Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Remembering Buck and Cal Sr.

Today, March 25th, marks the third anniversay of Buck Owens' death and the tenth anniversary of Cal Ripken, Sr.'s death. I don't mean this entry to be morbid, I just wanted to remember two legends.

Although many people remember Buck Owens for his days in overalls while he was co-hosting Hee Haw, that was not what Buck Owens was all about. Throughout the 1960s, Owens was the dominate male singer in country music. No one could touch him. And, he did it all while being based in California, not Nashville. He eschewed the softer Nashville Sound for a straight ahead driving country sound that featured tight harmony vocals from guitar player Don Rich. Here is Owens and Rich singing "Act Naturally" and Chuck Berry's "Memphis".


Although Cal Ripken, Sr.'s days as manager of the Baltimore Orioles were shortlived, he was a long time pillar of the Oriole way as the Orioles third base coach and as manager of the Orioles long time triple AAA affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings. This link is to a clip which is both a tribute to Cal Sr. and a promotional piece for the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation.

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