Bob Montgomery (May 12, 1937 – December 4, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer and publisher.

Biography

Montgomery was born in

Lampasas, Texas Lampasas ( ) is a city in Lampasas County, Texas, United States. Its population was 7,291 at the 2020 census. It is the seat of Lampasas County. Lampasas is part of the Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood metropolitan statistical area. History ...

, United States. He was a songwriting partner and best friend of

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...

, performing together as the duo "Buddy and Bob" while teenagers in high school. Initially, they played a variety of

bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it la ...

, which evolved into rockabilly sounds. Montgomery met Holly at Hutchinson Junior High School in

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the nort ...

, in 1949. They started playing together at school assemblies and on local radio shows. Montgomery sang lead and Holly harmonized. They soon had a weekly Sunday radio show on station

KDAV KDAV (1590 AM) is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Lubbock, Texas. The KDAV broadcast license was held by Monte and Gentry Todd Spearman through licensee High Plains Radio Network, LLC. From August 18, 1998, to Marc ...

. On October 14, 1955,

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

played a concert at the Fair Park Auditorium, and Montgomery, Holly and bassist Larry Welborn were also on the bill. Eddie Crandall,

Marty Robbins Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and succ ...

' manager, spoke to KDAV station owner Pappy Dave Stone and told him he was interested in Holly as a solo performer. Holly's career then began after demo recordings of his music were made and sent to

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American Decca's president. ...

. Montgomery co-wrote some of Holly's songs, such as " Heartbeat", "Wishing", and "

Love's Made a Fool of You "Love's Made a Fool of You" is a song co-written and originally performed by Buddy Holly. It was later re-recorded by Sonny Curtis and the Crickets, with the lead vocal by Earl Sinks, and famously covered by the Bobby Fuller Four. Buddy Holly f ...

". He wrote the pop standard " Misty Blue" and, for

Patsy Cline Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...

, "Back in Baby's Arms". His son Kevin recorded a version of this, which appeared on his album ''True''. Montgomery produced

Bobby Goldsboro Robert Charles Goldsboro (born January 18, 1941) is an American pop and country singer and songwriter. He had a string of pop and country hits in the 1960s and 1970s, including his signature No. 1 hit "Honey", which sold over 1 million copies in ...

's 1968 number 1 hit "

Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

" and his follow up 1973 number 9 UK hit, “ Summer (The First Time)”. Montgomery died on December 4, 2014, in

Lee's Summit, Missouri Lee's Summit is a city located within the counties of Jackson (primarily) and Cass in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. As of the 2020 census its population was 101,108, making it the sixth-largest city in bo ...

, of

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms beco ...

, at the age of 77.

Discography

Singles

* "Taste Of The Blues" b/w "Because I Love You", Brunswick, November 1959

Albums

* '' Holly in the Hills'', Buddy Holly & Bob Montgomery,

Coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and se ...

, January 1965

References

External links

45cat Bob Montgomery
1937 births 2014 deaths People from Lampasas, Texas American country rock singers American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Record producers from Texas Singer-songwriters from Texas Bluegrass musicians from Texas American rockabilly musicians Neurological disease deaths in Missouri Deaths from Parkinson's disease Country musicians from Texas {{US-singer-stub