Jimmy McDonough joins us this week to tell us about his new book Gary Stewart: I Am From The Honky Tonks. The book is available in the UK & also in the US. While not a household name Gary Stewart became a hugely influential singer described as ‘too country for country and too rock for rock’. Jimmy developed a relationship with the Stewart family over a long period, enabling this book to come to fruition. Jerry Lee lewis was a key influence on Gary in his younger years & the Allman Brothers Band became a significant influence as he grew older. Gary Stewart was born in Kentucky before the family relocated to Fort Pierce, Florida. His route into the music business came as a songwriter in Nashville, before signing a solo deal with RCA Records, where he achieved a number of country hits including a number 1 with "She's Actin' Single (I'm Drinkin' Doubles)". Some of his more rock oriented material did not sit well with RCA & his relationship with the label began to fracture. His later years were patchy filled with memorable gigs but also some questionable decisions. Gary Stewart passed away in 2003 & his ashes were scattered outside the Texas Honky Tonk he had been due to play that night. His influence was proven as names including Waylon Jennings, Dwight Yoakam, Sturgill Simpson & Willie Nelson went onto name check him over the years. It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmaps It is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it. You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/events Instagram: @rocknrollbookclube17 X: @simonmusicmaps Facebook: E17rockbookclub Hosted, Produced & Edited by Simon Cardwell Music by Andy Maxwell Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
