Starting out as a rockabilly player, in the early '60s, bassist Doyle Holly (1936-2007) became a key player in the Bakersfield music scene, joining The Buckaroos after Merle Haggard left to become a solo star. Holly was in the Buck Owens band from 1963-71, when they were at their peak, though in the early '70s he set out on his own, and had a few reasonably successful singles along with a couple of LPs. Holly soon settled into session work, however, as well as helping produce other artists. Here's a quick look at his solo stuff -- you can also hear him on many of the best, most classic Buck Owens recordings.
Doyle Holly & The Vanishing Breed "Doyle Holly" (Barnaby Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Ken Mansfield)
Starting out as a rockabilly player, in the early '60s bassist Doyle Holly became a key player in the Bakersfield music scene, and joined The Buckaroos after Merle Haggard left to become a solo star. Holly was in the group from 1963-71, when the band was at its peak... In the early '70s he set out on his own, and had a few reasonably successful singles. This was his first solo album, and includes his version of Shel Silverstein's "Queen Of The Silver Dollar," later covered by Emmylou Harris.
Doyle Holly & The Vanishing Breed "Just Another Cowboy Song" (Barnaby Records, 1973) (LP)
A rather serious, measured, folkie-countrypolitan outing by Buck Owens' erstwhile bass player... This was Holly's second solo album, and while I think it's pretty snoozy, it did have a few middling-sized hits; the lead song, "Lila," even cracked into the Top Twenty. There's a picture of Holly hanging out with Kris Kristofferson on the back cover, but no mention of him in the production credits, nor any of his songs on the disc. There is a Willie Nelson song on here, though: was this supposed to be an "outlaw" album??
Doyle Holly "Doyle Holly" (Warner Brothers/Holly Records, 1975-?) (LP)
A forgotten link in Holly's recording career, this album appears to have been a special promotional disc pressed by Warner Brothers to test the waters for signing Holly as a charting artist. It collects several singles previously released on the Barnaby Records label, as well as some newer tracks and stuff that had been left in the can. One track, "Jesse California," came out as a Warner Brothers single in 1975, and the liner notes indicate this LP was pressed around the same time. It's an odd release: it was mastered in a monophonic mix, and uses an older version of the WB logo, with a graphic style reminiscent of the early 'Sixties Everly Brothers discs. The set includes Holly's rendition of Shel Silverstein's "Queen Of The Silver Dollar" (later covered by Emmylou Harris) and his version of "Peaceful Easy Feeling," which was later released on a best-of collection in the '80s, along with several other tracks, and again in self-released CDs that Holly put out around 2001. A couple of these songs were apparently never released as singles, but did come out in later best-ofs ("Harlan County Coal Mines," etc.)
Doyle Holly "Together Again" (OMS Records, 2003)
Holly reunites with a couple of his old Buckaroo buddies -- steel player Tom Brumley and drummer Willy Cantu, along with a slew of country and bluegrass pickers -- for a loping, relaxed tribute to the classic Buck Owens sound. It's not the same as the original recordings, but it's nice to hear the old guys play with such feeling.
Doyle Holly "Headed For The Country" (First American Records, 1980) (LP)
Doyle Holly "Doyle Holly Sings Just For You" (Karavan Records, 1981) (LP)
Doyle Holly "Mary In The Morning" (Hal Kat Kountry, 1983-?) (LP)
Doyle Holly "The Best Of Doyle Holly - Volume One" (Doyle Holly, 2001) (CD)
Doyle Holly "The Best Of Doyle Holly Volume Two" (Doyle Holly, 2001)
