The Maddox Brothers and Rose were an American country music group active from the 1930s to 1950s, consisting of four brothers, Fred, Cal, Cliff, and Don Maddox, along with their sister Rose; Cliff died in 1949 and was replaced by brother Henry. Originating in Alabama, but gaining success after the Maddox family relocated to California during the Great Depression, the group were among the earliest "hillbilly music" stars to emerge from the West Coast. The group disbanded in 1956, with Rose Maddox embarking on a solo career. Biography The family hailed from Boaz, Alabama, United States, but rode the rails and hitch-hiked to California in 1933 when the band members were still children, following the failed efforts of their sharecropper parents during the early part of the Depression. They were a little in advance of the flood of Okies who were to flood the state in the 1930s. They struggled to make a living as itinerant fruit and vegetable pickers, following the harvest as far north as Washington and as far east as Arizona, as well as the San Joaquin Valley. They often worked from dawn to dusk, sleeping and eating on the ground. Having settled in Modesto, California, the family developed their musical ability, and in 1937, performed on the radio, sponsored by a local furniture store. In 1939, they entered a hillbilly band competition at the centennial Sacramento State Fair after driving to Sacramento in their Model A. When they took the stage, they tore through "Sally Let Your Bangs Hang Down" with rocking rhythms and risqué lyrics. They became, officially, California's best hillbilly band. The brothers and Rose appeared at places such as the 97th Street Corral in Los Angeles. From 1946-1951, the group recorded for 4 Star Records (Hollywood), then for Columbia Records. Some 4 Star masters were leased and released by US.-Decca Records at the beginning of the 1950s. Rose Maddox stated: "We were called hillbilly singers — not country — then. No, none of this country music then. People just called us hillbilly... People tell me that I was one of the first women to sing what I sang — country boogie. I guess I was. There was no rock 'n' roll in those early days, before 1955. Only country boogie. My brothers also played that way. We called it country then." Fred Maddox played upright bass using the "slap bass" technique as early