Sam Wellington
Born in Steubenville, Ohio, an area known for steel mills, entertainers & sports stars (Dean Martin, Clark Gable, Robert Urich & John Havliceck are but a few notables), Sam Wellington decided early in life that he would join ranks with his famous predecessors and go for the gold as well...records that is.
Sam loved harmony singing and hit the stage his first year in high school with a do-wop group called “THE JETS,” who later became THE FABULOUS FOUR GUYS. After winning numerous area talent shows and hearing the sound of ENCORE applause, Sam was hooked. In spite of a stint in the Navy, College, Marriage and a blossoming career in Journalism & Broadcasting, the show-biz bug had imbedded itself in Sam’s psyche forever more.
In this, his first book, “WHO WANTS TO BE A COUNTRY MUSIC STAR,” Sam Wellington offers the DO’S - THE DON’TS & THE MUSTS of launching and maintaining a music career. More specifically, THE RIGHT WAY - THE WRONG WAY & THE NASHVILLE WAY. Meantime, all along the way, this book offers the reader a fun & informative ride up the charts to national prominence while providing plenty of insight into the heart & soul of the Nashville/Country Music Community.
“SOMETHING ABOUT THE AUTHOR”
You might ask yourself, “WHAT’S A GUY LIKE ME, WHOSE NEVER HAD A BIG HIT RECORD, DOING WRITING A BOOK ABOUT HOW TO SUCCEED IN THE RECORDING CAPITOL OF THE WORLD, NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE (don’t get upset New York & L.A…latest figures say we ARE NUMBER ONE).
Well, I have pulled off a trick far more difficult than achieving “Hit Record Status.” I have not only survived but prospered in this “Records Only” city for more than 30-years with music being my primary involvement (if enough of you buy this book, the length of my music involvement will most certainly be extended).
In order for the following work to have any credibility, I feel the need to provide you with some biographical background on my Not So Illustrious past. First off, I’m proud to say that I am a former High School Student, graduating 92nd in a class of 96, from Toronto High School, Toronto, Ohio (John Romey, the late Mike Romey (cousins) & Howard Nease finished below me). But hey, whada ya want? John & I were busy trying to get girls singing in a “Hot” high school group called “The Jets.” Mike & Howard were busy trying to get girls by playing sports. John & I also played sports. He excelled at football & baseball while I merely dabbled (or should I say dribbled) in basketball. Studies just didn’t seem all that important in those days. I’m sure I would have been far more embarrassed at graduation had I known we were accepting our diplomas in the order of our class rank. I thought I was nearly last because my last name begins with “W”.
Anyway, “The Jets” won a bunch of local amateur shows and nearly beat out “The Brothers IV” for a Columbia Records recording contract in New York City. When that effort didn’t work out, my Show Biz Career came to a sudden halt. I decided it was time to get serious about life. I joined the United States Navy where I quickly learned that chipping paint aboard ship was not what I wanted to do for a living. After my service stint, I proceeded to embark on a college career while I worked as a beat reporter for a nearby small town newspaper, The Steubenville Hearld Star (way to go Wellington…get a writing job first then go to college and learn to write).
With an action packed life now taking shape, I could see that “Big Bucks” were just around the corner and the $65.00 a week I was then earning was soon to be little more than a laughing matter.
Chronologically, the following is how my professional life began to unfold:
*Small town newspaper reporter ($65.00 per week)
*Small town radio continuity / news writer ($60.00 per week…wait a minute, I’m going backwards)
*Small town radio newsman (five raises first year to $100.00 per week…aaah, that’s better)
*Small town radio News Director (finally able to eat red meat on a regular basis)
*Small town radio Operations Director
*Small town radio Station Manager (all this by age 25…a regular Broadcasting Whiz Kid)
*Chucked it all for a singing career in Nashville, Tennessee, with a vocal group called The Four Guys (you gotta be kiddin’ me - a group called The Four Guys?)
*Became big time radio-tv performer with regular cast member status on WSM’S Grand Ole Opry
*Became big time touring pro with Hank Williams Jr., Charley Pride, Jimmy Dean, Marty Robbins, Ferlin Husky & Faron Young (one of the things I truly hate about Show Biz is the constant name-dropping. Garth, Vince, Alan, The Chicks & I were talking about this very thing just the other day).
