Buddy Wayne Knox (July 20, 1933 – February 14, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, best known for his 1957 rock & roll hit song, " Party Doll".

Early life

Knox was born on July 20, 1933 in the tiny farming community of Happy, Texas, United States, and learned to play the

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

in his youth. In his teens, he and some high-school friends formed a band called the "Rhythm Orchids". After they performed on the same 1956 radio show as fellow Texan Roy Orbison and his "Teen Kings" band, Orbison suggested that Knox go to

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

Norman Petty, who had a recording studio in Clovis, New Mexico, the same studio where

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...

recorded several of his early hits, including " That'll Be the Day".

Career

Knox's song "Party Doll" was released on the

Roulette Roulette (named after the French language, French word meaning "little wheel") is a casino game which was likely developed from the Italy, Italian game Biribi. In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various grouping ...

record label, and went to number one on the

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

record chart in 1957 (after being picked from the tiny Triple-D label). It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. This success was followed by "Rock Your Little Baby To Sleep", a number-17 hit, and " Hula Love", a number-9 hit. While he never achieved the same level of artistic success as Holly or Orbison, Knox outlived both and enjoyed a long career in music. For his pioneering contribution, Knox was elected to the

Rockabilly Hall of Fame The original Rockabilly Hall of Fame was an organization and website launched on March 21, 1997, to present early rock and roll history and information relating to the artists and personalities involved in rockabilly. Headquartered in Nashville ...

. "Party Doll" was voted one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. In the early 1960s, Knox signed with Liberty Records and released several more mainstream pop records, featuring

string String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

arrangements and backing vocalists. "Lovey Dovey" and "Ling-Ting-Tong" were the most notable recordings from this era. The sound captured on these recordings was a distinct departure from his earlier rockabilly work for Roulette. Liberty and principal

Snuff Garrett successfully employed the same production techniques for their other mainstream pop artists of the time, which included Johnny Burnette and Bobby Vee. In 1968, Knox, who had been living in semiretirement in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

, while running his publishing company, moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, and signed a new recording contract with

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1958 ...

. Working with producer Bob Montgomery, Knox honed his traditional rockabilly style more toward the modern

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

sound of the day. His first album on United Artists earned him the nickname by which he would be known for the remainder of his life. The title song of the album, ''Gypsy Man'', written by Sonny Curtis and featuring Curtis' acoustic guitar work, received airplay on

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

s. Several singles recorded by Knox between 1968 and 1974 were notable for his experimenting with a variety of sounds and styles, and from a creative and critical standpoint, may have been his most productive era. His version of

Delaney Bramlett Delaine Alvin "Delaney" Bramlett (July 1, 1939 – December 27, 2008) was an American singer and guitarist. He was best known for his musical partnership with his wife Bonnie Bramlett in the band Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, which included a ...

's "God Knows I Love You", along with his self-penned "Salt Lake City", placed Knox firmly in the midst of the new pop-music genre, being populated by artists such as Delaney & Bonnie,

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

, and others who were on the leading edge of the developing

Southern rock Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. History 1950s and 1960s: origin ...

style such as Black Oak Arkansas and the Allman Brothers Band. His cover version of James Hendricks' "Glory Train" was another stylistic stretch and featured a gospel-like chorus of backing vocalists. His cover of the Fleetwoods' "Come Softly to Me" demonstrated a vocal range not heard on his older recordings. He also reached out to the new generation of songwriters who would become prominent during Nashville's " Outlaw era" of the 1970s, as he was one of the first artists to record Mickey Newbury's "I'm Only Rockin'". Several other major country music artists later recorded this song, but under the alternate title of "T. Total Tommy". Knox also recorded songs by Alex Harvey, John D. Loudermilk, and Gary Paxton. On several of these recordings, Knox experimented with multitracking, something few artists had done up to that time. For many decades from the 1970s to the 1990s, Knox was based in the small town of Dominion City,

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Canada, and toured primarily in Western Canada and upper Midwest U.S., with occasional European appearances. In 1981, he starred in an independent Canadian movie ''Sweet Country Road''.

Personal life

Knox said the fame took a toll on his family life. Traveling 250 days a year for 35 years, he was voted "the most traveling entertainer in the world" by ''Billboard'' magazine, but he said it cost three marriages for him. His son, Michael Knox, is a record producer.

Later life and death

In 1992, he divorced and moved to

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, where he was involved in several business ventures including a partnership in a local British Columbia nightclub. Moving to Port Orchard, Washington, in 1997 to be with his fiancée, he experienced a fall and injured his hip. The doctor informed him at that time that he had terminal

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

. Knox died on February 14, 1999, in

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 43,505 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and an estimated 44,122 in 2021, making it the largest city ...

. He is interred in Dreamland Cemetery, in Canyon, Texas.

Discography

Compilation albums

''Buddy Knox — Greatest Hits'' — all the Roulette and Liberty recordings # " Party Doll" (1957, US no. 1, UK no. 29) # "Storm Clouds" (1957) # "That's Why I Cry" (1959, US no. 88) # " Hula Love" (1957, US no. 12) # "C'mon Baby" (1959) # "All For You" (1959) # "I Think I'm Gonna Kill Myself" (1959, US no. 55) # "Lovey Dovey" (1961, US no. 25) # "Ling-Ting-Tong" (1961, US no. 65) # "Somebody Touched Me" (1958, US no. 22) # "Rock Your Little Baby to Sleep" (1957) # "Cause I'm In Love" (1957) # "Swinging Daddy" (1958, US no. 80) # "The Girl with the Golden Hair" (1959) # "Devil Woman" (1957) # "Mary Lou" (1957) # "Rock House" (1957) # "Maybellinne" (1957) # "Rock Around the Clock" (1957) # "She's Gone" (1962, UK no. 45) # "Slippin' and Slidin'" (1962) # "Chi-Hua-Hua" (1962) # "OPEN YOUR LOVIN' ARMS" (1962) # "Dear Abby" (1962) # "Three Eyed Man" (1962) # "Tomorrow is a Comin'" (1963) # "Hitch Hike Back To Georgia" (1963) # "I Got You" (1960) # "I Ain't Sharin' Sharon" (1959) # "I'm in Love With You" (1957) # "Long Lonely Nights" (1960) # "Good Time Girl" (1965) # "Livin' in a House Full of Love" (1965) # "Love Has Many Ways" (1965) # "Teasable, Pleasable You" (1959, US no. 85)

Singles

* ^A"Gypsy Man" peaked at #64 on Billboard Country charts

References

External links

Rockabilly Hall page
*

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Knox, Buddy 1933 births 1999 deaths Musicians from Amarillo, Texas Singers from Manitoba Songwriters from Texas American rockabilly musicians Apex Records artists Charly Records artists Liberty Records artists Deaths from lung cancer in Washington (state) Roulette Records artists 20th-century American singers People from Happy, Texas Country musicians from Texas 20th-century American male singers American male songwriters 20th-century American songwriters