
and Floyd Tillman did not. Many performers could only receive a salary if their sponsors sold any products via their shows. Rural comedy was an integral part of the Jamboree with acts such as Crazy Elmer, Shorty Godwin, Dapper Dan Martin, Smokey Pleacher, Lazy Jim Day, and Cy Sneezeweed.
On October 8, 1942, WWVA increased its power and became a 50,000-watt station. Because of the World War II, the WWVA Jamboree discontinued live-audience broadcasts between December 12, 1942 and July 13, 1946. The Jamboree, however, continued as a daytime show without a live audience. Many of the artists of the show like Doc Williams, Joe Barker, Curley Miller, Monte Blake, and Lloyd Carter got drafted and had to leave. During this period many war influenced songs were written and performed on the Jamboree: "A Hundred Million Kisses For Hitler," "The Devil and Mr Hitler," "A Letter To A Soldier," and "You Won't Know Tokyo When We Get Through." The war helped new acts on their way to the top such as the 1943 addition of Radio Rangerettes consisting of Millie Wayne and Bonnie Baldwin. In 1944, Toby Stroud's Wyoming Ranch Boys became popular. Other popular acts were Honey and Sonny (the Davis twins), and Eileen and Maxine (the Newcomer twins). Two years later, in May 1946, program director George W. Smith died but was quickly replaced by Paul Miller and William Rine.
On July 13, 1946, The World's Original WWVA Jamboree once again began its live-audience broadcast after a four-year halt. It was held at the Virginia Theatre in Wheeling and contained 13 acts. New performers had been added to the show in 1945, including the "Singing Mountaineer" Reed Dunn and the honky-tonk vocalist Hawkshaw Hawkins
. Hawkins soon became the most popular star on the Jamboree. He stayed with the show until 1954 when he joined Ozark Jubilee
. He was nicknamed the Hawk or Eleven Yards of Personality during his time at the show. In December 1947, Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper
signed with the Jamboree. They had previously been members of the Jamboree act the Leary Family in 1942. The Coopers left the WWVA Jamboree in 1957 to join the Grand Ole Opry
. The traditional acts of Red Belcher's Kentucky Ridge Runners and the duo of Lee and Juanita Moore were added in the late 1940s. Juanita Moore left the show in 1960 and Lee Moore carried on as a solo act. More modern performers such as Don Kidwell and the actor Jimmy Walker
also joined the cast in 1949. Although Kidwell left the show in 1953, Walker continued on and off until 1964. The gospel quartet of the Sunshine Boys became part of the Jamboree in 1949 and they remained there for two years. The "Yodelin' Ranger" Hank Snow
and the Colorado singing cowboy Ken Curtis
joined the Jamboree in the late 1940s as two separate acts. Snow and Curtis left within a year and Curtis went on to become a successful Hollywood actor. The country music writer and musician George Morgan
also worked at the Jamboree for a few months before leaving for Grand Ole Opry
.
. During the 1950s, recorded music gradually replaced live performances and Hardrock Gunter and Lee Moore became the station's deejay
s. Married couples who performed at the Jamboree became increasingly popular such as Joe & Shirley Barker, Lee & Juanita Moore, Doc & Chickie Williams, and Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper. In April 1952, bluegrass music made its entry at the Jamboree when the Bailey Brothers and Their Happy Valley Boys were signed. The Bailey Brothers left the show in 1954 when Dan Bailey became ill and returned to Tennessee.
The bluegrass duo of Jim & Jesse
McReynolds and Hylo Brown
had a short stint at the Jamboree during the summer months of 1955. In October 1956, the Osborne Brothers
joined the Jamboree. They had previously been on the show, between August and December 1955, as part of Charlie Bailey's Band. The Osbornes left the show and moved to the Grand Ole Opry in 1963. As the fame of Elvis Presley
began to increase, a similar decrease in honky-tonk and traditional styles began to take its toll among the members of the Jamboree and many was forced to leave. During this period rockabilly became a regular feature at the show with artists like Bob Gallion, Hardrock Gunter
and Chuck & Jim Cook. All had joined earlier as straight country singers. The Jamboree managed to survive the explosion of rock 'n roll through a mix of rockabilly and traditional music.
, Esco Hankins and the Stanley Brothers. On November 8, 1965, the new program director, Arlen Sanders, made WWVA a "full-time country radio station" and on January 15, 1966, the Jamboree moved to a new location at Wheeling Island Exhibition Hall. In May 1966, Mac Wiseman was hired to work both as a performer and a talent agent. He started a new radio program in October, the Mac Wiseman Record Shop, which aired at midnight following the Jamboree. The deejay, Lee Moore, went on the air with a new program on November 1, 1966, The All Night Show. Lee Moore eventually left the show in 1973 as he became increasingly tired of being a "button-pusher".
