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Buck 'Em!: The Autobiography of Buck Owens
Born in Texas and raised in Arizona, Buck Owens eventually found his way to Bakersfield, California. Unlike the vast majority of country singers, songwriters, and musicians who made their fortunes working and living in Nashville, the often rebellious and always independent Owens chose to create his own brand of country music some 2 000 miles away from Music City – racking up a remarkable 21 number-one hits along the way. In the process he helped give birth to a new country sound and did more than any other individual to establish Bakersfield as a country music center.
In the latter half of the 1990s, Buck began working on his autobiography. Over the next few years, he talked into the microphone of a cassette tape machine for nearly one hundred hours, recording the story of his life. With his near-photographic memory, Buck recalled everything from his early days wearing hand-me-down clothes in Texas to his glory years as the biggest country star of the 1960s; from his legendary Carnegie Hall concert to his multiple failed marriages; from his hilarious exploits on the road to the tragic loss of his musical partner and best friend, Don Rich; from his days as the host of a local TV show in Tacoma, Washington, to his co-hosting the network television show Hee Haw ; and from his comeback hit, “Streets of Bakersfield ” to his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
In these pages, Buck also shows his astute business acumen, having been among the first country artists to create his own music publishing company. He also tells of negotiating the return of all of his Capitol master recordings, his acquisition of numerous radio stations, and of his conceiving and building the Crystal Palace, one of the most venerated musical venues in the country.
In the latter half of the 1990s, Buck began working on his autobiography. Over the next few years, he talked into the microphone of a cassette tape machine for nearly one hundred hours, recording the story of his life. With his near-photographic memory, Buck recalled everything from his early days wearing hand-me-down clothes in Texas to his glory years as the biggest country star of the 1960s; from his legendary Carnegie Hall concert to his multiple failed marriages; from his hilarious exploits on the road to the tragic loss of his musical partner and best friend, Don Rich; from his days as the host of a local TV show in Tacoma, Washington, to his co-hosting the network television show Hee Haw ; and from his comeback hit, “Streets of Bakersfield ” to his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
In these pages, Buck also shows his astute business acumen, having been among the first country artists to create his own music publishing company. He also tells of negotiating the return of all of his Capitol master recordings, his acquisition of numerous radio stations, and of his conceiving and building the Crystal Palace, one of the most venerated musical venues in the country.
360 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
February 22, 2025
Very refreshing biography because it is written in a conversational way and therefore made it easy to read.
December 2, 2014
I found this book interesting. Like many biographies of musicians (and no doubt like many biographies in general) there are lots of references to the 'little people' who were part of the story: the family members, the various friends, the many many musicians, and those who were in the business end of music and TV. Too many, really, for me to sort out and keep track of in fact. The good news is that the story nevertheless remains a good one. I lived through the prime years of Buck's career and enjoyed several of his hits; to have the perspective from his side is a treat.
Most special was learning about Don Rich. Now here was a real talent who never wanted more, apparently, than being Buck's sidekick. His razor sharp harmonies are for me one of the keys, if not the main key, to the Bakersfield sound - Buck Owens' sound.
Not that Buck himself wasn't talented - he was and was a driven man. His schedule of travel for his performances is mind boggling. He played national tours, some international dates, made radio and TV appearances and more. All this interspersed with his business ventures and marriages. Wow - busy guy.
There are quite a few photos included which help to round out the experience.
I understand that much of the text was transcribed from tapes that Buck dictated over the years and this helps imbue the narrative with authenticity.
Most special was learning about Don Rich. Now here was a real talent who never wanted more, apparently, than being Buck's sidekick. His razor sharp harmonies are for me one of the keys, if not the main key, to the Bakersfield sound - Buck Owens' sound.
Not that Buck himself wasn't talented - he was and was a driven man. His schedule of travel for his performances is mind boggling. He played national tours, some international dates, made radio and TV appearances and more. All this interspersed with his business ventures and marriages. Wow - busy guy.
