[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 111 (Thursday, July 12, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9143-S9144]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. BOXER (for herself and Mrs. Feinstein):
  S. 1781. A bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 118 Minner Avenue in Bakersfield, California, as the 
``Buck Owens Post Office''; to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, today I am joined by my colleague, Senator 
Feinstein, to introduce legislation to designate the facility of the 
United States Postal Service located at 118 Minner Avenue in 
Bakersfield, California, as the Buck Owens Post Office.
  Country western legend, Buck Owens was one of the pioneers of the 
``Bakersfield Sound,'' that brought the raw edge of electric guitars 
and a rock and roll beat to country music. A great musician and a 
generous man, Buck left behind a legacy of artistry and love for his 
adopted hometown of Bakersfield and California's Central Valley.
  The son of a sharecropper, Buck was born Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. in 
Sherman, TX, in 1929. At an early age, he nicknamed himself ``Buck'' 
after a mule on the family farm. In 1937, the Owens family moved west 
seeking better fortune during the Great Depression. When he was just 13 
years old, Buck dropped out of school to find work, but he never 
stopped pursuing his passion for music.
  A natural musician, Buck taught himself to play guitar in his early 
teens. When he was just 16, he had already landed a regular show on a 
local radio station and was playing shows in honky tonks and bars 
around Phoenix. Just 6 years later, Buck moved his young family to 
Bakersfield, California, where he began to make his mark on country 
music as a performer, a songwriter, and a recording artist.
  Buck's trademark stinging electric guitar and rhythm sound 
revolutionized country music and challenged the Nashville 
establishment. His 20 number-one hits are a testament to his place 
among the greatest artists in country music history. Throughout his 
decades as an entertainer, Buck delighted audiences from Bakersfield to 
Nashville, all the way to Japan and even the White House.
  Buck's pioneering work has continued to inspire a new generation of 
musicians. In 1986, when Buck had finished a 25-year run as the cohost 
of the Hee Haw television show, Dwight Yoakam and other new traditional 
performers were just beginning a revival of his hallmark Bakersfield 
Sound.
  I was fortunate to have met Buck back in 1997 at his Crystal Palace 
in Bakersfield, when I was invited to

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present one of his special red, white, and blue guitars to a promising 
music student named William Villatoro. I still vividly remember how the 
young man was deeply moved and inspired by Buck's generous gesture. I 
will certainly remember Buck Owens as a man of great compassion who 
possessed a profound love for his country. Although he is no longer 
with us, I take great comfort in knowing that Buck Owens was able to be 
a shining light not only in the life of a young man from Bakersfield 
but also to the millions of others who admired his musical gifts and 
were touched by his humanity.
  I encourage my colleagues to join me in support of this legislation 
as we commemorate an icon of American music whose artistry and 
generosity touched so many lives in his community.
                                 ______