HOMER JOY
Signed with Buck Owens Enterprises and Blue Book Music as a singer/songwriter in 1970...
Homer Joy songs in the first 3 years with Blue Book Music, sold 2 million records 69% of Homer Joy's songs in the first 3 years, were recorded by major artists on major labels... Suzan Raye, Buck Owens, Tony Booth, Freddie Hart
Wrote and recorded "Streets of Bakersfield" on Capitol Records 1972
Blue Book Music won the CMA Award as "Publisher of the Year" in 1973
Homer had a the 1 record in all of the 300 top Country Music Markets as an Artist on Capitol Records in 1974
In 1976, he was the opening act for what was the largest Country Music Festival ever held up to that time, at Noble's Farm in Magnolia, Mississippi, for 140,000 people.
From 1976 until 1978, his band was the 1 draw at Rodeo's, Fairs and Clubs all over the northwest and Canada...
In 1978, Homer retired from the road to record and promote other bands.
In 1983, he retired from the music business, remarried his exwife and began drilling monitoring wells on the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in central Washington state.
In 1988, with the success of his song, "Streets of Bakersfield". Homer built his own recording studio and went back to Producing and promoting other Artists, as well as doing some selected performances himself.
In 1989, he performed the largest Gospel Concert ever held at River Front Park in downtown Spokane, Washington.
In 1990, while performing on the road in Canada in February, Homer had a heart attack
December of that same year, he entered the hospital and had open heart surgery and an A.I.C.D. unit, experimental at the time, was installed
Thinking he was well enough. An offer came from a major label to record his own album project... Old friend Buck Owens came out of retirement once more, to record a duet with Homer, of Homer's song, "John Law"... Further heart problems put the project on hold and it was finally canceled...
During that time; Homer received : A Grammy Nomination, A BMI Million-Air Award, nominations from the CMA and ACM, his song won a National Juke Box Award and he received The Nashville Songwriters International Achievement Award, along with one Gold and two Platinum albums...
In 1995, a Gospel album Homer Produced for the Nashville singing group, The Herricks, was chosen 5 by the Seattle Times, in the top 10, best independently produced albums that year, for all genre's of music on the west coast.
In 1997, after being given 2 months to live, and a second open heart surgery, Homer Joy was finally retired from Country Music
In March of 2006, Homer was awaiting a heart transplant at The Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, when he received the news of the death of Buck Owens. Buck had been so supportive all through Homer's ordeal. It was devastating to see him loose his own battle with heart disease
Before his death, March 25, 2006, Homer had promised his old friend. If he were able to survive. The first thing he would do, is go back and finish the album project, the two had started all those years ago...
Six months to the day, from his heart transplant, August 22, 2006. Homer was in the Crystal Clear Sound Recording Studio in Dallas, Texas. Keeping that promise.
Reviews of the project, "Someday It'll Be Country" , named for the resistance the two singer/songwriters had met during their career's. Has received nothing but rave reviews from music critics all over the world...
The Homer Joy song, "Streets of Bakersfield" is in the top 100 Country songs of the century. On CMT, though fans overwhelming placed "Streets of Bakersfield" as the most popular Country song ever written about a city. CMT placed it 9... At the same time that fans voted "Streets of Bakersfield" the most popular Country duet ever recorded. CMT placed it at 26... When queried by the Media and the Press, CMT has never come forward with an answer.
To date, Homer Joy songs have sold over 20million copies world wide. Including 2 ½ million copies of "Streets of Bakersfield, in 2007...
The Homer Joy song, "John Law", recorded as a duet with Buck Owens, from Homer Joy's new cd "Someday It'll Be Country", Is now 1 on Independent Music Network Country Charts for a record breaking 7 Times.
It might be interesting to note:
Like Buck Owens, Homer Joy was born into a sharecroppers family...Buck Owens was 16 years older than Homer. From the time Homer wrote "Streets of Bakersfield" until the time Buck recorded it with Dwight Yoakam and it became a 1 song, was 16 years... And, the first 1 song for Buck Owens in 16 years... From the time Homer wrote "John Law" until the time he and Buck recorded it, was 16 years. From the time they recorded it until it was finally released, was 16 years...From the time of Buck's passing until the project was released was 16 months...From the anniversary of Buck Owens passing until the release of "John Law" was 16 weeks. From the time "John Law" first became 1 until Homer moved to Bakersfield, California is 16 weeks. Coming to 1, makes "John Law" Buck Owens' first 1 record in 16 years...