Tribute To Pappy Daily  
(A Country Music Legend) 

This page is dedicated to one of the greats of country music publishing. "The greatest Grandfather a person could have." Without Pappy's dedication and efforts it is likely that you would have never heard of or enjoyed the music of George Jones, George Strait and ZZ Top. I picked the article below because it is accurate and a great summary of Pappy's life.

H.W. Pappy Daily left the railroads for nickelodeons. The reason was simple: security. During the Great Depression, jukeboxes offered security; railroads didn't.

"I was an accountant 14 years in the tax department at Southern Pacific", Pappy, 75 at this time recalls "I had less seniority that anyone else there, so with the Depression going on in 1931, I knew I'd better look around".

Pappy found the security he sought when he wrote the Bally Manufacturing company in Chicago and asked them why Houston had no distributor for Bally's coin-operated phonographs.

"They wrote back and said "You do it", says Pappy. thus he changed the course of his life and started on the path to a music career that led from Houston to Nashville and back again.

At first Pappy kept his job at the railroad and worked part time in his new jukebox distributorship. Business grew and in 1933 he left the railroad and opened his store at 1419 Travis in front of a printing shop.

Pappy's jukebox business boomed when WWII came along. Records were rationed because the government said that a dealer had to turn in 2 records to get one. Then a ban on jukebox manufacturing came along. "That killed the sale of coin operated machines" said is Pappy.

Pappy managed to stay in business a while longer. He found a small Los Angeles record manufacturer that would sell records to him. "I bought from them for my machines and for other machines and for other machine dealers" Pappy said. But he was looking around again for a more secure line of work.

Soon he found what he was looking for. In 1946 he opened his first record store, a business that had little competition in Houston. records cost 23 cents and 45 cents wholesale, depending on the artist, and retailed for 35 cents and 75 cents. "Bing Crosby records retailed for 45 cents," said Pappy. "Tommy Dorsey and Kay Kaiser records sold for 75 cents"

Gradually more record stores sprung up in Houston, and in 1951, Pappy went into wholesale records. In 1959 he sold the record business, Cactus Records and The Record Factory, to his two sons Bud and Don. "The parent company is named H.W. Daily Inc., but no one knows me by any other name than Pappy. I even have my phone listed as Pappy. No one would know H.W. Daily" says Pappy.

He acquired the name Pappy when he started music publishing and recording in the late 40's. "New singers and writers would come to me, introduce themselves and call me Pappy. I did know why until I learned that my clients referred to me as Pappy when they talked about me, and when they sent newcomers to me the newcomers just thought that was my name."

Pappy and Jack Stames started the Starday label in 1952, and Pappy was building a reputation as an A&R man, meaning artist and repertoire. He put the artist and songs together and supervised the record sessions. "Few people realized then or now how much recording goes on in Houston" , Pappy says. "Until 1956 we recorded many popular artist at the Gold Star Studio on Brock Street.. I expect there is a lot more recording going on here now than there was then."

Pappy's most notable stars were the Big Bopper, George Jones, Jimmie Dean, Eddie Noack, Roger Miller and Hank Locklin.

The Big Bopper's recording of "Chantilly Lace" in 1958 was Pappy's biggest seller of all and it is still selling.

The Big Bopper was killed in a plane crash along with Buddy Holly and Richie Valens at the height of his career, but the record is still making money for his wife and two children. Pappy points to a stack of royalty checks and envelopes waiting on his desk. " We send these all out twice a year. It's about $60,000 in all and goes to 25 or 30 people."

Not all of Pappy's artist recorded in Houston. Many such as Judy Lynn and Melba Montgomery recorded in Nashville. Jimmie Dean recorded in Washington D.C. where he did a tv show.

Pappy "discovered" Roger Miller while staying at the Andrew Jackson Hotel in Nashville. "Miller was a bellhop at the hotel and George Jones brought him to my room and had him sing for me," Pappy recalls . As a result of the audition, Miller soon came to Houston to record for Pappy. "Everyone thought those records were recorded in Nashville, but plenty were done here. Nashville did record most hits, but they also recorded most dogs too".

Pappy says no one can tell a flop from a hit until the record is out. "There are no experts in this business, just a lot of people who think they are. I was never an expert - other peoples opinions are valuable to me."

Daily says his only talent was his ears, his ability to listen and see if he thought a record would be a winner. He has 37 plaques and trophies on his wall to attest to his success. The winners are old , but still memorable: "She thinks I Still Care,"Walk Through This World With Me,"My Fathers Voice."

The only hit record he missed was " Rag Mop". "I was in Beaumont to see a show when a writer came to me and asked me to go listen to a band play that song. My son and Jerry Jericho were with me, and we went to hear the group play." Pappy listened to "Rag Mop" and said, "that's not country and I don't see anything to it. It turned out to be a hit and I sure had passed it up."

