Walter Hyatt
Encyclopedia
Walter Hyatt American singer and songwriter. His band, known as Uncle Walt's Band
, was involved in the alternative music scene in Austin, Texas
, from its inception and is credited by many with being the Godfather of Americana Music or the Original Americana Artist, never easily pegged into any one musical genre or format of commercial music styles.
, Walter Hyatt was exposed to different styles of music at an early age, including styles favored by his parents and the multifaceted nature of pop radio of the time. He started playing the guitar at age 13, using a Mel Bay chord book to learn all the music chords, and formed his first band in his mid-teen years.
with Champ Hood and David Ball, two of his fellow Spartanburg citizens. They moved to Nashville, Tennessee
, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey
, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter. Luring them to his studio, Ramsey would become the band's first noted fan.
The band returned to the Carolinas in 1974, recording Blame It On The Bossanova, their first record, at Charlotte, North Carolina's
Arthur Smith Studios.
A year later, Uncle Walt's Band
split up, with Hyatt returning to Nashville and forming a new band, The Contenders, with Champ Hood and Nashville musicians Steve Runkle, Tommy Goldsmith, and drummer Jimbeau Walsh.
In 1978, Uncle Walt's Band played a reunion gig in Austin, and the success that followed kept the band together in subsequent years. That success wasn't limited to the South, however. Uncle Walt's Band gained a cult following around the world, ranging from the University of California - Berkeley to Moscow University
in Russia
. UWB released three more albums on what is now considered Austin, Texas's original Indy labels, Lespedeza Record Company: An American in Texas, Uncle Walt's Band Recorded Live, and Six * Twenty Six * Seventy Nine.
In 1987, Hyatt returned to Nashville with his wife, Heidi Hyatt, and there he embarked on a solo career. The work that resulted from this career move, while artistically fruitful and received critical acclaim, was never a commercial success. In 1990, Hyatt became the first vocalist for MCA's Master Series label. His first solo album from this label titled, King Tears, was produced by Lyle Lovett
, who was a big fan of Uncle Walt's Band in his college days at North Texas State University. Lovett would later offer Hyatt the opening-act slot during his own music tours. In 1993, Hyatt released his second solo album, Music Town, on the Sugar Hill label.
Hyatt's, Some Unfinished Business, Volume One, was released January 22, 2008 to rave reviews. Taken from the last songs Walter recorded before his tragic death, "Volume One" brings artists and musicians together to add the finishing touches to Uncle Walt's extraordinary music. Producer Michael Killen, working with Heidi Hyatt, assembled a who's who of Nashville musicians to accomplish this task. Killen scoured tape after tape left behind by Walter to find the best performance of each song. Together with Nashville engineer Nick Sparks, the two prepared each track for overdubbing. Killen envisioned three CD's of Walter's songs. A country album, an R&B rock album, and a jazz/ballad flavored album. Enough tracks were recorded for all three. The songs on Some Unfinished Business, Volume One - 2008, and Some Unfinished Business, Volume Two - 2010, represent these distinct Walter Hyatt styles.
with the King Tears Band, Hyatt boarded ValuJet Flight 592
to attend the graduation of his daughter, Haley. However, the plane caught fire and crashed into the Everglades
, killing all 110 passengers and crew on board.
show Austin City Limits
featured a tribute to Hyatt put together by Lyle Lovett
and various musicians who have had associations with him. Among the performers were Junior Brown
, Shawn Colvin
, Allison Moorer
, Marcia Ball
, David Halley, Willis Alan Ramsey
, Jimmie Dale Gilmore
, Lyle Lovett
, and his Uncle Walt's Band
bandmates, Champ Hood and David Ball.
In 2007, the Austin Music Awards put together a tribute to Uncle Walt's Band. Lyle Lovett
and David Ball
were joined by Champ Hood's son singer and fiddle player Warren Hood as well as Champ Hood's nephew singer and guitarist Marshall Hood of The Belleville Outfit
.
Uncle Walt's Band
Walter Hyatt, Champ Hood, and David Ball formed Uncle Walt's Band. They moved from Spartanburg, South Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter...
, was involved in the alternative music scene in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, from its inception and is credited by many with being the Godfather of Americana Music or the Original Americana Artist, never easily pegged into any one musical genre or format of commercial music styles.
Early life
Born in Spartanburg, South CarolinaSpartanburg, South Carolina
thgSpartanburg is the largest city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina, and is located northwest of Columbia, west of Charlotte, and about northeast of...
, Walter Hyatt was exposed to different styles of music at an early age, including styles favored by his parents and the multifaceted nature of pop radio of the time. He started playing the guitar at age 13, using a Mel Bay chord book to learn all the music chords, and formed his first band in his mid-teen years.
Music career
At age 20, Hyatt formed Uncle Walt's BandUncle Walt's Band
Walter Hyatt, Champ Hood, and David Ball formed Uncle Walt's Band. They moved from Spartanburg, South Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter...
with Champ Hood and David Ball, two of his fellow Spartanburg citizens. They moved to Nashville, Tennessee
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...
, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey
Willis Alan Ramsey
Willis Alan Ramsey is an American singer/songwriter, a cult legend among fans of Americana and Texas country. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama and raised in Dallas, Texas. Ramsey graduated from Highland Park High School in 1969, and was a prominent baritone in the High School's Lads and Lassies...
, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter. Luring them to his studio, Ramsey would become the band's first noted fan.
