Leon Rhodes was an American country music musician.
23 Facts About Leon Rhodes
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Leon Rhodes was regarded as one of the foremost country guitarists of his era for his quickness and accuracy.
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Leon Rhodes was born on March 10,1932, in Dallas, Texas.
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Leon Rhodes began to teach himself to play guitar at the age of ten.
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When Leon Rhodes was 16 years old, he was hired for his first job in the music industry as a member of "The Big D Jamboree" radio program on Dallas station KRLD.
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Leon Rhodes received his first recording opportunities in the 1950s, when he worked as a session musician for fellow Texans Lefty Frizzell and Ray Price.
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In 1959, Leon Rhodes played a set at the Longhorn Ballroom prior to an evening performance at the venue by Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours.
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Leon Rhodes initially turned down the offer but eventually agreed to partake in a two-week tour with the band.
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Leon Rhodes toured with the Troubadours for 200 to 300 days a year and recorded with them.
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Leon Rhodes was credited on 12 Tubb albums, including Thanks a Lot and My Pick of the Hits.
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Leon Rhodes backed Tubb on Mr and Mrs Used to Be, a 1965 collaborative album with Loretta Lynn.
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Leon Rhodes was already familiar with most of the artists on the show from his time touring with Tubb.
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In 1971, Leon Rhodes joined the house band for the Nashville-based television show Hee Haw, working concurrently with his Opry stint.
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On March 16,1974, during the opening of the new Grand Ole Opry House, Leon Rhodes played for a crowd that included US president Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon.
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Between 1975 and 1976, Leon Rhodes appeared on two albums for Buddy Emmons, his original Troubadours scout.
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In 1983, Leon Rhodes worked with George Strait on Right or Wrong, a country chart-topper that received a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America.
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In 1991, Leon Rhodes departed from the Hee Haw staff after spending two decades on the show.
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In 2014, Leon Rhodes retired from his music career and was honored by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in its "Nashville Cats" series.
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Leon Rhodes was raised in a Pentecostalist family and remained a Christian throughout his life.
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Leon Rhodes died on the morning of December 9,2017, at his home in the Nashville neighborhood of Donelson.
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Leon Rhodes's death was mourned online by country musicians Charlie Daniels and Elizabeth Cook, among others.
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Leon Rhodes has been considered one of the greatest country music guitarists of all time due to his stint backing Ernest Tubb with the Texas Troubadours and his decades-long career as a sideman and session musician in Nashville.
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Leon Rhodes was given the Super Picker Award by The Recording Academy in 1976 and was honored in a joint resolution in the Tennessee General Assembly authored by state representative Ben West Jr.