C.W. McCall

C.W. McCall was the stage persona of William Dale Fries Jr., an American singer best known for the 1975 novelty hit «Convoy», a trucker-themed song built around CB radio slang that reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and helped spark a wave of trucking-culture fascination in mid-1970s America. Fries created the character originally for an advertising campaign for a bakery before turning it into a recording career, pairing his gravelly, spoken-word delivery with country and novelty-song arrangements.

His music sat at the crossroads of country and Americana novelty songs, built on narrative storytelling rather than conventional melody, often delivered in a talking-blues style over simple instrumental backing. Beyond «Convoy», songs like «Wolf Creek Pass» and «Four Wheel Drive» continued the trucker and rural-life themes that defined his catalog.

«Convoy» became a cultural touchstone, inspiring the 1978 film of the same name and cementing C.W. McCall as a defining voice of the CB-radio trucking fad. Fries later moved into local politics, serving as mayor of Ouray, Colorado.