Gene Watson

There are people who sing songs... and then there are the "singer's singers."  Those are the vocalists their peers revere, the ones true music lovers hold in awe.  One of them is Gene Watson, a "singer's singer" if ever one breathed.  Ask Clint Black, Randy Travis, Marty Stuart, Martina McBride, or any number of other stars.  "The world stops spinning when he sings," marvels Robert K. Oermann, the dean of country critics.  "In his voice is all the ache of existence." 

Born in Palestine, Texas in 1943, Gene Watson was one of seven children of an itinerant sawmill worker and crop picker.  He was raised on manual labor and still isn't afraid to get his fingernails dirty.  He quit school in the ninth grade to help support his family, but he has more common sense wisdom than many folks with graduate degrees.

He married his wife Mattie at age 17.  He became an auto-body worker to support her and their children.  On weekends in the 1960's, Gene began singing for $15 a night in the Houston honky-tonks.  I never did go looking for music," Watson recalls, "music found me." 

A widening circle of admirers led to recording contracts with such regional labels as Wide World, Stoneway, and Resco.  In 1974, his Resco single of the steamy "Love In The Hot Afternoon" was picked up for national distribution by Capitol Records, igniting a firestorm of national hits.  "Farewell Party", "Fourteen Carat Mind", "Paper Rosie", "Speak Softly", "One Sided Conversation", "Should I Come Home" and the rest of his timeless successes took Gene Watson into the hearts of country music lovers around the world. 

"I feel like when I touch somebody inside and see the tears roll out of their eyes, then I've got that person as a fan.  It's easy to tell a joke and make somebody laugh.  But in the entertainment field it's difficult to make 'em cry.  I've signed a lot of autographs after shows with people still sniffling and red-eyed.  It's for real; and that makes me feel so good."  

Today his music has found a home on the power independent, Step One Records (SOR), home to his "Uncharted Mind", "Good Ole Days", his first ever gospel recording, "Jesus Is All I Need", and "A Way To Survive".  Country music fans will agree, Gene Watson's voice and music have continued to improve throughout his successful career, as evidenced by his success with "Change Her Mind" from his last effort.  Watson made country music history with the single as he and George Jones are the only artists 50+ to chart in nearly a decade, proving country music fans still love the voice and music of Gene Watson.

"I've still got that group of hard core fans.  But lately it seems like we're gainin' new ones from that younger generation.  Every time we play a show, there's more and more of 'em out there."

And, that is as it should be.  For a true "singer's singer" is someone whose artistry spans the generations.