Friday, July 11, 2014

Stringbean on Cullman 6416


Stringbean

CP-2386 - Barn Yard Banjo Picking

CP-2387 - Train Special 500

Cullman 6416
1959

Cullman Records and Gaylord Music Co. were owned by James Harrell "Hal" Smith (1923-2008), Nashville musician, artist manager and television producer.

David Akeman (1916-1973), better known as Stringbean (or String Bean), was one of the Opry's major stars in the 1950s.

From Wikipedia :
Akeman was modest and unassuming, and he enjoyed hunting and fishing. Accustomed to the hard times of the Great Depression, Akeman and his wife Estelle lived frugally in a tiny cabin near Ridgetop, Tennessee. Their only indulgence was a Cadillac. Depression-era bank failures caused Akeman not to trust banks with his money. Gossip around Nashville was that Akeman kept large amounts of cash on hand, even though he was by no means wealthy by entertainment industry standards.

On Saturday night, November 10, 1973, Akeman and his wife returned home after he performed at the Grand Ole Opry. Both were shot dead shortly after their arrival. The killers had waited for hours. The bodies were discovered the following morning by their neighbor, Grandpa Jones.



Chewing Chewing Gum 



2 comments:

  1. Watched him on TV as a boy growing up. He is missed by Country fans and young'uns of the time, who grew up watching him or hearing him on the Opry. Nice find. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Daniel D Hoffman issued a 45 - String (a Tribute) - on Cherish records in 1974 about Stringbean's tragic end. He's the same Daniel who recorded a cover of the Waylon Jennings/Bobby Braddock track revelation - often cited as one of the worst records of all time: http://www.worldsworstrecords.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/revealed-daniel.html

    ReplyDelete