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Timeline
1938 Born in Corning
Father works for bakery Cobakco
1940 his sister, Elaine, is born in Corning, too.
1941 WW2 begins Pearl Harbor
1942
1943 Moves to Bath, New York, finds father's guitar in cellar
Father works for NBC (Nabisco) bakery,
his brother, Glenn, (d. 2020) is born in Bath
1947 First Performance at 4th Grade Assembly debut at the old Bath Haverling School (K-12)
Takes steel guitar lessons from Tracey Caulkins in Avoca
1949 Moves to Guyanoga (Keuka Lake), west of Penn Yan
Parents own grocery store
1951 Attends Penn Yan Academy, designs school mascot
First performance at the Grange
On-air radio debut in Hornell, New York
1951 Summer on a farm in Yatesville, north of Guyanoga
Moved to Tucson, Arizona in August/early September
1953 Moved north to Coolidge, Arizona for his father to manage a Safeway grocery store
1954 Bought a Les Paul Goldtop guitar
Met Lee Hazlewood, who was a new DJ in Coolidge
1955 Country duo Jimmy and Duane duet (Jimmy Delbridge/ Jimmy Dell) first record "Soda Fountain Girl" produced by Lee Hazlewood
Coolidge High, Class of 1955 but he does not graduate
1956
1957 Moovin' and Groovin
Invented TWANG
By 1957, Eddy was renting a room from Hazlewood in Phoenix and had purchased
his signature hollow-body Gretsch "Chet Atkins" model at Ziggie's Music when an
instrumental titled "Raunchy" hit the Top 5 in two versions at the same time — one by Bill
Justis, the other by Ernie Freeman. In a Phoenix studio called Audio Recorders.
“Rebel Rouser” was the third song he and Hazlewood recorded. Water Tank story goes here...
1958 Hitmaking begins with "Rebel Rouser" after Dick Clark forgot his box of records and turned over Stalkin' to play the B side
Binghamton Show and visit with Maternal Grandmother
Marriage #1 to Carol Fowler, lasts 3 years, 2 children, divorce 1961 (confirm)
Drives a '56 Chevy Convertible (confirm)
October 17 ?Birth of First Child Linda
"Have “Twangy” Guitar Will Travel" (1958, his debut album) sold over 6 million copies
1959 August Hollywood Bowl -- First rock'n'roll performance ever held there
Touring with Friends with Dick Clark
The “Twangs” the “Thang” (1959)
$1,000,000.00 Worth of Twang (1960)
1960 First U.K. tour: with Bobby Darin. and Lee Hazlewood to manage the sound
Ends contract with Lee Hazlewood
Movie "Because They're Young" starring Dick Clark
1961 Birth of son, Chris in January
U.K. visit
1962 TV Show debut "Have Gun--Will Travel" with Richard Boone and
Movie 'Thunder of Drums" and
"Password of Courage"?? theme "The Ballad of Paladin"
Twistin’ ’n’ Twangin (1962)
Feb 3 Celebrity Marriage to singer Jessi Colter (who was Mirriam Johnson at the time), it lasts 5 years, one child, divorced 1968, Jessi marries Waylon Jenning
They rented in Beverly Hills, Laurel Canyon
Aug 18 Chemung County Fair and visit with aunt in Horseheads
$1,000,000.00 Worth of Twang Volume 2 in 1962
Silky Twang, symphony & Duane album
1963 Bought a house in Beverly Hills in Canyon
Daughter Jennifer is born
“Twangin’” Up a Storm (1963)
Dec South Africa Tour, performed with Maureen Moore and John D. Loudermilk
1964 The Beatles and the British Invasion
1965 Bob Dylan album
1966 The Biggest Twang of All (1966)
1967 Divorce from Jessi Colter
Duane sings on the single "Break My Mind" (U.K. only)
1968-69 Lived in London -- ran away (his words)
1970 Came back to US, short tour with ?
Tour of the Orient, entertained troups in Viet Nam, his manager Al Wild died
Madison Square Garden and the Forum
1971 (confirm) Marriage to Maureen A Power for 7 years, divorced in 1979 in March
1975 (confirm) "Son of a Guitar Man" recording Deed and Duane
1977 Country single “You Are My Sunshine” featuring Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson...and Deed
1979 Marriage to singer Deed Abbate in December
1983 Residency in Los Angeles? (
Tour with
1985 Moved to Nashville
1987 Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental for "Peter Gunn" (UK's Art of Noise release)
Summer Tour with Huey Lewis & The News
New Record -- what happened?
1988 PBS Tribute to Buddy Holly performance
1992 Grammy nomination for Best Country Instrumental Doc Watson album
1994 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee
Forrest Gump Movie, original"Rebel Rouser" featured in "Run, Forrest, Run" scene
Natural Born Killers Movie, "The Trembler"
1995 Grammy nomination for Best Country Instrumental with Doc Watson for
1996 Grand Ole Oprey Chet Atkins played with Duane Eddy, meets Doyle Dykes at the performance
(confirm) a second Recording Academy nod for “Thunder Road/Sugarfoot Rag” for best country instrumental performance.
1997 Rockwalk Induction (1997)
2000 Ryman Auditorium, Presented with "Chetty" award by Chet Atkins (2000)
2004 Guitar Player Magazine "Legend Award"
2008 Musicians Hall of Fame inductee, Nashville
2010 Guitar Geek Festival, Anaheim, California-- Deke Dickerson --- buys doubleneck guitar
May ---Nashville Cumberland River devastating flood --
Mojo Icon Award (U.K.)
Sold out, standing ovation show Royal Festival Hall in London in October
2011 Gretsch Signature Model 6120
Grammy nomination for "I Love" Best Children's Album
Performed at the Glastonbury Festival on 26 June 2011
2012 Rich MacAlpine interview,"Duane Eddy's Yates County Years". published in 2014
2013 Almost dies from hemmorrhaging from a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm at age 76
Lifetime Achievement Award for Instrumentalist from the American Music Association
2016 "Nashville Cats: A Salute to Duane Eddy" Country Music Hall of Fame recognition for Sessions Musicians
2017 Frank interviews Jessi Colter
Frank's first radio interview of Duane for his 10th anniversary of being on the radio Frankly Speaking
Duane Eddy Day, June 7, City of Corning, New York
Duane & Deed visit Corning in October
Gretsch six string bass guitar designed by Duane and Stephen Stern released
2018 80th birthday tour to U.K. in October London Palladium
2020 Second on-air radio Interview Frankly Speaking
2021 Steuben County Hall of Fame acceptance (delayed due to Covid, received in 2020)
2023 Third interview by Frank, this time on TV
Nashville Music Walk of Fame
2024 "Guitar Heroes" by Mark Knopfler released and becomes #1 in UK
86th birthday then passed away April 30, 2024 from cancer