Archive for the ‘Ben Dorcy’ Category

Willie Nelson and Ben Dorcy

Thursday, February 11th, 2021
BEN

Ben Dorsey, backstage at the Back Yard, April 21, 2012

Sunday, April 21st, 2019
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A familiar site, Lovey making his rounds, backstage at the Willie Nelson & Family Show in Austin 4/21/2012.

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Ben Dorsey, backstage at the Back Yard, April 21, 2012

Saturday, April 21st, 2018

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A familiar site, Lovey making his rounds, backstage at the Willie Nelson & Family Show in Austin 4/21/2012. Special memories, both gone now.

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Ben Dorcy: “Lovey, King of the Roadies”

Tuesday, March 20th, 2018

SXSW: At Scoot Inn, a ‘backstage’ peek at life of a legendary roadie

www.music.blog.mystatesman.com
by:  Dave Thomas

There were two things happening at the eastern fringe of SXSW on Friday afternoon.

In the sun-splashed dirt courtyard of the Scoot Inn beer garden, the Brooklyn Bowl Family Reunion was in the final stretch of a three-day run — Erika Wennerstrom’s enormous voice on “Extraordinary Love” was swamping the place like a tsunami, drowning out pockets of disinterest.

But inside Scoot Inn proper — what was on this afternoon the “Roadie Lounge” — the star of the afternoon was a legend on a different level. Ben Dorcy, who maintained his title of “oldest living roadie” by working until the week he died at the age of 92 last September, was being celebrated with sneak peeks at a documentary 13 years in the making.

Every now and then Amy Nelson, daughter of Ben’s longtime employer Willie, would try to bring the two events together, speaking to the outside crowd of the virtues of “Lovey” — as Dorcy was known to those close to him. But still, a separation remained: The show and … backstage.

For an event honoring the original roadie, it was only natural.

It was fitting that the Scoot Inn would host — it is one of the few Austin bars old enough to encompass the legacy of Dorcy, who was born in 1925, two years before the first jukebox. After serving as gardener and valet to John Wayne, Dorcy would hit the road for 65 years with the giants of country music.

Inside the dark and cool interior of the historic bar, the first 15 minutes of the documentary: “Lovey: King of the Roadies” began with Dorcy aboard Willie’s bus, sharing a joint with his old boss and recounting stories of misbehavior and wild times. It is a professional and polished film of music legends sharing what is legendary to them. Among the many icons on screen, we don’t lose sight of who the star of this show is. There’s Dorcy, shuffling along on his cane, his countenance weathered to sharp angles. In portraits, his eyes are inscrutable. In snapshots with friends, they are alive with joy.

“He took care of all these stars with this star power,” Amy Nelson said. “And he had that same kind of star power. He could have been an actor, too. He was hanging around all these amazing people and he chose to serve them.”

Amy Nelson — there on Friday alongside her co-producers of the film, David Anderson and Lana Nelson — co-directed the film with her cousin Trevor Doyle Nelson. Her love for the man who was part of the Willie Nelson Family band, and by extension, her own family, was apparent in her conversation … and also in the years she has spent on the film.

All along, she pictured Dorcy at events like these and on the red carpet at the premiere. “It was hard to keep working on (the documentary) after he was gone,” she said. But Austin’s High Brew Coffee stepped in at that moment to help push the project forward.

Now Amy Nelson says the film is nearly complete and she hopes to have details like publishing and licensing complete in time for the fall film festival season.

Ben Dorcy got his start in the music business working for Hank Thompson, but also was connected to Elvis, Frank Sinatra and Johnny Cash.

Inside the Scoot Inn, Dorcy’s fellow roadies are lined up for free custom earplugs being given out this afternoon by MusiCares. Those not on barstools having their ears peered into are watching the screen as Jamey Johnson sings a cover of “Night Life.” Toward the end of the clip, Dorcy is shown in the plaza of Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, when a fellow in a Batman costume sidles up to him. “Where are the drugs going?” he asks. Is it a real moment or a setup? Either way, Dorcy’s reaction is authentic: “Get away from me!” he snarls.