On December 13, 1969, the WWVA Jamboree moved its live-audience shows back to the same Capitol Theatre used for the 1933 broadcasts. The Capitol Theatre had been purchased in the summer of 1969 by Communications Inc. and had its name changed to Capitol Music Hall. The Jamboree changed its name as well to the more cosmopolitan sounding Jamboree U.S.A. Special guest stars such as Buck Owens
, Ray Price
, Charlie Pride and Tammy Wynette
, who weren't part of the regular cast, began to appear, and the regular artists were overshadowed. Despite the new format, Doc Williams continued to perform at the Jamboree well into the 1980s. Rockabilly singer Bob Gallion began to sing country duets with Patti Powell in the 1970s. The yodeler Kenny Roberts left the Jamboree in 1973 after a 14 year stint.
A new roster of country music stars were tied to the Jamboree during the 1960s and 1970s including Freddy Carr, Jimmie Stephens, Darnell Miller, Junior Norman, Kenny Biggs, Gus Thomas, Slim Lehart, and Bud Cutright. Also bluegrass groups like Jimmy Martin
and the Sunny Mountain Boys, Charlie Moore & Bill Napier, Red Smiley
and His Bluegrass Cutups, Tater Tate and the Shenadoah Cutups, and Frank Necessary and the Stone Mountain Boys became more common at the Jamboree. Even gospel groups like the Blue Ridge Quartet—who became the most popular act of 1970—and Walter Bailes Singers were regulars at the show. In the early 1970s, "Trucker's Jamborees" were held at the Jamboree with performers such as Dick Curless
, Dave Dudley
, and Patti Powell. Homecoming reunions were arranged where the old-timers of yesterday like Bill Jones, Elmer Crowe, Doc Williams, and Grandpa Jones could gather. In July 1977, the outdoor festival, the Jamboree in the Hills
was initiated at Brush Run Park near St. Clairsville, Ohio
. It is estimated that between 1933 and 1976, more than five million visitors attended The World's Original WWVA Jamboree.
Jerry Brightman
took over the show in 1977, beginning a tenure that lasted until 1982. Under Brightman's watch, the Jamboree launched an annual summer country music festival, the Jamboree in the Hills
, in eastern Ohio. The multi-day festival has since grown well beyond the radio series to draw major country music stars and continues to this day, even after the radio program's cancellation.
. The Capitol Music Hall and the Jamboree would also be managed by Clear Channel's concert promotion division, Live Nation
.
WWVA stopped airing live, original Jamborees in December 2005, but continued to air reruns during this time. The last show listed on WWVA's Web site is dated January 6, 2007. Clear Channel and Live Nation closed the Capitol Music Hall after the building failed an annual safety inspection in the spring of 2007 and was hit with a list of fire code violations. It was since sold off to a local coalition that includes the Wheeling Convention Bureau. Live shows were resumed in March 2008, before the show was finally canceled in December 2008.
As of 2010, its time slot on WWVA is occupied by The Weekend, a tape-delayed nationally syndicated talk radio
program produced by WWVA sister company Premiere Radio Networks
. Rival talk station WKKX
immediately purchased the rights to air the program, which was spun off by Live Nation to a local non-profit corporation (thus ending the affiliation between the radio show and the Jamboree in the Hills. The show was renamed the Wheeling Jamboree at that time.
WKKX is now the flagship station for the Jamboree Radio Network, while the show for now is hosted in a variety of venues around Wheeling. The Capitol, which still serves as the studio facilities for WWVA and the other five stations in Clear Channel's Wheeling cluster, is in the process of being restored, which will be completed sometime in 2010.
The 2010 Board of Directors dedicated to preserving the show, includes Country Music Star Pam Tillis.
and three towns in Ohio
. The first Goodwill Tour was a success and thus, a new Goodwill Tour was arranged each year.
The First Goodwill Tour of 1939 consisted of Big Slim McAuliffe, Elmer Crowe, Doc Williams' Border Riders, Fincher's Cotton Pickers, Frankie More's Log Cabin Girls, Joe Barker's Radio Cirkus, Hugh & Shug's Radio Pals, Jake Taylor's Railsplitters and the Tommy Nelson Gang.
The Second Goodwill Tour of 1940 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim McAuliffe, the Border Riders, Fincher's Cotton Pickers, the Log Cabin Girls, the Radio Cirkus, the Tommy Nelson Gang, Pete Cassell, Mack Jeffers, Curley Miller and Blaine Smith.
The Third Goodwill Tour of 1941 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim's Happy Ranch Gang, Lew Childre and His Buckeyes, Chief Redhawk, the Chuck Wagon Doughboys, the Log Cabin Boys, Brown Eyes, Benny Kissinger and Smiley Sutter.
The Fourth Goodwill Tour of 1942 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim McAuliffe, the Border Riders, Lew Childre, the Leary Family, Curley Miller, the blind twins Eileen and Maxine, Smiley Sutter and Millie Wayne.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
show that featured 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...
from 1933–2008, and again since January 2009. It has been broadcast from Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
on WWVA
WWVA (AM)
WWVA is an AM radio station that broadcasts on a frequency of 1170 kHz with studios in Wheeling, West Virginia, USA, and towers formerly located in St. Clairsville, Ohio, before they were destroyed in an August 2010 storm...