There are quite a few photos included which help to round out the experience.
I understand that much of the text was transcribed from tapes that Buck dictated over the years and this helps imbue the narrative with authenticity.
March 23, 2021
A good autobiography that doesn't feel like it was ghostwritten...unlike most musician autobios - Owens' recollection of detail is remarkable; the flip side, and what makes Buck Em disappointing, is that it feels emotionally sterile. Despite an interesting rags-to-riches upbringing, and being an incredibly talented musician, Owens lacks real dynamism. Only in the final couple of chapters does he bring up his mental illness and addiction; would've been interesting to hear more about how these shaped his life, but instead they're presented as an afterthought. Despite clear shortcomings, still a solid read.
November 17, 2013
Buck 'Em by Buck Owens and Randy Poe is a Backbeat Books/ Hal Leordard Corporation publication released on November 1st, 2013. I receieved a copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book is an autobiography told in first person by Buck Owens via cassette tapes he had recorded prior to his death in 2006. Randy Poe went through these tapes that were not in any order apparently. Buck had recorded events as he thought of them and so Randy Poe had quite a job getting these tapes organized for this book. He did an outstanding job.
The book starts out with Buck's early life, how he came up with the name "Buck", which was not his given name. His very humble beginnings, his first musical instrument, how he became a vocalist, and his first marriage at a very young age.
Buck played in the "hole in wall" honky tonks and worked as a disc jockey .
"Man, it was a lot of fun to be a disc jockey in those days. There was no music director, no program director- there was nobody around to tell you what to play or when to play it. Nobody talked demographics or ratings or any of that %&*@ that's completely taken over radio today. I could play my favorite records the whole shift. I spun records I liked that I thought the listeners would like, too. There were no rules, and I loved it."
Buck's career wasn't the overnight sucess type story. His career was a slow, steady climb. He didn't always follow the rules and some in the music industry didn't like that. The Nashville establishment wasn't who Buck was concerned about. He cared about the fans who were the ones buying the records. He wanted the fans to know he would stay loyal to them and his type of music.
"And I wanted those bigwigs in Nashville to know the same thing, so in March of '65- right in the middle of the five weeks that "I've Got a Tiger by the Tail" was sitting at the top of the charts- I took out a fullpage ad in this Nashville trade paper called the Music City News. I called it "Pledge to Country Music"
It said:
I shall sing no song that is not a country song. I shall make no record that is not a country record. I refuse to be known as anything but a country singer. I am proud to be associated with country music. Country music fans have made me what I am today. And I shall not forget it.
Buck Owens"
Buck pulled no punches about anything. He made no excuses for his mistakes. He didn't try to tone down his ego or hide his feelings about things.
There were some really funny stories in here, some interesting facts about Buck's life, and some really heartbreaking events as well. Buck lived a full life, although it was often filled with health issues over the last ten years of his life.
I really liked how the book focuses on Buck's life and music and not so much on the television show "Hee Haw". To me the show was the least interesting thing about his career save for the story regarding the red, white, and blue guitar he used on the show.
"The Buck Owens Show: Big in Vegas barely made it into the Top Ten on the album charts, which was a hint of things to come. The more popular Hee Haw got, the less my records sold. It was the beginning of a pattern that I'd suspected might happen- but I just couldn't turn down the Hee Haw paycheck."
Buck's chart topping sucess had a second life however, when he and Dewight Yoakum teamed up. Buck's music reached a whole new audience and he once more had sucess on the charts and out on tour.
Growing up, my parents always had country music on the radio, even when it wasn't the most popular of genres. I personally wasn't crazy about the whiny, singing through your nose, crying in my beer songs. I was a teenager and liked different music. But, Buck Owens' "Bakersfield" sound was unique. I really liked his style.
Even if you are not a fan of country music, I think you find that Buck was more than a country music star and TV star. He was also a savvy business man as well. He did things his way and it worked for him.
Overall this one gets an A.
