List, I decided to send this to the list because a few people have been using their time to look up info. on Paul Howard and the Cotton Pickers and writing me privately. I want everyone to know that Penny Armstrong sent the info. below to me right after I wrote. I am certainly greatful to everyone who has responded. My earlier efforts to find out about Paul pre-dated the existence of google. Now, it seems, there is quite a bit about him on the web. Also, his music is being played on radio stations west of the MS River that play western swing "roots" music. There IS an Armstrong connection to all this. My first cousin Rosella Dean, who was married to Paul and is mentioned in the bio below, was the daughter of my aunt Garnet ARMSTRONG, so Rosella was an Armstrong too. Rosella's only child, born 3 yrs. before Rosella's death in 1977, doesn't remember her mother. We Armstrong cousins like to tell her stories about her mother and now, thanks to this info., we are planning to check out some old Paul Howard recordings to see if Rosella's voice appears on any of them. Herma Armstrong near Buffalo, NY hrarmstrong@juno.com >From Penny Armstrong: found this at www.musicweb.uk.net/encyclopaedia/h/H216.HTM - 5k HOWARD Paul (b 10 July '13, Midland AR, d 18 June '84) Western Swing bandleader, singer, songwriter and mult-instrumentalist, reputed to be first to play electric guitar on Nashville's Grand Ole Opry. Started playing guitar in teens and started his career on local radio in Phoenix, Arizona '31. Worked in farming, mining and as a salesman alongside showbusiness. Joined Opry '40, signed as a songwriter with Acuff-Rose; led Arkansas Cotton Pickers, a nine-piece band with multiple basses to make up for lack of drums, still taboo on the Opry stage, with wife Rosella featured as sometime vocalist and co-writer. Recorded for Columbia '45-7 and King '48. Left Opry '49 and worked in Houston, then to Shreveport to host Louisiana Hayride. Toured with the Cotton Pickers and Paul Howard Band through to mid-'70s. Albums incl. Faded Picture Blues '70 on King. And this has his biography www.theiceberg.com/artist/26974/paul_howard/ - 17k There is a lot on google when you type "cotton pickers" "paul howard" >From the google sites I have learned: A British company has gone through King Records vaults and put together some compilations. One is called ShuffleTown - Western Swing on King 1946-50; it has 2 Paul Howard tracks on it. It was done in 2001 and is a CD. From everything I've seen at these links, Paul Howard's name is spoken with a great deal of respect by afficionados of this type of music. The "Nashville Scene," which is the site talking about the compilation CD of old King recordings, refers to the Paul Howard selections as the "real jewels" of the CD. And another site refers to his band as a "boot camp" for great Nashville players of the future. Among the well known musicians who got their start with Paul Howard are bassist Bob Moore and guitarist Hank Garland. Garland was hired as a 15 yr old by Howard. He stayed about a yr., then played with Little Jimmy Dickens, Marty Robbins, and a host of Nasville luminaries. It's Garland who plays the Spanish stuff in Marty Robbins "The Streets of El Paso." He also played on a couple of Elvis records and - ta da - that's Garland playing the famous guitar riff in Roy Orbinson's "Pretty Woman." Moore played with just about everyone who was anyone in Nashville. Paul Howard was one of the first country-western guys to have drums. His first drummer was Joe Morella, who eventually played with Dave Brubeck. >From these google links, there appear to be a lot stations west of the Mississippi that are playing western swing "roots" music much as we hear a lot of blues "roots" music here in the East. Many of these links amout to nothing more than their playlists that include a selection or 2 from Paul Howard and the Arkansas Cotton Pickers.