Cliff and Henry Maddox
The Maddox Bros. and Rose were a true Dust Bowl success story—their
family emigrated with their parents from Boas, Alabama, to California during the
Depression in search of work, and found it when they combined
their musical talents. Their mix of hillbilly, Western swing and jump blues
took the San Joaquin Valley by storm, creating one of the first rockabilly
bands. Cliff Maddox, whom I believe to be the tall skinny feller in
all but the first two group shots below, was the group's first mandolin player,
but died in 1949. He was succeeded on mandolin by his brother Henry,
who appears at left and in the first two group photos, as far as I
can tell. Looks like the weapon of choice was usually a
Gibson EM150, although the instrument
held by a seated Cliff
in one of the group photos looks more like an electrified Strad-O-Lin. |