Bonnie Guitar
Encyclopedia
Bonnie Guitar is an American Country-Pop Singer
. She is best remembered for her 1957 Country-Pop crossover hit "Dark Moon
". She became one of the first female Country Music singers to have songs crossover from the Country charts to the Pop charts, and have hits on both sides.
She also co-founded the record company Dolton Records
in the late 50s, that launched the careers of The Fleetwoods
and The Ventures
. In 1960 she left Dolton and became part owner of Jerden Records
. She was married to the late musician and inventor Paul Tutmarc
.
, Bonnie Guitar developed the Country-Pop
crossover trend that would later be associated with other female Country singers in the years to come, like Skeeter Davis
, Lynn Anderson
, Crystal Gayle
, and Jeannie C. Riley
.
Born in 1923 in Seattle as Bonnie Buckingham, she took up playing the guitar
as a teenager which led to her stage name, Bonnie Guitar. At the same time, she also started songwriting. Through much of the 1950s, Bonnie worked as a session guitarist
at quite a few small labels, like Abbot
, Fabor, and also Radio Recorders
.
Working at these places got Guitar noticed as a professional guitarist as she ended up playing on sessions for many well-known singers, like Jim Reeves
, Dorsey Burnette
, Ned Miller
, and the DeCastro Sisters. After working with so many singers, she acquired her own singing aspirations herself and a desire to make her very own recording career in the process.
In 1956 when Chet Atkins
and Owen Bradley
were beginning the first moves toward the New Nashville Sound, Bonnie heard the song "Dark Moon", from a publishing demo and found its composer Ned Miller among the singers with whom she worked as a session guitarist. However, Guitar liked "Dark Moon" so much she decided to waive her performance fee if she would be allowed to record the song herself instead and was given permission.
The song was originally issued under Fabor Records in 1956. "Dark Moon" was then issued over to Dot Records
and by the Spring of 1957, "Dark Moon" hit the Pop Top 10 list and went into the Country Top 15 list. Guitar officially had a hit.
Only one other female Country singer was achieving this type of crossover
success Guitar was having at the time, which was Patsy Cline
, when her single "Walkin' After Midnight
" was a #2 Country hit and a #12 Pop hit at the same time. "Dark Moon" brought Guitar a wide audience, and she was soon appearing on quite a few Pop Music programs. Similar to Patsy Cline
, Bonnie couldn't follow-up her crossover success either.
Her follow-up to "Dark Moon" called "Mister Fire Eyes" failed to make a substantial impact on the Pop charts, making it only to #71 there. On the Country charts though, it was again a Top 15 hit. Because she couldn't follow-up her crossover success, her contract soon ended with Dot Records
, and Guitar returned to Washington.
salesman Bob Reisdorff. When the pair decided to re-name the label Dolton Records
, many of Guitar's singles like "Candy Apple Red" and "Born to Be With You" were released.
In 1959, her own recording career was superseded by that of a high school
trio called The Fleetwoods
. The trio was signed to the Dolton label and soon had major Pop Music
hits in the Spring and Summer of 1959, with two #1 hits, "Come Softly to Me" and "Mr. Blue". Guitar was soon credited as one of the people who helped launch The Fleetwoods
into major music stardom.
Soon another group called The Ventures
were signed to Bonnie's Dolton label. They too had a monster hit called "Walk Don't Run". However, Bonnie thought it was time she would get her own music career back on foot. She soon left Dolton, and went back to Dot Records
where she recorded a series of country albums throughout the 60's.
In the summer and fall of 1963, Bonnie Guitar took a temporary leave to record a concept album
under contract with Charter Records. The album told a romantic story beginning with songs featuring themes about first sight, through courting, going steady, threats from others, getting engaged, getting it broken off, having the man marry someone else and finally having the woman live happily ever after on her own at the end.
Unfortunately, the original heyday of concept albums by the likes of Frank Sinatra
and Nat King Cole
had long since been over by 1964, and the new times for concept albums by the likes of the Beatles and Pink Floyd
were a few years off yet, so the album was shelved. Even thought the album was never released commercially, in its original format, a single was released entitled Outside Looking In, however it failed to show on either the country or pop charts.
