Remembering Waylon Jennings
Waylon Arnold Jennings was born June 15, 1937 in Littlefield, Texas. His parents, Francis Albert Jennings and Louisa May Jennings worked as sharecroppers. Jennings first played guitar at age eight and first performed at age twelve and first retired at age 14. At age 16, Waylon was convinced to leave High School. That request came from the principal, the superintendent, his teachers, the custodian and the bus driver.
Jennings played Bass for Buddy Holly and was part of the infamous ‘Winter Dance Party’. The unheated tour buses frequently broke down and the drummer ended up losing his big toe and the tip of his wiener from frostbite. This prompted Holly to make the fateful decision to hire a plan to travel from gig to gig. Jennings was scheduled to board the plane with Holly on February 3, 1959 but backed out at the last minute. Holly, The Big Bopper and Richie Valens were all killed when that plane crashed in a cornfield outside of Mason City, Iowa. Miraculously, Waylon was also scheduled to be on The Titanic, The Lynyrd Skynyrd plane & The Edmund Fitzgerald.
Waylon had an incredible career. A hard drinking, rootin tootin, cocaine and whiskey, outlaw career. Waylon did it his way. Hepatitis, Diabetes, Johnny Cash, The Highwaymen, ‘Luckenbach Texas’, Willie Nelson, ‘Dukes of Hazard’ & ‘Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys’.
Waylon was married four time and had six children with 7 different women. His son ‘Shooter’ is a successful artist in his won right now. Waylon passed away in 2002 at the age of 64.
