David Eugene Summers (January 3, 1939 – February 17, 2021) was an American

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

singer, songwriter and guitarist. His most famous recordings include the late 50s " School of Rock 'n Roll", "

Straight Skirt "Straight Skirt" (later "Straight Skirts") is a song written by Mary Tarver in 1958 and published by Song Productions, BMI the same year. It was originally recorded by Gene Summers and his Rebels, a rockabilly band from Dallas, Texas and was fi ...

", " Nervous", "

Gotta Lotta That "Gotta Lotta That" is a song written by Bernice Bedwell in 1958 and published by Song Productions, BMI. It was first recorded by Gene Summers and His Rebels in 1958 and issued by Jan/Jane Records. The "Gotta Lotta That" recording session took p ...

", " Twixteen", "Alabama Shake", "Fancy Dan" and his biggest-selling single " Big Blue Diamonds". Summers was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2005. He still performed worldwide and celebrated his 50th anniversary as a

recording artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...

in 2008 with the release of ''

Reminisce Cafe ''Reminisce Cafe'' is a landmark album by Gene Summers, released in 2008. It is his 50th anniversary album issued by Seduction Records on February 1, 2008, exactly 50 years to the day of the release of his first hit single " School of Rock 'n R ...

''.

Early life and rise to first success

Summers was born in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He graduated from Duncanville High School in 1957 and attended Arlington State College, now known as the

University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA or UT Arlington) is a public research university in Arlington, Texas. The university was founded in 1895 and was in the Texas A&M University System for several decades until joining the University of ...

. That same year, he formed the

band the Rebels and performed on ''Joe Bill's Country Picnic'' on KRLD-TV where they were spotted by

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

Jed Tarver. This led to the band being signed by newly founded Jan Records. Their first record was released on February 1, 1958, under the name of Gene Summers & His Rebels.

Gene Summers & the Tom Toms

Summers, who was still popular on the back of two regional hits "

"/" School Of Rock 'n Roll", (Jan No. 11-100) and " Nervous"/"

" (Jan No. 102), was playing in east

at the 123 Club with his new group of Rebels which included lead guitarist and original Rebel James McClung, bass player Jack Castleberry, drummer Charlie Mendias and Codine Craft on piano. When Craft married and left the band, she was replaced by pianist/frontman C.W. Kendall formerly of the Big Beats – "Clark's Expedition" (

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

No. 41072) and "The Big Beats Live At The Off-Broadway" an LP issued by

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals ...

(#LRP-3407). This provided the opportunity for Summers to exit the Rebels and in April 1961 a new group emerged on the DFW club scene known as Gene Summers and the Tom Toms. One of the first performances of this newly formed alliance was on a bill in

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the List of cities in Texas by population, fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the List of United States cities by population, 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, T ...

at Jimmy Levin's

Skyliner Ballroom The Skyliner Ballroom was a nightclub located on Jacksboro Highway in Fort Worth, Texas. It was opened in the late 1930s and operated until 1966. The Skyliner evolved over the years, hosting big bands, jazz, burlesque, blues, and eventually Rock an ...

with legendary bluesman

Elmore James Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fa ...

. (Before becoming a musical unit, Summers and the Tom Toms had booked studio time in early 1961 at The Clifford Herring Studios in Fort Worth where they recorded three songs. The first title was guitarist Eddie Hill's "Taboo" (Lake County LP-504/Born Bad LP-BB107), "Tomorrow" (

Alta Records ''Alta Records'' was a record label founded in Dallas, Texas in the early 1960s by pioneer, radio personality Jim Lowe. Lowe was a popular DJ who hosted a rhythm and blues program "Kat's Karavan" from the WRR-AM studios located at Fair Park in ...

) No. 104) and an original instrumental titled "Loco Cat" (Collector LP/CD-4420). By May 1961, Gene and the Tom Toms were touring the US with the

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined a ...

show. The lineup also included Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters (Bill Pinkney, Andrew Thrasher, Gerhart Thrasher and Bobby Hollis) plus Bobby Hendricks of "Itchie Twitchie Feeling" fame (Sue No. 706). The group toured most of 1961 but by the end of that year they had begun to break up. Eddie Hill and Joel Colbert wanted to form a new band so they left the Tom Toms and departed for

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the nort ...

