Joe Bennett
Joe Bennett was a native of Spartanburg, South Carolina where he grew up in the Cannon’s Campground community and attended Cowpens High School. He developed a love for music at an early age and took private guitar lessons from the late Jerome Fowler who once taught the legendary Hank Garland. As a child, Bennett started a band called The Jamborettes.
In 1956, while still in high school, he formed the rock and roll band that came to be known as the Sparkletones, which is now enshrined in the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. The band members, ranging in age from 13 to 16 at the time the band was formed, included: Joe Bennett, the eldest of the group, on guitar, Wayne Arthur on bass, Howard “Sparky” Childress on guitar and Jimmy Denton on drums. In January 1957, Bob Cox, a talent scout for CBS, held auditions at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium, and The Sparkletones took first prize at the event. Convinced they would be a success, Cox quit CBS to manage the group and flew them out to New York City to sign with ABC-Paramount. Their big hit was the song “Black Slacks.” They toured, appeared on the “Ed Sullivan Show” and even met Elvis Presley.
Joe Bennett, the well-known leader of the Rockabilly group often billed as Joe Bennett and The Sparkletones, passed away on Saturday, 4 July 2015 at the Rainey Hospice House in Anderson, South Carolina at the age of 75. He had been suffering from complications related to Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia as a result of being exposed to the chemical Agent Orange while serving in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. Not only will he be remembered as the leader of the Sparkletones, but he will also be evoked for his work and passion as a teacher.
Follow Joe Bennett and The Sparkletones
Recent Posts
Taylor Swift Responds to David Archuleta’s Mash-up of “Crush” and “Love Story”
World-renown entertainer, David James Archuleta, was only twelve years of age when he became the Junior Vocal Champion on Star Search 2. At sixteen years old, he became one of the youngest finalists on the seventh season of American Idol in 2007. He finished the...
BYU Vocal Point Collaborates with Contemporary Christian Singer Brian Courtney Wilson
Fear can be defined as “an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.” In the uncertain times in which we now live, behind the smiles that we may see, there exists for many, a feeling of fear or...
The First Year of Mat and Savanna Shaw’s Musical Journey
Almost a year ago, on 6 March 2020, father-daughter duo Mat and Savanna Shaw from Kaysville, Utah, released their very first music video on YouTube. In the video they performed a wondrous cover of “The Prayer.” In little to no time, the video went viral, and as of...
Songs of the Heart Music is a Matter of the Heart
Keith Lionel Brown is a budding Latter-day Saint song writer who comes from a rich musical background. His mother, maternal grandmother, maternal great grandmother, and several aunts and cousins were all members of the Sacred Doves gospel choir at the Baptist church...
The Life and Times of Marwenna Diame
Marwenna Diame, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was born Gwen Isabella Laidlaw in December 1960 in Dumbarton, Scotland, to Marion and James Laidlaw. Her father passed away in 2018 and her mother passed away in 2020. She was named after her...
2021 Youth Music Festival Will Take Place in March
During the virtual Youth Music Festival in July 2020, Bonnie H. Cordon, Young Women General President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, told youth that one of most powerful ways to hear the Lord’s voice is through music. She said, “The scriptures...