The room erupts in laughter. These pros know, the meek don’t survive 65 years on the road.

Dorcy was connected to Willie for many of those years, but he also worked with Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, Ray Price, George Jones and Waylon Jennings, among others.

In his later years, Dorcy was connected to a similar run of “Texas music” artists: Robert Earl Keen, Pat Green, Cory Morrow, Kevin Fowler, Josh Abbott, Cody Canada and, particularly, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen.

As it turns out, it’s no accident that Dorcy stayed on the road with the younger generation — those artists and their roadies worked together to take care of the man who had no living relatives.

“All of these fellow roadies were becoming like his sons,” Amy Nelson said. “They would network and figure out where Ben was going and where he going to work and where he was going to spend the holidays and how they were going to pay his rent.”

“It was amazing to see this brotherhood and how they came together to take care of their fellow roadie.”

It was in this spirit that Joel Schoepf (former roadie who now works for John T. Floore Country Store) and John Selman (Willie Nelson stage manager) created the Live Like Lovey foundation, to help benefit other roadies who need financial assistance.

A silent auction at the Scoot Inn on Friday, featuring items ranging from Willie-signed bandanas to original Jerry Garcia art, helped raise funds for the roundation. Looming over the auction was a huge framed movie poster for the “Lovey: KIng of the Roadies” documentary.

Before he died in September, Dorcy did see a cut of the hour and 40 minute film about his life. His judgment?

“He loved it,” Amy Nelson said. “After 20 minutes, he was like ‘I like it.’ And when it was over he said, ‘I love it.’”

“Thank God.”

SXSW event in Austin to honor Ben Dorcy, King of the Roadies

Thursday, March 8th, 2018

www.austin360.com
by:  Dave Thomas

You would see him at the Willie Nelson Fourth of July Picnic in Fort Worth, watching from the wings of the north stage. He was nearing 90 years old and exuding cool in a way that’s only possible when you’ve been everywhere, seen everything and met everyone.

The set would end, and you’d hoof it 100 yards to the south stage where the next act was warming up. And there he was again, just as cool. And you knew somebody had hustled him over there in a golf cart. But you wouldn’t be surprised at all if he had just materialized there like some sort of wizard.

That was Ben Dorcy, king of the roadies.

Dorcy died in September at the age of 92 and by now you’d think he’d be just as gone as John Wayne and Johnny Cash (both of whom he worked for). But not quite.

Lovey — as he was known by the musicians who treasured him — will be celebrated on Friday, March 16, during a special SXSW event at the historic Scoot Inn.

From 1 to 6 p.m., as part of the Brooklyn Bowl Family Reunion showcase, the Nelson family will present a sneak peek at Lovey: King of the Roadies.” The documentary has been in the works for more than a decade. (It is said to be near completion and almost ready for the film festival circuit.)

Dorcy “was more than just a guy who helped set up gear,” said longtime friend Willie Nelson in a news release. “He was a friend when you needed one and even when you didn’t. Ray Price said he kept him around for spare parts, and Ray needed a lot of those. Ben could find you things you didn’t even know you had lost. He was the first roadie ever and one of the best.”

A news release says “Willie Nelson’s daughter Amy Nelson and Brooklyn Bowl Founder Peter Shapiro will narrate musical vignettes from the film featuring the many musicians Dorcy toured with such as Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash.”

Ben Dorcy was born in 1925, served in the Navy in World War II, worked for Nudie Cohn, John Wayne, Hank Thompson, Ray Price and Frank Sinatra, among many others. Late in life, he befriended and worked alongside younger artists, including Randy Rogers, Cody Canada and Wade Bowen.

The event will also include performances by longtime Dorcy friends including Billy Joe Shaver, Kinky Friedman and Dallas Wayne, as well as The Texas Gentleman and other special guests.

