Houston Barks was his name born in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. Got work for a one-night stand at a place that Buck and Sunny Smith owned. It may have been an audition, but the audience and Buck and Sunny were impressed. He was hired by the Smiths to front the band at their place. The crowds began to grow, with people starting to come from miles around. He had written a couple of tunes and apparently Buck and Sunny thought they were good. They decided to have him do a recording session on their Buck and Sunny record label. He recorded "She's Gone" and "A Stranger". Billboard wrote a review of that record and stated that Houston's style was a bit like Johnny Cash. They termed both sides of the record as 'weepers'. The 'A' side was about a train that took his gal far away; the 'B' side was about a stranger that took his gal away.