Howie achieved both national and international fame recognition,[1] for his hit 45 record, "Real Gone Daddy/This Old Bomb of Mine", released in 1957.

Thomas would move to Connecticut in 1916 where he continued to perform in Vaudeville at the Meriden Jacques Opera House[7] and the Leows Poli Palace Theater.

[9] Music was part of the fabric of the household, with a piano set up in the front room, and dad spending evenings and weekends singing and entertaining his family.

His father's death would have a profound impact on young Howie, and shape his life in many ways, from his personal relationships to his love of music.

After Thomas died in 1938, Howie left school in pursuit of work after completing eighth grade in order to help support the family.

The boys spent the better part of the afternoon with the window frame removed, hoisting this piano up to the fourth floor apartment on the corner of Cook Ave and Summer Street, above an Italian Restaurant.

The Stange family musicians had an inauspicious start: Warren Sattler relates a story from 1939, where he competed at a local talent show hosted at a Meriden movie theater, resulted in pitting four-year-old Warren performing yodeling against the three teenage Stange boys performing country music.

The start of World War II disrupted Howie's life and propelled him, like many in his generation, to enlist when he turned eighteen.

Stationed for two years on Long Island, New York, Howie's time was spent with beach patrols, inspections, training, and drills.

Shortly thereafter, Andy left to form his own very successful group, The Top Hatters, and Bob Guyette was recruited, and the Village Playboys were born.

At this point in time, the type of music being played by the group was very traditional country ballads in the vein of George Jones, Hank Snow and Roy Acuff.

He modeled his piano play after Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis,[14] and his tenor voice was a beautiful cross of George Jones[15] and Elvis Presley.

Howie then turned back towards the bass player, Gus French, and said, "that is the biggest tribute they [the audience] could ever pay you."

A bar patron stood up out of the audience while Howie was playing the piano and began shouting "you knocked out two of my brothers in the boxing ring, and now I'm going to kick your a**!"

Being an all-girls school, and one with strict curfews, the students did not have much exposure to neither the opposite sex, nor the new type of music being played, rock and roll.

Howie also possessed a great sense of humor, in one instance, as the set was winding down, an obviously drunk bar patron pulled a gun out and confronted one of the band members.

This group, with manager and lead guitar player Jim Flaherty, would be a significant step-up for Howie from his previous band.

A dedicated self-promoter, Jim Flaherty secured multiple recording contracts with A&R man [2] Morty Craft[19] in New York City from 1957 through 1960.

[21] These recordings, beginning with "Real Gone Daddy" began to get much radio airtime throughout New England and put Howie and the band on the map.

Howie's version of that song was passed along to Chet Atkins, RCA A&R man, by Jim Flaherty at a DJ Convention in Nashville in November 1959.

[22] These two songs were unlike anything produced by the band, and were entirely pop music productions, designed to draw in a larger audience.

Jim Flaherty's Western Caravan performed twice in 1959 to promote their first two recordings, Real Gone Daddy/This Old Bomb Of Mine, and Are You Lonesome To-Night?/My Foolish Heart.

The Jim Flaherty's Western Caravan would continue to enjoy much success in the 1960s with two notable lead men, Maury Dubois, who recorded "Am I Losing You" which cracked the Billboard's top 10, and Lou 'Dee' Demaria.

in 1959, as a salesman for the Fuller Brush Company, Howie was out driving one day down a long, steep hill, and at the last moment as car turned out in front of him and a fender bender ensued.

The obligations of three marriages and six children finally caught up to Howie, and in 1960, he left the Jim Flaherty's Western Caravan to focus on his family life.

Howie was quite successful at this, winning multiple awards and earning the title of 'New England Car Salesman of the Year'[29] and a large celebration up in Boston.

Howie performed with many country music artists, such as, Robert Kowalczyk "aka" Bob Cat Gibson; Bob Guyette; Leroy "aka" Shadow Dontigney; Robert McCarthy, "aka" Moose Roberts; Gus French; Billy Brittany; Harold Slim Huntley; Don Johnson; Dave Cook; Andy Calabrese; Jimmy Stephens; Lou Dee Demaria; Maury DuBois; Smokey Joe Tyler; Maurice Corley; Pete Hazelwood; Charlie Shefcyk; Patti Martin; Richard Moon Burgess; Rocky Chase; Smilin' Jim Flaherty; Don & Sibil Richard; Jean Perron; Slim Coxx; Dave Cooke; Paul McCoy; Frank & Raymond Stange; & Bill Flagg.

An accomplished musician, Howie's talent exceeded many of those more famous than he: "He would bang those piano keys that would make Jerry Lee Lewis look sad," recounted Pete Hazelwood.

Recently, a treasure trove of studio out-takes and demo records have been discovered, and the Howie Stange Music Catalogue now exists.

The project of professionally restoring this music, some of which was in a very poor state, was overseen by Cristian Coban, Ph.D., CVC Productions, at http://www.lp2cd.com.