This book is an autobiography told in first person by Buck Owens via cassette tapes he had recorded prior to his death in 2006. Randy Poe went through these tapes that were not in any order apparently. Buck had recorded events as he thought of them and so Randy Poe had quite a job getting these tapes organized for this book. He did an outstanding job.
The book starts out with Buck's early life, how he came up with the name "Buck", which was not his given name. His very humble beginnings, his first musical instrument, how he became a vocalist, and his first marriage at a very young age.
Buck played in the "hole in wall" honky tonks and worked as a disc jockey .
"Man, it was a lot of fun to be a disc jockey in those days. There was no music director, no program director- there was nobody around to tell you what to play or when to play it. Nobody talked demographics or ratings or any of that %&*@ that's completely taken over radio today. I could play my favorite records the whole shift. I spun records I liked that I thought the listeners would like, too. There were no rules, and I loved it."
Buck's career wasn't the overnight sucess type story. His career was a slow, steady climb. He didn't always follow the rules and some in the music industry didn't like that. The Nashville establishment wasn't who Buck was concerned about. He cared about the fans who were the ones buying the records. He wanted the fans to know he would stay loyal to them and his type of music.
"And I wanted those bigwigs in Nashville to know the same thing, so in March of '65- right in the middle of the five weeks that "I've Got a Tiger by the Tail" was sitting at the top of the charts- I took out a fullpage ad in this Nashville trade paper called the Music City News. I called it "Pledge to Country Music"
It said:
I shall sing no song that is not a country song. I shall make no record that is not a country record. I refuse to be known as anything but a country singer. I am proud to be associated with country music. Country music fans have made me what I am today. And I shall not forget it.
Buck Owens"
Buck pulled no punches about anything. He made no excuses for his mistakes. He didn't try to tone down his ego or hide his feelings about things.
There were some really funny stories in here, some interesting facts about Buck's life, and some really heartbreaking events as well. Buck lived a full life, although it was often filled with health issues over the last ten years of his life.
I really liked how the book focuses on Buck's life and music and not so much on the television show "Hee Haw". To me the show was the least interesting thing about his career save for the story regarding the red, white, and blue guitar he used on the show.
"The Buck Owens Show: Big in Vegas barely made it into the Top Ten on the album charts, which was a hint of things to come. The more popular Hee Haw got, the less my records sold. It was the beginning of a pattern that I'd suspected might happen- but I just couldn't turn down the Hee Haw paycheck."
Buck's chart topping sucess had a second life however, when he and Dewight Yoakum teamed up. Buck's music reached a whole new audience and he once more had sucess on the charts and out on tour.
Growing up, my parents always had country music on the radio, even when it wasn't the most popular of genres. I personally wasn't crazy about the whiny, singing through your nose, crying in my beer songs. I was a teenager and liked different music. But, Buck Owens' "Bakersfield" sound was unique. I really liked his style.
Even if you are not a fan of country music, I think you find that Buck was more than a country music star and TV star. He was also a savvy business man as well. He did things his way and it worked for him.
Overall this one gets an A.
January 19, 2019
Another American rags to riches experience that could not occur anywhere else in the world. Little long in some areas, but great stories.
June 7, 2019
I first heard of Buck Owens through a cover of Act Naturally, and it wasn't by The Beatles.
On the Woody's Roundup album, cowboy band Riders in the Sky did a cover of the song that I knew very well as a kid thanks to playing it all the time. Once I got into The Beatles, I heard their cover of it and was surprised to hear that song from the Riders in the Sky album was there. I must have read not too long after that that is was originally by a guy named Buck Owens. I listened to his original, liked it, and stopped there for a while.
It wasn't until my late teens that I finally listened to the album of Buck's number 1 hits (all 21 of them!), and my mind was utterly blown. The production, performances, melodies, and genius simplicity of it all was exactly the country I was looking for. I don't think I've ever written songs the same since, I always seem to want to make a Buck Owens song even when I'm writing something else. He has exerted a huge influence on me since, suffice it to say.