, the first radio station in West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, with the current incarnation now originating on locally-owned Wheeling station WKKX
WKKX
WKKX is a News/Talk formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia, serving Wheeling in West Virginia and St. Clairsville in Ohio. WKKX is owned and operated by RCK 1 Group, LLC.-Programming:...
. Numerous acts and stars passed through the annals of the WWVA Jamboree; some reached fame and fortune while others fell into oblivion. It is second only to the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
as the oldest country music broadcast in the United States.
Beginnings
WWVA was granted a license on December 6, 1926 and its initial broadcast, via a 50-watt transmitter, was on December 13. Two-and-a-half years later, on July 1, 1929, WWVA had increased its power to 5,000 watts. Holland Engel and Howard Donahoe were among the first announcers, and in 1927, the station signed William Wallace "Bill" Jones and the Sparkling Four as its first hillbilly act. The quartet played requests made over the telephone. Jones received so many requests for yodeling songs—because of the popularity of the Blue Yodeler Jimmie RodgersJimmie Rodgers (country singer)
James Charles Rodgers , known as Jimmie Rodgers, was an American country singer in the early 20th century known most widely for his rhythmic yodeling...
—that he was dubbed Silver Yodelin' Bill Jones. The new program director, George W. Smith, was appointed in 1931 and he quickly saw the potential of country music. Other acts such as ballad singer Fred Craddock and His Happy Five and the traditionalist Elmer Crowe joined the Jamboree. The professional trio of Cap, Andy and Flip also signed with WWVA in 1932.
1930s
On January 7, 1933, the Saturday night Jamboree began and three months later, on April 1, a live audience was added. The live-audience premiere of The World's Original WWVA Jamboree took place at the Capitol Theatre in Wheeling. The following years, the Jamboree broadcast from a different location each Saturday. The Sparkling Four disbanded in 1933 and Bill Jones formed the Rhythm Rogues. On November 11, 1933, Cowboy Loye (Loye Donald Pack) joined the show, and based on the amount of mail he received, became one of the biggest stars of the Jamboree. Cowboy Loye often performed together with "Just Plain" John Oldham. Four years later, in 1937, Cowboy Loye left WWVA and moved to NebraskaNebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. He died in 1941.
Sponsored by Georgie Porgie Breakfast Foods, Hugh Cross joined the Jamboree in 1935. Cross, who was an experienced radio and recording artist, teamed up with Shug Fisher
Shug Fisher
Shug Fisher , born George Clinton Fisher, Jr., was an American character actor, singer, songwriter, musician and comedian. During a 50-year career, he appeared in many Western films, often as a member of The Sons of the Pioneers in Roy Rogers serials...
and they formed Hugh and Shug's Radio Pals. They left WWVA in 1939 for WLW
WLW
WLW is a clear channel talk radio station located in Cincinnati, Ohio, run by Clear Channel Communications. The station broadcasts locally on 700 kHz AM...
in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
. In March, 1935, announcer Murrell Poor was added to the Jamboree cast. Frankie More, who was sponsored by Pinex Cough Syrup, signed with the Jamboree in 1936. The name of Frankie More's band, the Log Cabin Gang, varied between Log Cabin Boys or Log Cabin Girls during the "Gangs" period on the show. The most prominent member of the Log Cabin Gang was the banjo player Cousin Emmy. The Log Cabin Gang left the Jamboree in 1941.
Grandpa Jones
Grandpa Jones
Louis Marshall Jones , known professionally as Grandpa Jones, was an American banjo player and "old time" country and gospel music singer...
signed with the show in 1936 and joined the Rhythm Rangers, but he left the following year. He returned for a short stint in 1941 and 1945. In May 1937, Doc Williams and the Border Riders joined the program. The Border Riders became the Jamboree's most popular act of 1938. Joe Barker and the Chuck Wagon Gang came to the Jamboree in 1937. They remained favorites with the audience until 1950. In December 1937, the western singer Big Slim McAuliffe became a member of the Border Riders. In 1939, Lew Childre joined the Jamboree staying almost four years. An aspiring young star, Floyd Tillman
Floyd Tillman
Floyd Tillman was an American country musician who, in the 1930s and 1940s, helped create the Western swing and honky tonk genres. Tillman was inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame in 1970 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1984.-Early life:Tillman grew up in the cotton-mill town of Post,...
was one of the members of Childre's group. Among other performers who passed through the Jamboree during the 1930s were the duets of Hank and Slim Newman, Chuck and Don, Handsome Bob and Happy Johnny; and the cowboy bands Slim Cox and his Flyin' X Roundup, and Tex Harrison's Texas Buckaroos.
