Nowag Music Collection

Processed by Alessandro Secino 2015 Memphis and Shelby County Room Memphis Public Library and Information Center 3030 Poplar Avenue Memphis, TN 38111

Historical Sketch

The Nowag-Williams talent agency operated during a time when the Memphis music scene was undergoing drastic changes. In 1975 Stax Records, a staple of the Memphis music industry, shut down. Two years later Elvis Presley was dead. It seemed that the bedrock of the Memphis music scene was being torn up during the late ‘70s. Disco, Punk, and Hip-Hop replaced the sounds of Blues, Soul, and Rock n’ Roll music across the country. Despite these changes in the Memphis music scene, Craig Nowag and his partner Bubba Williams, through the Nowag-Williams talent agency, kept the faltering music industry in Memphis going strong during a period of changing tastes and styles. The Nowag-Williams agency represented artists from all over the South, including bands such as Good Question, Delta, Joyce Cobb, Montage, and countless others. Between 1975 and 1978 the Nowag-Williams agency split, and Craig Nowag formed Craig Nowag’s National Artist Attractions. Nowag was widely respected in the music industry and was responsible for organizing the Pinebluff Freedom Festival, Graceland Nostalgia Festival, and performance deals with Sam’s Town Casino in Tunica Mississippi. Nowag was also enlisted to organize events for the Murfreesboro Chamber of Commerce, and the Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism. One of Nowag’s more notable clients was British singer Peter Noone, formerly the lead of Herman’s Hermits, a band that was a big part of the British Invasion in the 1960s. While he was not the biggest name in the Memphis music industry, Nowag was still a major player in southern music through the 1980s, 1990s and into the 2000s. He worked up until his death in 2005 at age 57. Craig Nowag’s career reflects the thriving Memphis music scene; his company was a fixture in Memphis for over 30 years. Nowag represented acts that ranged from hard rock to power pop and he was always able to find venues for his clients and artists. Nowag’s collection provides insight into his life, but it is also emblematic of the music in Memphis over the last three decades. Nowag was able to adapt and survive just the same way that the rich musical culture in the bluff city has since the 1970s.

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Scope and Contents

Comprising one half of a linear foot, this collection contains a behind the scenes glimpse into the music industry in Memphis from the 1970s to the early 2000s. The donor of this collection is unknown. The Nowag Music Collection contains primarily photographs of various bands that Craig Nowag represented in his career at Nowag-Williams. Also included in the collection are song lists, performance contracts, contract riders, personal letters, and press packets from Nowag’s National Artist Attractions. This collection illuminates the business side of the Memphis music industry over the last thirty years, all the while shedding light on the musicians and agents that helped put Memphis music on the map. For further research on Memphis music, see the Jerry Lee Lewis Collection, Memphis Symphony Orchestra Collection, and the FreeWorld Collection, all of which are similar in content and theme about the industry side of Memphis music. Single Photocopies or scans of unpublished writing in these papers may be made for purposes of scholarly research

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Container List

Box Number Folder Number Folder Name

1 1 Business Records & Correspondence (1 of 2)

1 2 Business Records & Correspondence (2 of 2)

1 3 Peter Noone

1 4 Band Photos & Song Lists (1 of 4)

1 5 Band Photos & Song Lists (2 of 4)

1 6 Band Photos & Song Lists (3 of 4)

1 7 Band Photos & Song Lists (4 of 4)

1 8 Memphis Star magazine

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Box Number Folder Name Number of Items Description of Contents 1 Business Records & 18 Contains contracts for Correspondence performances, letters regarding various performances, and contract riders for several bands and venues. 1 Business Records & 22 Includes programs Correspondence promoting bands, festival schedules, contracts for those performances, and contract riders for bands and venues. 1 Peter Noone 6 Comprised of a photo of Peter Noone, his general contract rider, sound and lighting rider, press packet, and reviews. 1 Band Photos & Song 20 Includes photographs of Lists bands from the 1970s onward, and song lists for those bands. 1 Band Photos & Song 24 Contains photographs Lists of bands from the 1970s onward, and song lists for those bands. Also newspaper articles on specific bands. 1 Band Photos & Song 21 Photographs of bands Lists and song lists, and press pages for bands’ promotions. 1 Band Photos & Song 20 Contains photographs Lists of various bands, song lists, and press pages for promotional purposes. 1 Memphis Star 1 Memphis Star: The Magazine: Voice of Memphis Music Vol. VIII No. 1 July 1988