His plaque in the Hall of Fame reads in part, " He was steel's foremost journalist of his time"[4] Bradshaw was born in Skiatook, Oklahoma in 1935.
[2] His earliest musical recollection was listening to Bob Wills' radio broadcasts featuring steel guitarist Leon McAuliffe at noon every day.
[5] The family moved to Bakersfield, California, and when Bradshaw was in the seventh grade, a salesman from the Oahu Music Company came to his door, selling a series of steel guitar lessons.
[5] He later secured an executive position at the federal penitentiary in Tacoma Washington, and during that time got back into his hobby of playing music (after a 5 year hiatus).
In 1967 and 1969, he promoted even larger shows in Dallas, Texas, with displays by various manufacturers, and performances by noted players such as Tom Brumley and Jimmy Day.
[5] These shows, although successful, were not personally profitable for Bradshaw; however, the experience led him to the idea of selling steel guitar-related products via catalog sales.
Bradshaw coined several terms now common parlance for steel guitar teachers and players, including "string grips", "quaking', and "bar shiver".