Biography
Eddie Shuler founded and ran the Goldband label out of Lake Charles, leaving a deep mark on Louisiana’s musical landscape. He oversaw the first Zydeco release, Boozoo Chavis’ “Paper in My Shoe,” issued in 1942, and he shared songwriting credit with Clarence Garlow on the enduring standard “Bon Temps Rouler.” Numerous sides by Iry LeJeune also came from his studio. Throughout the 1950s and ’60s Shuler guided sessions for Freddie Fender, Jimmy C. Newman, Rockin’ Sidney, Juke Boy Bonner, Katie Webster, the Sugar Bees, and Cookie and the Cupcakes.
Country music first drew his interest, yet the 1942 relocation to Lake Charles broadened his scope. He initially earned wages operating a dragline before taking a part-time post at a local record store. Membership in the traditional Cajun outfit the Hackberry Ramblers arrived in 1943 and supplied his initial professional break; the next two years were spent traveling the French Triangle region of Louisiana and Texas. After departing the group in 1945, Shuler secured a $250 loan from his mother, launched his own music shop, assembled Eddie Shuler’s All Star Reveliers, and cut his debut single, “Broken Love,” that same year.
As host of a radio program he routinely welcomed visiting performers; one such guest, Iry LeJeune, appeared in 1946 and started cutting material for the newly established Goldband imprint in 1949. Shuler later sold the Trey subsidiary to Lester Sill and Lee Hazelwood, who relocated the operation to Hollywood, where Phil Spector produced three singles that helped shape early rock & roll history. In the mid-’50s Shuler and his wife Elsie ran Quick Service TV Repair, a venture that moved between 45 and 100 sets each day and generated $200,000 in yearly revenue.
Country music first drew his interest, yet the 1942 relocation to Lake Charles broadened his scope. He initially earned wages operating a dragline before taking a part-time post at a local record store. Membership in the traditional Cajun outfit the Hackberry Ramblers arrived in 1943 and supplied his initial professional break; the next two years were spent traveling the French Triangle region of Louisiana and Texas. After departing the group in 1945, Shuler secured a $250 loan from his mother, launched his own music shop, assembled Eddie Shuler’s All Star Reveliers, and cut his debut single, “Broken Love,” that same year.
As host of a radio program he routinely welcomed visiting performers; one such guest, Iry LeJeune, appeared in 1946 and started cutting material for the newly established Goldband imprint in 1949. Shuler later sold the Trey subsidiary to Lester Sill and Lee Hazelwood, who relocated the operation to Hollywood, where Phil Spector produced three singles that helped shape early rock & roll history. In the mid-’50s Shuler and his wife Elsie ran Quick Service TV Repair, a venture that moved between 45 and 100 sets each day and generated $200,000 in yearly revenue.