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Gene Autry, born on September 29, 1907, in Texas, moved with his family to Ravia in the 1920s. Autry became "Oklahoma's Yodeling Cowboy" on local radio in 1928, and in 1931, he signed his first recording deal with Columbia Records. In 1934, he was discovered by a film producer and became the first of the singing cowboys. Autry also created the "Cowboy Code" for those young kids who wanted to be like him. Gene Autry died in 1998.
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Chet Baker, a famous jazz trumpet player, worked with artists including Charlie Parker and Gerry Mulligan. Perhaps his most remembered recording was “My Funny Valentine.” Baker was noted for his lyrical style on the horn. He developed a heroin problem in the 1960s that would hound him the rest of his life. Baker moved to Europe in the 1980s, returning to America only once a year. His heroin addiction forced him to work almost constantly, and he turned out a prodigious list of recordings. In 1988 Baker died after falling from a second-story window in an Amsterdam hotel. Governor Brad Henry and the House of Representatives declared July 2, 2005, as “Chet Baker Day.”
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Troyal Garth Brooks, born February 7, 1962, in Tulsa, became the fastest-selling solo artist in music history when he sold in excess of 100 million albums in 10 years. Garth is the only solo artist in Record Industry Association of America (RIAA) history to have 4 albums top the 10 million mark. The RIAA lists Garth Brooks as the top-selling solo artist of the 20th Century. At the top of his game, he retired from touring in 1993, married Trisha Yearwood in 2005, and now lives in Owasso with her and his three daughters.
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Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was born on July 14, 1912, in Okemah. Woody first found fame performing on a radio show in the 1930s with his radio partner, Maxine "Lefty Lou" Crissman. After the outbreak of war, he made his way to New York where the music communities saw him as a real Oklahoma cowboy. Woody penned "This Land is Your Land," his most famous song, in 1940. Woody Guthrie died of complications from Huntington's Disease in 1967.
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Hanson, made up of brothers Isaac, Taylor, and Zac Hanson, began in 1992 in Tulsa. In 1997, their song, MmmBop, became an international sensation, rocketing them to superstardom. Their debut album, Middle of Nowhere, earned three Grammy nominations. With their ever-changing style, Hanson keeps securing spots in the Top 10 of the Billboard Charts and overseas. |
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Born Clara Ann Flowler on November 8, 1927, in Claremore, Patti Page became one of the biggest selling female artists in recording history. Ms. Page has 15 certified gold records. Her recording of Tennessee Waltz remains the biggest selling single ever recorded by a female artist. Ms. Page continues to tour, 57 years after her beginnings on a radio show in Tulsa where she first became "Patti Page."
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