As Dr. W.F. Nelson points out in his analysis of early Western trios (in Song of the West, Summer 1992), in the late 1930s there were many groups that attempted to follow the pattern set by the Sons of the Pioneers. Few possessed all three of the key components needed for success: good vocal blend, instrumental skills and arranging, and the ability to compose a large number of top-quality Western songs. Many had one or two of these qualities, but The Jimmy Wakely Trio had all three!

The trio used several names during their career, starting as The Bell Boys in 1937. Later they called themselves The Rough Riders and, at times, The Jimmy Wakely Trio. Initially the trio consisted of Wakely, Johnny Bond, and Scotty Harrell. Subsequently, Dick Reinhart alternated with Harrell and, as it happened, appeared on most of the trio’s recordings.

Their early work was on radio in Oklahoma City, but Wakely, Bond & Harrell began recording transcriptions in Hollywood in 1939, including in that session the first recording of the classic “Cimarron (Roll On).” The same year, they appeared in their first film, Roy Rogers; Saga of Death Valley for Republic Studios. The following year, with Reinhart replacing Harrell, they cut additional transcriptions plus some commercial sides and began work with Gene Autry on his weekly radio show, Melody Ranch, a partnership with Autry that lasted for two years. During this time, while still performing as a trio, each member of the trio also developed skills as a soloist, and each had a contract with a different record label. Often, the other two members of the trio backed their soloist pal in the studio.

As a trio in the early 1940s, the appeared in a number of B-Western films with Gene Autry, Don “Red” Barry, Hopalong Cassidy, The Range Busters, Johnny Mack Brown, and Tex Ritter. The last of these films starred Charles Starret in Robin Hood of the Range (1943). One of the Hopalong Cassidy films, Twilight on the Trail (1941), documented the unique guitar talents of Jimmy Wakely, as the musical segments were shot “live,” rather than using lip-synching, which was common to musical Westerns (before the print of this film was discovered, along with the fact that the musical scenes in it were filmed ‘live,” it was commonly assumed that another guitarist was doing the lead work for the group).

After Jimmy Wakely became a cowboy film star, he reunited the Trio on occasion, for his own movie series for Monogram Studios, the last one being Song of the Wasteland (1947). Bond and Reinhart also became recording stars in their own rights, and Harrell worked with other groups, most notably Foy Willing & The Riders of the Purple Sage, in films, on records, and in personal appearances.

Only recently have some of the Trio’s recordings been re-issued on CD, e.g. their first commercial recording of “Cimarron (Roll On)” on a Rounder label anthology. Two full CDs of their later work (with added fiddle) have been issues on the Bronco label, and Jasmine and the British Archive of Country Music (BACM) have included some of the Trio’s recordings in Jimmy Wakely collections so that today’s audiences can appreciate them. The Jimmy Wakely Trio’s recordings of “Saddle Serenade,” “Rocky Mountain Lullaby,” “Prairie Campfire,” “Moon Over the Trail,” “Lights Out Prairie Moon,” are among the finest Western performances ever recorded.
O.J. Sikes

Awards:

• 2004 Hall of Fame Inductees