So when this book was published in 2013 I knew I wanted to read it and I greatly enjoyed the CD compilation of the same name that came out then and introduced me to tons of great early Buck singles and rarities. Well here I am 6 years later finally reading it, and it's just as great as I hoped.
I actually thought this may not have been so detailed or great considering that Buck put this all to tape before he died and that it was left unedited for a long time before being constructed into this book. Boy was I wrong, Buck's voice and personality comes through so undiluted in this book it really feels like he's living and breathing in the pages. His memory is incredible, and I was so happy he focused on the music and how he wrote and recorded so many of his classics and forgotten gems. This book isn't a book of salacious tales and gossip, it's a story of passion for music (and passionate frustration with the image change from Hee Haw).
Buck was pretty proud of his accomplishments as he deserved to be, but he gave unreserved praise for many of his band members and contemporaries like Don Rich and Merle Haggard. Even when others had said something he disagreed with, he disagreed with the utmost politeness and comes off sounding extremely trustworthy in his account.
If you're a fan of Buck Owens's music this is an essential read. It will make you run back to the records with fresh ears and help you discover some stuff of his you overlooked, and give you an astonishing glimpse into the life of the man who owned the 60's in country music and was revered by the world's best selling artists from The Beatles to Garth Brooks.
On the Woody's Roundup album, cowboy band Riders in the Sky did a cover of the song that I knew very well as a kid thanks to playing it all the time. Once I got into The Beatles, I heard their cover of it and was surprised to hear that song from the Riders in the Sky album was there. I must have read not too long after that that is was originally by a guy named Buck Owens. I listened to his original, liked it, and stopped there for a while.
It wasn't until my late teens that I finally listened to the album of Buck's number 1 hits (all 21 of them!), and my mind was utterly blown. The production, performances, melodies, and genius simplicity of it all was exactly the country I was looking for. I don't think I've ever written songs the same since, I always seem to want to make a Buck Owens song even when I'm writing something else. He has exerted a huge influence on me since, suffice it to say.
So when this book was published in 2013 I knew I wanted to read it and I greatly enjoyed the CD compilation of the same name that came out then and introduced me to tons of great early Buck singles and rarities. Well here I am 6 years later finally reading it, and it's just as great as I hoped.
I actually thought this may not have been so detailed or great considering that Buck put this all to tape before he died and that it was left unedited for a long time before being constructed into this book. Boy was I wrong, Buck's voice and personality comes through so undiluted in this book it really feels like he's living and breathing in the pages. His memory is incredible, and I was so happy he focused on the music and how he wrote and recorded so many of his classics and forgotten gems. This book isn't a book of salacious tales and gossip, it's a story of passion for music (and passionate frustration with the image change from Hee Haw).
Buck was pretty proud of his accomplishments as he deserved to be, but he gave unreserved praise for many of his band members and contemporaries like Don Rich and Merle Haggard. Even when others had said something he disagreed with, he disagreed with the utmost politeness and comes off sounding extremely trustworthy in his account.
If you're a fan of Buck Owens's music this is an essential read. It will make you run back to the records with fresh ears and help you discover some stuff of his you overlooked, and give you an astonishing glimpse into the life of the man who owned the 60's in country music and was revered by the world's best selling artists from The Beatles to Garth Brooks.
April 26, 2025
Pickin` & Grinnin` was a time where ole Buck and the Buckaroos could stay in place at a studio and have their fun for a while instead of being out on the road, town to town! Here what it was like in Bucks time as he put to words on cassettes his life story.
Here is Bucks Pledge to Country Music...
I shall sing no song that is not a country song.
I shall make no record that is not a country record.
I refuse to be know as anything but a country singer.
I am proud to be associated with country music.
Country music and country music fans have made me what I am today.
And I shall not forget it. _Buck Owens
Ole buck was true to his roots...Thanks for the memories!
Here is Bucks Pledge to Country Music...
