Leon Rhodes

Leon Rhodes (March 10, 1932 – December 9, 2017) was an American country music guitarist. He primarily played behind Ernest Tubb as part of the Texas Troubadours and later was a house band member for the television programs Grand Ole Opry and Hee Haw. Rhodes also played as a session musician for various country singers such as Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, George Strait, and John Denver, among others.

Rhodes was regarded as one of the foremost country guitarists of his era for his quickness and accuracy. During his time with the Troubadours, Rhodes developed recognition as Tubb would often introduce him by name prior to his guitar solos.

Life and career 1932–1959: Early life and beginnings Leon Rhodes was born on March 10, 1932, in Dallas, Texas. He was born into a musically inclined family as his father, James Edward Rhodes, played the guitar and harmonica while his mother, May Rhodes (née Meharg), was a pianist. Rhodes began to teach himself to play guitar at the age of ten. Rhodes and his family were Pentecostals, and he played at dances for his church.

When Rhodes was 16 years old, he was hired for his first job in the music industry as a member of "The Big D Jamboree" radio program on Dallas station KRLD. He received his first recording opportunities in the 1950s, when he worked as a session musician for fellow Texans Lefty Frizzell and Ray Price. Rhodes also played at the Silver Spur Club and the Longhorn Ballroom for owner Jack Ruby, the man later known for killing Lee Harvey Oswald in the wake of the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

1959–1967: Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours In 1959, Rhodes played a set at the Longhorn Ballroom prior to an evening performance at the venue by Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours. One of the Troubadours, steel guitarist Buddy Emmons, asked Rhodes to play in Tubb's style and invited him to work with the band in Nashville. Rhodes initially turned down the offer but eventually agreed to partake in a two-week tour with the band. By 1960, he was hired as the lead guitarist for the group. He toured with the Troubadours for 200 to 300 days a year and recorded with them. Rhodes was credited on 12 Tubb albums, including Thanks a Lot (1964) and My Pick of the Hits (1965). Rhodes also backed Tubb on Mr. and Mrs. Used to Be, a 1965 collaborative album with Loretta Lynn. In 1966, Rhodes and several of his Troubadour bandmates worked with Willie Nelson on his album Country Favorites – Willie Nelson Style. Another Story, the final Troubadours project involving Rhodes, was released in 1967 and was the band's most successful studio album as it peaked at sixth on Billboard magazine's Top Country Albums chart. Rhodes left the Troubadours in December 1966.

In 1981, Rhodes played bass for John Denver's album Some Days Are Diamonds, B. J. Thomas's Some Love Songs Never Die, and Don McLean's Believers. In 1983, Rhodes worked with George Strait on Right or Wrong, a country chart-topper that received a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America. In 2014, Rhodes retired from his music career and was subsequently honored by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in its "Nashville Cats" series.

Legacy Rhodes has been considered one of the greatest country music guitarists of all time due to his stint backing Ernest Tubb with the Texas Troubadours and his decades-long career as a sideman and session musician in Nashville. Vince Gill said that "Leon Rhodes can play circles around most guitar players."

Discography Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours All Time Hits (1960) On Tour (1962) Ernest Tubb's Fabulous Texas Troubadours (1963) Just Call Me Lonesome (1963) The Family Bible (1963) Thanks a Lot (1964) Blue Christmas (1964) My Pick of the Hits (1965) Hittin' the Road (1965) By Request (1966) Country Hits Old and New (1966) Another Story (1967)