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Claude Walton
Claude began singing / performing in church, school functions and talent contests when he was about twelve years old. During the youthful stage of his music career he performed on television in Columbus, Georgia and South Carolina. He won a talent contest on WRBL television, Columbus, Georgia with post card voting by singing Bumming Around. At the age of thirteen he won a Bob's Feeds talent contest at the Wagon Wheel in Opelika, Alabama, singing, Is I Is Or Is I Ain't and this gave him the opportunity to perform in the Montgomery Coliseum, Montgomery, Alabama for a grand prize of $1000. His prize in the Bob's Feeds contest made him $25 richer. Although he didn't win this contest he gained valuable experience and it gave him the opportunity to meet and talk with Elvis Presley. He remembers that Elvis wore a purple sport coat, pants and suede shoes and was very cordial and humble to everyone he talked too. At this time Elvis was known only in the Southeastern part of the United States but he was already Claude's idol. At LaFayette High School, LaFayette Alabama, Claude was in The Future Farmers Of America (FFA) string band with Razzy Bailey who has become a country music star. This string band won second place in a statewide FFA talent contest and Claude's Vocational Agriculture teacher, Mr. Bobby D Jones, contends that if the band members had not changed their songs just before the contest began they would have won first place. At about the same time this event occurred Claude sang a song called, Take It Easy Greasy, with the Peck Rowell Band of Loachapoka, Alabama on Coin Records of North Hollywood, California and this song made the National Billboard Chart.
After graduating from Lafayette High School, Claude attended Auburn University where he earned a degree with a major in mathematics and minors in Science and Literature. Then he began teaching high school mathematics at Albertville, Alabama and resumed his musical career by performing at school functions with a group of high school students and their band was known as The Professor And The Four Zeroes. From that time on he taught school and played music on weekends and evenings during the week whenever he could. He never gave up his yearning to sing and perform. This pattern was established to enable him to actually have two careers as a musician and an educator.
His musical influences include church hymns and stars such as Elvis Presley, Hank Williams, Carl Perkins, Ricky Van Shelton, B. B. King and others too numerous to mention.
