Shorty Joe Quartuccio honored

An event was held on October 23rd at the Italian American Heritage Foundation in San Jose to honor Shorty Joe Quartuccio. Shorty Joe Quartuccio received a lifetime achievement award from the IAHF. In addition he has been inducted into the Sacramento and Seattle western swing hall of fame for 70 years on the western musical scene.

Shorty Joe Quartucio was born Giuseppe Quartuccio in Monreale, Sicily, in 1924. He moved to the Santa Clara Valley (San Jose) in 1926. He and his friends would often relax listening to the nightly broadcasts from Oakland's KLX, with Dude Martin and the Nevada Night Herders.

Joe served his new country with a stint in the Navy and later formed his own dance band to play theatres, night clubs and auditoriums throughout Northern California. At the legendary Tracy Gardens, "Shorty Joe" and his host band accompanied such luminaries as Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, Hank Snow, Ernest Tubb, Tex Williams, Lefty Frizzel and almost every other Grand O'l Opry start of the 1940's and 1950's.

Shorty Joe's career moved into the studio, recording for the Bella and Golden West labels where he wrote and recorded eight (8) songs. His favorite is "In Santa Clara Valley Round Ole' San Jose" where he was raised. This song is featured on the LP Album, "A Tribute to Shorty Joe." Joe has been a major innovator in the swing genre. He adapted the "big band" sound to the smaller more intimate country combo that was the backbone on the music industry.

Some of the highlights of Shorty Joe's career are a guest appearance in 1944, on his idol, Dude Martin's radio show, on KY A in San Francisco. A guest appearance in 1951, on the Jimmy Wakely Show on CBS Radio in Hollywood. The sell out crowd at his first reunion of the "Red Rock Canyon Cowboys" and simultaneously being honored by his band with the recording of an LP album, "A Tribute to Shorty Joe" in 1985. Shorty Joe treasures his induction along with Roy Rogers and Jimmy Dean in 1993, into the Western Swing Hall of Fame in Sacramento, California.

Shorty Joe met Jennie Valenti while picking prunes in Santa Clara County. They went to grammar and junior high school together and got married in 1946. Shorty and Jennie have raised a son, Joel, and a daughter Joann Wilcox along with four grandchildren. They celebrated 65 years of marriage this past April.

Shorty Joe's last reunion was held in 1994 at the Italian American Heritage Foundation in San Jose. It was there that he officially retired and the "Red Rock Canyon Cowboys" name was enrolled in the San Jose Historical Museum where he donated his complete costume along with his original 79 rpm records, LP album and all of his printed materials where they remain on permanent display as a pioneer of Santa Clara County.

Just Google "Shorty Joe Quartuccio and the Red Rock Canyon Cowboys" and a wealth of information comes up. Shorty Joe is truly a living legend.

Judy Verona Joseph
contributor