John Waite was born in Lancaster, England and began playing ukulele at the age of four. In school he studied art and always felt that his music incorporated art at some level in addition ...
Rick Wakeman was a powerful force in the development of progressive rock thanks in large part to his keyboard musicianship, songwriting and his deep passion for electronic musical instrum...
Fred Walecki grew up in a musical family. His father was an expert on the violin who established a rare instrument dealership in Southern California back in 1946. Fred worked with his fat...
Saul Walker’s career in the field of electronics went back to the early sound designs before World War II. As an engineer he was trained in the United States Navy and worked on several im...
Rob Walker has been a leader in the global music products marketing that seemed to shift into high gear in the mid ‘90s when he was CEO of the Australian Music Association (AMA). Rob was ...
John Waltrip began being involved in music as a small child and in fact, became the main pianist for his church as a teenager. He played in the school bands and studied music in college....
Travis Wammack is a recording artist, studio musician, and songwriter who worked closely with Rick Hall, the founder of FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Travis charted his first hi...
Michael Ward is a co-owner and General Manager for San Francisco’s Hyde Street Studios, which was opened in 1969 by Wally Heider. It became the home studio for legendary bands that went o...
Charles Watkins invented the Watkins Copicat, an echo unit introduced in 1958. Mr. Watkins was inspired by the Morino Marini Quartet who made famous the Comi Prima, which contained a spec...
Ernie Watts is the answer to the question - who was playing the “mystery horn” on Frank Zappa’s The Grand Wazoo album? A veteran studio musician and bandleader, Ernie has had thousands of...
Donald Waxman is a noted composer who served as editor at Galaxy Music Publishing Corp., as well as several positions on the ASCAP and MPA Boards over the years. He is best known for his...
Jimmie D. Webb operated a small music shop in Antioch, California, which was also the headquarters for his amplifier business. The Webb Amps were widely used by electric blues and rock b...
Dale Webb wanted to create a new design for the ukulele with the hope that it would inspire more people to play a musical instrument. His Fluke did exactly that! The instrument was intr...
Phyllis Webb and her husband, Dale, formed The Magic Fluke Company in 1999. The company began making ukuleles in the basement of their home in New Hartford, Connecticut. They were inspir...
Abraham Wechter grew up listening to Yiddish music and took piano and violin lessons as a kid. He used to sneak a transistor radio under his pillow at night and listen to underground rock...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: George David Weiss wrote a number of successful songs for E...
Malcolm Weldon still smiles when he recalls his first concert—Earth, Wind & Fire—an experience that sparked his passion for live sound. Determined to turn that inspiration into a care...
Kitty Wells has been crowned the First Lady of Country Music for her pioneering style and impressive string of hit recordings beginning in the 1940s and continuing into the mid 1960s. For...
Joey Welz was a member of Bill Haley’s Comets as well as Link Wray’s Wray Men. He played piano in the early days of Rockabilly for Bat Records with his own group as well as with The Jay R...
Lutz Wentscher spoke of the long history of Tonger Music House, one of the most traditional publishers in Germany. As CEO, Lutz has helped guide the company in recent years, yet looks ba...
Bill Wenzloff proudly represented Morley at the 2019 NAMM Show in Anaheim when the CEO of NAMM, Joe Lamond, presented Bill with the NAMM Milestone Award for 50 years in business. Bill was...
Paul Werkheiser often says he would never trade his memories of the years he worked for the C.F. Martin & Company. He expressed the family-like relationships he had and the pleasure i...
Bitsie Werlein was the last president of the famed Werlein’s For Music in New Orleans. When its doors closed in 2003 it was the nation’s oldest operating music retailer. The company was e...
Eleanor West and her husband Pearl established a music store in Iowa City just a year after getting married in 1940. Eleanor was the bookkeeper in the early years of West Music Company an...
This is the full length NAMM Oral History interview with Speedy West, which was captured on May 17, 2002. For his biography and web clip, please follow the link: https://ww1.namm.org/lib...
Speedy West was inducted into the Pedal Steel Guitar Hall of Fame as one of the instrument’s most innovative performers. He was able to apply his unique style to country, jazz, and popula...
Steve West took over his father’s store and went on to become an industry leader who served as president of the NAMM Board. Steve recalls the days as a boy running around West Music as hi...
Jack Westheimer was among the first industry leaders interviewed for the NAMM archives back in July 2002. Four years later we had the unique opportunity to complete a second interview wit...
George Westjohn was hired by Lowell Samuel to oversee the expansion of Mr. Samuel’s interests in the wholesale music business. Mr. Samuel, a former band director, started a music store in...
This audio only interview was conducted by David Schwartz and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Jerry Wexler became a major contributor to the record business in the 1950s and 60s...
Michael Whalen, a two-time Emmy® Award-winning American composer, producer, and recording artist, has left an indelible mark on contemporary instrumental and television music.
Kelly Wheeler and her husband Dorsey run a music retail business in Idaho with several locations. Dorsey Music was established in 1969 and just three years later Kelly walked through the ...