1940s
The concentration of female performers was larger at the WWVA Jamboree than elsewhere in the music business. Singers like Gertrude Miller, Mary "Sunflower" Calvas, Mary Ann Vestes, and Chickie Williams had a large following which increased even more at the outburst of World War II when most of the men were drafted. Some artists like Warren Caplinger, Hugh Cross, Frankie More and Slim McAuliffe had had recording experinces prior to the WWVA engagement and did fairly well. Others, like Johnny Bailes, Red SovineRed Sovine
Woodrow Wilson Sovine , better known as Red Sovine, was an American country music singer associated with truck driving songs, particularly those recited as narratives but set to music...
, Charlie Monroe
Charlie Monroe
Charlie Monroe was an American country and bluegrass music guitarist.-Biography:Monroe was born on his family's farm in Rosine, Kentucky; he was the older brother of the mandolin player Bill Monroe. His sister Bertha also played guitar, and brother Birch, fiddle...
and Floyd Tillman did not. Many performers could only receive a salary if their sponsors sold any products via their shows. Rural comedy was an integral part of the Jamboree with acts such as Crazy Elmer, Shorty Godwin, Dapper Dan Martin, Smokey Pleacher, Lazy Jim Day, and Cy Sneezeweed.
On October 8, 1942, WWVA increased its power and became a 50,000-watt station. Because of the World War II, the WWVA Jamboree discontinued live-audience broadcasts between December 12, 1942 and July 13, 1946. The Jamboree, however, continued as a daytime show without a live audience. Many of the artists of the show like Doc Williams, Joe Barker, Curley Miller, Monte Blake, and Lloyd Carter got drafted and had to leave. During this period many war influenced songs were written and performed on the Jamboree: "A Hundred Million Kisses For Hitler," "The Devil and Mr Hitler," "A Letter To A Soldier," and "You Won't Know Tokyo When We Get Through." The war helped new acts on their way to the top such as the 1943 addition of Radio Rangerettes consisting of Millie Wayne and Bonnie Baldwin. In 1944, Toby Stroud's Wyoming Ranch Boys became popular. Other popular acts were Honey and Sonny (the Davis twins), and Eileen and Maxine (the Newcomer twins). Two years later, in May 1946, program director George W. Smith died but was quickly replaced by Paul Miller and William Rine.
On July 13, 1946, The World's Original WWVA Jamboree once again began its live-audience broadcast after a four-year halt. It was held at the Virginia Theatre in Wheeling and contained 13 acts. New performers had been added to the show in 1945, including the "Singing Mountaineer" Reed Dunn and the honky-tonk vocalist Hawkshaw Hawkins
Hawkshaw Hawkins
Harold Franklin Hawkins , better known as Hawkshaw Hawkins, was an American country music singer popular from the 1950s into the early 60s known for his rich, smooth vocals and music drawn from blues, boogie and honky tonk...
. Hawkins soon became the most popular star on the Jamboree. He stayed with the show until 1954 when he joined 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...
. He was nicknamed the Hawk or Eleven Yards of Personality during his time at the show. In December 1947, Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper
Stoney Cooper
Dale Troy Cooper , known professionally as Stoney Cooper, was an American country star and member of the Grand Ole Opry. He was a master of the fiddle and the guitar.-Biography:...
signed with the Jamboree. They had previously been members of the Jamboree act the Leary Family in 1942. The Coopers left the WWVA Jamboree in 1957 to join the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
. The traditional acts of Red Belcher's Kentucky Ridge Runners and the duo of Lee and Juanita Moore were added in the late 1940s. Juanita Moore left the show in 1960 and Lee Moore carried on as a solo act. More modern performers such as Don Kidwell and the actor Jimmy Walker
Jimmy Walker
James John Walker, often known as Jimmy Walker and colloquially as Beau James , was the mayor of New York City from 1926 to 1932...
also joined the cast in 1949. Although Kidwell left the show in 1953, Walker continued on and off until 1964. The gospel quartet of the Sunshine Boys became part of the Jamboree in 1949 and they remained there for two years. The "Yodelin' Ranger" Hank Snow
Hank Snow
Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow was a Canadian-American country music artist. He charted more than 70 singles on the Billboard country charts from 1950 until 1980...
and the Colorado singing cowboy Ken Curtis
Ken Curtis
Ken Curtis was an American singer and actor best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the long-running CBS western television series Gunsmoke.-Early years:...
joined the Jamboree in the late 1940s as two separate acts. Snow and Curtis left within a year and Curtis went on to become a successful Hollywood actor. The country music writer and musician George Morgan
George Morgan (singer)
George Thomas Morgan was a mid-20th century American country music singer. He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and a former member of the Grand Ole Opry.-Biography:...
also worked at the Jamboree for a few months before leaving for Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
.