. It was while he was returning to Dallas in early 1962 that Eddie Wayne Hill and one of his new band members, Donny LaGrone, were killed when their convertible collided head-on with a gravel truck on state Highway 114 south of

Decatur, Texas Decatur is the county seat of Wise County, Texas, United States. Its population was 6,538 in 2020. History Wise County was established in 1856, and Taylorsville (in honor of Zachary Taylor) was made the county seat. Absalom Bishop, an early s ...

. Meanwhile, back in

, Summers and bass player David A. Martin were revamping the Tom Toms who were now the

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

at the Guthrey Club. Gene's former drummer from the 123 Club, Charlie Mendias, joined the group. Also, James McClung, the original Rebels guitar player, became a Tom Tom. McClung had previously written Gene's

classic " School Of Rock 'n Roll", (Jan No. 11-101). Also recruited were guitarist Glenn Keener and saxophonist Melvin Robinson. Robinson, formerly an original member of Sid King and the Five Strings, only played with the group through mid-July and was replaced by Jesse Lopez, the younger brother of soon-to-be-star, Trini Lopez. The Tom Toms remained intact throughout most of 1962 with only a couple of changes in personnel. During early October, that year, David A. Martin left for Memphis with singer/organist

Sam Samudio Domingo "Sam" Samudio (born February 28, 1937, in Dallas, Texas, United States), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham was known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipme ...

. Sam had been playing in

at Jack's Blue Room which was just down the street from the Guthrey Club on Industrial Boulevard. Sam and David formed the group

Sam The Sham and The Pharaohs Domingo "Sam" Samudio (born February 28, 1937, in Dallas, Texas, United States), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham was known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equip ...

, who would go on to great international success. Gene's former bass player, Jack Castleberry from the 123 Club, replaced Martin in the Tom Toms. Lead guitar player Glenn Keener also left the Tom Toms about six weeks later to join a banjo group called Freddy Powers and the Powerhouse 1V. In July 1962, the Powerhouse 1V had been discovered by Hugh Downs of the " Today Show" and had appeared twice on his program. Keener joined the group in late 1962 just in time to appear on their Warner Bros. Records album "The Good Life!" (WBLP-1488) which was released in early 1963. Keener eventually ended up in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

as a session musician/record producer for Opryland Records and then

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

- Phonogram. Keener was the first to sign/record

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

for a major label deal. With the defection of Martin and Keener, Summers again re-organized the Tom Toms. The new line-up now included James McClung on lead guitar, Jack Castleberry on bass, Charlie Mendias on drums and Jesse Lopez on sax. The rhythm section was augmented with the addition of organ player Harry "Good Times" Jackson. Jackson was replaced a short time later by keyboard player Bobby Charles (Shumate), who also doubled on saxophone. By early 1963 Bobby Charles had left the group and was replaced by organ player Ernest Walker. Jesse Lopez, who was still in high school, dropped-out of the band and was replaced by sax player C.B. Williams. This became the final musical line-up for the Tom Toms. The band now included Summers, McClung, Mendias, Castleberry, Walker and Williams. This was the group that went into the Clifford Herring

Recording Studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large en ...

, in

, on March 28, 1963, and recorded Gene's breakthrough single "Big Blue Diamonds" (Donnybrook Records No. 556/ Capri Records No. 502/ Jamie Records No. 1273). An instrumental version of "Peanut Butter" (Shane No. 47-2) was also recorded at this session. In June 1964, they would return to the Summit Sound Studios in

to record the Summers rockabilly classic "Alabama Shake" (Capri No. 507), a song composed by James McClung in 1958. They also cut Lloyd Price's "Just Because" (Capri No. 507) plus " The Great Pretender" (Crystal Clear CD CCR 9723-2) at this session. The Tom Toms continued to make music through the first part of 1965 playing, primarily, at the Guthrey Club in

at Corinth and Industrial, before splitting up later that year, for a variety of personal and professional reasons. Summers has continued to record and perform in clubs and international tours into the 21st century. In 1997, he became the 29th artist to be inducted into the Rockabilly Hall Of Fame, commemorated with a re-issue of his key recordings on the Crystal Clear Sound label. He was also inducted into The Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2005. Summers was presented his HOF certificate in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a metonymy, shorthand reference for the Cinema of the United States, U.S. film industry and the people associated with i ...

by air personality John Rhys on October 29, 2005. In February 2008, he celebrated 50 years as a recording artist with the release of a new studio album, ''

'' (

Seduction Seduction has multiple meanings. Platonically, it can mean "to persuade to disobedience or disloyalty", or "to lead astray, usually by persuasion or false promises". Strategies of seduction include conversation and sexual scripts, paralingual ...

