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  • Oral History

Dude Martin

February 27, 1976 OH119 118 min.
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Biography


Bandleader. Based on the West Coast, primarily the San Francisco area. Led western swing bands. Career most active late 1930s-early 1950s. Recorded for RCA and Mercury.

Interview Summary

1976 February 27
(1 hour, 55 minutes)
Bandleader Dude Martin talks about his career as leader of the western swing band Dude Martin & His Round-Up Gang, a popular West Coast act during the 1930s and 1940s. Discussion includes his childhood and family history; early musical influences; working as a radio performer; experiences working as a bandleader in the San Francisco Bay area; memories of band members; the band’s musical and performance style; their recordings with Sue Thompson; his move to southern California; his work in television; his songwriting; memories of the country music industry on the West Coast; and changes in the music industry.