Remembering another Jack Green (1930-2014)

[John Ridge]

A few months ago a former professional musician by the name of Jack Green passed away and I'm researching information about his career. This is not the well-known country artist Jack Greene (note with an "e" on the end), but a guitarist from a small town in north Louisiana who began his professional career playing behind Red Sovine on the Louisiana Hayride, and later for Red and others on the Grand Ole Opry.

When I spoke with Jack a couple of years ago by phone he said he had played with artists including Red, Webb Pierce, Johnny Bush, Jerry Jericho, the Louvin Brothers, and Floyd Tillman. He also mentioned while in Nashville knowing Chet Atkins; and once going to California with Hank Thompson, where he met Merle Travis and Joe Maphis. He even described an occasion of being selected by Patsy Cline for a pick-up band to back her when she was at an event without her own band and was asked to sing impromptu.

Sounds pretty cool, huh, but where is the proof? He didn't save any pictures or other memorabilia, so other than his word (which I accept), there is little to support his story. My older friends and family do remember seeing him play on the Hayride in Shreveport, and a few years ago he was invited to a reunion of former members that included announcer Frank Page, singer Claude King, and some notable sidemen of the day.



L-R: Jack Green, Sonny Trammel, Sonny Harville, Claude King, Maggie Warwick,
Johnny Wessler, Frank Page. Claude King. Felton Pruett

I'd been drawing blanks trying to find any other supporting information, until finding the following picture that shows Jack (seated left holding tele) along with Hub Sutter, Johnny Bush, Tiny Smith, and Floyd Tillman performing at Dessau Hall near Austin, TX in January 1957.



I realize this was a long long time ago, and many of the musicians who he might have played with are now gone, but if anyone has a recollection of Jack that I could share with his family, it would be greatly appreciated.

[John Clark]

i know this isn"t much help but i did know this man back in the late 1960"s, probably 67 or 68. He worked for a while at a factory in Madisonville, Texas. I remember that he told me he had played for Webb Pierce. By that time I had pretty much decided to try music as a career and I remember he told me "play something besides guitar. There are too many guitar players already." I took his advice and learned fiddle and steel also. Sorry to hear of his passing.

[John Ridge]

Thanks for the reply, John. I should have mentioned Jack also played steel. We are both from a small town called Oil City, north of Shreveport. There used to be a night club on Caddo Lake called Kool Point Lodge, where Hayride performers would play during the week. These included Red Sovine, Webb Pierce, Claude King, Faron Young, Johnny Horton, and others. Jack was playing there with a local band when Red heard him and hired him for his band.

An aside: Since you are a fiddler, perhaps you've heard of J. W. Green, a fiddle-maker of some renown who lives in eastern Tennessee. Now 90 years old, he is Jack's older brother.

[Lee Holeman]

I worked with Jack in Houston around 1955 or 56. We left for Nashville to work with Webb but it never worked out. Went to Shreveport and worked with Lefty in Bosier City after the Heyride. Lost track of Jack and sorry to hear of his passing.
Lee Holeman