Buck Owens Private Foundation

Born in Sherman, Texas in 1929, Buck Owens came West with his family in the great “Grapes of Wrath” migration of the 30’s. By 1951, he settled into Bakersfield, California and found himself playing guitar and singing in the local honky-tonks. He quickly became a local favorite and then in 1953 got a break by playing for the then hot Tommy Collins. He started playing lead guitar on Tommy’s records, and during the next few years became a popular session player for Capitol Records in Hollywood. After making a few records of his own on the Pep label, Buck signed as a solo act with Capitol in 1957. For the next five years his hits were steady and his star was rising, but in 1963 his career really took off. Buck Owens and the Buckaroos had seventeen #1 hit singles over the next six years, including “Act Naturally”, “Together Again”, “Tiger By The Tail”, “Crying Time”, and “Love’s Gonna Live Here”… which stayed in the #1 slot on Billboard for 16 weeks straight! By the late 1960’s, Buck led a huge organization based in Bakersfield, including publishing companies, several radio stations, TV, newspapers, and more. In the summer of 1969 Buck became co-host of Hee Haw, which became one of the the top syndicated TV successes of all time. In 1989 Buck had a resurgence in popularity with the a new younger group of fans and scored a #1 hit with “Streets of Bakersfield”… a duet with his friend Dwight Yoakam. Subsequent generations rediscovered his music and now keep his name shining as one of the great innovators and true legends of country music.

In 1996, Buck opened the Buck Owens Crystal Palace in Bakersfield. Over the following years, it became known world wide as an important venue of country music. Buck and the Buckaroos played there Friday and Saturday nights until his passing, March 25, 2006. His family continues to honor his legacy, celebrating his life by carrying on his radio stations and the Crystal Palace the way they know he would have wanted.