I shall sing no song that is not a country song.
I shall make no record that is not a country record.
I refuse to be know as anything but a country singer.
I am proud to be associated with country music.
Country music and country music fans have made me what I am today.
And I shall not forget it. _Buck Owens
Ole buck was true to his roots...Thanks for the memories!
April 19, 2023
Buck Owens was an amazing talent if a little standoffish; he was also a teetotaler and a shrewd businessman. Combined with his TV career on the corny Hee-Haw show it has led many to underestimate his contributions as a serious musician. But anyone who’s heard his albums knows better. Never one to forget a slight, this book warns its title, but he comes across as fair and a good storyteller.
November 3, 2021
Entertaining, and Buck's narration of events is uncanny. He must have had a photographic memory or something. He told the stories behind the scenes that everyone wants to know. I really loved this biography.
Read
December 19, 2022Quick, easy and enjoyable read. Buck didn't suffer from lack of self confidence, that comes through loud and clear ☺️
I didn't know much about him or country music before I read this book, and now I have a good overview of him and the genre. Some good stories in here.
I didn't know much about him or country music before I read this book, and now I have a good overview of him and the genre. Some good stories in here.
May 4, 2017
Doing his part to perpetuate country stereotypes, especially when it comes to women
October 10, 2020
I love me some Buck. A great expose of a legend.
March 3, 2022
A wonderful book, I’d definitely read again
April 30, 2022
Not only is this bio thorough, revealing and downright fun, it "sounds" like Buck Owens. Kudos to author/ghostwriter Randy Poe for maintaining Buck's voice so well.
October 2, 2023
Great Book
Really enjoyed the book. When I was a child I remember watching the Buck Owens Show . I loved it.
Really enjoyed the book. When I was a child I remember watching the Buck Owens Show . I loved it.
December 10, 2023
What an amazing story of rags to riches. From Cher cropper to superstar. For a high school dropout he was quite an intelligent and business savvy individual.
January 23, 2025
Great read.
April 9, 2025
The book was written using Bucks words and as if he was saying everything. Great learning of his life.
July 21, 2018
This turned out to be alot better book than I thought it would be. The person who put it together says that he made it an autobiography by just transcribing passages from a number of interviews he had on audio casettes. In these his whole career, and even his childhood is fondly rmembered, and there are a number of surprises if you arent already well flamiliar with the course of his career. The two biggest ones for me is: 1. How he came to record the song that was one of his biggest hits, and that was also covered by no less than The fabulous Beatles, which was Act Naturally, and 2. That his televised show ( prior to Hee Haw), the Buck Owens Ranch Show, was filmed right here in Oklahoma City, mostly in the late 60s. His love/hate relationship with Hee Haw is well covered here, too, but the time in his career, prior to being signed to be on the show had to be the happiest in his life, and that is the time when he recorded most of his hit songs, as well. This book is also as much about country music, the entertainment industry, and living and touring all over the country, especially in the 50s and 60s. It was a real page turner, and I would recommend to any country music or just plain Buck Owens fan.
