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Texas Hill Country , Attractions, Brady, Texas, Things To Do
Classics live on in Brady
Tracy Pitcox's dream has helped fuel a resurgence of classic country music across the Texas Hill Country.
Classics live on in Brady
By John Hallowell
Tracy Pitcox is one of those rare people who knew what he wanted to do at a very young age. He’s still young now (just 39), but he’s got more than twenty years of experience in a job that he loves and he’s got a whole lot of friends, some of them in pretty high places!
The day that I interviewed him, he was about to leave for Nashville for a visit with Country Music legends Johnny Wright and Kitty Wells (that is, once he had finished his trademark Friday night “Hillbilly Hits” radio show).
Tracy grew up in a music-loving family, and always dreamed of being a radio DJ. His friend, Randall King, worked for KNEL, the local radio station. “I think I begged him and the owner long enough until I got a job,” Tracy says. He was just 15 years old when he started working evenings for KNEL in August of 1986, and he’s been there ever since.
When Tracy was a senior in high school, KNEL Music Director Josh Holstead asked him to host a new radio program featuring classic country songs and artists. The show would be called “Hillbilly Hits,” and would include interviews and calls from the public. With just a few days of advance publicity, the show went on the air.
“We had picked out about twenty albums to play,” says volunteer Darrell Cowen, “because we didn’t think many people would call.” They were wrong.
They got about fifty calls that first night, and more requests than they could handle. The show just grew from there, as Hillbilly Hits attracted fans (of all ages) from all around the state. Country America heard about the program, and sent a reporter to do a story. Newspapers and magazines across the state followed suit, and a fan club was formed (presently, the fan club has 850 members!) to promote the radio show and country music in general.
The radio show soon attracted the attention of the top country stars whose music anchored the show, and Tracy was able to get acquainted with many of the country legends. Quite a few of the biggest stars made themselves available for interviews. Some even co-hosted the show with Tracy.
During this time, Tracy had begun collecting country music memorabilia, and in 1999, he and some friends decided to start a museum. They started raising money from bake sales, opry shows, and “anything legal,” Tracy says, until they had $50,000. Local businessman Billy Jackson donated a building lot in memory of his wife, Peggy, and construction (under the supervision of contractor Harry Mitchell) was finished in 2001.
The “Heart of Texas Country Music Museum” is staffed by volunteers from the Heart of Texas Country Music Association, and is open without any admission charge to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sundays each week. In the museum, there are souvenirs and personal items, including stage costumes, from more than 100 country music stars. A recent acquisition is a red rhinestone suit worn by Moe Bandy, but the biggest (they had to park it outside) is a bus that Jim Reeves used for road trips in the fifties. Perhaps the most interesting item is an autographed guitar that had been pawned in Marble Falls by Floyd Tillman. Most of the items have been donated by the artists themselves, such as an autographed cowboy hat from George Strait, but some (like a gown from long-deceased singer Patsy Cline) have to be purchased.
The Hillbilly Hits show is still broadcast each Friday night, although my car radio won’t pick up KNEL after I pass Llano going east, and if you’re not close to Brady, you’ll have to order a recording. That’s what folks around Texas have been doing for quite a few years now. “I just tape the program and mail it out,” Tracy says, “I am proud that people think that much of a real country radio show.”
If you’d like a tape of the show (or a T-Shirt or a cap, etc.) you can call (325) 597-1895 or visit www.hillbillyhits.com. You could also sign up for the fan club, and support the museum and its activities for just $8 a year ($10 for a couple).
