History of Hi Hat Square Dance Music

By Buddy Weaver (2014)

First Hi Hat Records ad from SIO 12/63

From the 1950's through the early 1960's, MERL OLDS, was producer of SETS IN ORDER RECORDS, a subsidiary of the famous square dance magazine owned by BOB OSGOOD. A prominent square dance caller and round dance teacher in the Los Angeles, California, Merl along with his wife Deliah, began using musicians who played for the Hollywood studios, to create their own record company. In 1963, HI HAT DANCE RECORDS premiered.

While Merl no longer produced SIO RECORDS, he continued his working friendship with Bob Osgood by doing the monthly music review service for SETS IN ORDER MAGAZINE.

Jimmie Bryant with Speedy West

The Hi Hat sound came from a variety of west coast musicians. Square dance band leader JACK CARTER brought the traditional fiddle sound accented by hot guitar playing by JIMMIE BRYANT. Bryant was called the fastest guitar in the west.

A unique jazz sound came from DICK CARY, a famous horn player.

As many round dance classics were produced as square dance hits. Some of the biggest name square dance callers recorded for Hi Hat, including DICK HOULTON, RED BATES, ERNIE KINNEY, LEE SCHMIDT, and TOMMY CAVANAUGH.

Art Barduhn

Buddy Merrill

Neil Levang

Sets In Order ad, Dec 1965

Sets In Order ad, May 1966

Sets In Order ad, Sep 1965

Sets In Order ad, Apr 1967

Joining Hi Hat Records in 1965, ERNIE KINNEY would go on to record 130 vocals on the label.

In 1976, ERNIE and LANI KINNEY acquire Hi Hat Square Dance Records (the Round Dance label is split off to another owner). Under the Kinneys, additional record labels are added - BLUE RIBBON RECORDS (1976), ELK RECORDS (1984), and DJ RECORDS (1993). The Kinneys created the only-one-of-its-kind records with "karaoke" music on 45-RPM vinyl, with a square dance caller singing on the flip side.

The Kinneys also pioneered the vocal recordings of patter for 2-couple squares. Now even groups that couldn’t get a whole square could enjoy dancing to the best callers in the world.

In 2010, the Kinneys were honored by CALLERLAB with Life Membership for outstanding service to the square dance organization. They join a very small list of Gold Card Holders. Pictured below are Buddy Weaver, Ernie Kinney, and Lani Kinney.

Del Casher is on the internet
at: http://www.delcasher.com/

Ernie and Lani Kinney receiving the Callerlab
Gold Card from Buddy Weaver
(2010)

The musical sound of Hi Hat under the Kinneys started with guitarist DEL CASHER. A protégé of LES PAUL, the Casher musicians created the hottest selling square dance music of the seventies and eighties.

A side note to Del Casher and Hi Hat Records: his name was mis-spelled as "Katcher" on the first record label and remained in error for three decades.

2009 Japan Hi Hat Festival Staff:
Wada, Ozaki, Blume, Yaoko, Weaver, Crawford, Nishimura, Yaoko

In 2004, Hi Hat Records became part of the Blue Star Music family of labels owned by Buddy and Debra Weaver. Hi Hat Records became Hi Hat Music as it became one of the first square dance music companies to offer CD and MP3, saying "goodbye" to the age of vinyl records.

From 2004 to 2016 all of the new music was provided by Mr. Hiroshi Yaoko, a popular caller and line dance instructor from Tokyo, Japan. Mr. Yaoko is well-known for the unique hoedown music that he creates and Hi Hat Music is proud to have him exclusively making all our hoedowns today.

Starting in 2016, Hi Hat Music singing calls featured songs from the pop and country field played in a lively bluegrass style. Some of the biggest new hits are "House Of The Rising Sun", "Green Green", "Hotel California", and "Wrecking Ball".

Under the direction of Masaru Wada, there have been two Hi Hat Music Square Dance Festivals in Tokyo, Japan. The first in 2011 featuring staff callers Tim Crawford, Lone Blume, Masaru Wada, Tac Ozaki, Buddy Weaver, Hiroshi and Keiko Yaoko. Joined by special guest Shozo Nishimura. The second in 2014 featured staff callers Ken Bower, Masaru Wada, Tac Ozaki, Buddy Weaver, Hiroshi and Keiko Yaoko along with Shozo Nishimura.

2014 Japan Hi Hat Festival Staff

Under the stewardship of Buddy Weaver there have been many pioneering changes:

• Hi Hat Round Dance was made part of Hi Hat Music again. Classic Hi Hat Rounds are digitized and percussion added to create MP3 files with a far superior dance feel.
• Cued Round Dances are created for dancers so that everyone may enjoy the classic round dances, even if they don't have a round dance cuer.
• All of the existing Hi Hat albums are digitized and made available for anyone to download for personal use. Free of charge to everyone forever.