At Highland Memorial Park Cemetery in Johnston, the members of Rhode Island’s most musical family lay at rest. The Zackarians – better known as ‘the Zacks’ – took country music by storm and put our state on the map as a country and western haven.

Armenian native Peter Zackarian and his wife Elizabeth were the parents of four children; Edward, Richard, Marilyn and Mercedes. While Peter supported the family by hanging wallpaper and managing a grocery store, the kids were discovering talents that would take them down untrod roads. In 1939, 17-year-old Eddie and 14-year-old Richie teamed up with brothers Frank and Tony Tantimonaco to form Eddie Zack and the Dude Ranch Cowboys. While Eddie sang and fiddled, Richie sang and played guitar. Frank and Tony added guitar and banjo.

The band played whatever gigs they could find in an area where their type of music wasn’t all that popular. When World War II came around, Eddie and Richie set down their instruments and served their country. Upon returning home, the two boys started their own bands, each playing a part in igniting a love of country music in the hearts of Rhode Islanders. Zack formed The Dude Ranchers while “Cousin Richie” partnered with his sisters ‘Maril’ and ‘Babs’ to form The Western Serenaders.

In 1949, Eddie founded Dude Ranch Records and released five highly successful singles. Later that year, his band was signed to Decca Records and their new ragtime release “Dill Pickles” began climbing the music charts. He and Richie eventually merged their bands, bringing all five siblings together on stage. The band regularly appeared at local casinos, clubs, ranges and dance barns, uniting country music lovers who paid 75 cents admission to the shows. In March of 1951, the band performed a two-hour show of music and comedy at the Strand Theatre in Westerly and while they continued playing local school dances and small-town gatherings, their star kept rising.

The name of the family assemblage was eventually changed to Eddie Zack and the Hayloft Jamboree. They maintained their own fan club and were the first country band to appear at Boston’s Symphony Hall, where they sang and played before a sold-out crowd. In 1951, they recorded 16 singles for the Decca label and contracted with Columbia Records in 1953 to release 20 more. 

The Zackarian siblings were invited to be regulars on the country music variety show The Hayloft Jamboree and were soon given their own show on NBC Radio. Eddie purchased a limousine to haul them around as they performed on hundreds of television and radio shows.

During the 1960s, the band founded the record label Rhode Island Records. Eddie went on to found the Rhode Island Country Music Hall of Fame and The Country Music Association of Rhode Island. They continued to record while they performed for dance shows aired on WJAR TV and WPRO. The Zackarians carved out a place for themselves in country music history as stars of television, stage and radio.

Eddie Zack passed away in 2002 at the age of 80.