1950s
In 1951, the Country Harmony Boys, the first country band to have a union contract joined the WWVA Jamboree. They worked as a staff band meaning they worked with anybody on the show that could use them. The majority of the cast at the Jamboree did not make recordings, but those who did include Hawkshaw Hawkins, Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper, Big Slim McAuliffe, Red Belcher, the Lilly Brothers, Gay Schwing, Lee & Juanita Moore, the Ritchie Brothers, Roy Scott, and the Radio Rangerettes. Doc Williams even founded his own record company, Wheeling Records. In 1953, the honky-tonk vocalist Sidney "Hardrock" Gunter came to the show. He later branched out on his own recording rockabilly for Sun RecordsSun Records
Sun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27, 1952.Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash...
. During the 1950s, recorded music gradually replaced live performances and Hardrock Gunter and Lee Moore became the station's deejay
Deejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
s. Married couples who performed at the Jamboree became increasingly popular such as Joe & Shirley Barker, Lee & Juanita Moore, Doc & Chickie Williams, and Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper. In April 1952, bluegrass music made its entry at the Jamboree when the Bailey Brothers and Their Happy Valley Boys were signed. The Bailey Brothers left the show in 1954 when Dan Bailey became ill and returned to Tennessee.
The bluegrass duo of Jim & Jesse
Jim & Jesse
Jim & Jesse were an American bluegrass music duo composed of brothers Jim McReynolds and Jesse McReynolds...
McReynolds and Hylo Brown
Hylo Brown
Hylo Brown was a bluegrass and country music singer, guitarist and bass player.-Biography:Frank "Hylo" Brown was born in River, Kentucky and began his career as a performer on radio station WCMI in Ashland, Kentucky in 1939. Soon, he moved to WLOG in Logan, West Virginia and their "Saturday...
had a short stint at the Jamboree during the summer months of 1955. In October 1956, the Osborne Brothers
Osborne Brothers
The Osborne Brothers, Sonny Osborne and Bobby Osborne , were an influential and popular bluegrass act during the 1960s and 1970s...
joined the Jamboree. They had previously been on the show, between August and December 1955, as part of Charlie Bailey's Band. The Osbornes left the show and moved to the Grand Ole Opry in 1963. As the fame of 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"....
began to increase, a similar decrease in honky-tonk and traditional styles began to take its toll among the members of the Jamboree and many was forced to leave. During this period rockabilly became a regular feature at the show with artists like Bob Gallion, Hardrock Gunter
Hardrock Gunter
Sidney Louie Gunter Jr. , known as Hardrock Gunter, is a singer, songwriter and guitarist whose music at the turn of the 1950s prefigured rock and roll and rockabilly music....
and Chuck & Jim Cook. All had joined earlier as straight country singers. The Jamboree managed to survive the explosion of rock 'n roll through a mix of rockabilly and traditional music.
1960s and 70s
In July 1962, the Virginia Theatre in Wheeling was demolished. It had been the home of The World's Original WWVA Jamboree since July 1946. The Rex Theatre became the new locale for the live-audience Jamboree. WWVA-AM changed ownership in the mid-1960s and a new program director was appointed in August 1965, Lee Sutton. Plans arose to cancel the Jamboree but Doc Williams and John Corrigan wanted to revitalize the show instead. The Jamboree added 27 new acts within the next 15 months, including country and bluegrass music acts such as David HoustonDavid Houston
David Houston may refer to:* David F. Houston, American politician* David Houston , sometime Lord Lieutenant of Sutherland* David Houston , country singer...
, Esco Hankins and the Stanley Brothers. On November 8, 1965, the new program director, Arlen Sanders, made WWVA a "full-time country radio station" and on January 15, 1966, the Jamboree moved to a new location at Wheeling Island Exhibition Hall. In May 1966, Mac Wiseman was hired to work both as a performer and a talent agent. He started a new radio program in October, the Mac Wiseman Record Shop, which aired at midnight following the Jamboree. The deejay, Lee Moore, went on the air with a new program on November 1, 1966, The All Night Show. Lee Moore eventually left the show in 1973 as he became increasingly tired of being a "button-pusher".
On December 13, 1969, the WWVA Jamboree moved its live-audience shows back to the same Capitol Theatre used for the 1933 broadcasts. The Capitol Theatre had been purchased in the summer of 1969 by Communications Inc. and had its name changed to Capitol Music Hall. The Jamboree changed its name as well to the more cosmopolitan sounding Jamboree U.S.A. Special guest stars such as Buck Owens
Buck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
, Ray Price
Ray Price (musician)
Ray Price is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone has often been praised as among the best male voices of country music...
, Charlie Pride and Tammy Wynette
Tammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
, who weren't part of the regular cast, began to appear, and the regular artists were overshadowed. Despite the new format, Doc Williams continued to perform at the Jamboree well into the 1980s. Rockabilly singer Bob Gallion began to sing country duets with Patti Powell in the 1970s. The yodeler Kenny Roberts left the Jamboree in 1973 after a 14 year stint.