White-label Charter test pressings of the original concept album exist though, and most of the songs thereon found their way onto subsequent albums, with the remaining material such as the country remake version of Dark Moon and Ned Miller's Lucky Star being featured in a 1972 Paramount Records
double-album compilation of her work.
It was in 1966, that she scored her next major hit with "I'm Living In Two Worlds". The song was Guitar's first Top 10 Country hit. It even entered the Pop charts, but just about made the Hot 100. In 1967, she scored an even bigger Country hit, with the Top 5 hit "A Woman In Love", which reached #6 on the Country charts. That same year, she won the Academy of Country Music
's "Top Female Vocalist" award, and became the second person to win that award. In 1968, "I Believe in Love" was another Top 10 hit. In 1969, Guitar teamed up with Buddy Killen
, and together they had a hit duet with "A True Lover You'll Never Find (Than Mine)". After 1969, Guitar's chart success faded away rapidly.
and MCA Records
. She charted for her last time in 1980 with the single "Honey On the Moon". In 1986, she recorded for the Tumbleweed label, however she gained little success.
Guitar continued performing and playing until she announced she was retiring in 1996. She currently takes up residence in Tacoma, WA, where she continues to play and sing.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. She is best remembered for her 1957 Country-Pop crossover hit "Dark Moon
Dark Moon (song)
"Dark Moon" is a 1957 country song by Ned Miller. With its haunting rhythm and forlorn lyrics, it scored on both the country and popular charts in the year of its release. Singer Bonnie Guitar took it to the country charts; Gale Storm to the pop charts. Storm's version, with Ned Miller himself on...
". She became one of the first female Country Music singers to have songs crossover from the Country charts to the Pop charts, and have hits on both sides.
She also co-founded the record company Dolton Records
Dolton Records
Dolton Records was a record label based in Seattle that was originally known as Dolphin Records. It was owned by Bob Reisdorf and Bonnie Guitar. Success for the label came early with "Come Softly to Me" by The Fleetwoods, the first single to be released on that label...
in the late 50s, that launched the careers of The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods were a singing trio from Olympia, Washington, United States; formed in the late 1950s. They were responsible for eleven hit songs, beginning with "Come Softly to Me"...
and The Ventures
The Ventures
The Ventures is an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling...
. In 1960 she left Dolton and became part owner of Jerden Records
Jerden Records
Jerden Records was an independent record label which operated from May 1960 through April 1971.It was based in Seattle and majority owned by Jerry Dennon and Bonnie Guitar, both of whom had been involved previously with Dolton Records and the careers of The Fleetwoods on that label. A split with...
. She was married to the late musician and inventor Paul Tutmarc
Paul Tutmarc
Paul Tutmarc was a Seattle musician and musical instrument inventor. He was a tenor singer and a performer and teacher of the lap steel guitar and the ukulele. He developed a number of variant types of stringed musical instruments, such as electrically amplified double basses, electric basses, and...
.
Early life & rise to fame
Along with Patsy ClinePatsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, Bonnie Guitar developed the Country-Pop
Country pop
Country pop, with roots in both the countrypolitan sound and in soft rock, is a subgenre of country music that first emerged in the 1970s. Although the term first referred to country music songs and artists that crossed over to Top 40 radio, country pop acts are now more likely to cross over to...
crossover trend that would later be associated with other female Country singers in the years to come, like Skeeter Davis
Skeeter Davis
Mary Frances Penick , better known as Skeeter Davis, was an American country music singer best known for crossover pop music songs of the early 1960s. She started out as part of The Davis Sisters as a teenager in the late 1940s, eventually landing on RCA Records. In the late '50s, she became a solo...
, Lynn Anderson
Lynn Anderson
Lynn Rene Anderson is an American country music singer and equestrian known for a string of hits throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, most notably her Grammy Award-winning, worldwide mega-hit, " Rose Garden." Helped by her regular exposure on national television, Anderson was one of the most...
, Crystal Gayle
Crystal Gayle
Crystal Gayle is an American country music singer best known for her 1977 country-pop hit, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". An award-winning singer, she accumulated 18 number one country hits during the 1970s and 1980s...
, and Jeannie C. Riley
Jeannie C. Riley
Jeannie C. Riley is an American country music and gospel singer. She is best known for her 1968 country and pop hit "Harper Valley PTA" , which missed becoming the Billboard Country and Pop number one hit at the same time...
