Rockabilly wildman Bobby Lee Trammell never became as well-known as Jerry Lee Lewis or Little Richard, but it wasn't for lack of trying, and he developed a cult following for his raw and raucous music. Born in Arkansas in 1934, he grew up listening to country music, as well as white and Black gospel acts. An encounter with Carl Perkins led to an introduction to Sam Phillips at Sun Records, but the label passed on the upstart rocker, and he moved to California. Trammell's pride and unpredictable temper led to several opportunities to record vanishing before they panned out, but 1958's "Shirley Lee," with James Burton on guitar, got picked up for national distribution by ABC-Paramount, and it sold a quarter-million copies. It would prove to be his only major hit, and Trammell later went into politics, serving in the Arkansas House of Representatives.