 According to Ripley, “We hadn’t played at all [live] when we made the first record. We were old friends that had gathered around the studio.” Charlene clarified that “they recorded for years together but didn’t play live until after their first album came out.” The success of their debut album, The Tractors, was phenomenal. But it was down to Ripley’s meticulous marketing plan, his propensity for tweaking things until they were just right, and the engineering and mixing that took place at The Church Studio. Read More
0 Comments
It took a while to complete those songs. But when they were ready, Ripley sent DuBois several packages over the course of a few weeks. Each package contained a map, starting in Tulsa with a little tractor inching closer to Nashville in each mailing. Finally, Ripley sent a creative marketing bundle and a four-song sample on a cassette to Tim. DuBois remarked, “It wasn’t really country, but it was absolutely great.” Ripley had composed the music and created the marketing package, and he had even included a one-of-a-kind Owner’s Manual with the tapes. Few record labels could have refused The Tractor’s unique new brand of music with those kinds of resources. Read More  Ripley’s music and technical vision were magical, but he was also a self-starter and hard worker. He had advanced thinking and comprehension skills, as well as a strong sense of curiosity. Instead of simply going with the flow of life, he had a vision and was strategic about what he wanted to do next. He pursued his dream of forming his own band, The Tractors, on his own terms. And sometimes, that takes time.
Read More  Steve Ripley is a genuine Oklahoma icon. Over the coming months, you’ll be able to read about Ripley’s early years, his tenure at The Church Studio, his time with his band The Tractors, and his work to preserve Oklahoma music before his passing in 2019. This is done to honor Ripley and his contributions to Oklahoma music and The Church Studio. Read More by Deborah McLaren Deborah McLaren, an author from Oklahoma, has written about community development for magazines, online media, radio, and TV. Her book "Rethinking Tourism and Ecotravel" was a groundbreaking critique of global mass tourism and its impacts on rural communities and Indigenous Peoples. It’s been translated into several languages. Deborah is also keenly interested in music and has contributed her skills to the Clinton Inaugural Celebration, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis, and The Church Studio in Tulsa. One of her favorite projects has been writing about Steve Ripley. Click here to listen to Shy Guy (from radio show #4): Mike Wallace made a brief appearance on our Oklahoma Rock and Roll radio show. It was Show #4 - the first of two shows we did on Oklahoma POP - pop music and pop culture with some sort of connection to Oklahoma. I thought I'd share this little segment that features just a tiny bit of the movie The Outsiders (filmed in Oklahoma and based on the book written by S.E. Hinton from Tulsa). That takes us in to a 'school film' about outsiders called The Shy Guy, featuring Dick York from Bewitched, and Mike Wallace as the narrator. The Shy Guy, with his "record transmitter and microphone" (and oscillator), sets the stage for the great Five Americans record, Western Union - complete with a bit of my buddy, disc jockey Ronnie Kaye from WKY (now KOMA) radio in Oklahoma City. Finishing up the segment is a commercial (Sherman Oaks and Mazeppa) for Jerry Ralph R. B. Bob Bevis Furniture Warehouse Revolution. Good times...
Bill Anderson and The Oak Ridge Boys - dressin' fancy and singing old Uncle Steve's song "Gone Away" on The Grand Ole Opry at the Ryman Auditorium. The original version was written by myself and my buddies, Tim Dubois and John Wooley. Whisperin' Bill added some great stuff about country legends that have gone away. Brought down the dang house, I tells ya....
|
Archives
July 2024
Categories |
RSS Feed