Biography

Leroy Van Dyke ' True Treasures

Focus Tracks:

1. The Auctioneer
2. Walk On By
3. If A Woman Answers
4. Anytime / Oh Lonesome Me (Medley)
5. You Couldn't Get My Love Back )If You Tried)


Leroy Van Dyke is one of the true treasures of country music. In a remarkable career spanning more than six decades, he has recorded hundreds of songs and has continually toured, both in the USA and overseas, to worldwide acclaim.

This unique album includes a stellar rendition of "The Auctioneer" and many more great songs. However, these recordings were made exclusively for radio airplay and were never previously commercially available - until now. Long thought to be lost, the original master tapes were 'rescued' by executive producer and president of Country Rewind Records, Thomas Gramuglia. They were placed in the experienced hands of producer Paul Martin, who skillfully brought the recordings up to twenty-first-century standards of audio quality. "I really felt it was an honor to work on this project," said Paul Martin. "Listening to Leroy's voice on these recordings, after all these years, was an absolute joy."

Van Dyke's amazing musical career was launched in 1956 with the iconic song "The Auctioneer," which Leroy wrote while serving as a Special Agent, United States Army Counter Intelligence Corps in Korea. While in the service, he first performed "The Auctioneer," entertaining thousands of his fellow servicemen as an opening act for Marilyn Monroe, becoming the only country music personality to do so.

Upon returning to civilian life, he began working as a journalist. While doing so, his recording of "The Auctioneer" became an immediate million-selling hit, and he became a regular member of Red Foley's "Ozark Jubilee" on ABC-TV, remaining until the end of the show's run. He then moved to Nashville and, shortly after that, joined the Grand Ole Opry. Proving he was not a "one-hit-wonder" he followed up with a hit recording of "Just Walk On By," which remained on the charts for a remarkable 42 weeks, including 19 weeks at number one. Billboard would later name his "Walk On By" the biggest country record of all time, based on sales, plays, and a number of weeks in the charts.

Leroy became a multimedia star before the phrase was invented. In addition to a stellar recording career, he would co-host "Country Crossroads," the most widely-syndicated show in radio history, host "The Leroy Van Dyke Show" on syndicated television, and become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. On the big screen, he starred in the 1967 movie "What Am I Bid?" which also featured his cousin Ray Sims as an auctioneer. He was also the first country artist to headline a fully-produced, self-contained, choreographed country music show on the famed Strip in Las Vegas.

The only thing to slow him down at age 92 was the global pandemic. Now we can once again enjoy his unmistakable voice on this collection of unique recordings.