Cass County Boys
1996 WMA Hall of Fame Members

The Cass County Boys are known to a generation of Americans who listened to them on Gene Autry's Melody Ranch radio program from the mid-1940s to the early 1950s and saw them in at least eleven Autry movies and ten of his TV shows during that period. They appeared in several Western films with Charles Starrett and Tex Ritter as well. They recorded for Decca, made transcriptions for the World Broadcasting Service and made five telescriptions for the Snader Company.

The composition of the group, which was formed in the latter part of 1936, remained the same throughout their careers. The group consisted of lead singer Fred Martin (accordion), tenor Bert Dodson (bass) and baritone Jerry Scoggins (guitar). Initially, Martin and Scoggins were singing duets on Dallas radio. They invited Dodson, who was playing bass with the Light Crust Doughboys, to join them. Martin was from Cass County, Texas. Scoggins and Dodson were also from Texas. An announcer dubbed them the "Cass County Kids". Each was an outstanding performer in his own right; Martin was a popular radio performer, Dodson was a superb bass player (much in demand as a studio musician) with a beautiful tenor voice, and Scoggins sang the lead in the popular "Beverly Hillbillies" TV theme, among other things. But we remember them most fondly as the Western trio that was always characterized by superb musicianship and smooth harmony. 1996 was the 60th anniversary of the group's formation. (By O.J. Sikes)