RE: THE SONS OF THE PIONEERS WEBSITEs-
* CLICK/SONS OF PIONEERS WEBSITES *
The Sons of the Pioneers are one of the most enduring and recognizable groups of the Western music genre. Their roots can be traced all the way back to 1930 when a shy young man named Leonard Slye (better known as Roy Rogers) arrived in California seeking work.
Roy's biggest assets were his engaging personality and his fine singing voice, and he decided to use these assets to pursue a career in the music industry. After performing on a local amateur radio show, Roy was offered his first singing job as a soloist with a hillbilly instrumental group known as the Rocky Mountaineers.
Roy was soon joined by Bob Nolan and Bill Nichols in the group, and later by Tim Spencer. Rogers, Nichols, and Spencer split from the Mountaineers in 1933 and joined Bennie Nawahi's International Cowboys for a brief stint, and later that year performed as the O Bar O Cowboys.
By 1934 Rogers and Spencer had parted ways with Bill Nichols and rejoined with Bob Nolan to form the Pioneer Trio. The trio soon recognized the need for instrumental backup and welcomed fiddler Hugh Farr to the group. Not long after Hugh joined the group announcer Harry Hall introduced the quartet as the Sons of the Pioneers. The name stuck, and the group became a legend that endures today.
In the years since March 3, 1934, when the first verified appearance of the name Sons of the Pioneers appeared in a newspaper, the Pioneers have seen many changes. Roy Rogers left the group in 1937 and went on to enjoy a fairly successful solo career as the King of the Cowboys.
Several other members of the group have also come and gone, but the trademark Pioneer sound has remained a hallmark of the group for over 65 years. Classic Pioneer hits such as "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" and "Cool Water" are recognizable favorites all over the world.
Current group members Dale Warren, Luther Nallie, John Nallie, Sunny Spencer, Gary LeMaster, and Ken Lattimore continue the Pioneer legacy with regular performances in Branson, MO and Tucson, AZ.