**Became big time TV performer on shows hosted by Bob Hope, Dinah Shore, Merv Griffin, Willie Nelson & Dolly Parton (strictly network…no more syndication for me)
**Became Small-Time Movie Star (sang one song in a Marty Robbins movie with my face barely visible & sang vocal backup for Webb Pierce in a mediocre Goldie Hawn movie called SUGARLAND EXPRESS).
**Became big time night club performer in Las Vegas, Reno & Lake Tahoe, Nevada (got so good at club work decided it was time to buy one….so,
**Became big time night club owner / operator of The Four Guy’s Harmony House in Nashville (we sang & ate prime rib for 10-years then quit while we were behind)
**Became The Beatles at sea with 75-week long cruises out of Miami & Tampa, Florida (swore for a time I was back in the Navy, but the money was better)
So much for establishing my credibility. Let me address my less-than-perfect writing style for a moment. Experts in the field say that I write with an alter-ego (I call him HOSS NOBODY); a separate personality that refuses to let me get to serious about myself and the words going into any piece I prepare. For instance, just about the time I think I’ve written an award-winning sentence, HOSS will keep the computer keys moving with a follow-up line or comment in order to bring a certain degree of honesty to an often times exaggerated statement. These after thoughts, if you will, usually appear in parenthesis. My “other Self-Hoss” is a pain in the butt sometimes. However, because he is basically a “Good Ole Boy,” I continue to let him write with me. I hope he doesn’t disturb your reading flow to badly in the chapters ahead.
Aside from taking a rather humorous view of my life in the entertainment field, I have a very serious outlook toward this most challenging profession, A.K.A. “The Music Business.” Over the years, I have often asked myself why doesn’t someone write a truly informative book spelling out the basic “Do’s & Don’ts” for a path to success in the world of music; A series of guidelines to help save a lot of young (and old) performers tremendous heartache and frustration.
Of course, there is no such thing as a guaranteed formula for success in any business. But, there are a set of basic rules you must learn and a definite framework of thought you must acquire if you are ever going to “GET YOUR CHANCE.”
Unfortunately, it usually takes many years (most times never) to find the correct signposts leading you to your personal “Pot-O-Gold.” The music industry is probably the most difficult profession in which to find even the smallest degree of success. What’s more, the hard knocks and frustration
endured during the so-called “Hungry Years” are usually so extreme that it hardly makes the achievement worthwhile when and if it is ever attained.
Many young entertainers moving to Nashville are quick to cite the comparative rapid rise of some big names who came before them. But for every fast rising star you can name, there are literally thousands that fall by the wayside each year. Moreover, most so-called Fast Rising Stars paid more dues than is generally known. Most of those seeking fame and fortune are –
by all accounts – held captive in this musical time warp called Music City U.S.A. Held captive to await the final verdict of a supreme court made up of music insiders who may or may not ever acknowledge that a case was being presented for a hearing. A couple of writer buddies of mine – Randy Ahart & Rory Waters – wrote a song recently that sums up what I have just said. With
the permission of their publishers – Jimmy & Melody Miles and their company, Rope ‘n String Music – I am including the lyrics to a song called THE NASHVILLE SCENE:
“They roll into town everyday with the last dime that they own
Some came to sing and some came to play and some are here to write a song,
They come from every walk of life from California to Maine
Just to be a part of the Nashville Scene…
They packed their cars, and said goodbye to friends and family back home,
And now the only chance they get to visit is on the telephone,
They work in factories and tourist stores and sing for tips out on the street,
Any way to survive in the Nashville Scene…
Chorus: Some have hopes of singing on a stage
Or playing in a big time studio,
Some dream about the day they see a banner hangin’
For a song they wrote down on Music Row,
Some will make it, MOST will fail
Some never will concede
But that’s just a way of life in the Nashville Scene
Some will leave on a silver eagle with their name painted on the side
And some will go with nothing more to show than the satisfaction that they tried,
Some have gone that couldn’t stay for reasons unexplained,
And left their dream to die in the Nashville Scene!