.
Born in 1923 in Seattle as Bonnie Buckingham, she took up playing the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
as a teenager which led to her stage name, Bonnie Guitar. At the same time, she also started songwriting. Through much of the 1950s, Bonnie worked as a session guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
at quite a few small labels, like Abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
, Fabor, and also Radio Recorders
Radio Recorders
Radio Recorders, Inc. was a recording studio based in Los Angeles, California. Famous musicians to have been recorded in the studio include Charlie Parker, Jimmie Rodgers, Louis Armstrong, Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, and The Carpenters among others. In its prime, the studio was known...
.
Working at these places got Guitar noticed as a professional guitarist as she ended up playing on sessions for many well-known singers, like Jim Reeves
Jim Reeves
James Travis Reeves , better known as Jim Reeves, was an American country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well-known for being a practitioner of the Nashville sound...
, Dorsey Burnette
Dorsey Burnette
Dorsey Burnette was an early Rockabilly singer. With his younger brother, Johnny Burnette, and a friend named Paul Burlison, he was a founder member of The Rock and Roll Trio.-Background and early career:Dorsey Burnett was born on December 28, 1932 to Willie May and Dorsey Burnett Sr...
, Ned Miller
Ned Miller
Henry Ned Miller is an American country music artist. Active as a recording artist from 1956 to 1970, he is known primarily for his hit single, "From a Jack to a King", a crossover hit in 1962 which reached Top 10 on the country music, adult contemporary, and Billboard Hot 100 charts...
, and the DeCastro Sisters. After working with so many singers, she acquired her own singing aspirations herself and a desire to make her very own recording career in the process.
In 1956 when Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
and Owen Bradley
Owen Bradley
Owen Bradley was an American record producer who, along with Chet Atkins and Bob Ferguson, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sound in country music and rockabilly.-Before the fame:...
were beginning the first moves toward the New Nashville Sound, Bonnie heard the song "Dark Moon", from a publishing demo and found its composer Ned Miller among the singers with whom she worked as a session guitarist. However, Guitar liked "Dark Moon" so much she decided to waive her performance fee if she would be allowed to record the song herself instead and was given permission.
The song was originally issued under Fabor Records in 1956. "Dark Moon" was then issued over to Dot Records
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label and company that was active between 1950 and 1977. It was founded by Randy Wood. In Gallatin, Tennessee, Wood had earlier started a mail order record shop, known for its radio ads on WLAC in Nashville and its R&B air personality Bill "Hoss" Allen...
and by the Spring of 1957, "Dark Moon" hit the Pop Top 10 list and went into the Country Top 15 list. Guitar officially had a hit.
Early music success in 1957
When Bonnie's rendition of "Dark Moon" hit the Country and Pop charts in the Spring of 1957, she received recognition in the music business. Not only was she one of the few female Country singers in Country Music at the time, but she was also one of the few Country singers that had a hit on the Country and Pop charts at the same time.Only one other female Country singer was achieving this type of crossover
Crossover (music)
Crossover is a term applied to musical works or performers appearing on two or more of the record charts which track differing musical tastes, or genres...
success Guitar was having at the time, which was Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, when her single "Walkin' After Midnight
Walkin' After Midnight
"Walkin' After Midnight" is a song by written by Alan Block and Donn Hecht and originally recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr; however, it was rejected by her record label. The song was left unused until Hecht rediscovered the...
" was a #2 Country hit and a #12 Pop hit at the same time. "Dark Moon" brought Guitar a wide audience, and she was soon appearing on quite a few Pop Music programs. Similar to Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, Bonnie couldn't follow-up her crossover success either.
Her follow-up to "Dark Moon" called "Mister Fire Eyes" failed to make a substantial impact on the Pop charts, making it only to #71 there. On the Country charts though, it was again a Top 15 hit. Because she couldn't follow-up her crossover success, her contract soon ended with Dot Records
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label and company that was active between 1950 and 1977. It was founded by Randy Wood. In Gallatin, Tennessee, Wood had earlier started a mail order record shop, known for its radio ads on WLAC in Nashville and its R&B air personality Bill "Hoss" Allen...
, and Guitar returned to Washington.