SCD-110). Gene Summers was married to songwriter

Deanna Summers Deanna (Dea) Summers (May 30, 1940 in New Albany, MS – February 14, 2017 in Garland, TX) was an American songwriter born in Mississippi. The family relocated to Memphis, Tennessee in 1952 where she attended Kingsbury Jr. High School. She als ...

from 1961 until her death in 2017. They have three sons Dusty, Steve and Shawn. Gene Summers died peacefully in Dallas on February 17, 2021, with his sons Steven and Shawn by his side. He was 82.Gene Summers
''Dallas Morning News''. Retrieved on March 17, 2021.

Partial discography

*'' Rock 'n Roll Volume 2.'' 1973, Holland *'' The Southern Cat Rocks On'' 1975, Switzerland *'' Mister Rock and Roll'' 1977, Switzerland *''Rock a Boogie Shake'' 1980, Sweden *''Early Rocking Recordings'' 1981, Holland *'' Texas Rock and Roll'' 1981, France *''

Gene Summers in Nashville ''Gene Summers In Nashville'' is a 10" vinyl album by Gene Summers. It was recorded at the Young 'Un Sound Studio Nashville, Tennessee in 1980 and contains rockabilly and country tracks performed by Summers. It was issued on the French Big Beat la ...

'' 1981, France *''Dance Dance Dance'' 1981, UK *''Rock 'n Roll Tour – "Live" In Scandinavia'' 1983, Sweden *''

School Of Rock 'n Roll (album) '' School Of Rock & Roll'' is a CD by Gene Summers. It was his first CD release although many of his recordings had been previously released on various artists compilation albums and CDs. ''School Of Rock 'n Roll'' (the album) was issued in 1993 ...

'' 1994, Holland *''Sounds Like Elvis CD'' 1996 (compilation), USA *'' The Ultimate School of Rock & Roll'' 1997, USA *''Rockaboogie Shake'' 1999, UK *'' Do Right Daddy'' 2004, Sweden *''

'' 2008, USA *''Taboo!'' 2011, USA *''Gotta Lotta That The Essential Gene Summers'' 2012, USA *''Rock-A-Dallas'' 2016, USA *''Country Song Roundup'' 2018 USA

Television, films and DVDs

''(incomplete)'' *Hi-School High Lites Show – Dallas, TX 1956 *The Neal Jones Show – Dallas, TX 1956 *Joe Bill's Country Picnic – Dallas, TX 1957-'58 * Jerry Haynes' "Top Ten Dance Party" – Dallas, TX 1958 *The Larry Kane Show – Houston, TX 1958 *The Ted Steele Bandstand Show – New York City-1958 *The Milt Grant Show- Washington, DC 1958 *The Buddy Deane Show – Baltimore, MD 1958 *The Bill Bennett Show – Minneapolis, MN, 1958 *The Larry Kane Show – Houston, TX 1964 *Hi-Ho Shebang Show – Ft. Worth, TX 1965-'66 *Le Grand Échiquier – Paris, France 1981 *World Class Championship Wrestling – Dallas, TX 1981 ''(see Ring announcers)'' *Warner-Amex Special ''Gene Summers 'Live' At Zebo's'' – 1983 *Backlot (movie-short) – 1986 *No Safe Haven (movie) – 1989 *Rob's Chop Shop (TV Pilot) – 1996 *Billy Martin (movie) – 2000 *100 Höjdare ("100 Highlights") – 2004–2008 (Swedish TV Series) *Big Beat Generation Vol. 1 (DVD) – 2009 (Big Beat Records, France) *Big Beat Story Vol. 2 (DVD) – 2011 (Big Beat Records, France) *Swiss television NZZ Format – 2013 (Features Gene in ''"Für immer Rock'n'Roll: Ein Lebensgefühl"'' with interviews and backstage footage from shows in the UK.)

