James Elmore Cason was born on Nov. 27, 1939, in Nashville, the youthful of two kids of James and Rosa (Jordan) Cason. His father, who was often known as Roy, was a carpenter. His mom, who sang in church, taught younger Buzz to sing harmonies. (He earned his nickname early on, he mentioned within the 2014 interview, “I feel as a result of I made a lot noise.”) By the time he was in highschool he and his classmates have been listening to R&B on the Nashville radio station WLAC.
Mr. Cason’s introduction to performing got here when he and his buddies have been invited to lip-sync over well-liked recordings on an area tv present. That expertise gave beginning to the Casuals, which many declare was the primary rock ’n’ roll band from Nashville.
He left the group in 1962 to work for Liberty Records in Los Angeles, the place he and Leon Russell produced recordings for the Crickets, Buddy Holly’s former band, together with a model of “La Bamba” that grew to become a success in England. In 1964, Mr. Cason crammed in for the band’s lead singer, Jerry Naylor, on a tour of Britain that included an look on the music tv present “Ready Steady Go!”
Back in Nashville in 1965, Mr. Cason joined Ronny & the Daytonas, a band that specialised in hot-rod songs like “G.T.O.,” a Top 10 pop hit in 1964. While he was with the group, Mr. Cason wrote the ballad “Sandy,” a Top 40 single for the band in 1966. He additionally recorded with the Daytonas’ frontman, Bucky Wilkin, beneath the identify Buzz and Bucky, whereas writing novelties like “Popsicle,” a Top 40 hit for Jan & Dean in 1966.
In the late Sixties Mr. Cason ventured into music publishing with the songwriter Bobby Russell. The two males hit it large in 1968 with two of Mr. Russell’s originals: “Honey,” recorded by Bobby Goldsboro, which reached No. 1 on the pop chart, and “Little Green Apples,” recorded by O.C. Smith, which reached No. 2. Mr. Cason would go on to publish the early songs of Jimmy Buffett, whereas additionally having his songs recorded by the disparate likes of Plácido Domingo and Bobby Vee.
In 1970 he established Creative Workshop, a recording studio within the Berry Hill neighborhood of Nashville, the place, over the following many years, dozens of recording venues emerged to rival these alongside Nashville’s Music Row. Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton and the Faces, that includes Rod Stewart, recorded at Creative Workshop.
Content Source: www.nytimes.com