His insights into these two megastars, each at the very beginning of their climb to fame, are interesting, to be sure, but there was so much more to be covered. In addition to the two icons, numerous other country acts began or expanded their stardom on the Hayride, and though Logan provides some interesting anecdotes about Johnny and Jack, Kitty Wells, Faron Young, Slim Whitman, Webb Pierce, Johnny Horton, Johnny Cash and George Jones, he never really delves into the Hayride itself.

His dishing on the Grand Ole Opry, while probably close to the bone, is a poor substitute for a deeper discussion of how the Hayride itself worked. There's some interesting analysis of why the Hayride kept giving up its stars to Nashville, but having been written so long after-the-fact, the of-the-moment accounts focus more on the stars than the show. One never really gets a feel for the Hayride's own arc of fame, nor the nuts-and-bolts of how the show (both stage and radio) operated.

That said, and even with the factual errors noted elsewhere, this is a worthwhile first-hand account of a seminal program that fostered one of the great transitional periods in country music's history.


To Much Attention Put On Elvis   March 4, 2002
0 out of 2 found this review helpful

I was there. I heard the people around Shreveport talk about the Hayride. Elvis was no big asset to the show. There are to many errors in the book for anyone to take it as truth. If he is going to take credit for anything he should also take credit for causing the show to loose it's place in Country Music.


What a refreshing book!   October 1, 1999
Tim Stafford (tstaff@intermediatn.net) (Kingsport, Tennessee)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

What a refreshing book! No pretentious axes to grind, no exposes, just one honest manOs recollection of his remarkable experiences in the entertainment Obidness.O Horace OHossO Logan was the producer of KWKH ShreveportOs legendary Country Music radio program, OThe Louisiana HayrideO from the late 1940s to the late 1950s. During this time, the HayrideOs popularity rivaled that of the Grand Ole Opry and it gained a deserved reputation as the OCradle of the Stars,O a place where young, upcoming talent was discovered and polished. Indeed, the names that Logan parades forth in this book are impressive, more like a OwhoOs whoO of country musicOs OGolden AgeO: Hank Williams, Elvis Presley, George Jones, Johnny Cash, Johnny Horton, Webb Pierce, Faron Young, Slim Whitman, Jim Reeves, Kitty Wells, Floyd Cramer, Sonny James, the Browns.... All got their start on the stage of ShreveportOs Municipal Auditorium.

But ultimately Logan couldn't convince KWKH officials to entice support services to Shreveport, things like booking agencies, record companies, and publishing. As a result the best talent from the Hayride inevitably jumped to the Opry and Nashville became OMusic City.O

In all, IOve not read a better book about Country Music. If youOre a fan of OclassicO Country Music--which has almost become a museum piece considering the state of modern Country radio--you owe it to yourself to buy OLouisiana Hayride Years.O


Read this book!!!!!   September 25, 1999
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

This is the most entertaining book I've read in a very long time!! I couldn't put it down!! I think everybody who listens to rockabilly, western swing and roots music NEEDS to read this!