The Waylon files of Howard Olson

June 15th, 1937 to February 13th, 2002
"Rest in peace ol' friend"

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"Once upon a time in country music, there were giants walking the land. Waylon Jennings may have been the tallest of them all"

I first heard of Waylon Jennings in 1958-1959, being a big fan of Buddy Holly.  I would read anything I could find regarding Buddy Holly.

Waylon Jennings was born on June 15, 1937 in Littlefield, Texas.  (downtown street scene in Littlefield, Texas to left) The son of William and Lorene Jennings.  Waylon's love for music was at an early age.  In the early 1950's he was with a small band, "The Texas Longhorns" playing around the Littlefield area, Muleshoe and Levelland.  It was in Levelland Where Waylon met his first wife, Maxine Carroll Lawrence.  He went to work at the radio station in Littlefield.  After a few jobs around Littlefield Waylon moved to Lubbock and got a job as a D.J. at station KDAV.  The station owner would let local groups play on Sunday afternoons.  It was at this station Waylon would first meet Buddy Holly, along with Bob Montgomery, Sonny Curtis.  The Corbin brothers acquired station KLLL and hired Waylon to D.J. there new station.

Their friendship was renewed after Buddy went on the road. While on trips back to Lubbock, Texas he would stop at KLLL, the radio station where Waylon worked at the time.  Buddy began cutting records in Clovis, New Mexico (picture of where Waylon made his first record) and making a name for himself.  He got Waylon to go to Clovis, New Mexico with him and helped produce Waylon's first record.  This was in September of 1958, the songs were JOLE BLON and WHEN SIN STOPS LOVE BEGINS, but they were not released until after Buddy was killed in that famous plane crash on February 3, 1959.

In December of 1958 on a trip home, Buddy again stopped in at the studio of KLLL and made a tape of  YOUR THE ONE.  Waylon and the station owner, Slim Corbin, were keeping time by hand clapping in the background and it was left on the track.

When the Crickets and Buddy Holly had a falling out, Buddy needed a band to go on the road with him.  He got Waylon to play bass, Tommy Allsup on guitar and Carl "Goose" Bunch on drums. (picture of Waylon and Buddy Holly in 1959) Waylon files of Howard OlsonOnce they were all together it was off to the "Winter Dance Party".  (original cover of the program  "Winter Dance Party") The tour staring Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson, Dion & The Belmonts and Frankie Sardo.  This was scheduled to be three weeks full of one night stands.  Beginning in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on January 23, 1959 and winding up in Springfield, Illinois on February 15, 1959.  The posters for this event were made up ahead of time and read "Buddy Holly and The Crickets".  This lead people to think that Waylon was a Cricket.  

February 3rd, 1959 scene of the famous Buddy Holly plane crash

-"don't ask me who I gave my seat to on that plane, I told you that a long time ago" 
A line from a song later written by Waylon Jennings

After "the day the music died" Waylon found himself back in Lubbock, Texas.   His wife and two children had been staying with Waylon's mom when Waylon was on the road with Buddy Holly.  Terry Vance Jennings was born on January 21, 1957 and Julie Rae was born on August 12, 1957.  After the "Holly" tour Buddy Dean Jennings was born, March 21, 1961.  Waylon named him after Buddy Holly and James Dean. 

With the need to make ends met Waylon moved to Coolidge, Arizona, Maxine had relatives in Coolidge and Waylon knew people who were from Littlefield living now in Coolidge, Gary and Romona Tollett, who had sang backup on the Buddy Holly record "That'll Be the Day".  Gary was working at KCKY radio and helped Waylon to get a job at the station.  The owner of the station would let Waylon sing  at the station and this led to jobs in the area "Honky tonks" around Coolidge. Gary and Waylon worked together as D.J.'s also.

The need for better money and more singing lead Waylon's move to Phoenix and landed a job at "Wild Bill's" a honky tonk out in Scottsdale.  After a few months on and off at "Wild Bill's" (seems the owner liked to fire bands) It was here he meet a guy who was about to build his own club and wanted Waylon to go to work for him.  This guy told Waylon, "if you go to work for me you can build the stage the way you want it".  And that became J.D's Nightclub.  Waylon became the hottest thing in Phoenix.  The only thing hotter then Waylon was the Arizona sun.

And along came Bobby Bear and Nashville and RCA and Johnny Cash, and more little white pills.