There’s two more important things happening at the Scoot Inn. First, there will be a silent auction of memorabilia and autographed instruments to benefit the Live Like Lovey Foundation.

Second, Dorcy’s roadie descendants will get their own salute with a chance to relax in the Roadie Lounge.

Hosted by Austin’s High Brew Coffee, the lounge is a roadies-only sanctuary offering them a place to recharge. In a news release, David Smith, co-founder and CEO of High Brew Coffee, said “it’s easy to overlook those working tirelessly to produce the concerts and festivals we love.”

“By paying tribute to Ben Dorcy, the man who started it all,” Smith said, “we knew we would be honoring the entire community because he was a man who absolutely gave his all during the 92 years the music industry was blessed to have him.”

Read article here.  

Willie Nelson Family honor Ben Dorcy, King of Roadies — Fundraiser at Friday, March 16 at High Brew Coffee in Austin

Wednesday, March 7th, 2018

BEN

www.prnewswire.com

Nelson Family Passion Project Comes to Life With High Brew Coffee-Powered Roadie Lounge

High Brew Coffee celebrates the men and women who bring SXSW to life with a lounge, fundraiser and a glimpse at the documentary about the original roadie and longtime friend of Willie Nelson, Ben Dorcy III.


High Brew Coffee®, an Austin-based beverage company, is taking their “for those who do” mantra to the next level with the Roadie Lounge, a unique experience built exclusively for the hardworking men and women essential to making each SXSW show happen. In addition to providing a sanctuary for roadies to recharge, High Brew Coffee has been working with the Nelson family to host a special event and fundraiser, on Friday, March 16, 2018 from 1-6 p.m., celebrating the life of Ben Dorcy III, known as the first roadie and longtime family friend. In addition to giving guests a glimpse at the highly anticipated “Lovey: King of the Roadies” documentary produced about Dorcy’s life by Willie Nelson and family over the last thirteen years, the event will serve as a fundraiser for the Live Like Lovey Foundation, which was formed to support retired roadies. Dorcy passed in September 2017 before the documentary could be completed.

Ben Dorcy, aka, Lovey, worked with all the great entertainers; Hank Thompson, Ray Price, John Wayne, Waylon, Cash, and yes, even me.  But he was more than just a guy who helped set up gear. He was a friend when you needed one and even when you didn’t. Ray Price said he kept him around for spare parts, and Ray needed a lot of those. Ben could find you things you didn’t even know you had lost. He was the first roadie ever and one of the best,” said friend and musician, Willie Nelson.

The Roadie Lounge is part of the three-day Brooklyn Bowl Family Reunion being hosted at The Historic Scoot Inn March 14-16, 2018 that will feature live performances from 24 artists, both emerging and established. Willie’s daughter and fellow musician, Amy Nelson, and legendary promoter and Brooklyn Bowl founder, Peter Shapiro, will host the March 16 Relix event, which will be open to RSVP’d guests and SXSW credentials. In between musical sets performed by The Texas Gentleman featuring special guests Rayland Baxter, Christopher Porterfield (Field Report), Erika Wennerstrom (Heartless Bastards), Nicole Atkins, Billy Strings and The Accidentals, 15-minute musical vignettes from the documentary will be screened showing the colorful, enigmatic personality of Dorcy that won over so many musicians, like Texas legends Kinky Friedman, Dallas Wayne, and Billy Joe Shaver, who will all be in attendance. In addition, guests can participate in a silent auction of musician autographed memorabilia and instruments.

“We are busy having so much fun that it’s easy to overlook those working tirelessly to produce the concerts and festivals we love. As a company that was built specifically for those giving it their all, we wanted to express our gratitude for helping bring us so much joy,” says David Smith, co-founder and CEO of High Brew Coffee. “By paying tribute to Ben Dorcy, the man who started it all, we knew we would be honoring the entire community because he was a man who absolutely gave his all during the 92 years the music industry was blessed to have him.”

