Larry Scott (September 27, 1938 – July 10, 2016) was an American

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 ...

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

who hosted a number of country music shows in the U.S. First announcing on a radio station in

Neosho, Missouri Neosho (; originally or ) is the most populous city in Newton County, Missouri, United States, which it serves as the county seat. With a population of 12,590 as of the 2020 census, the city is a part of the Joplin, Missouri Metropolitan Area, ...

in 1955, Larry received a call from Al Brumley, originally from Powell. MO. Al and his brother, Tom,bwere in Bakersfield, CA playong country music. Al told Larry that if he ever wanted to be anybody in country music he needed to get out there. Larry packed his bags and headed West. He went to work for Cousin Herb Henson at KUZZ. He was there when it all happened, The Bakersfield Sound. He had an air shift at KUZZ a television show, produced Barbara Mandrell"s' first 45, plus making lifelong friends with Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Bill Woods, and the other greats of Bakersfield music scene. Scott later moved to Los Angeles where he worked at radio stations KBBQKBLA to Go 24-Hour 'Mod' Country
, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''. June 17, 1967. p. 4. Retrieved May 15, 2019. and

KLAC KLAC (570 AM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by a joint venture between iHeartMedia, Inc. and the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball club, KLAC serves as the Los Angeles ...

from 1967 to 1982. During the Los Angeles time, his boss and dear friend, Bill Ward, knew the talent, but wanted him to fain more experience, KVEG, Las Vegas and WiL. St. Louis. Then returned to Los Angeles. Bill and Larry had met in Dallas at a

Gordon McLendon Gordon Barton McLendon (June 8, 1921 – September 14, 1986Texas State Historical AssociationMcClendon, Gordon Barton/ref>) was an American radio broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Maverick of Radio", McLendon is widely credited for perfecting, during ...

station. They were the first all country Station. Larry did the night shift, Bill was daytime. Larry still had his old California friends and knew about country music going to Los Angeles. He asked Bill if he wanted to go to California. They left Dallas for Burbank and KBBQ. Next stop KFDI, Wichita, KS 1975. Program Director and on-air personality. During this venture. Larry's love for Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys revived. He and MiKe OATMAN SHARED THIS LOVE. They were in contact with Leon McAuliffe and Smoky Dacus in Arkansas. The band members were playing single dates. It was Larry and Mike's efforts with the assistance and permission of Betty Wills, assistance of Smoky and Leon to book them again as Bob Wills' Texas Playboys. They booked them for The Cotillion Ballroom in Wichita, KS. PACKED and SRO. 1977, Phoenix, AZ, KNIX 1979, Dallas, TX KRLD 1980, KLAC 1981, KWKH Shreveport, LA. Born in

Modesto, California Modesto ( ; ) is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,069 according to 2022 United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau estimates, it is the List of cities and towns in Ca ...

, Scott was noted in country music circles for hosting ''The Interstate Road Show'' which aired overnight on KWKH from

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

and on KVOO (now KOTV) in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

. The show involved a mix of country music, news, vital weather reports and road conditions for truckers that were on the road. Mr. Scott is also known as a devotee of

Western swing Western swing, country jazz or smooth country is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands. It is dance music, often with an up-tempo beat, which att ...

music and hosted Western Swing revival shows across the Southwestern United States. The most recent show honoring this genre occurred in

Wichita Falls, Texas Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan area, Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer County, Tex ...

in 2006. He was Entertainment Direct8r for The Lincoln County Cowboy Symposoum. Ruidoso, NM, 25 years, booking the greats of Western Swing, with The Playboys featured and honored for 3 nights. Sold out crowds for 4 days and 3 nights. Larry Scott also released an album of truck driving songs for Alshire Records in 1972 titled ''Keep On Truckin' '' (A/S). One song on the LP, "Phantom 570," alluded to his Phantom 570 truckers' show in which he played host on KLAC (570) radio in Los Angeles. A popular track from the album was "Diesel Cecil." Larry Scott was retired from the radio business for a time and ran a trucking service out of

Terrell, Texas Terrell is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Kaufman County. As of the 2020 census, its population was 17,465. Terrell is located about east of Dallas. History Terrell developed as a railroad town, beginning in 1873 with the con ...

. He returned to Shreveport to host several one-hour shows on KWKH on Sunday mornings until KWKH instituted a format change to sports talk in May 2012. Larry Scott received the Deejay of the Year 1981 from the Country Music Association and from th
Academy of Country Music
Disc Jockey of the Year (1971, 72) and Radio Personality (1968,74). Larry is also an inductee into th
Texas Gospel Music
Hall of Fame. Other awards include: * Academy of Western Artists - Disc Jockey 1999 * Founding member, Southern Gospel Music Association. Memphis, TN * Emceed Albert E Brumley SunDown to SunUp Gospel Singing, Springdale AR. 25+ years. Larry Scott died in Oak Ridge, Kaufman County, Texas months before his 78th birthday.

Sources

* ''Classic country sound in full swing'' Tulsa World, December 13, 1999 * ''The King Of Swing Bob Wills Crossed the Border and Put His Playboys On the Map'' Tulsa World, August 24, 1997 * ''State dance festival slated'' Wichita Falls Times Record News, June 4, 2006 * Academy of Country Music Website, July 11, 2016 * Texas Gospel Music Hall of Fame and Museum, July 11, 2016 * Academy of Western Artists, July 11, 2016

References

External links

Mini-Bio of Larry ScottObituary Larry Scott
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Larry 1938 births 2016 deaths American radio DJs Western swing People from Modesto, California