Modesto Bee, The (CA) - June 19, 1996

Deceased Name: SONGWRITER Hazel Marie HOUSER-SPENCER DIES AT 74

Hazel Houser-Spencer never knew when her prolific book of gospel and country music songs got recorded until the royalty checks came in the mail. The artists recording her music came from around the world. "She was a fabulous songwriter," said Chester Smith of Modesto, with whom she sang and wrote songs for his country western band in the early 1950s. "She probably wrote more country gospel songs than anyone. It came by inspiration, not Tin Pan Alley. It was a God-given talent," he said. Mrs. Houser-Spencer died Friday after a year's residence at English Oaks Convalescent Hospital in Modesto. She was 74. She was a native of Heavener, Okla. Mrs. Houser-Spencer was one of six children who learned to sing and play music in the church where her father preached. During the Depression, the family trekked to California, and she settled in Modesto after her marriage. Smith said his first big hit was Mrs. Houser-Spencer's religious song "Wait a Little Longer, Please Jesus." The song's popularity has never died, and it's in the Country Music Hall of Fame as a gospel standard. She was named the Best New Songwriter in 1959 by the Country Music Association. The song was "My Baby's Gone" and was a hit by Glenn Campbell. Top country artists sang her songs -- Ricky Skaggs, George Jones, Buck Owens, Bill Monroe, Merle Haggard, Bob Wills. Smith, who now is general partner and president of Sainte Limited, a broadcasting corporation with a chain of television stations in California and Nevada, took Mrs. Houser-Spencer to Capitol Records, his studio in Hollywood during the 1950s, where she signed a publishing contract. Her stage performing was limited, however, while she was raising her family. "Sometimes she appeared locally with the Maddox Brothers and Rose or worked with Chester Smith and appeared at store grand openings in those days," said her daughter, Geerie Bell of Modesto. "Many people called it hillbilly music, but she always called it country music." Mrs. Houser-Spencer had her personal troubles, too, including a divorce. "She was a powerful writer and wrote from her experiences," Smith said. "She was quiet but very bright and colorful. She wrote happy songs and sad songs." She and her second husband were founders and owners of Spencer Driving School in Modesto. She retired in 1981 and moved to Mariposa County. She is survived by her son, Douglas Houser of Ceres; daughters, Geerie Bell of Modesto and Charlotte Wooley of Phoenix, Ariz.; brother, Norman Ollar of Valley Springs; sister, Bernice Ustick of Philadelphia, Pa.; nine grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. A funeral will be conducted at 10 a.m. Thursday at Lakewood Funeral Home, Hughson. Visitation will be from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at the funeral home. Burial will be in Lakewood Memorial Park.