Wynn Stewart

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Wynn Stewart
Img_capt = Wynn Stewart photo.
Img_size = (220)
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Winford Lindsey Stewart
Alias = Wynn Stewart
Born = June 7, 1934
Died = July 17, 1985
Origin = Morrisville, Missouri
Instrument = Vocals, Guitar
Genre = Country, Bakersfield Sound
Occupation = Singer, Songwriter
Years_active = 1960–1985
Label = Capitol Records
Playboy Records
Associated_acts = Merle Haggard, Buck Owens
URL = [http://www.wynnstewart.com/ Wynn Stewart Official Site]

Wynn Stewart (born Winford Lindsey Stewart June 7, 1934 - July 17, 1985) was an American country music performer. He was one of the progenitors of the Bakersfield sound. Although not a huge chart success, he was an inspiration to such greats as Buck Owens and Merle Haggard.

Early Life & Rise to Fame

Wynn Stewart was one of the most important figures in the Bakersfield Sound. He was born in Morrisville, Missouri in 1934, during the Depression. He spent most of his childhood moving around the country with his sharecropping family. After World War II, Stewart spent a year working at a radio station in Springfield, Missouri called "KWTO". In 1948, he moved to California with his family. Wynn originally wanted to become a professional baseball player, but Stewart suffered from a hand disease, and he was also too short to play professional baseball. When he was in high school, Stewart formed a band, that played at clubs around California. He soon met steel guitarist Ralph Mooney, who joined Stewart's band. The group's lineup consisted of guitarist Roy Nichols and bassist Bobby Austin.

In 1954, Stewart signed a recording contract with an independent record label called Intro Records. He released two singles under Intro. The first one was called "I've Waited a Lifetime" and the second one was called "Strolling". Both singles failed to chart on the Country Music charts. His second released single caught the attention of Skeets McDonald, one of Stewart's idols. He liked the song so much, he arranged an audition with Capitol Records for Stewart. By the summer of 1956, Stewart signed with Capitol Records. He soon recorded and released his first single from the record company called "Waltz of the Angels" that same year. The song went to #14 on the Country charts that year, and gave Stewart his first major hit. The song later became a duet hit for George Jones and Margie Singleton. However, Stewart did not stay with Capitol much longer. This was because none of his other singles were gaining much success on the charts. His last single for the label was called "I Wish I Could Stay the Same", which was released in September 1957.

Nightclub Owner

Stewart was part owner of a Las Vegas, Nevada, nightclub called Nashville Nevada during the early 1960s. He performed there six nights a week and also hosted his own television show. A young Merle Haggard sat in with the band while Stewart was out of town. Stewart returned early, was impressed with Haggard's performance, and hired him as his regular bass player. He wrote Haggard's first hit "Sing a Sad Song".

"Wynn's sound was what influenced Buck and me both," Merle Haggard has said, "and in a strange twist of fate, his band was the heart of the old Frizzell band -- Roy Nichols was part of the Lefty band, and he went to Wynn Stewart and ran into Ralph Mooney, who played the steel, and they were the basis of the modern West Coast sound."

The Height of His Career

With the help of songwriter Harlan Howard, Stewart signed with the record company Jackpot, part of Challenge Records in 1958. Stewart recorded a string of singles, that were a mix of different styles, ranging from Pop to Rockabilly. In 1959 he released a single called "Wishful Thinking". The song finally struck gold for Stewart when it reached #5 in 1960. Following the song's success, Stewart moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he hosted a local TV show, and opened a club of his own called Nashville Nevada.

Stewart continued to have sizeable hits, like the Jan Howard duet called "Wrong Company", and "Big, Big Love", among others. In 1962, a young Merle Haggard joined Stewart's band, and Wynn helped him along the way with Haggard's first single called "Sing a Sad Song". Soon, his club went bankrupt and Stewart moved back to the center of the Bakersfield Sound, California in 1965. He soon re-signed with Capitol Records and immediately started recording for the label. His first couple of singles for the label, proved unsuccessful once again for Stewart, but his fifth single was a different story. His fifth single, entitled "It's Such a Pretty World Today", was released in 1967, and became the biggest hit of his career. The song went to #1 on the Country music charts, and spent two weeks there. Its follow-up, entitled "Cause I Have You", was a Top 10 hit in 1967. Following his singles' success, Stewart recorded more softer, Pop-friendly material. This new kind of recording material gave Stewart his biggest hits, which ran all the way into the 1970s.

By 1972, his sales began to fall, so Stewart moved over to RCA Records that year with "Paint Me A Rainbow" being his biggest hit for the label. He also briefly signed with Atlantic Records in 1974. Over the next three years, Stewart released singles but didn't break the Country Top 40. In 1975, Stewart signed with Playboy Records and managed a Top 10 hit in 1976 called "After the Storm". Although he stayed with Playboy, he only had one other big hit, which was his version of "Sing a Sad Song", which went to #19 in 1977. Soon, his success began to fall, after low record slaes and failing chart success.

Later Career & Death

Stewart started his own label in 1978 called WIN. His first single for his label called "Eyes As Big As Dallas" broke the Top 40. Although Country Music was changing in the late 70s, moving from Traditional Country to the smooth sounds of Country Pop, he wasn't able to continue to achieve success, which was due to alcoholism. In the early 1980s, Stewart quit performing. In the mid 80s, things changed when Stewart launched a comeback, with an extensive tour and brand new album.

During the tour, Stewart suddenly died of a heart attack on July 17, 1985. Following Stewart's death, his song "Wait Till I Get My Hands On You" became a minor hit.

ingles

External links

* [http://www.wynnstewart.com/ Official website]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:fpftxqugldde~T1 All Music Guide]