Building upon last year’s High Brew Coffee deliveries to crews working behind the scenes at the festival, the Roadie Lounge kicks off High Brew Coffee’s national initiative to provide touring bands with complimentary cold brew coffee, keeping them fueled while on the road. High Brew is also collaborating with the Nelson family to finalize completion of the documentary in the coming months so it can hit the film festival circuit and tour just like Dorcy loved to.

“We made the film “Lovey: King of the Roadies” to honor Ben and roadies everywhere.  Thanks to Brooklyn Bowl, High Brew Coffee, and “The Live Like Lovey” foundation for paying homage to these unsung heroes who are literally the backbone of the music industry,” added Willie Nelson.

About High Brew Coffee®

After working tirelessly for 13 years to turn his tiny tea company into a household name, David Smith, co-founder of Sweet Leaf Tea, embarked on the sailing adventure of a lifetime. Discovering the benefits of refreshing cold-brewed coffee during warm nights navigating rough waters, the idea for High Brew Coffee® was born. Founded in 2014, High Brew is an all-natural 100 percent Arabica blend ready-to-drink cold brew coffee made from Direct Trade coffee beans. Brewed with zero heat, High Brew Coffee® offers premium low-calorie cold-brews in smooth, delicious flavors such as Double Espresso, Mexican Vanilla, Salted Caramel, Dark Chocolate Mocha, Black & Bold and Creamy Cappuccino + Protein. High Brew Coffee is shelf stable to perfectly accompany an active and on-the-go lifestyle. For more information, please visit www.highbrewcoffee.com.

About “Lovey: King of the Roadies”After 13 years in the making, Lovey: King of the Roadies is wrapping up its post-production phase and preparing to be shared with the world.  Documenting the life and times of the original roadie, Ben Dorcy lll, this film is just one piece of a bigger movement of recognition and support for the folks who make it possible for the show to go on.  Joel Shoepf and John Selman, two of Dorcy’s friends and fellow roadies took it upon themselves to look after Dorcy, making sure his needs were met up to his last breath.  In that spirit, Joel and John started “Live Like Lovey”, to assist professional road crew with their medical bills.

About Brooklyn Bowl

Brooklyn Bowl, ranked the #1 busiest club in NYC and the #7 busiest club in the world in 2017 (Pollstar), is the ultimate night out, with its groundbreaking integration of premiere music, 16 lanes of bowling, a bar featuring locally crafted beers, and food by the acclaimed Blue Ribbon restaurant group. The venue — aka “rock and roll heaven” (Village Voice) — boasts a sound system and amenities that “no other local rock club can offer” (The New York Times).

SOURCE High Brew Coffee

Related Links

http://www.highbrewcoffee.com

“Thank you, Ben Dorcy”

Thursday, September 21st, 2017

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photo:  Cheri Schultz

www.Popculture.com
by:  Hannah Barnes

Ben Dorcy III, a respected roadie for many stars, died Saturday, Sept. 16 at age 92, Chron reports.

Dorcy, who was dubbed the “world’s oldest roadie,” by Willie Nelson, worked for stars including Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, The Highwaymen, George Jones, Hank Williams Jr. and Frank Sinatra.

Nicknamed “Lovey,” Dorcy is said to have invented the concept of a roadie’s job in the 1950s. He got his start on tour with Hank Thompson, later becoming John Wayne’s personal assistant and valet. Dorcy met Nelson while Dorcy was working with Ray Price, and the pair quickly struck up a working relationship that would last for decades.

Towards the end of his life, Dorcy worked with Nelson during the Texas dates of the star’s tours, and spent the rest of his time working with Texas country acts.

Dorcy was the first inductee into the Roadie Hall of Fame in 2009.

After Dorcy’s passing, Willie Nelson‘s Facebook page shared a few words in remembrance of his friend.

“Ben ‘Lovey’ Dorcy was our friend and part of the Willie Nelson Family,” the post read. “Thank you Ben for years of hard work and sound advice. We love you.”