Running a record label & re-entering country music in the 60s
Guitar however decided she would form her very own record label called Dolphin Records which she co-founded with refrigeratorRefrigerator
A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
salesman Bob Reisdorff. When the pair decided to re-name the label Dolton Records
Dolton Records
Dolton Records was a record label based in Seattle that was originally known as Dolphin Records. It was owned by Bob Reisdorf and Bonnie Guitar. Success for the label came early with "Come Softly to Me" by The Fleetwoods, the first single to be released on that label...
, many of Guitar's singles like "Candy Apple Red" and "Born to Be With You" were released.
In 1959, her own recording career was superseded by that of a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
trio called The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods were a singing trio from Olympia, Washington, United States; formed in the late 1950s. They were responsible for eleven hit songs, beginning with "Come Softly to Me"...
. The trio was signed to the Dolton label and soon had major Pop Music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
hits in the Spring and Summer of 1959, with two #1 hits, "Come Softly to Me" and "Mr. Blue". Guitar was soon credited as one of the people who helped launch The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods were a singing trio from Olympia, Washington, United States; formed in the late 1950s. They were responsible for eleven hit songs, beginning with "Come Softly to Me"...
into major music stardom.
Soon another group called The Ventures
The Ventures
The Ventures is an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling...
were signed to Bonnie's Dolton label. They too had a monster hit called "Walk Don't Run". However, Bonnie thought it was time she would get her own music career back on foot. She soon left Dolton, and went back to Dot Records
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label and company that was active between 1950 and 1977. It was founded by Randy Wood. In Gallatin, Tennessee, Wood had earlier started a mail order record shop, known for its radio ads on WLAC in Nashville and its R&B air personality Bill "Hoss" Allen...
where she recorded a series of country albums throughout the 60's.
In the summer and fall of 1963, Bonnie Guitar took a temporary leave to record a concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
under contract with Charter Records. The album told a romantic story beginning with songs featuring themes about first sight, through courting, going steady, threats from others, getting engaged, getting it broken off, having the man marry someone else and finally having the woman live happily ever after on her own at the end.
Unfortunately, the original heyday of concept albums by the likes of Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
and Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
had long since been over by 1964, and the new times for concept albums by the likes of the Beatles and Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
were a few years off yet, so the album was shelved. Even thought the album was never released commercially, in its original format, a single was released entitled Outside Looking In, however it failed to show on either the country or pop charts.
White-label Charter test pressings of the original concept album exist though, and most of the songs thereon found their way onto subsequent albums, with the remaining material such as the country remake version of Dark Moon and Ned Miller's Lucky Star being featured in a 1972 Paramount Records
Paramount Records
Paramount Records was an American record label, best known for its recordings of African-American jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey and Blind Lemon Jefferson.-Early years:...
double-album compilation of her work.
It was in 1966, that she scored her next major hit with "I'm Living In Two Worlds". The song was Guitar's first Top 10 Country hit. It even entered the Pop charts, but just about made the Hot 100. In 1967, she scored an even bigger Country hit, with the Top 5 hit "A Woman In Love", which reached #6 on the Country charts. That same year, she won the Academy of Country Music
Academy of Country Music
The Academy of Country Music was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Whereas the Country Music Association, founded in 1958, was based in Nashville, the Academy sought to promote country music in the western states. Among those involved in the...
's "Top Female Vocalist" award, and became the second person to win that award. In 1968, "I Believe in Love" was another Top 10 hit. In 1969, Guitar teamed up with Buddy Killen
Buddy Killen
William Doyce “Buddy” Killen was a record producer and music publisher, and a former owner of Trinity Broadcasting Network, and the largest country music publishing business, before he sold it in 1989...
, and together they had a hit duet with "A True Lover You'll Never Find (Than Mine)". After 1969, Guitar's chart success faded away rapidly.
Later career and life today
By the 1970s, Guitar's chart success faded away from view. However, she didn't stop recording for labels. In the 1970s, Guitar recorded for Columbia RecordsColumbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
and MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
. She charted for her last time in 1980 with the single "Honey On the Moon". In 1986, she recorded for the Tumbleweed label, however she gained little success.
Guitar continued performing and playing until she announced she was retiring in 1996. She currently takes up residence in Tacoma, WA, where she continues to play and sing.