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Gene Sisco / Gene Sisco and the Ramblin' Rebels / Gene Sisco and the Deacons


Fostoria, mid 1950s - 1970s

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Gene Sisco was another Ohio rockabilly pioneer. He started in the mid 1950s and recorded a number of good country/rockabilly 45s over the space of a decade or so. 

The details of his musical beginnings are not very clear, but a well researched story says that he was playing in 1955 with Donnie Bowshier. It's possible that Gene was living somewhere else, possibly closer to Columbus or Dayton, but we don't have more details.

Gene's story starts with his first 45, the classic "Grandma Rock And Roll" from 1957. The 45 was recorded for Dess records, run by Sam Salyer. Sam was a DJ for WCHO in Wilmington, OH SE of Dayton. A biography for Donnie Bowshier on the hillbilly-music.com website says the record was cut at the same sessions as Bowshier's Dess 45. The band credits are Paul Hopkins on guitar, Homer Wooten on lead guitar, Sonny Curtis on steel guitar, Roger Bowshier on bass, and Gene on lead vocals and fiddle.

The same session seems to have produced the sides for Gene's second 45 on Dess, released a few months later. "turning The Tables" keeps a bit of the rockabilly sound.

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Ad from 1961

Gene was quiet on the recording scene for a few years but he was very active playing live. In 1961 he was billed as Gene Sisco's Western Virginia Hayseeds. From newspaper ads, he was covering a lot of NW Ohio playing in Lima, Port Clinton among other places.

In 1963 he was using the name Gene Sisco and the Deacons. He partnered with Danny Bauman, a Fostoria resident who became the lead guitarist and co-writer. The aritcle mentions a radio show that Gene hosted on WFOB in Fostoria. We couldn't find any more info about the radio show, presumably Gene and his band were playing live. This band recorded two 45s, one on their own custom Co-Day label (with some odd credits as the writers as the group name, and the group, as the Decons, listed as the writers). This 45 seems like it was recorded at Chad Baugess' B+4 studio as it uses the studio Rite account. 

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1964 ad from Crestline, OH

The Deacons other 45 was released on Hilltop, the last 45 to use that name as part of the running Hilltop/Prism, etc sequence. It's much better recorded than the Co-Day 45. The meaning of the "No. 2" part of the title is unclear.

Around 1965 Gene recorded a 45 on the Bay Shore label, a King custom press. The songs were published by B-W suggesting he still had ties to the Welty/Apperson team.

In 1966-8 Gene recorded 3 45s, returning to the B+4 studios for the records. All three records have different artist listing, the 1966 45 as Gene Sisco and the Valley Playboys, redoing Gene's first recording "Block Of Ice You Call A Heart". His 1967 45 is credited to Gene Sisco only. The 1968 45 credits Gene Sisco with Paul Blair and Shorty Ratliff.

By the late 1960s, we lost track of Gene's activities. There are no listings in the newspapers. He made a couple more 45s, one in 1973, pressd at Rite, and one likely in the late 1970s. He also recorded one, maybe two LPs.

He moved back to Kentucky (he was born there) sometime in the 1970s (possibly 1980s, but more likely in the 1970s). The 1973 45 may have been done in Kentucky.

He passed away in 2001, in Kentucky.

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1971 story about Danny Bauman

The Rambling Ramblers who were credited in Gene's Dess 45s were not the same band as the Ramblin' Rebels who also recorded on Dess.

Discography:
Block Of Ice You Call A Heart / Grandma Rock And Roll - Dess 7001, 1957
No Use For Me To Try / Turning The Tables - Dess 7003, 1957
Polka Dot Bikini No. 2 / Little Bit Of Love - Hilltop 1888, 1963
Torchered Man / Save It - Co-Day no # (Rite 11213/4), 1963
Somebody To Love / Help Me To The Door - Bay Shore 1/2, 1965
Block Of Ice You Call A Heart / Bar Stool Down At Joes - B+4 no # (RCA master TK4M-9593/4), 1966
All I See Is A Prison Cell / Ladder Of Love - B+4 no # (RCA master UK4M-2542/3), 1967
Drunkards Bad Dream / Please Come Back - B+4 no # (RCA master W4KM-2602/3), 1968
The Devil In Me / Rosie's Bar And Grill - Tripple G no # (Rite master 30639/40), 1973
*LP - Coal Diggin' Country Boy - Triple G (more details needed), 1980s?
Tell Jimmy Daddy Tried / Champion Of Fools - S-E-Y Enterprises 101, late 1970s?