BEN
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Ben Dorcy, the first roadie, you will be missed

Tuesday, September 19th, 2017

www.chrono.com

On Saturday morning it was announced that Dorcy had died at the age of 92 after decades of service and friendship to some of music’s biggest stars

Dorcy, it is said, invented the concept of what a roadie’s job would become back in the 1950s. According to rock history before the term “roadie” was in fashion the guy who loaded cases and made sure musicians were content before and after showtime were just called “bandboys.”

Before he became a piece of music history. Dorcy, nicknamed “Lovey”, was sailor in World War II. He served in the United State Navy until an attack on his aircraft carrier left him with a metal plate in his head. He was honorably discharged and after returning home to finish high school, he found his way to becoming an ice dancer with a “Holiday on Ice” tour.

An injury sidelined him and he eventually became a “band’s boy” or stagehand for various touring artists in and around San Antonio. He hit it off with country artist Hank Thompson, who was so impressed by Dorcy that he took him on tour. In the mid-50s Dorcy would become John Wayne’s personal assistant and valet, meeting the Duke while working for Nudie Cohn, the renowned maker of fanciful rhinestone-laden suits that became synonymous with country music fashion.

During his time with Wayne he even got to appear as an extra in “The Alamo”.

 

Willie Nelson and Dorcy would meet while the latter was working with Ray Price. He became beloved by Price for his innate skills at making things happen on the road. If an artist wanted fried chicken in the middle of the night, Dorcy would find a way to have fried chicken in front of him in no time.

This began a working relationship with Nelson that lasted for decades, although his heavy-lifting days ended long ago.

Dorcy also logged time with Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, The Highwaymen (naturally), George Jones, Hank Williams Jr., and even Frank Sinatra.

Towards the end of his life Dorcy only worked with Willie on the Texas dates of his tours, and filled the rest of his time with Texas country acts like Kevin Fowler, Randy Rogers Band, Cody Canada, Cory Morrow, and Wade Bowen, just to name a few. He also made an appearance at Chris Stapleton’s Woodlands show in the summer of 2016.

According to his Legacy.com obituary there were two songs written about Dorcy, Waylon Jennings’ “Ode to Ben Dorcy,” and Red Sovine’s “Big Ben Dorcy the Third.”

Dorcy didn’t have any surviving family or any children so he never had someone to tell him get off the road or to retire to a rocking chair.

In 2009 he was the first official inductee into the Roadie Hall of Fame.

“Ode to Ben”, by Waylon Jennings

Sunday, September 17th, 2017

Dave Thomas remembers Ben Dorcy, King of the Roadies

Sunday, September 17th, 2017

Ben Dorcy died on Saturday at the age of 92. He has worked with Willie Nelson since the early 1960s

www.austin360.com
by:  Dave Thomas

I stuck out my hand and one of the roadies — the one pushing 80 years old — took it. For a minute I was that close to John Wayne and Marilyn Monroe. Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley. Willie, Waylon and everybody who was somebody in Texas music for the last half-century.

But he shrank back when I introduced myself as a journalist, excusing himself to supervise the packing up of Robert Earl Keen’s gear. Not rude. But not interested in being a story.

That was Ben Dorcy, of course. “The world’s first roadie,” Willie Nelson would tell you. “King of the Roadies,” a documentary film states. “Lovey,” as named by the musicians who treasured him.

Dorcy died on Saturday at the age of 92, after 70 years of working the roads with musicians too numerous to name, but primarily with Willie Nelson since 1960. Yes, he was still working — I saw him in the heat of Willie Nelson’s Fourth of July Picnic just a couple months ago.

If you prowled Willie’s Picnic the way I did, you’d see him, too. For several years in a row in Fort Worth, he’d be out and about among the crowd in a morning, getting T-shirts from the merch stands for VIPs backstage. Then in the afternoon, you could spy him backstage watching Kris Kristofferson or Billy Joe Shaver from the wings and smoking his ever-present pipe.