Other apparent flops made good too. "Willie Nelson recorded on my D label in the 1960's, but he wasn't a hit. Neither was Roger Miller on my starday label. Both changed from country & western and went on to be stars," Pappy says. Not everyone is lucky as Nelson and Miller. "Some people will go 10 or 20 years to make it. It reminds me of someone taking dope. They are addicted and they can't quit the music business. They'll go on although they they'll never make it."

Pappy recalls a man in his 50's who never quit and never made it either. "He was less than mediocre at his peak. Now he makes personal appearances that supply just enough for him to eat." Pappy tried to tell him to get out of the business. "He told me he would never quit. That was 25 years ago and he still hasn't quit. Back then he made about $5.00 a night, maybe he makes $50.00 or so now." People will do anything to get into the music business. The mammas with the nine year olds were the worst. They couldn't realize that a nine year old might be cute on stage, but of no interest on a record, " he adds.

Spending 45 years in the music business, Pappy has seen a wide range of human nature, "I didn't socialize much with show business people," says Pappy. "I could have taken the time, but I didn't." Pappy also says he didn't see the organized crime that is often said to go with the music business. "When I left the business there was no organized crime in the music business in Houston. When I left the business no one was shot while sitting on their porches and no policeman were shot while checking driver's licenses. Crime is the biggest business in the world now, but no gangsters were in the business in Houston," he maintains.

While Pappy was in the music business, in his heyday, hardly a day passed without one person wanting to sing for Pappy. The phone rang constantly. Now Pappy and his long time secretary, Sunshine Tucker, preside over a quieter office style. "Now when the phone rings it's someone wanting to sell something," Pappy says.

Pappy says he doesn't miss his heyday at all. "I never did like Nashville either," he says. "They didn't let you sleep. The time of night made no difference. At 4:00am they beat on my door. It was always a hassle." Pappy recorded his last session Febuary 1971, in Nashville, with four George Jones songs. None of the four were hits, Pappy says.

Pappy, who has never tried to write a song, sing a lyric or play an instrument, says his career made him a lot of money. to attest to his financial comfort, he has a ranch between Wimberley and Dripping Springs that he enjoys with his wife of 53 years. Pappy made a quarter of a million dollars when his business was thriving and he is content with his life. "I was surprised by life. It was a natural flow. I didn't push. Things just came to me and I had no set goals."

Pappy didn't plan to go into the coin-operated phonographs or music. "I would have stayed with the railroads if there had been any security, but they were cutting people off. I didn't know anything about the coin business or phonograph records or music."

Pappy confided he didn't even like country and western music in the beginning. "It was all heartbreak stuff and I preferred happy music." Country and Western was at one time as unpleasant to him as rock music is now. He says he learned to like Country & Western music over the years. His son Bud is more outspoken. Sitting in his office within view of thousands of records, mostly rock, Bud say, "I can listen to a record and if I like it it is the kiss of death. I can be pretty sure it is a flop. They quit making my kind of music years ago." All three Dailys like "pretty music," Big bands.

When Bud & Don bought the record business, it took Pappy a long time to keep his nose out of their business. "I had to educate myself to leave them alone and now the company is more progressive than when I had it. The record business is booming."

The Daily brothers have 14,000 sq. ft. of warehouse and are opening soon a 35,000 sq. ft. warehouse on 34th street. About %65 of the business is records, but tapes are doing well, says Bud. "We make about %20 on each unit we sell." Right now the biggest sellers are Barry Manilow, Peter Frampton and Fleetwood Mac. "Acid Rock is out", Bud says with a grateful sigh, "but I don't expect big bands to come back."

None of the three Dailys like to listen to the big sellers. "We probably don't understand it, but we don't have to sell it," says Bud. "But you need good advice obtained from listening to customers and sales people," Bud adds. "Music moves fast. It's like a load of vegetables. today you have a good load , tomorrow they're all rotten."

Bud has a gold record in his office for ZZTop, a Houston rock group financed by Cactus records. The group has soldlf four records that made a million dollars. A platinum record hangs in the warehouse , signifying the sales of one million records, or $7 million, in records and tapes of "Frampton Comes Alive." Bud says Cactus does $9 million a year in South Texas and has no plans at present to expand.

Pappy says he doesn't do anything now but oversee the distribution of royalties to past clients and keep up with Glad Music Co., his song publishing company. Now that the cheering has stopped, now that Pappy isn't sought after for his skills as a A&R man, he seems to be relieved. "I am extremely satisfied. I don't seek people out and I appreciate it if they don't seek me out." He says he does as he pleases and he likes that. " For so many years I was obligated and now I don't have to do anything because no one is depending on me. "The less I have to do with people, the better I like it," he says with a smile. But he isn't joking.

Article by Barbara Wesolek (July 25th 1977)

I hope you enjoyed this great American Story of what you can accomplish if you work hard at it. Next time we elect a person to hold the seat in the White House, let's elect someone with great character and morals to take this country back to values and honor. I know Pappy would want it that way.