Bill Text: VA SJR409 | 2019 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Celebrating the life of Roy Linwood Clark.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2019-02-20 - Bill text as passed Senate and House (SJ409ER) [SJR409 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2019-SJR409-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Roy Linwood Clark, Grammy award-winning country musician and philanthropist, died on November 15, 2018; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark was born in Meherrin, Virginia, and moved to Washington, D.C., when he was young; his father played in a square dance band and exposed his son to a wide variety of music through trips to see the National Symphony Orchestra, various military band concerts, and numerous other concerts; and
WHEREAS, with a strong music foundation, Roy Clark began playing tunes on a banjo and mandolin; as a 14-year-old, he got a Sears Silvertone guitar, and that same year, he made his first television appearance; he was 15 when he earned $2 in his first paid performance in his father's band; and
WHEREAS, starting out, Roy Clark began playing his instruments in the fertile, diverse musical soil of cosmopolitan Washington, D.C., at bars and dives on Friday and Saturday nights until he was playing every night; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark soon went on tour with country legends such as Hank Williams and Grandpa Jones; after winning a national banjo competition in 1950, he was invited to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, which led to shows with Red Foley and Ernest Tubb; and
WHEREAS, in his early career, Roy Clark would often return to Washington, D.C., to play not only country but jazz, pop, and early rock and roll; known for his showmanship, he would play fast, and even play with his feet; and
WHEREAS, in 1954 Roy Clark joined Jimmy Dean and the Texas Wildcats, appearing in clubs and on radio and television, and even backing up Elvis Presley; at 27 an invitation to open for Wanda Jackson at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas proved to be his big break, leading to his own tour; and
WHEREAS, on the road for 345 straight nights at one stretch, when Roy Clark returned to Las Vegas in 1962, he came back as a headliner and recording star with his debut album The Lightning Fingers of Roy Clark; the next year he had his first hit, The Tips of My Fingers; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark co-hosted Hee Haw and made appearances on television shows American Bandstand, The Tonight Show, and variety shows, always with a smile and a sense of humor; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark was best known for the song Yesterday When I Was Young; he had 23 Top 40 country hits, among them eight Top 10s: The Tips of My Fingers, Yesterday When I Was Young, I Never Picked Cotton, Thank God and Greyhound You're Gone, The Lawrence Welk-Hee Haw Counter Revolution Polka, Come Live With Me, Somewhere Between Love and Tomorrow, and If I Had to Do It All Over Again; his 12-string guitar rendition of Malaguena is considered a classic; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark won numerous accolades for his work, including a Grammy for best country music instrumental performance for Alabama Jubilee, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, an Academy of Country Music's Pioneer Award, membership in the Gibson Guitar Hall of Fame, and selection as the 63rd member of the Grand Ole Opry; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark's groundbreaking friendship tours to the Soviet Union brought country music to appreciative audiences around the world, building people-to-people bridges in the height of the Cold War; and
WHEREAS, throughout Roy Clark's career, philanthropy and his Virginia roots remained important; he regularly returned to Prince Edward County to perform at Longwood University where a scholarship in his name supports music students; and
WHEREAS, Roy Clark will be missed by his wife, Barbara; children, Roy, Michael, Terry Lee, Susan, and Diane, and their families; and numerous other family and friends as well as his legions of fans; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Roy Linwood Clark, Grammy award-winning country musician and philanthropist; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Roy Linwood Clark, as an expression of the General Assembly's respect for his music and his memory.
