⬇️ OMAR ⬇️
&
THE HOWLERS
DISCOGRAPHY 1980-2024 (36CD)
&
THE HOWLERS
DISCOGRAPHY 1980-2024 (36CD)
BIOGRAPHY
Dykes grew up in McComb, Mississippi, began playing the guitar at age
7 and joined his first band at 12. In his 20s, he gathered a group of
musicians who started calling themselves 'the Howlers'.
They specialized in frat parties and were a party band, playing music
that included both "R'n'B, R'n'Roll and even the occasional polka and
western swing tune".
Dykes has said he remembers these days fondly. It was around this time
that he started calling himself Omar and developed his penchant for
the blues.
In 1976, the Howlers relocated to Austin, Texas, at the time sporting
a bustling music scene, home to such up-and-coming artists as Stevie
Ray Vaughan and Eric Johnson. After a year of gigging in Austin, the
rest of the band quit, feeling that they were not cut out to play
music full-time.
As they headed back to Mississippi, Dykes stayed and kept the name. He
worked out a new lineup, and recorded the debut album Big Leg Beat for
Stomp Records in 1980, just after fellow Austin band The Fabulous
Thunderbirds. The record was a local hit and was followed by, I Told You
So.
It was not until 1987, however, when Dykes signed a recording contract
with Columbia, that the band would succeed. That year saw the release of
Hard Times in the Land of Plenty, that went on to sell in excess of
500,000 copies. The band now consisted of Dykes singing and playing the
guitar, Bruce Jones on bass and Gene Brandon on drums.
Since then, Omar and the Howlers has released around twenty successful
albums, both for Columbia and Provogue Records, as well as their current
record label, Ruf Records.
NEW!
2023-Magic Man (2 CD) @320
2024-Uneasy Listening @320