Walter Hyatt (October 25, 1949 – May 11, 1996) was an American singer and songwriter. His group, Uncle Walt's Band, was involved in the alternative music scene in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

Early life

Born in

Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest city in the state. For a time, the Off ...

, Walter Hyatt was exposed to different styles of music at an early age. He started playing the guitar at age 13 and formed his first band in his midteen years. Hyatt attended Wofford College for two years but left before graduation to pursue his music career.

Music career

At age 20, Hyatt formed Uncle Walt's Band with Champ Hood and David Ball. In 1972, they moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

, where they caught the attention of Texas singer/songwriter

Willis Alan Ramsey Willis Alan Ramsey (born 5 March 1951) is an American singer/songwriter, a cult legend among fans of Americana and Texas country. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and raised in Dallas, Texas. Ramsey graduated from Highland Park High School ...

. The band returned to the Carolinas in 1974, recording ''Blame It on the Bossanova,'' their first record, at Arthur Smith Studios in Charlotte. A year later, Uncle Walt's Band split up, with Hyatt returning to Nashville and forming a new band, The Contenders, with Hood and Nashville musicians Steve Runkle, Tommy Goldsmith, and Jimbeau Walsh. In 1978, Uncle Walt's Band reunited. They released three more albums on what is now considered Austin's original independent labels, Lespedeza Record Company: ''An American in Texas'', ''Uncle Walt's Band Recorded Live'', and ''Six * Twenty-Six * Seventy-Nine''. In 1987, Hyatt returned to Nashville with his wife, Heidi, and embarked on a solo career. In 1990, Hyatt became the first vocalist for MCA's Master Series label. His first solo album from this label, titled ''King Tears'', was produced by Lyle Lovett, who had been a fan of Uncle Walt's Band. Hyatt later toured as an opening act for Lovett. In 1993, Hyatt released his second solo album, ''Music Town'', on Sugar Hill Records. Hyatt's ''Some Unfinished Business, Volume One'', composed of the singer's last recordings, was released January 22, 2008.

Death

Hyatt died in the crash of

ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 was a regularly scheduled flight from Miami International Airport to Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport. On May 11, 1996, the ValuJet Airlines McDonnell Douglas DC-9 operating the route crashed into t ...

on May 11, 1996. He was 46. He was survived by his wife Heidi and their two children, Taylor and Rose Evelyn, and Walter's daughter Haley.

Tributes

In 1997, an episode of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

show ''

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American live music television program recorded and produced by Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and is the only television show to ...

'' featured a tribute to Hyatt by Lovett,

Junior Brown Jamieson "Junior" Brown (born June 12, 1952) is an American country guitarist and singer. He has released twelve studio albums in his career, and has charted twice on the '' Billboard'' country singles charts. Brown's signature instrument is t ...

Shawn Colvin Shawn Colvin (born Shawna Lee Colvin, January 10, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. While Colvin has been a solo recording artist for decades, she is best known for her 1998 Grammy Award-winning song " Sunny Came Home". Early ...

Allison Moorer Allison Moorer (born June 21, 1972) is an American singer/songwriter. She signed with MCA Nashville in 1997 and made her debut on the U.S. Billboard Country Chart with the release of her debut single, “A Soft Place To Fall,” which she co-wr ...

Marcia Ball Marcia Ball (born March 20, 1949, Orange, Texas, United States) is an American blues singer and pianist raised in Vinton, Louisiana. Ball was described in ''USA Today'' as "a sensation, saucy singer and superb pianist... where Texas stomp-rock ...

, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Uncle Walt's Band members Rick Gordon, Champ Hood, and David Ball. In 2008, the Austin Music Awards featured a tribute with Lovett, Ball, Champ Hood's son Warren Hood, and Champ Hood's nephew Marshall Hood of The Belleville Outfit.

References

External links

Official website

* ttp://www.larrymonroe.com/writings/writings02.html SegWay City - Hyatt article {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyatt, Walter 1949 births 1996 deaths Songwriters from South Carolina Accidental deaths in Florida 20th-century American singers Musicians from Spartanburg, South Carolina Uncle Walt's Band members 20th-century American male singers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1996 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States American male songwriters Lyle Lovett and His Large Band members Wofford College alumni