Guide to the Jeff Hughson collection on Sacramento music
Amanda G. DeWilde
Sacramento Room, Sacramento Public Library
828 I Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 264-2976
Fax: (916) 264-2884
Email: sacroom@saclibrary.org
URL: http://www.saclibrary.org
Copyright 2017
Sacramento Public Library. All rights reserved.
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Sacramento Public Library, Sacramento Room
Title: Jeff Hughson collection on Sacramento music
Identifier/Call Number: MC 1
Physical Description:
10 Linear Feet
(16 Archival Boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1955-2006
Abstract: A fixture of the Sacramento music scene for many decades, Jeff Hughson was an early founder of KZAP radio station, and worked
as a concert promoter and record dealer for decades. This collection is comprised of musician and performance files, sound
and video recordings, and periodicals created and collected by Jeff Hughson and capturing the Sacramento music scene from
the late-1960s through the 1990s.
Biographical Note
A fixture of the Sacramento music scene for many decades, Jeff Hughson was born in Sacramento in 1950 and graduated from Sacramento
High School in 1968. Shortly thereafter, he joined the pioneering on-air staff at KZAP, Sacramento's first freeform rock music
radio station, which began broadcasting on November 8, 1968. Hughson served as music director for the station from 1968 through
1971. Starting in the 1970s, he developed a successful career as a concert promoter on the local music scene. In addition,
Hughson was a record dealer and amassed a collection numbering in the tens of thousands. His love of local music extended
to the founding of the Sacramento Blues Society, work in music journalism and hosting of local music series. In 2000, he
started a record company with Dennis Newhall and Martin DeAnda called Dig Music, which had the goal of uncovering previously
unreleased recordings from Northern California bands from the 1960s and 1970s.
Scope and Contents
This collection is comprised of musician and performance files, sound and video recordings, and periodicals created and collected
by Jeff Hughson and capturing the Sacramento music scene from the late-1960s through the 1980s. Series I. Musician and Performance
Files contains six boxes of files with printed material, notes and photographs from local bands and performances, organized
by folder according to the creator's arrangement. Series II. Sound recordings comprises five boxes of the collection and
includes audio reels, CDs, and cassette tapes with studio and live music performances and musician interviews. Songwriters
Showcase programs from 1989 to 1991 make up Series III. Video recordings. Series IV. Record albums includes nearly 100 45rpm
and LP record albums from Hughson's collection featuring local artist. Series V. Periodicals includes local music magazines
and periodicals highlighting the Sacramento music scene. And the final series, Series VI. Ephemera, is comprised of business
cards, buttons and handbills from local performers, agencies and venues.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Jeff Hughson collection on Sacramento music, MC 1, Sacramento Room, Sacramento Public Library, Sacramento,
California.
Musician and Performance Files Series I
1973-2003
Physical Description: 2.5 Linear Feet(6 Archival Boxes)
Scope and Contents
This series is comprised of printed material, notes and photographs documenting local musicians and performances, the bulk
from the 1970s and 1980s. The files are processed at a minimal level and are organized by folder according to the creator's
arrangement. Local musicians include Bob Cheevers, (Greater Carmichael Traveling Street Band) G.C.T.S.B., Tiny Moore, and
Alan Blackwell; and there are several files devoted to the Sacramento Blues Festival and Sacramento Blues Society.
Sound Recordings Series II
1969-2004
Physical Description: 2 Linear Feet(2 Archival Boxes)
Scope and Contents
This series is comprised of audio reels, CDs, and cassette tapes with studio and live music performances and musician interviews,
1969-2004. Live performances recorded on 26 reels and 16 CDs capture performances at local venues and at KZAP studio, 1969-1973.
They include musicians Big Foot, Slo Loris, Robbie Smith, Greater Carmichael Traveling Street Band, Sandra Brown-Smith, Fat
Chance, Ishtar, Sundance, Thunderhead, and Sanpaku. Interviews taped between 1973 and 2004 include Charles Musselwhite, the
Beach Boys, Larry Raspberry, John Lee Hooker, and Sal Valentino (38 tapes). Eighteen 7-inch reels include KZAP air checks
and promos from the 1970s and early-1980s.
Video Recordings Series III
1989-1991
Physical Description: 1 Linear Feet(1 Archival Box)
Scope and Contents
This series consists MP-90 8mm cassette tapes of Country Showcase, Songwriters Showcase and other programs recorded from September
1989 to May 1991, and U-matic video cassette recordings of Songwriters Showcase recorded in April and June 1991. Songwriters
Showcase musicians include Brent Bourgeois, Dusty Hamilton, Tom Eller & Brett Bingham, Jim Hollier, Kevin Welch, J. J. White,
Colm Keenan, Bob Cheevers, Jet Red, Anton Barbeau, and Carson Vikre.
Record Albums Series IV
1955-1986
Physical Description: 2.5 Linear Feet(3 Archival Boxes)
Scope and Contents
This series is comprised of 40 45rpm and 48 LP records collected by Jeff Hughson and featuring local artists, including Ola
Louise, Jim Hollier, Night Ranger, Nielsen- Pearson, Allan King and the Sacramento Inn Orchestra, and Sacramento City Schools,
1955-1986, and several albums from the Sacramento "Home Grown" series, 1975-1978.
Periodicals Series V
1965-2006
Physical Description: 1.5 Linear Feet(3 Archival Boxes)
Scope and Contents
This series is comprised of local music magazines and newspapers, along with other periodicals and clippings featuring local
musicians, music festivals and organizations. Two boxes of local music publications are organized by title and include The
Aardvark (1972-1976), KXOA Hitliner (1965-1966), and The Rock-N-Roll News (1975-1977). A box of articles and clippings covering
local musicians and performances from 1965 to 2006 include those in the Sacramento Union and Valley Music News.
Ephemera Series VI
1970-1995
Physical Description: .5 Linear Feet(1 Archival Box)
Scope and Contents
This series is comprised of business cards, buttons and handbills from local performers, agencies and venues. Approximately
two hundred business cards from local performers, agents and managers date from the 1970s to 1990s.