The band returned to the Carolinas in 1974, recording Blame It On The Bossanova, their first record, at Charlotte, North Carolina's
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
Arthur Smith Studios.
A year later, Uncle Walt's Band
Uncle Walt's Band
Walter Hyatt, Champ Hood, and David Ball formed Uncle Walt's Band. They moved from Spartanburg, South Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter...
split up, with Hyatt returning to Nashville and forming a new band, The Contenders, with Champ Hood and Nashville musicians Steve Runkle, Tommy Goldsmith, and drummer Jimbeau Walsh.
In 1978, Uncle Walt's Band played a reunion gig in Austin, and the success that followed kept the band together in subsequent years. That success wasn't limited to the South, however. Uncle Walt's Band gained a cult following around the world, ranging from the University of California - Berkeley to Moscow University
Moscow State University
Lomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...
in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. UWB released three more albums on what is now considered Austin, Texas's original Indy labels, Lespedeza Record Company: An American in Texas, Uncle Walt's Band Recorded Live, and Six * Twenty Six * Seventy Nine.
In 1987, Hyatt returned to Nashville with his wife, Heidi Hyatt, and there he embarked on a solo career. The work that resulted from this career move, while artistically fruitful and received critical acclaim, was never a commercial success. In 1990, Hyatt became the first vocalist for MCA's Master Series label. His first solo album from this label titled, King Tears, was produced by Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
, who was a big fan of Uncle Walt's Band in his college days at North Texas State University. Lovett would later offer Hyatt the opening-act slot during his own music tours. In 1993, Hyatt released his second solo album, Music Town, on the Sugar Hill label.
Hyatt's, Some Unfinished Business, Volume One, was released January 22, 2008 to rave reviews. Taken from the last songs Walter recorded before his tragic death, "Volume One" brings artists and musicians together to add the finishing touches to Uncle Walt's extraordinary music. Producer Michael Killen, working with Heidi Hyatt, assembled a who's who of Nashville musicians to accomplish this task. Killen scoured tape after tape left behind by Walter to find the best performance of each song. Together with Nashville engineer Nick Sparks, the two prepared each track for overdubbing. Killen envisioned three CD's of Walter's songs. A country album, an R&B rock album, and a jazz/ballad flavored album. Enough tracks were recorded for all three. The songs on Some Unfinished Business, Volume One - 2008, and Some Unfinished Business, Volume Two - 2010, represent these distinct Walter Hyatt styles.
Death
Following a gig in Key WestKey West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
with the King Tears Band, Hyatt boarded ValuJet Flight 592
ValuJet Flight 592
ValuJet Flight 592 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight between Miami International Airport, Miami, Florida, and William B. Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta, Georgia...
to attend the graduation of his daughter, Haley. However, the plane caught fire and crashed into the Everglades
Everglades
The Everglades are subtropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee...
, killing all 110 passengers and crew on board.
Tributes
In 1997, an episode of the PBSPublic Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
show Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits is an American public television music program recorded live in Austin, Texas by Public Broadcasting Service Public television member station KLRU, and broadcast on many PBS stations around the United States...
featured a tribute to Hyatt put together by Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
and various musicians who have had associations with him. Among the performers were Junior Brown
Junior Brown
Jamieson "Junior" Brown is an American country guitarist and singer. He has released nine studio albums in his career, and has charted twice on the Billboard country singles charts. Brown's signature instrument is the "guit-steel" double neck guitar, a hybrid of electric guitar and lap steel...
, Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Childhood and early career:Colvin was born in Vermillion, South Dakota. Her formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age...
, Allison Moorer
Allison Moorer
Allison Moorer is an American alternative country singer and the younger sister of Shelby Lynne. She signed to MCA Nashville in 1998 and made her debut on the U.S...
, Marcia Ball
Marcia Ball
Marcia Ball is an American blues singer and pianist, born in Orange, Texas but who grew up in Vinton, Louisiana. She was described in USA Today as "a sensation, saucy singer and superb pianist.....
, David Halley, Willis Alan Ramsey
Willis Alan Ramsey
Willis Alan Ramsey is an American singer/songwriter, a cult legend among fans of Americana and Texas country. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama and raised in Dallas, Texas. Ramsey graduated from Highland Park High School in 1969, and was a prominent baritone in the High School's Lads and Lassies...
, Jimmie Dale Gilmore
Jimmie Dale Gilmore
Jimmie Dale Gilmore is a country singer, songwriter, actor, recording artist and producer, currently living in Austin, Texas.-Biography:...
, Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
, and his Uncle Walt's Band
Uncle Walt's Band
Walter Hyatt, Champ Hood, and David Ball formed Uncle Walt's Band. They moved from Spartanburg, South Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1972, where they caught the attention of Willis Alan Ramsey, a famous and revered Texas singer and songwriter...
bandmates, Champ Hood and David Ball.
In 2007, the Austin Music Awards put together a tribute to Uncle Walt's Band. Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
and David Ball
David Ball
David James Ball is an English producer and electronic musician, who has played in bands such as Soft Cell and The Grid, and collaborated with other producers including Ingo Vauk and Chris Braide...
were joined by Champ Hood's son singer and fiddle player Warren Hood as well as Champ Hood's nephew singer and guitarist Marshall Hood of The Belleville Outfit
The Belleville Outfit
The Belleville Outfit is a cross-genre American folk band based out of Austin, Texas. Their sound has been described as "a mix of gypsy swing, big band jazz and cross-genre Americana music". In April 2007, after three days of practice, they performed their first gig at MerleFest in North...
.