There is a beautiful melody that goes along with these true-to-life lyrics. This song has never been recorded commercially. One of the writers, Rory Waters, chalked up his first big chart topper a while back as a co-writer on the TRICK PONY breakout hit – “POUR ME.” So now it’s just a matter of time for The Nashville Scene & numerous other Rory Waters musical compositions to find their way to the top of the charts.
Meanwhile, knowing only to well how difficult it is to climb the star ladder in Nashville, long time Grand Ole Opry star, the late Roy Acuff, had a humorous observation regarding the long road to music success. Crowned The King Of
Country Music many years ago, Mr. Acuff once mused that the normal country celebrity works an average of ten-years to gain his or her star status.
Then once that status is achieved, the first thing they do is go out and buy a pair of sun glasses to hide behind.
As was stated earlier, sometimes it makes one wonder if the climb to fame and fortune is really worth the sacrifice it takes to get there. And once on top, the real work begins. Learning to deal with all the attention, peer pressure, lack of privacy, business & career decisions…to say nothing of the tremendous effects on family life, can be a real challenge. Guess what folks, from the top there is no place to go but DOWN!
With that very cold, discouraging fact in mind, lets get on with the first of 35-chapters detailing the long road to “Show-Biz / Country Music Success.”
WHO WANTS TO BE A COUNTRY MUSIC STAR!!
By: Sam Wellington
Dear Readers…My name is Sam Wellington and I’ve just recently retired as a 32-year member of the World-Famous Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. During those many years on “The Opry” and in Country Music with my performing group, THE FABULOUS FOUR GUYS, (fabulous was a descriptive adjective Hall Of Fame Disc Jockey Charlie Douglas tagged on us), I’ve had a marvelous opportunity to see first hand the countless changes in America’s Music – both good and bad.
Prior to 1967, when I joined “The Opry,” Country Music had pretty much maintained a consistent identity and sound for several decades previously. However, artists such as: Jimmy Dean, Eddie Arnold, Roger Miller, Glen Campbell & Johnny Cash hosting network TV shows in the early, middle and late 60’s took Country Music to an international level and brought millions of new fans to County Radio and subsequently to the country music sections of record stores everywhere.
Most of these new fans were unable to fully appreciate the rural roots of the artists singing the songs, the songwriters who wrote them, the musicians who played them and the record producers who put each production together. Therefore, those new fans – though they liked what they were now hearing – yearned for a touch of their former musical love, ROCK ‘N ROLL, and songs with a more uptown message so they could better relate. These new fans were also younger and found it hard to connect with the much older recording stars who had dominated country popularity charts for many years.
Record Companies, seeking to accommodate this newly found younger record buying demographic, gradually set out to provide records with a stronger beat and place more emphasis on Rock ‘N Roll style guitar players. At the same time, traditional country record musical instruments, such as steel guitar & twin fiddles, were used much less often. Drastic change was eminent.
Through the years many changes have indeed occurred, but Country Music today is alive and well. Yes, the artists are younger. No, the older country acts are not heard much on the radio; but the music itself has survived. The lyrics are stronger and more meaningful. The melodies are much more complicated and the performers are truly in a league of their own.
The information contained in this book is not meant to be construed as an exact blueprint to success in the music business, but rather a roadmap to help guide a novice in some of the right directions. No one can tell you exactly what to do to achieve that Super Platinum Album, but some of us who have been in and around “The Big Time” for more than three-decades can surely tell you what NOT TO DO!
One of my longtime mentors & friends, Jack Johnson, responsible for helping to launch the careers of Charley Pride & Ronnie Milsap, had a very simply philosophy on building success in the music business. Someone once called Jack a LUCKY S.O.B. Jack replied, “YEH, I AM A LUCKY S.O.B. AND THE HARDER I WORK, THE LUCKIER I GET!
Meanwhile, it is my sincere hope that those of you who choose to follow your rainbow find your very own golden pot filled with all your hopes and dreams…and oh yes, a little gold would be nice too. For those of you who have no intention of taking a shot at music success I hope you will find this book, at the very least, an ENTERTAINLY “GOOD READ.”