Dorcy might have started out as a “band boy,” but he ended up as a godfather of cool. His presence was a benediction, even if many fans were unaware of the blessing.

A couple years back, Texas Monthly ran an excellent article on Dorcy, talking about his start with country star Hank Thompson, his service in the Navy during World War II and his brief stay in Hollywood, where he worked for John Wayne.

Even as he became a revered part of the Willie Nelson Family over the past 50 years, he took time to work with some of Nelson’s contemporaries, as well as the younger generation of Texas musicians — including Pat Green, Cody Canada, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen. The number and nature of the secrets that Dorcy took with him Saturday morning must have been quite something.

Dorcy didn’t quite get his due in Willie’s various biographies and autobiographies — the story where Willie’s first wife, Martha, brains Dorcy with a glass ashtray and puts him in the hospital is told a few times in a few ways — but Johnny Bush devotes a page to him in his autobiography “Whiskey River (Take My Mind)” and shares a photo of a tall, thin and clean-shaven Dorcy.

“To me there’s not another person like him,” Bush wrote. “Willie and I have talked about it. We think Ben has hustled the world and that one day he’s just going to turn around and laugh — ‘I had all you guys fooled!’ He’s that kind of individual.”

Dorcy will, eventually, we hope, star in a documentary called “King of the Roadies.” A few years back it was said to be in post-production. Even if we don’t see it, the trailer sure is something.

Houston Chronicle article about the movie shares some good details about the film, which is being directed by Willie daughter Amy Nelson and her cousin Trevor Doyle Nelson. A Rolling Stone article shares a quote from Amy Nelson that explains why Dorcy was so beloved.

“He has no living relatives, yet he is the patriarch of a family of artists, and fellow roadies who love him dearly,” Amy Nelson says of Dorcy. “They call him ‘Lovey’ and he calls them ‘Lovey’. Despite all odds, he shows up to work on tour after tour after tour.”

 

Read Dave’s entire article here:
http://www.austin360.com/entertainment/remembering-ben-dorcy-king-the-roadies-and-texas-legend/7D2wznJoowOMk6mCsvCsbP/

Miss Margo Price and Ben Dorcy

Saturday, September 16th, 2017

Rest in Peace, Ben Dorcy

Saturday, September 16th, 2017

Willie Nelson:   Ben Dorcy, The Worlds First Roadie, 1925-2017

“Ben ‘Lovey’ Dorcy was our friend and part of the Willie Nelson Family. Thank you Ben for years of hard work and sound advice. We love you.”

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Ben Dorcy worked in the entertainment business on the road for 70 years.  He worked with Willie Nelson & Family,  John Wayne, Waylon Jennings, , Johnny Cash,  Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline and many more.  Up until his passing, Ben still  worked with several bands including Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen, Cody Canada, Kevin Fowler, Cory Morrow, and Willie Nelson.  These artists supported Ben, and put on a fundraising “Bed Dorcy Day” at Floores Country store every year to raise money to care for him.

friendsy

Presumably at a 4th of July Picnic in the 1970's...Ben Dorcy, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Margot Kidder, and Bee Spears.

Ben met Willie Nelson in the early 1960’s when they were both working for Ray Price.  Ben was the roadie, and Willie was the bass player.  When Willie took his own show on the road, he hired Ben, who was already legendary for his ability to get the job done, despite obstacles and perceived impossibilities.

— www.KingoftheRoadies.com

 

Andybush

Thanks to Andy Bush, from Georgia, for his photo of Johnny Bush and Ben Dorcy, who kindly posed for him, at Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic.

Ben Dorcy Day

Monday, February 20th, 2017

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Here’s the poster from the First Annual Ben Dorcy day on February 20, 2013, with songs and stories from Wade Bowen, Randy Rogers Band, COdy Canada, Corry Morrow and other guests, there to  honor their friend “Lovey”.