Cover versions of Gene Summers songs

''Many songs popularized by Gene Summers have been recorded by other artists. Cover versions include:'' * ''Alabama Shake'' – by Crazy Cavan and the Rhythm Rockers (1976), The Flying Saucers (1976), C.S.A (1978), Teddy and The Tigers (1979), The Rockabilly Rebs (1979), Rockin' Lord Lee & The Outlaws (1988), Tony Vincent (1993), Badland Slingers (1999), The Shaking Silouets (1999), The TTs (2002), King Drapes (2003, Rawhide (2004), Hurricains (2007), The Muskrats (2009), Deke Dickerson (2010), Andy Warner and Spo-Dee-O-Dee (2012), The Hawks (2014), Lil' Camille (2017), Mr. Breathless (2017), Jeff Allen (2018), Modern Sounds, (2020) * ''Almost 12 O'Clock'' – by Rock-Ola (1981) * ''Baby Please Tell Me Why'' – by Lobo Jones and The Rhythm Hounds (2017) * ''Be Bop City'' – by Lakesend & Foxy (2017) * ''Big Blue Diamonds'' – by Jacky Ward (1971),

Ernest Tubb Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, " Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), ...

(1972), Mel Street (1972),

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis mad ...

(1973), Merle Kilgore (1974),

Jimmy Patton James Russell Patton (born September 29, 1933 – December 22, 1972) was an American football defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants. He was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and five-time first-team All ...

(1975), Bobby Crown (1980), Ted Roddy (19??), Dan Walser (1996), Dennis Gilley (2000), Lembo Allen (2004), Rance Norton (2008), Back In Time Band (2009), HIYIELD1313 (2009), Lyndall Underwood (2010), Kelly Schoppa (2011), Honkey Tonk Possey (2012), DallasCrossoverBand (2013), The South of Dixie Band (2013), Henry Hosek (2016), Jeff Woolsey (2017), Jim Nix (2017, Bob Bales (2018) * ''Chapel Bells Ringing'' – by Jeff Allen (2018) * ''The Clown'' – by J. Frank Wilson (1969). Note: (J. Frank Wilson voice over using the original Gene Summers bandtrack) * ''Crazy Cat Corner'' – by Bill Peck (1998) ''(re-written vocal adaptation titled "The Night Elvis Missed The Boat")'' * ''Dance Dance Dance'' – by Jeff Allen (2018) * ''Fancy Dan'' – by Darrel Higham (1998), The Rocking Boys (2003), Eddie & The Flatheads (2003), Houserockers (2005), Roughcuts (????), Wild Roosters (2013, Rockin' The Joint (2013), Trouble Shooters (2017), Gold Diggin' Papa (2017), John Lewis (2018), Spo-Dee-O-Dee (2019) * ''Gotta Lotta That'' – by Johnny Devlin (1958), Andy Lee & Tennessee Rain (2000), Rudy LaCrioux and the All-Stars (2001), Wyldwood Four 2012, Alan Leatherwood (2013), Lil´Camille & the Rattletones (2018) * ''I'll Never Be Lonely'' – by Eddie Clendening (2006), Jeff Allen (2019) * ''My Picture'' – by The Sprites aka ( Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters) (1962) * ''Nervous'' – by Johnny Devlin (1959), Robert Clark (1959), Robert Gordon ''with'' Link Wray (1979), Lonestars (1981), Rock-Ola & The Freewheelers (2000), T-Bird Gang (2009), Ducky Jim Trio, (2013) NOTE: '' Gene Vincent attempted twice to record a demo of "Nervous" in home recordings in Dallas in 1957 which were released in 1998 on Dragon Street Records CD "The Lost Dallas Sessions"'' * ''Reminisce Cafe'' – by Pete Moss (2004) ''(Taped during a "live" broadcast on The Pete Moss Show on KDWN-AM Radio, Las Vegas, Nevada)'' * ''Rockaboogie Shake'' – by Lennerockers (2002) * ''School Of Rock 'n Roll'' – by Savage Kalman and The Explosion Rockets (1979), The Polecats (1980), Red Hot Max And The Cats (1989), The Rhythm Rockers (1989), Johnny Reno (1990), The Lennerockers (1991), The Alphabets (1991), Mess Of Booze (1993), The Vees (1995), The Blue Moon Rockers (1996), The Cornell Hurd Band (2002), Thierry LeCoz (2003), Rockin' Ryan and The Real Goners (2003), Lucky Strike Band (2003), Los Aceleradores (2004), Alan Leatherwood (2004), The Starlight Wranglers (2004), The Greyhounds (2004), Black Knights (2004), Rory Justice (2004), Big Sandy & his Fly-Rite Boys (2005), Mike Mok and The Em-Tones (2007), Bob Glazebrook & Houserockers (2009), Dixie Stompers (2009), The Muskrats (2009), Black Knights (2010), The Jets & Lights Out (2010), The Bop A Tones (2010), Victor Huganet (2010), Cliff and the Cavaliers (2010), HooDoo- Tones (2010) Dennis and the Rocktones (2012), Ducky Jim Trio (2012), Flying Flick Knives (2012), Gene Gambler and the Shufflers (2013), Robby Vee (2014), Reverend Horton Heat (2014), Tyler Hart Tryo (2014), The Hoodoo-Tones (2016), Ray Allen Trio (2017), The Cattle Thieves (2017), Snakebite (2017), Dell Clark and Rocket 88 (2018), Sandy Ford and Flying Saucers (2018), Jeff Allen, (2018), Johnny & The Two Rockin' Aces (2018), Dylan Kirk with the Starlights (2019) * Various Artists: School of Rock 'n Roll was used as the title for a (2) CD Box Set compilation released in the late 1990s. CD featured artists from the 1980s including J. Geils Band, Billy Squier, Steve Miller, The Motels, Glass Tiger, Culture Club, Sheena Easton and others. (CD title obviously inspired by the Gene Summers original, classic 'School Of Rock 'n Roll') ** Gene Vincent – UNISSUED private recording, (late 1960s).'' According to a 1998 Now Dig This! magazine review of Derek Henderson's book "Gene Vincent A Discography", there's a complete A-Z listing of the 217 song titles that he's (Vincent) known to have recorded-everything from the Capitol biggies such as "Say Mama", Rocky Road Blues" and "Wildcat" to lesser known items such as private recordings of "Stand By Me", "Chain Gang" and " School Of Rock 'n Roll".'' * ''She Bops A Lot'' – by The Lightcrust Doughboys (2000),

