Wills formed several bands and played radio stations around the South and West until he formed the Texas Playboys in 1934 with Wills on fiddle, Tommy Duncan on piano and vocals, rhythm guitarist June Whalin, tenor banjoist Johnnie Lee Wills, and Kermit Whalin, who played steel guitar and bass. The band played regularly on a Tulsa, Oklahoma radio station, and added Leon McAuliffe on steel guitar, pianist Al Stricklin, drummer Smokey Dacus, and a horn section that expanded the band's sound. Wills favored jazz-like arrangements and the band found national popularity into the 1940s with such hits as "Steel Guitar Rag", "New San Antonio Rose", "Smoke on the Water", "Stars and Stripes on Iwo Jima", and "New Spanish Two Step".
Wills and the Texas Playboys recorded with several publishers and companies, including Vocalion, Okeh, Columbia, and MGM, frequently moving. In 1950, he had two top ten hits, "Ida Red Likes the Boogie" and "Faded Love", which were his last hits for a decade. Throughout the 1950s, he struggled with poor health and tenuous finances, but continued to perform frequently despite the decline in popularity of his earlier music as rock and roll took over. Wills had a heart attack in 1962 and a second one the next year, which forced him to disband the Playboys although Wills continued to perform solo.
The Country Music Hall of Fame inducted Wills in 1968 and the Texas State Legislature honored him for his contribution to American music.[4] In 1972, Wills accepted a citation from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers in Nashville. He was recording an album with fan Merle Haggard in 1973 when a stroke left him comatose until his death in 1975. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Wills and the Texas Playboys in 1999.
He was born near Kosse, Texas; his father was a fiddle player who along with his grandfather, taught the young Wills to play the fiddle and the mandolin. After several years of drifting, "Jim Rob," then in his 20s, attended barber school, got married, and moved first to Roy, New Mexico then to Turkey, Texas (now considered his home town) to be a barber. He alternated barbering and fiddling even when he moved to Fort Worth to pursue a career in music. It was there that while performing in a medicine show, where he learned comic timing and some of the famous "patter" he later delivered on his records, the show's owner gave him the nickname "Bob."
In Fort Worth, Wills met Herman Arnspinger and formed The Wills Fiddle Band. In 1930 Milton Brown joined the group as lead vocalist and brought a sense of innovation and experimentation to the band, now called the Light Crust Doughboys due to radio sponsorship by the makers of Light Crust Flour. Brown left the band in 1932 to form the Musical Brownies, the first true Western swing band. Brown added twin fiddles, tenor banjo and slap bass, pointing the music in the direction of swing, which they played on local radio and at dancehalls.
Wills remained with the Doughboys and replaced Brown with new singer Tommy Duncan in 1932. He found himself unnable to get along with future Texas Governor W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel, the authoritarian host of the Light Crust Doughboy radio show. O'Daniel had parlayed the show's popularity into growing power within Light Crust Flour's parent company, Burrus Mill and Elevator Company and wound up as General Manager, though he despised what he considered "hillbilly music." Wills and Duncan left the Doughboys in 1933 after Wills had missed one show too many due to his sporadic drinking.
After forming a new band, "The Playboys" and relocating to Waco, Wills found enough popularity there to decide on a bigger market. They left Waco in January of 1934 for Oklahoma City. Wills soon settled the renamed "Texas Playboys" in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and began broadcasting noontime shows over the 50,000 watt KVOO radio station. Their 12:30-1:15 Monday-Friday broadcasts became a veritable institution in the region. Nearly all of the daily (except Sunday) shows originated from the stage of Cain's Ballroom. In addition, they played dances in the evenings, including regular ones at the ballroom on Thursdays and Saturdays. By 1935 Wills had added horn, reed players and drums to the Playboys. The addition of steel guitar whiz Leon McAuliffe in March, 1935 added not only a formidable instrumentalist but a second engaging vocalist. Wills himself largely sang blues and sentimental ballads.
Steel Guitar Rag
Bob Wills Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So maybe you'll find I'm the kind of guy to brag
But listen to me and see, if you don't agree
No melody rolls like that old steel guitar rag
And when they slide that thing along the strings
It sounds so doggone heavenly, you hear an angel sing
An' when you start your feet, your heart will beat
You may be kind choosy 'bout the kind of songs you hear
You may like songs that's bluesy, so you cry right in your beer
But if you like a tune that's bound to drive away your care
Make happy your soul with that old steel guitar rag
The song "Steel Guitar Rag" by Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys talks about the power of the steel guitar and how it can make you feel. The singer mentions that he has been to many towns and experienced many different things, but nothing compares to the melody of the steel guitar rag. He encourages the listener to listen to the steel guitar and they will understand why it is so special. When the steel guitar is played, it creates a heavenly sound that makes you want to dance and sing. The rhythm of the steel guitar rag is so infectious that it will make your heart beat and your feet move.
The lyrics also suggest that the listener may have certain preferences when it comes to music. They may like sad songs that make them cry or songs that have a bluesy feel. However, the singer believes that if they want a tune that will make them happy and drive away their cares, they should listen to the steel guitar rag. The song is a celebration of this unique and powerful instrument that has the ability to bring joy to people's lives.
Line by Line Meaning
Been runnin' around, seen many a town
I have traveled a lot and visited many cities.
So maybe you'll find I'm the kind of guy to brag
You might think I am boasting when I talk about my experiences.
But listen to me and see, if you don't agree
I want you to hear me out and judge for yourself.
No melody rolls like that old steel guitar rag
The melody of the steel guitar rag is incomparable and unique.
And when they slide that thing along the strings
When the musicians play the steel guitar by sliding their fingers along its strings,
It sounds so doggone heavenly, you hear an angel sing
the resulting sound is heavenly and sounds like an angel singing.
An' when you start your feet, your heart will beat
When you start tapping your feet, you will feel your heart beating along with the rhythm of the music.
The rhythm to that old steel guitar rag
The rhythm of the old steel guitar rag is contagious and makes you want to dance.
You may be kind choosy 'bout the kind of songs you hear
You may be selective about the type of music you enjoy listening to.
You may like songs that's bluesy, so you cry right in your beer
You may prefer bluesy songs that make you emotional and want to cry while drinking beer.
But if you like a tune that's bound to drive away your care
But if you want to listen to a happy tune that will make your worries disappear,
Make happy your soul with that old steel guitar rag
Then you should listen to the old steel guitar rag and feel your soul being filled with happiness and joy.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Leon McAuliffe
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind