Six Days On The Road

Bill Cutright · Post by **Bill Cutright** » 18 Jul 2001 5:46 am

Anyone know who played the cool guitar stuff on this hit? Because of the definite style, I kinda always assumed it wasn’t a, then, regular “A” team player.
Know of any other recordings they played on?
Maybe a bit off topic (but, I don’t know where else to ask, and I realize there’s a lot of are 6 stringers out there, too). Thanks.

Steve Pacholl · Post by **Steve Pacholl** » 18 Jul 2001 6:17 am

The lead guitarist on the original Six Days was Jimmy Covard

RickRichtmyer · Post by **RickRichtmyer** » 18 Jul 2001 6:26 am

Interesting question. That song really did have some great six-string picking.

From what a quick Internet search reveals, I'd say the guitarist was Jimmy Colvard.

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Rick Richtmyer
Good News

RickRichtmyer · Post by **RickRichtmyer** » 18 Jul 2001 6:52 am

I wasn't familiar with the name, but if you do an Internet search (I recommend Google), he's played with a lot of good folks.

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Rick Richtmyer
Good News

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 18 Jul 2001 6:55 am

Was not the original sung by Dave Dudley?
And was not the guitar work performed on a
dobro standard guitar style?
It sure caught my ear a t the time.

Roy

Fred Murphy · Post by **Fred Murphy** » 18 Jul 2001 7:26 am

I believe the sound is achieved by using a steel fingerpick, and smacking it down of the strings. It sounds like a Strat or Tele guitar to me.

Steve Pacholl · Post by **Steve Pacholl** » 18 Jul 2001 7:54 am

I was told what guitar was used, but it was not a tele or a strat. John Voit, who played lead in Dudley's band after the song was recorded demonstrated the finger pop to me and Dale Watson last summer. I think it is safe to assume that Voit learned the technique from Covard. When I introduced Dale to JOhn, the first question Dale asked was how the sound was achieved. John showed us how the middle finger was flicked from the thumb to hit the sting to achieve the sound. The last time I talked to Dale about this, he said he has practiced the technique, but he had not yet mastered it. As he pointed out, John's fingers were a lot longer.

Al Udeen · Post by **Al Udeen** » 18 Jul 2001 8:03 am

Dave Dudley's Six Days On The Road, was recorded at Kay-Bank Studios in Minneapolis, Mn.in 1959or60, Jimmy Colvard was 17 when he played that popping style guitar sound, that he created!, Jimmy later moved to Nashville, where he became a top session player for many years! Jimmy was the 1st guitar player that I worked with [1958] He was also with the "Barefoot Jerry", band W/Russ Hicks & Wayne Moss & other session players! Unfortunately Jimmy suffered an untimely death in 1977! He most likely played a Gibson Byrdland or a DeAngelico Guitar on Six Days! May God Rest His Soul! > Al Udeen

Bill Cutright · Post by **Bill Cutright** » 18 Jul 2001 9:58 am

Wow, guys, you really came thru (I had confidence).
Great info (I’ll be looking at the credits on my Barefoot Jerry albums-thot I had them memorized).
Was interested on how you did those searches. I’ve got AOL, are those search engines available though that? What did you search on, Dudley?

Thanks, again everyone.

George McLellan · Post by **George McLellan** » 18 Jul 2001 12:00 pm

Last year at the Midwest R&R Reunion, I was talking with "Big John Voight", and of coarse that "sound" came up. He laughed and said someone stole his guitar thinking the sound was in it. He said it's in the fingers.

As I recall back in the 60's when John was with Dave, he was playing a blonde single cutaway. I don't remember what model.

Al, remind me when I see you at the Reunion, to ask him. I'm sure he'll be there again.

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SUAS U' PHIOB
Geo

Eddie Lange · Post by **Eddie Lange** » 18 Jul 2001 3:45 pm

And of course the great Betty Lee sang the oohs and aahs in the back!

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The Young Steelkid

CrowBear Schmitt · Post by **CrowBear Schmitt** » 18 Jul 2001 10:18 pm

the cool guitar stuff was also played by Jesse Ed Davis on Taj Mahals Giant Step LP.
i know this is not the version y'all talkin' bout, but i could'nt resist mentionning the Kiowa red dirt boogie brother. RIP.
Steel what ?

[This message was edited by CrowBear Schmitt on 19 July 2001 at 09:49 AM.]

Richard Bass · Post by **Richard Bass** » 19 Jul 2001 8:56 am

That lick was definetly played by snapping the nail of your middle finger on the string while holding on to the pick for dear life. I worked with Dave off and on from 1966 to 1970. I recorded with Dave and used that lick on "There ain't no easy run". I met Jimmy and John a few times years ago. Both great players.If I remember right I was playing a red Gibson 335 at the time. Sure wish I had that guitar now!!!
Richard[This message was edited by Richard Bass on 19 July 2001 at 09:59 AM.][This message was edited by Richard Bass on 19 July 2001 at 10:00 AM.]

Gene Jones · Post by **Gene Jones** » 19 Jul 2001 10:34 am

*[This message was edited by Gene Jones on 02 May 2002 at 03:22 PM.]

Jason Odd · Post by **Jason Odd** » 19 Jul 2001 4:50 pm

Jim, I was pretty sure the song became a hit around 1963 or so when the truck song craze had built up again. I mean Jimmy Martin did a bluegrass album of Truckin' themed songs in 1964 and Ken Nelson tried to get Merle Haggard into cutting some truckin' songs in 1965, Merle vetoed the idea and Ken signed Red Simpson for the concept in 1965.

Back to the topic though, I believe the song was reissued in the late 1960s and of course the Taj Mahal Band did an awesome version of it which CrowBear Schmitt mentioned earlier.
That version was issued in 1969 with Jessie Ed Davis handling most of the lead parts with Taj. Some of you might know that Jessie Ed played with Conway Twitty back in the mid 1960s with the Forum's own Gene Jones.

Just saw this on the All Music Guide website"

In the summer of 1963, he had his breakthrough hit, "Six Days on the Road," which was released on Golden Wing. The song became a massive success, peaking at number two on the country charts and making the pop Top 40. That same year, he signed with Mercury Records, releasing his first single for the label, "Last Day in the Mines," by the end of the year. Throughout the '60s, he had a long string of truck driving singles, including "Truck Drivin' Son-of-A-Gun," "Trucker's Prayer," "Anything Leaving Town Today, "There Ain't No Easy Run," and "Two Six Packs Away." By the end of the decade, he was also making conservative, good-old-boy anthems, as well.

Hal Higgins · Post by **Hal Higgins** » 19 Jul 2001 7:31 pm

I did a few shows with Dave and Red Sovine in the late 60's and early 70's while working with Dick Curless (Tombstone Every Mile)Dave's hit came in the early 60's. I didin't know who did the original guitar work but sure did like it, and even tried to duplicate it on steel, without much success.

Emmons Legrande Picker

John Paul Jones · Post by **John Paul Jones** » 21 Jul 2001 10:23 am

When the song was popular I played the guitar ride using a drum stick. Got the same sound, and the audience ate it up.

The drumstick routine doesn't have the same effect on the audiences since the song is not as popular, so I quit doing it.

John Paul Jones

Paul Graupp · Post by **Paul Graupp** » 21 Jul 2001 10:51 am

John Paul: You keep good company !! The late Chet Atkins had a song called Boo Boo Stick Beat. I forget who did the stick work for him but it was the way you described it; drumsticks (plural) on the strings while he played. I've got to go find that and listen to it again. Thanks for reminding us !!

Regards, Paul

Al Udeen · Post by **Al Udeen** » 21 Jul 2001 11:35 am

Jim! It's quite difficult to know exactly what year the song was released, I'm 99% sure that Jimmy was 17 at the time it was cut! He was 35 in 77 when he died! I will see at least 1 or more people, "at Curt Olsens benefit", tommorow, who were on the session & will nail down the exact date!
>au

Rich Paton · Post by **Rich Paton** » 21 Jul 2001 12:09 pm

I always liked that tune a lot, hearing it on the radio, but never really noticed those cool guitar licks until I got a copy of the "Legends of Guitar, Country, Volume Two" CD in 1992. I worked (a lot) on learning it on the Tele, and got to where I could pull off a fairly decent version. But nowhere near as well as Colvard did! I'm totally confused now as to his actual technique, but I played the notes by pulling up on a string with a fingernail and releasing it to snap hard against the neck & fingerboard. "popping(?)"
If you listen closely to the song, you can hear that that a nice healthy dose of slap-back echo was used on the guitar. When using electronic effects to produce that echo, the timing of the "slaps" needs to be fine-tuned with the song's beat in order to best produce the punchy, snappy enhancement of the notes Colvard picked.
But hey, you guys knew that.
I think that some fairly exotic in its day, "Eccophonic" brand amplifiers were designed to produce a wide variety of studio trickery in live playing situations, and the sound Colvard got sounds like an "Eccophonic", but it was undoubtedy done in the studio by using simple (but effective) tape delay echo.
At any rate, it's some great sounding pickin', I still haven't come close to mastering those licks.
I would love to have been able to hear him play live on a night when he was really on...and picking as hot as a two-dollar pistol.

Al Udeen · Post by **Al Udeen** » 22 Jul 2001 8:54 pm

Ok! Heres the skinny on the date that Dudleys, "Six Days" was recorded! Today, "Sunday" I played a benefit, which included 2 people that were on the session! Betty Lee, sang, backup, & Orlo Thompson, who played bass! I always thought that Jim Colvard was 17 at the time which would have put the date 59or60! I was wrong, It was recorded, and released in 63, which would put, Colvard at 21! Sorry for the missinformation, but I did correct it by going directly to the proper source! By the way, Orlo's sister, Marvis Thompson, is married to Ferlin Huskey!! >au

Al Udeen · Post by **Al Udeen** » 23 Jul 2001 7:11 pm

Maybe if I keep pecking away at this, I will come up with, what the weather was like, on the day this was recorded? Today "Monday" I got a call from Betty Lee, informing me that she had just talked to Dave Dudley, and he said the song was recorded, in the fall of 62& released in the spring of 63! I will not bother you with any more of these variations of time! I did all I could! Now you got the rest of the story! {I Hope!} >au