Joe Buck is the
stage name of Jim Finklea, an American
country and
punk rock musician from
Murray, Kentucky. His primary instruments are
double bass and
guitar.
Joe Buck's first serious musical project was called Gringo. They released self-titled "Gringo" on Pravda Records in 1995. The lineup consisted of Jim (Joe Buck) on vocals and guitar, Leila Vartanian on vocals and bass, and Tim Krause, who produced the CD, playing drums. It is a polarized collection of ballads and throbbing rockers. The follow-up CD, "Combine" was released on Pravda Records in 1997. It is a blend of country and newgrass and is musically distinct from the first CD. The lineup consists of Jim and Leila as before but the drums are replaced by Martin O'Doherty on banjo.
In the late 1990s, Joe Buck emerged as the guitarist for
Th' Legendary Shack Shakers. He played all
guitar,
bass and
drums on their 2003 album
Cockadoodledon't.
He played bass for
Hank Williams III's country/hellbilly "Damn Band", and was also member of Williams' punk-metal project
Assjack. He is credited, along with Williams and Andy Gibson, with engineering and producing Williams' album,
Straight to Hell, and appears to have recorded backing vocals for
Hank Williams III's
Bootleg #3 Pre-Release album.