November 14, 2013
This book has a lot of information about Buck Owens. Starts from his birth and how his mom and dad got together and after a few years they ended up in Texas. Part of the family moved to California and some to Washington. Then go into him getting married having two children and trying to get into the music scene. Playing in small bands and bowling alleys and dance halls. I guess that is where people gathered during the 40’s and 50’s for dances. He finally moved to Washington and got a job at a radio station and started another band. After about a year it was they were on their way to perform and needed another person for their band when someone brought Don Rich along. This would be a partnership from 57 to 73 when Don Rich passed away from a motorcycle accident. By 58 he had settled in Bakersfield CA. Making records, after not really having great sales after his first two he told capitol that he would make his next record in Bakersfield, they agreed. Now 1963 his first album done the way he wanted to do produced the first of twenty-one number one country singles from 63 to 72. The first being “Act Naturally”. Later this would become known as the Bakersfield sound. From there he would start his own publishing company, recording studio, all in Bakersfield not Nashville. He also was buying radio stations in Arizona, Washington and Bakersfield. In 1969 he was offered to co-host a new show He- Haw, he said the money was to get great to pass up for not that much work. He was still selling records and his concerts were still sold out. He said “that while other singers were buying bass boats he was buying radio stations”. His songs were being recorded by the Beatles and Ray Charles, just to name a few. One of Ray Charles famous songs “cry’n time”, was written by Buck Owens. By the early 70’s his record contract was up for renewal at Capitol. He and his manger were able to get out of the contract by the mid 70’s and Capitol gave him all of masters. So 20 years later when cd’s came out and he released his music it was his music. This was a great book for me because I heard his name when I was growing up and my grandparents would watch He-Haw. But then I actually moved to Bakersfield in the mid 80’s. Buck Owens did a lot for the town saved a local landmark for one, and his Crystal Palace which was his last dream. I was sad to read how Nashville turned their back on him but not the musicians’. Also it would have been interesting to know if Don Rich had not passed away how many more records they would have made. Because he said it took him years to get over that loss. Much more information in this book. A great. I got this book from net- galley.
April 27, 2025
These days, most people who know of Buck Owens - if they know of him at all - know him from HEE-HAW. It might surprise them to learn that he was arguably the biggest country music superstar of the 1960s, having something like 20 #1 hits in a row. Then, in the early 1970s, the hits just stopped, and Owens eventually gave up recording. Unlike most artists, he was a shrewd businessman as well as a talented musician, as he owned radio stations and a music publishing company and made some very good deals for himself.
Naturally, when you're that successful in business, you're bound to create some resentment. Owens touches upon this, and he gets notably defensive in some passages. He often stops to give his version of claims, for example, that he "screwed" Merle Haggard on music royalties or that he and Roy Clark didn't get along. I do agree with him that there's certainly no shame in being good at business - especially knowing how many of his fellow musicians HAVE gotten screwed. Whether he really is stingy or has "screwed" other artists is not for me to say, but some of the musicians who worked for him (notably Don Rich, his guitarist and "musical soul mate" who died tragically young) do seem to have been pretty loyal to him. I think that Owens fans will appreciate having his point of view.
Owens also has a lot to say about HEE-HAW. He really did not like the show, and he believes that being on TV every week overexposed him, causing people to stop buying his records. Yet, HEE-HAW paid well for not a lot of work, so as he himself says in the book, "I kept whoring myself out to that cartoon donkey." HEE-HAW fans might not care for some of the comments that he makes about one of their favorite shows, but hey, it's honest.
This autobiography was published posthumously, several years after Owens' death. Owens left behind many tape recorded dictations that he made in preparation for it, and co-author Randy Poe sorted through them to create a chronological narrative. I'm glad that he did. There really aren't many good books on Buck Owens, so if you want to know more about him, then this essentially a must read.
Naturally, when you're that successful in business, you're bound to create some resentment. Owens touches upon this, and he gets notably defensive in some passages. He often stops to give his version of claims, for example, that he "screwed" Merle Haggard on music royalties or that he and Roy Clark didn't get along. I do agree with him that there's certainly no shame in being good at business - especially knowing how many of his fellow musicians HAVE gotten screwed. Whether he really is stingy or has "screwed" other artists is not for me to say, but some of the musicians who worked for him (notably Don Rich, his guitarist and "musical soul mate" who died tragically young) do seem to have been pretty loyal to him. I think that Owens fans will appreciate having his point of view.
Owens also has a lot to say about HEE-HAW. He really did not like the show, and he believes that being on TV every week overexposed him, causing people to stop buying his records. Yet, HEE-HAW paid well for not a lot of work, so as he himself says in the book, "I kept whoring myself out to that cartoon donkey." HEE-HAW fans might not care for some of the comments that he makes about one of their favorite shows, but hey, it's honest.
