Musician. He was a versatile stringed instrumentalist, best known for playing guitar, banjo and violin on Lawrence Welk's television show. After his service in the US Coast Guard in the early 1950s, he played with "Texas Jim Lewis and his Lonestar Cowboys" and hosted his own radio show. In 1959, he was hired by Welk and remained a permanent fixture with Welk until his final show in 1982. In addition to being with the Welk Band, he was also an accomplished studio musician. He played on recording for artists such as Glen Campbell, Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Neil Diamond and many more. For TV he was a session performer for the series "Batman", Little House on the Prairie", "The Monkees", "Petticoat Junction" and a host of many cartoons. His more then 40 film soundtrack credits include "True Grit" (1969), "All the President's Men" (1976), "Smokey and the Bandit" (1977), "Good Morning Vietnam" (1987) and "Dick Tracy" (1990). In 2009, LeVang was the subject of an extensive career article in Vintage Guitar Magazine. He died at the age of 83 in Canyon Country, California.
Musician. He was a versatile stringed instrumentalist, best known for playing guitar, banjo and violin on Lawrence Welk's television show. After his service in the US Coast Guard in the early 1950s, he played with "Texas Jim Lewis and his Lonestar Cowboys" and hosted his own radio show. In 1959, he was hired by Welk and remained a permanent fixture with Welk until his final show in 1982. In addition to being with the Welk Band, he was also an accomplished studio musician. He played on recording for artists such as Glen Campbell, Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Neil Diamond and many more. For TV he was a session performer for the series "Batman", Little House on the Prairie", "The Monkees", "Petticoat Junction" and a host of many cartoons. His more then 40 film soundtrack credits include "True Grit" (1969), "All the President's Men" (1976), "Smokey and the Bandit" (1977), "Good Morning Vietnam" (1987) and "Dick Tracy" (1990). In 2009, LeVang was the subject of an extensive career article in Vintage Guitar Magazine. He died at the age of 83 in Canyon Country, California.
Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith
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