Big D Jamboree
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|---|---|
| Radio show from Dallas, Texas | |
| publication | 1948 - early 1960s |
| production | KRLD |
| Contributors | |
| Moderation | Ed McLemore, Johnny Hicks |
The Big D Jamboree was an American music show that was broadcast by the radio station KRLD . The show consisted of performances by famous country musicians as well as skits and gags.
history
Beginnings
The Big D Jamboree started on October 18, 1947 as the Lone Star Barn Dance , but after a year the show was renamed. It was held in the Dallas , Texas sports arena, which could hold up to 6300 spectators. The show was initially produced by Al Turner and Ed McLemore, and later by Johnny Hicks and Johnny Harper. At that time, in the late 1940s, there was no other country show in Dallas, so the Big D Jamboree was very popular.
Most successful show in Texas
The number of musicians who performed there regularly rose from 20 (1947) to 50 (1953). Around 1956 the Big D Jamboree was fed into the CBS network, so the broadcast could be received in almost all of America. At the same time, a half-hour sequence of the show was broadcast on AFN in Europe , alternating weekly with KWKH Louisiana Hayride , WHAS Old Kentucky Barn Dance and WRVA Old Dominion Barn Dance . Initially, only local musicians appeared in the Big D Jamboree, which changed in the early 1950s. The list of stars is long, including Faron Young , Webb Pierce and Hank Locklin in the Big D Jamboree. For young talents, the program was also an opportunity to gain greater prominence. From 1954 on, the Big D Jamboree mainly contributed to the spread of rockabilly , as Elvis Presley , Johnny Cash , Carl Perkins , Warren Smith and many other rockabilly artists also performed here and withdrew from the strict regiment of the WSM Grand Ole Opry . The show was considered one of the most important radio broadcasts in Texas and the other southern states .
When the heyday of country broadcasts ended in the early 1960s, the Big D Jamboree also lost its popularity. With television, people no longer had to listen to the radio or watch a live show. Until the early 1960s, the show continued with a reduced number. Then she was deposed. The Sportarium, the building in which the shows took place, was later used as a wrestling arena and was demolished in 2003.
For 2009 it was planned to revive the Big D Jamboree.
Guests and members
literature
- Stambler, Irwin / Landon, Grelun: Encyclopedia Of Folk, Country And Western Music . New York / London: St. Martin's Press, 1969, pp. 27f