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The Phelps Brothers
Norfolk
Country & Western
Norman, Willie and Earl
Phelps grew up in the town of South Norfolk (now part of the
City of Chesapeake) in the 1910s. The talented brothers were
a natural combo, with bass singer Norman playing bass and
guitar; baritone Willie on guitar, drums and washboard; and
Earl, the youngest, singing sweet tenor and playing fiddle
and mandolin.The brothers made the
rounds of local clubs and radio shows, where their beautiful
harmony and playful style gained them a loyal following. In
1936 they tested their wings on the national circuit,
traveling to New York City and then to Hollywood, where they
appeared in 17 films released between 1937 and 1941 –
including Painted Desert
and Rawhide.
But Virginia was home.
The Phelps returned to South Norfolk in 1940, where they
continued to write music, record and perform. Norman and
Willie served their country in the US Army and US Navy,
respectively, during World War II, while Earl was excused
for medical reasons and kept the band going at home. After
the war, the three bought the old Norfolk County Club,
renaming it Fernwood Farms. The club boasted the largest
dance floor on the East Coast, with plenty of room for fans
to swing out. The brothers frequently opened for out-of-town
acts at the Norfolk Arena and hosted the performers at
Fernwood Farms after the show. Visitors included Ernest
Tubbs, Hank Snow and, in 1954, a newcomer to Snow’s band – a
young singer named Elvis Presley. The Phelps turned a
portion of the club into a recording studio where they
recorded not only their own group but other local groups as
well. When Patsy Cline performed at Fernwood in the 1950s,
she recorded several songs in the studio. The weekly
television show Norman Phelps and
the Virginia Rounders was popular
locally in the 1950s. Although the original Phelps Brothers have passed on,
their music lives on through nearly a dozen CDs and in the work of a new
generation of Phelps.
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