This year the 5th Annual Ben Dorcy Day will again be celebrated at the Floore Country Store, on  February 26,  2017.

This year’s lineup, so far:

Josh Abbott, Pat Green, William Clark Green, Cleto Cordero, John Baumann & other VERY Special Guests TBA!

Doors: 6:30 pm
Show: 8:30 pm
$20.00 – $25.00

5th Annual Ben Dorcy Day (Feb. 26, 2017)

Friday, February 17th, 2017

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Get your tickets to the 5th Annual Ben Dorcy Day Concert at Floores General Store on  February 26,  2017.

Josh Abbott, Pat Green, William Clark Green, Cleto Cordero, John Baumann & other VERY Special Guests TBA!

Doors: 6:30 pm
Show: 8:30 pm
$20.00 – $25.00

Ben H. Dorcy III was born on May 19, 1925 in Dallas, Texas. He grew up in San Antonio, Texas and attended Jefferson High School. Ben first ventured into the entertainment industry in 1940 working for the Ice Capades, which was a traveling entertainment show featuring performances on ice rinks. Ben worked with the Ice Capades and traveled throughout the United States and Europe during the years 1940 through 1943. In 1943 Ben enlisted in the Navy where he served his country for three years, completing his service in 1946 as a seaman. He was soon to return to the world of entertainment.

During the years 1950 through 1953 Ben met and began working for Hank Thompson. Shortly thereafter he was introduced to Willie Nelson.
Ben met Willie at John T. Floore’s Country Store. In addition to Willie and Hank Thompson, Ben also worked on and off with Ray Price.

While traveling, Ben fell in love with California and moved to Hollywood. He took a job as a delivery boy for Nudie Rodeo Taylor, the man who “Set Rhinestones in Fashion History.” It was at this time (1962-1965) that Ben met John Wayne. Wayne took a liking to Ben, whom he met at Nudie’s shop and hired him first as a gardener, and later as his chauffeur. Although Ben loved working for Wayne, he longed to return to the music business.

Ben moved to Nashville. While in Nashville, Ben reunited with Hank Thompson, Willie Nelson, and Ray Price. It was during this time Ben met Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson. Ben worked in turn for each of these musicians.

Ben had a gypsy soul and a heart has big as Texas, hence his nickname, ‘Lovey.’ Ultimately, he returned to central Texas and became immersed in country music with acts that included Merle Haggard, Jerry Jeff Walker and David Allan Coe, to name a few.

Currently, at the age of ninety, Ben still makes the rounds. Few people in the music industry will ever have the impact Ben continues to have. He has a heart of gold, a passion for the music, a strong work ethic, and the desire to persevere, all of which drive him to keep on keeping on. Ben is truly living history and is an inspiration to those of us who want to learn what he so freely offers.

5th Annual Ben Dorsey Day at John T. Floore Country Store February 26, 2017

Tuesday, December 27th, 2016

Visit their facebook event page for ticket info.

John T. Floore Country Store
14492 Old Bandera Rd,
Helotes, Texas 78023

Ben Dorsey, known as the the World’s Oldest Roadie, or maybe the World’s First Roadie, will be honored once again by musicians and friends next February.   Profits raised help support Ben, in his 90’s, who has been in the entertainment business on on the road for over 67 years.  He has worked with Willie Nelson & Family,  John Wayne, Waylon Jennings, , Johnny Cash,  Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline and many more.  Ben still  works with several bands including Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen, Cody Canada, Kevin Fowler, Cory Morrow, and Willie Nelson.

friendsy

Presumably at a 4th of July Picnic in the 1970's...Ben Dorcy, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Margot Kidder, and Bee Spears.

Ben met Willie Nelson in the early 1960’s when they were both working for Ray Price.  Ben was the roadie, and Willie was the bass player.  When Willie took his own show on the road, he hired Ben, who was already legendary for his ability to get the job done, despite obstacles and perceived impossibilities.

— www.KingoftheRoadies.com