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Concept
Hank Penny
Summary
Herbert Clayton Penny (September 18, 1918 – April 17, 1992) was an American musician who played banjo mainly in the Western swing genre. He also worked as a comedian best known for his backwoods character "That Plain Ol' Country Boy" on TV with Spade Cooley. He was married to country singer Sue Thompson from 1953–63.
In the 1930s, Penny was the leader of the Radio Cowboys with guitarist Julian Akins, steel guitarist Sammy Forsmark, tenor banjoist Louis Dumont, bassist Carl Stewart, and vocalist, guitarist, and fiddler Sheldon Bennett. At WLW Radio in Cincinnati during World War II, he formed the Plantation Boys, which included fiddler Carl Stewart, guitarist/bassist Louis Innis, fiddler Zed Tennis, and lead guitarist Roy Lanham. Their sound was similar to that of the Radio Cowboys. In 1944, Penny left Cincinnati for Los Angeles where he formed larger Western swing bands that played local clubs and ballrooms, such as the Venice Pier in Santa Monica. He took over a band formerly led by ex-Spade Cooley bassist Deuce Spriggens. Penny modeled the Radio Cowboys' repertoire of Western Swing music on Milton Brown and his Musical Brownies. His West Coast bands reflected the influence of both the more sophisticated Spade Cooley band, and Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. A number of former Wills sidemen such as Jimmy Wyble, Noel Boggs, and Herb Remington also worked with Penny.
Penny had three hits on the Billboard Country Singles chart: "Steel Guitar Stomp" (King 528, 1946), an instrumental that featured Noel Boggs and Merle Travis, the slightly risque "Get Yourself A Red Head" (King 540, 1946), and his own composition "Bloodshot Eyes" (King 828, 1950).
Penny's "Bloodshot Eyes," a country novelty number, was recorded in 1951 by rhythm and blues singer Wynonie Harris, who also recorded for King Records, Penny's label at the time. Harris recorded the song because the publishing was controlled by King, whose owner Syd Nathan encouraged his other artists to record songs he published.
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