A new roster of country music stars were tied to the Jamboree during the 1960s and 1970s including Freddy Carr, Jimmie Stephens, Darnell Miller, Junior Norman, Kenny Biggs, Gus Thomas, Slim Lehart, and Bud Cutright. Also bluegrass groups like Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass".-Early years:Born James H. Martin in Sneedville, Tennessee. Jimmy Martin was born into the hard farming life of rural East Tennessee. He grew up near Sneedville, singing in church and with friends from surrounding...
and the Sunny Mountain Boys, Charlie Moore & Bill Napier, Red Smiley
Arthur Lee "Red" Smiley
Arthur Lee "Red" Smiley was a bluegrass and country musician, best known for his collaboration with Don Reno under the name Reno and Smiley....
and His Bluegrass Cutups, Tater Tate and the Shenadoah Cutups, and Frank Necessary and the Stone Mountain Boys became more common at the Jamboree. Even gospel groups like the Blue Ridge Quartet—who became the most popular act of 1970—and Walter Bailes Singers were regulars at the show. In the early 1970s, "Trucker's Jamborees" were held at the Jamboree with performers such as Dick Curless
Dick Curless
Richard William Curless was an American country-music singer, a pioneer of the trucking music genre, commonly known as the "Baron of Country Music." He was easily distinguished because of the patch he usually wore over his right eye.-Biography:Curless was born in Fort Fairfield, Maine, and moved...
, Dave Dudley
Dave Dudley
Dave Dudley , born David Darwin Pedruska, was an American country music singer best-known for his truck-driving country anthems of the 1960s and 1970s and his semi-slurred baritone. His signature song was "Six Days on the Road," and he is also remembered for "Vietnam Blues," "Truck Drivin'...
, and Patti Powell. Homecoming reunions were arranged where the old-timers of yesterday like Bill Jones, Elmer Crowe, Doc Williams, and Grandpa Jones could gather. In July 1977, the outdoor festival, the Jamboree in the Hills
Jamboree in the Hills
Jamboree in the Hills, also known as the "Super Bowl of Country Music," is an annual four-day-festival of country music in the rolling hills of Morristown, Ohio in Belmont County...
was initiated at Brush Run Park near St. Clairsville, Ohio
St. Clairsville, Ohio
St. Clairsville is a city in Belmont County, Ohio in the United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,057 at the 2000 census. This county seat of Belmont County has been nicknamed "Paradise on the Hill." St. Clairsville was named after...
. It is estimated that between 1933 and 1976, more than five million visitors attended The World's Original WWVA Jamboree.
Jerry Brightman
Jerry Brightman
Jerry Brightman is a pedal steel guitarist who played for Buck Owens and the The Buckaroos and featured on television's Hee Haw along with performing on many top 10 records with Buck, Susan Raye, Tony Booth, and others. Impressing audiences at an early age, he began playing professionally in 1966...
took over the show in 1977, beginning a tenure that lasted until 1982. Under Brightman's watch, the Jamboree launched an annual summer country music festival, the Jamboree in the Hills
Jamboree in the Hills
Jamboree in the Hills, also known as the "Super Bowl of Country Music," is an annual four-day-festival of country music in the rolling hills of Morristown, Ohio in Belmont County...
, in eastern Ohio. The multi-day festival has since grown well beyond the radio series to draw major country music stars and continues to this day, even after the radio program's cancellation.
1990s
Though WWVA dropped its country music format in 1997, it continued to carry the Jamboree on Saturday nights. The station's ownership would change hands several times during this period; Atlantic Star Communications would sell the group to Chancellor/AMFM Inc. which would ultimately merge into Clear Channel CommunicationsClear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
. The Capitol Music Hall and the Jamboree would also be managed by Clear Channel's concert promotion division, Live Nation
Live Nation
Live Nation is a live-events company based in Beverly Hills, California, focused on concert promotions. Live Nation formed in 2005 as a spin-off from Clear Channel Communications, which then merged with Ticketmaster in 2010 to become Live Nation Entertainment....
.
WWVA stopped airing live, original Jamborees in December 2005, but continued to air reruns during this time. The last show listed on WWVA's Web site is dated January 6, 2007. Clear Channel and Live Nation closed the Capitol Music Hall after the building failed an annual safety inspection in the spring of 2007 and was hit with a list of fire code violations. It was since sold off to a local coalition that includes the Wheeling Convention Bureau. Live shows were resumed in March 2008, before the show was finally canceled in December 2008.
As of 2010, its time slot on WWVA is occupied by The Weekend, a tape-delayed nationally syndicated talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
program produced by WWVA sister company Premiere Radio Networks
Premiere Radio Networks
Premiere Networks is an American radio network. It is the largest syndication company in the United States based on popularity of programming...
. Rival talk station WKKX
WKKX
WKKX is a News/Talk formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia, serving Wheeling in West Virginia and St. Clairsville in Ohio. WKKX is owned and operated by RCK 1 Group, LLC.-Programming:...
immediately purchased the rights to air the program, which was spun off by Live Nation to a local non-profit corporation (thus ending the affiliation between the radio show and the Jamboree in the Hills. The show was renamed the Wheeling Jamboree at that time.
