B. W. Stevenson

Louis Charles "B. W." Stevenson (October 5, 1949 – April 28, 1988) (originally known as Buckwheat Stevenson) was an American country pop singer and musician. Stevenson was born in Dallas

"My Maria" Stevenson's biggest hit was "My Maria", co-written with Daniel Moore. Among Stevenson's other singles are "The River of Love" (No. 53 / No. 49CAN ), another Moore song; "Down to the Station" (No. 82 /No. 82CAN ); and the original version of Daniel Moore's "Shambala" (No. 66). The better-known version of "Shambala" by Three Dog Night reached No. 3 and No. 4 in Canada.

Stevenson recorded a contemporary Christian album titled Lifeline, produced by Chris Christian, his neighbor in Beverly Hills, California, and it had success on Christian radio with the hit "Headin' Home". Stevenson's album Rainbow Down the Road was released posthumously and includes a duet with Willie Nelson on "Heart of the Country". Author Jan Reid devotes a chapter to Stevenson in his book The Improbable Rise of Redneck Rock, dubbing him "The Voice".

"My Maria" was posthumously re-popularized in 1996 when the song was covered by the country duo Brooks & Dunn on their fourth studio album Borderline, and reached Number 1 on the American and Canadian country charts that year, with this version winning Brooks & Dunn their second Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Vocal Group or Duo. Brooks & Dunn later re-recorded their version as a duet with fellow country singer Thomas Rhett on their 2019 album Reboot.

Death In April 1988, Stevenson went to the hospital to undergo heart valve surgery. He developed a staph infection and died on April 28, at 38.

Discography

Albums 1972 B.W. Stevenson (RCA Victor) US 206 1972 Lead Free (RCA Victor) 1973 My Maria (RCA Victor) US 45 1974 Calabasas (RCA Victor) US 206 1975 We Be Sailin''' (Warner Bros) US 201 1977 The Best of B.W. Stevenson (RCA Victor) 1977 Lost Feeling (Warner Bros) 1980 Lifeline (Home Sweet Home Records) 1990 Rainbow Down the Road (Amazing Records) 2000 Very Best of B.W. Stevenson (Collectables) 2003 Lead Free/B.W. Stevenson (Collectables) 2003 My Maria/Calabasas (Collectables) 2005 We Be Sailin'/Lost Feeling (Collectables) 2013 Southern Nights (Ameritz Music Ltd) 2018 Encore (Pedernales Records)

Singles 1972 Say What I Feel US 114 US AC 38 1973 Don't Go To Mexico US CB 118 1973 Shambala US 66 US AC 31 1973 My Maria US 9 US AC 1 1973 River of Love US 53 US AC 32 1974 Look for the Light US CB 111 1974 Little Bit of Understanding US CB 108 US AC 40 1977 Down to the Station'' US 82