Floyd Dakil Floyd Arthur Dakil (June 16, 1945 – April 24, 2010) was an American musician from Texas, best known for his often compiled song "Dance, Franny, Dance". He later went on to play guitar in Louis Prima's band. Biography Dakil was born in Childress ...

(2010) * ''Straight Skirt'' – by The Diamonds (1958), Johnny Devlin (1958), Bengt Johansson (1958), Willie King (1958), Ronnie Dawson (1958), The Sureshots (2005) * '' Tomorrow '' by Jeff Allen (2018) * ''Turnip Greens'' – by Darrel Higham & The Enforcers (1992), Eddie Clendening (2012) * ''Twixteen'' – by Teddy and The Tigers (1979), Runnin' Wild (1997), ( Jimmy Velvit) (2000) (The Velvit version is a re-written vocal adaptation titled "Waiting For Elvis" and also uses the original Gene Summers 1958 "Twixteen" sound track)'' * ''You Said You Loved Me'' – by Sid and Billy King (1988)

References

Bibliography

*http://siliconmusic.us/artists/genesummers/promotional/bdylan-srr.mp3
ARSA Radio Surveys Archive
11/9/63
"Texas Music" by Rick Koster
* Dallas Sportatorium ( World Class Championship Wrestling#Ring announcers) *''Catch That Rockabilly Fever'' by Sheree Homer (published by McFarland & Company, Inc) United States 2009 *''The Golden Age of American Rock 'n Roll: Reelin' & Rockin' : 1956–1959'' by Lee Cotten (Published by Popular Culture Ink) United States 1995 *''The Handbook of Texas Music'' by Laurie E. Jansinski (published by Texas A&M University Press) United States 2012 *''Feature article 'Gene Summers Picked For Pakefield in issue 58 of UK Rock Magazine, February 2009 UK *''Popular Music'' by Michael H. Gray (published by Bowker Publishing) United States 1983 *''The Handbook of Texas Music'' by Roy R. Barkley and Cathy Brigham (published by Texas State Historical Association) United States 2003 page 259 *''The Mercury Labels: A Discography: The 1964–1969 Era'' by Michael Ruppli and Ed Novitsky United States 1993 page 371 *''A Dream Deferred'' By Matt Weitz, Dallas Observer, July 31 – August 6, 1997, Volume 752, pages 73–79 *''Gene Summers Fan Club Bulletin'', United States 1985 *''Rockabilly: A Forty-Year Journey'' by Billy Poore (published by Hal Leonard) United States 1998 *''The Journal of Country Music, Volumes 20-21'' by Ed. Paul Kingsbury (published by Country Music Foundation Press) United States 1998 *''Legends Of Our Time'' (published by Escape Today Publishing United States 2005) *''Texas Music'' by Rick Koster (published by St. Martin's Press United States 2000) *''The Sound of The City: The Rise Of Rock And Roll'' by Charlie Gillett (published by Da Capo Press United States 1996) *''Race With The Devil'' by Susan Van Hecke (published by St. Martin's Press United States 2000) *''Go Cat Go'' by Craig Morrison (published by University Of Illinois Press United States 1998) *''Sun Records: The Brief History of The Legendary Record Label'' by Colin Escott and Martin Hawkins (published by Quick Fox Books UK 1975/1980) *''Texas Rhythm Texas Rhyme'' by Larry Willoughby (published by Texas Monthly Press United States 1984) *''Who's Who In The South And Southwest'' (published by Marquis Who's Who In America 1984–1985 Edition) United States) *''Blood Will Tell: The Murder Trials Of T. Cullen Davis'' by Gary Cartwright (published by Pocket Books United States 1978/1980) *''The International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'' by Andy Gregory (Published by Routledge United States 2002) *''The