Allen's Historical Cafe - Picker Profile

The Dizzy Ramblers were originally formed in the spring of 1935, in West Huntsville, AL. Boots Eubanks and his recently widowed sister Lillian Buchanan, her late husbands nephew, Bob Buchanan, and Lillian's 5 year-old daughter Hazel were playing around with makin' music. Boots sang and played guitar, Bob played guitar, and Lillian and Hazel sang. Curtis Bragg was acting as their agent and getting them places to play.

When they decided they needed a fiddler, Curtis contacted a young man by the name of Ellis (Bud) Chambers who lived out in the country east of Athens, in an area they called Coxey. By the summer of 1937 they were playing school houses, barn dances and radio shows. Curtis suggested they use the name Dizzy Ramblers and they played under that name from then on.

In the fall of 1937, the Dizzy Ramblers and all their associated families moved to Auburndale, Florida. Ervin (Boot's and Lillian's brother) had moved there a little earlier.

They played quite a bit locally until WWII brought it to a temporary end. They didn't really play much together again until the late 1970s, when they started to frequent Carl Allen's Cafe. This catalyst brought Bud, Boots, and Ervin back to the stage playing the Old Time Country (they didn't call it bluegrass) music they had all played as young men.

The Dizzy Ramblers (Bud, Boots and Ervin) often consisted of other local musicians who were interested in the old time country sound, including:

Pete Waters- bass;
David Shumate- bass;
Nancy Chambers- bass;
Joe Spann- banjo;
David Smith- banjo;
Roger Barfield- banjo;
Bob Buchanan- guitar;
Carl Chambers- guitar.

The Dizzy Ramblers were regular performers at Allen's Cafe until Bud's death in 1981 and finally, Boot's death in 1991.