WKKX is now the flagship station for the Jamboree Radio Network, while the show for now is hosted in a variety of venues around Wheeling. The Capitol, which still serves as the studio facilities for WWVA and the other five stations in Clear Channel's Wheeling cluster, is in the process of being restored, which will be completed sometime in 2010.
The 2010 Board of Directors dedicated to preserving the show, includes Country Music Star Pam Tillis.
The Goodwill Tours
In April 1939, the Jamboree went on its first package tour which comprised two solo performers and seven bands led by the announcer Bill Thomas. They visited three towns in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and three towns in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. The first Goodwill Tour was a success and thus, a new Goodwill Tour was arranged each year.
The First Goodwill Tour of 1939 consisted of Big Slim McAuliffe, Elmer Crowe, Doc Williams' Border Riders, Fincher's Cotton Pickers, Frankie More's Log Cabin Girls, Joe Barker's Radio Cirkus, Hugh & Shug's Radio Pals, Jake Taylor's Railsplitters and the Tommy Nelson Gang.
The Second Goodwill Tour of 1940 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim McAuliffe, the Border Riders, Fincher's Cotton Pickers, the Log Cabin Girls, the Radio Cirkus, the Tommy Nelson Gang, Pete Cassell, Mack Jeffers, Curley Miller and Blaine Smith.
The Third Goodwill Tour of 1941 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim's Happy Ranch Gang, Lew Childre and His Buckeyes, Chief Redhawk, the Chuck Wagon Doughboys, the Log Cabin Boys, Brown Eyes, Benny Kissinger and Smiley Sutter.
The Fourth Goodwill Tour of 1942 consisted of Bill Jones, Big Slim McAuliffe, the Border Riders, Lew Childre, the Leary Family, Curley Miller, the blind twins Eileen and Maxine, Smiley Sutter and Millie Wayne.
Jamboree venue timeline
| Years | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1927–1933 | Hawley Building, first WWVA studios | Gave start to WWVA Jamboree; now known as Mull Center Offices |
| January 7, 1933–February 10, 1934 | Capitol Theatre | WWVA Jamboree relocates to the Capitol Theatre for a brief run. |
| February 1934–1936 | Victoria Theatre Victoria Theater (Wheeling, WV) First opening its doors in 1904, Victoria Theater is the oldest operating theater in West Virginia. Located in the registered historic market district of the city of Wheeling, the Victoria is a ~800 seat Victorian style theater with many Beaux-Arts design influences... |
Show moved here for short run: West Virginia's oldest theater. |
| 1937–1945 | Market Auditorium | Demolished 1950s |
| 1946–July 1962 | Virginia Theatre | Also location of WWVA Jamboree for short run in 1936; demolished 1962. |
| 1962–1965 | Rex Theater (also briefly known as Coronet Theater) | Demolished 1970s. |
| 1966–1969 | Wheeling Island Exhibition Hall | Owned by Wheeling Island Gaming, Inc.; not in use. |
| 1969–2006 | Capitol Theatre | This period included the Jamboree USA years. Theater renamed Capitol Music Hall. In 2006, Clear Channel terminated the program and closed the theater. Repurchased by local groups in 2009, the theater underwent renovation with plans of reopening that fall. |
WWVA acts by year
The acts and performers of the WWVA Jamboree and years they were added to the show:1932
- Cap, Andy and Flip (Warren Caplinger, Andy Patterson, William Strickland)
- Elmer Crowe
- The Tweedy Brothers
1933
- Bill Jones and the Rhythm Rogues (Bill Jones, Fred Gardini, Blaine Heck, Paul Myers)
- Just Plain John Oldham
- Loye Donald "Cowboy Loye" Pack
1935
- Handsome Bob Bouch & Happy Johnny Zufall
- Hugh and Shug's Radio Pals (Hugh Cross, Shug Fisher, Mary Ann Vestes)
- The Rhythm Rangers (Loren Bledsoe, Harold "Pete" Rensler, Mary Ann Estes)
- Roy Freeman
- Slim Carter
- Slim Cox and his Flyin' X Roundup (Mel Cox, Red Kidwell, Hal Harris)
- Tex Harrison's Texas Buckaroos (Tex Harrison, French Mitchell, Auvil Mitchell)
1936
- Frankie More's Log Cabin Gang