This autobiography was published posthumously, several years after Owens' death. Owens left behind many tape recorded dictations that he made in preparation for it, and co-author Randy Poe sorted through them to create a chronological narrative. I'm glad that he did. There really aren't many good books on Buck Owens, so if you want to know more about him, then this essentially a must read.
July 24, 2015
Buck Owens was a major country music star in the 1960s, achieving an incredible run of smash hit singles (backed by a cracking band he called the Buckaroos), all outside of the stuffy Nashville establishment, before he began hosting the corny CBS TV comedy/music hour Hee Haw, and his fame faded somewhat.
Randy Poe has skilfully transcribed hours upon hours of tapes of Buck himself telling his life story to construct a very enjoyable and coherent autobiography - all the more impressive when you learn that Buck's tapes skipped around the eras a lot, creating a huge 'jigsaw puzzle' for Poe to complete.
While reminiscing into his cassette machine, Buck was perceptive about the qualities in his simple songwriting that appealed to fans, what makes a country song (he gives short shrift to those who claim 'Johnny B. Goode' doesn't qualify), his almost psychic link with his much-missed lead guitarist and fiddle player Don Rich, his part in crafting the unfussy Bakersfield sound, the women in his life, the overexposure that put an end his days at the top of the charts, and much more besides. He had an astonishing memory for those chart positions, and also seems able instantly to recall specific shows, word-for-word conversations, formative childhood experiences etc. - all of which gives the book a lot more depth than you might expect, given it's really all just Buck's chain of thought.
Overall, this is an addictive music bio that makes you want to seek out and listen to some Buck Owens, as it should do.
Randy Poe has skilfully transcribed hours upon hours of tapes of Buck himself telling his life story to construct a very enjoyable and coherent autobiography - all the more impressive when you learn that Buck's tapes skipped around the eras a lot, creating a huge 'jigsaw puzzle' for Poe to complete.
While reminiscing into his cassette machine, Buck was perceptive about the qualities in his simple songwriting that appealed to fans, what makes a country song (he gives short shrift to those who claim 'Johnny B. Goode' doesn't qualify), his almost psychic link with his much-missed lead guitarist and fiddle player Don Rich, his part in crafting the unfussy Bakersfield sound, the women in his life, the overexposure that put an end his days at the top of the charts, and much more besides. He had an astonishing memory for those chart positions, and also seems able instantly to recall specific shows, word-for-word conversations, formative childhood experiences etc. - all of which gives the book a lot more depth than you might expect, given it's really all just Buck's chain of thought.
Overall, this is an addictive music bio that makes you want to seek out and listen to some Buck Owens, as it should do.
September 15, 2013
Randy Poe has done an outstanding job transcribing hours of the great Buck Owens' dictated memoir. This is one of the best books about the music business and a tribute to a great artist that excelled in both music and business. Buck is the first to admit he didn't have much success keeping women, but maybe that's because his collaborator and bandleader Don Rich was his true soulmate.
September 16, 2014
As someone who hated hated hated Buck Owens on Hee Haw and came to his music much later, I was astonished at how much I loved this book. For a musician contemplating a book, this should be your template. It's about music. If you care about his music, he spends lots of time talking about it, unlike many musical biographies. It made me want to seek out more of his music.
December 29, 2014
Nice relaxing read. Buck guides you through his hits and his misses. Seems worried at times about what others wrote (Merle & Roy), and let's you know multiple times about how he feels about Nashville, but overall a real enjoyable read.
February 2, 2015
Buck Owens in his own words. Such a great read, it's like you're sitting with him listening to his amazing meteoric rise in the country music business. I liked the anecdotes about his songs and would've liked more of that, but overall this is highly recommended.
April 22, 2014
This was a really good book compiled from tapes Buck made.
December 13, 2014
Fantastic book if you're a Buck Owens fan, and still a great read for anyone who likes country music.
February 28, 2022
This is a really great autobiography. Wonderful insights into Buck's life and career.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews