Tommy Allsup & the Raiders, Odessa / Connections

Tommy Allsup had a big hand in Odessa and West Texas in general through the 50s and 1960s. He fronted a western swing outfit in the 50s, worked a steady clip at Petty's place in Clovis, and even put together the Crickets line-up that backed Buddy Holly on the Winter Dance Party Tour(bass player Waylon Jennings and drummer Carl Bunch bunch of Odessa who passed away on March 25). In the mid- to late- 60s he stayed busy producing a whole mess of West Texans for AOK and other one-shot labels. Between the Winter Dance Party and his return in the mid-60s Tommy spent a stretch in California, working real heavy with Liberty Records.

Tommy has recently released a book with Guy Logsdon titled The Flip of a Coin and while I've not yet read it, I understand that he barely references his Odessa stays. I'll read regardless, but his days at his northside Odessa studio deserve mention like the rest of his career.


THE RAIDERS featuring TOMMY ALLSUP - What Time Is It? (Liberty 55393)

At the behest of former Lubbock boy Snuff Garrett former Oklahoma/Texas boy Tommy Allsup put together the Raiders in 1961. LP-wise their sole release was Twistin' The Country Classics from 1963. "What Time Is It" b/w "Dardanella" was issued in 1961. Coming in right after some rotary dial action Tommy Allsup's guitar is absolutely jarring. It eventually breaks off in a Bill Justis direction with the sax, but Tommy comes back to save the day. Fierce guitar... but where's the drummer?

Aside from his years at Liberty Tommy's guitar playing on record, though solid, was largely nondescript session work as it wasn't his intent to steal the show. Shame there aren't more "Tommy Allsup" records from the 50s and 60s out there.
___________________

Pick up Tommy's bio The Flip of A Coin HERE.