- Frankie More's Log Cabin Boys (Frankie More, Fiddlin Dale Cole, Dolph Hewitt)
- Frankie More's Log Cabin Girls (Frankie More, Alma Crosby, Cousin Emmy, Rhoda Jones, Penny Woodford, Celia Mauri)
- Grandpa Jones
- Jake Taylor and His Railsplitters (Jake Taylor, Betty Taylor, Ray "Quarantine" Brown, Herman Redmon)
1937
- Doc Williams and His Border Riders (Doc Williams, Curley Sims, Cy Smik, Mary Calvas, Hamilton Fincher, Big Slim McAuliffe)
- Big Slim McAuliffe
- Joe Barker's Chuck Wagon Gang
- The Singing Sailors (Red Sovine, Johnnie Bailes)
1939
- Honey and Sonny (Maxine Davis, Nial Davis)
- Joe Barker's Radio Cirkus
- Lew Childre's Band (Lew Childre, Floyd Tillman + more)
- Millie Wayne
- Tommy Nelson Gang (Tommy Nelson, Nial Davis, Maxine Davis)
1940
- Blaine Smith
- Calvin "Curley" Miller
- Mack Jeffers and His Fiddlin' Farmers (Mack Jeffers, Celia Mauri)
- Pete Cassell
1941
- Anthony Slater "Smiley Sutter"/"Crazy Elmer"
- Benny Kissinger
- Big Slim's Happy Ranch Gang
- Chuck Wagon Doughboys
- Lew Childre and His Buckeyes
- Chief Redhawk
1942
- Eileen and Maxine Newcomer
- The Leary Family (Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper + more)
- The Saylor Sisters (Wanda, Jeanie and Linda)
1944
- Toby Stroud's Wyoming Ranch Boys (Toby Stroud, Buck Ryan, Bill Bailey)
- Toby Stroud's Blue Mountain Boys
1945
- Gay Schwing and His Gang From the HIlls (Gay Schwing, Herman Schwing, Ramona Schwing)
- Hawkshaw Hawkins
- Reed "The Singing Mountaineer" Dunn
1948
- Red Belcher's Kentucky Ridge Runners
- Bill "Peg Pants" Beach
- The Lilly Brothers
- George Morgan
- Ken Curtis
1949
- Don Kidwell
- Hank Snow
- Lee Moore & Juanita Moore
- The Sunshine Boys (Fred Daniel, Ace Richman, J. D. Sumner, Eddie Wallace)
1951
- Country Harmony Boys (Roy Scott, Gene Jenkins, Monte Blake, James Carson, Will Carver, Bill Chamberlain)
- Dusty Owens
1952
- The Bailey Brothers and Their Happy Valley Boys (Charles Bailey, Dan Bailey, Don McHan, Joe Stuart, Clarence "Tater" Tate, Jake Tullock)
- Bob Gallion
- Gene Hooper
- Skeeter Bonn
1953
- Cowboy Phil's Golden West Girls (Philip Reed, Gay Franzi, Tina Franzi, Abbie Neal, Wanda Saylor)
- Lone Pine & Betty Cody
1954
- Bud Messner and His Skyline Boys
- Buddy & Marion Durham
- Mabelle Seiger and Her Sons of the Plains (Mabelle Seiger, Curly Seiger, Chuck Cook, Jim Cook)
1955
- Charlie Bailey's Band (Charlie Bailey, Bobby Osborne, Sonny Osborne + more)
- Jim & Jesse McReynolds
- Hylo Brown and His Buckskin Boys
- Osborne Brothers (Bobby Osborne, Sonny Osborne, Red Allen, Ernie Newton)
1965
- Cousin Wilbur Wesbrooks
- Esco Hankins
- David Houston
- Jim Greer's Mac-O-Chee Valley Folks
- Red Smiley and His Bluegrass Cutups
- Stanley Brothers
- Mary Lou Turner
1970
- Junior Norman
- Freddy Carr
- Patti Powell
- Kay Kemmer
- Gus and Jo Ann Thomas
- Jerry BrightmanJerry BrightmanJerry Brightman is a pedal steel guitarist who played for Buck Owens and the The Buckaroos and featured on television's Hee Haw along with performing on many top 10 records with Buck, Susan Raye, Tony Booth, and others. Impressing audiences at an early age, he began playing professionally in 1966...
- Slim Lehart
- Buddy Ray
- Penny DeHaven
- Johnny Dollar
- Compton Brothers
- Skinney Clark
- Kenny Biggs
- Elton Britt
- Bud Cutright
- Lynn Stewart
- Holly Garrett
- Doty Lynn
- Roger Hoard
- John LeMaster
- The Heckles
- Crazy Elmer
- Denny Franks
1971
- Rick Erickson
- The Heckels
- Beth Moore
- Dick Curliss
- Les Seevers
- Joe Pain
- George Elliott
- Buddy Griffin
- Mayf Nutter
- Bob Wood
- Frank Necessary
- Ray Kirkland
- David Smith
- Johnny Russell
- Dock and Chickie Williams
- Dave Dudley
- Blue Ridge
- Kay Kenner
- Jerry Taylor
- Van Trevor
- Linda Kay Lance
- Margo Smith
- Jo Ann Davis
1973
- Karen McKinzie
- Steve Mazure
- Walter Bailes Singers (Frankie Bailes, Dorothy Jo Hope + more)
- Greg Steele
External links
- The Jamboree page at WWVA.com (very outdated)
- http://www.wwva.tv/ Official Website of the Wheeling Jamboree
- http://www.WWVAJamboree.com Wheeling Jamboree