Handbook Of Texas Music'' by Texas State Historical Association (published by The University Of Texas at Austin) United States) 2003 *''Cover Versions Of The Songs Made Famous By Gene Summers'' School Of Rock 'n Roll United States 2007 *''Texas Music Industry Directory'' (published by The Texas Music Office) Office of the Governor, Austin, Texas United States 2007 *''Article and sessionography'' in issue No. 15 of New Kommotion Magazine 1977 UK *''Feature article with photo spread'' in issue 53 of Bill Griggs' Rockin' 50s Magazine, 2002 United States *''Feature article with photo spread'' in issue 54 of Bill Griggs' Rockin' 50s Magazine, 2002 United States *''Full Cover photo'' and article in issue 28 of UK Rock Magazine, 2006 UK * "Reba: My Story: by Reba Mcentire (published by

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

, 1994 United States (pages 56–57). * ''Rockabilly: A Forty-Year Journey'' by Billy Poore (published by Hal Leonard 1998) United States * ''The International Who's Who in Popular Music'' 2002 by Andy Gregory (Published by Routledge 2002, United States) * ''The Handbook Of Texas Online'' (c)Texas State Historical Association (published at The University Of Texas at Austin) 2007, United States (

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" o ...

) * ''Official Price Guide To Records'' by Jerry Osborne (published by House of Collectibles) United States * Chess Records Discography (online) United States * Jamie Records Discography (online) United States * Jubilee Records Artist Roster (online) United States * Charay Records Discography (online) United States *

Discography United States * W&G Records artists Australia * Article and sessionography in issue 15 (1977) of New Kommotion Magazine UK * Article and sessionography in issue 23 (1980) of New Kommotion Magazine UK * Feature article and sessionography in issue 74 (1999) of Rockin' Fifties Magazine Germany

External links

* * (Gene Summers' Home Page) * Gene Summers entryat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

*
Billboard.com

at the Rockabilly Hall of Fame
Gene Summers page
at Tapio's Fin-A-Billy (sessionography) {{DEFAULTSORT:Summers, Gene 1939 births 2021 deaths Heart transplant recipients American people of English descent Professional wrestling announcers Businesspeople from Texas American bandleaders American rock singers American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American male composers Ballad musicians American male pop singers American pop musicians American rock guitarists American acoustic guitarists Rhythm guitarists Singer-songwriters from Texas American rock songwriters American rockabilly guitarists American male guitarists Record producers from Texas Alta Records artists Norton Records artists Jamie Records artists Jubilee Records artists Mercury Records artists Tear Drop Records artists Charay Records artists Apex Records artists Charly Records artists Warner Music Group artists American rockabilly musicians Musicians from Dallas People from Duncanville, Texas Duncanville High School alumni People from Garland, Texas 20th-century American singers 21st-century American singers 20th-century American composers 21st-century American composers 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists Guitarists from Texas University of Texas at Arlington alumni Country musicians from Texas 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers