View From The Front Porch-Stan Hitchcock-January 11, 2013

For you folks that share my love of Classic Country memorabilia, my partner, Chuck Lowrance and I just bought this saddle. It is a saddle that was owned and used by Country Music Hall Of Famer, Carl Smith, in his cutting horse competitions. Carl won the saddle in 1983, in a cutting horse competition and used it many times until he passed away. The saddle was built by renowned saddle maker Billy Cook, and is a beautiful example of his work. Carl signed the saddle some years ago and gave it to a close friend of his..


The saddle means a lot to me, because Carl was so influential in my early developing years as a country singer. When I was 19 years old, in the Navy, and singing on board ship with some of my shipmates, who made up our band, The Bryce Canyon Troubadours, I knew and sang every Carl Smith song that was out there. He was my hero, and in 1951, while I was in High School, I got to enjoy Carl Smith on stage at the Shrine Mosque, in Springfield, MO. Later, when I moved to Nashville and started recording and touring, I became friends with Carl and worked many shows with him. Having his saddle sitting in my music room reminds me of the heroes of our music, and fortunate we are to have known and loved them.   -Stan