B is for Buddy, Bob, & Billy Joe - C is for Cyclone

I was around 10-11 years old when I first became aware of a place called Texas-



Buddy Holly


at least in a musical sense - a more grown up way. I must have seen Hopalong Cassidy and Roy Rogers earlier perhaps - but that was just TV (black and white), some mythical character projector that lent as much caricature to the landscape as the characters. I was a small boy in Ohio and my world was just as small but as I was to find out much later, music could make that world much bigger.

The first song I remember hearing in my life was Good Night Irene (a Leadbelly song it turns out), but it wasn't until Elvis hit in '55 that I knew that music was more than a song - it was a LIFE FORCE ! Then came Buddy Holly another original - but as quick as he showed up - he was gone. That may have been the first time in my life I was aware of death, and the danger of geography - the risk of getting somewhere. Learning he was from Texas expanded my geographic awareness, my boundries now extended to Memphis in the south and Texas to the west.

Fast forward to 1970 [I'll fill in the blanks in other posts], and my first chance to take control of my musical education. With my primary exposure to date being rock, my mission was to expand my musical knowledge exploring musical history and roots. Fortunately, to that end, rock at the time was incorporating many kinds of music including country. It was 'outlaw' country that first grabbed my serious attention, when Waylon Jennings, a real country artist, released Honky Tonk Heroes. The big deal here for me though was finding Billy Joe Shaver - a real Texas songwriter - the songwriter behind that breakthrough album. He soon after released his own album Old Five and Dimers Like Me, which has remained a lifelong favorite. I knew I had found the real deal, and that's when Texas was officially added to my DNA.

An interesting circumstance that Waylon Jennings, who I soon found out had been in Buddy Holly's band, should bring me full circle back to the Texas connection.



Billy Joe Shaver

About the same time another name from my rock and roll past, Doug Sahm [front man for The Sir Douglas Quintet], returned after his British Invasion/Hippy Rock sojurn and declared his Texas roots [which was nearly the same as coming out of the closet back then]. To see a cowboy hat on a rock and roller was a strange, especially when that musician was quite seriously embracing his history. When he released Doug Sahm and Friends his mature musicianship was realized. He spent the rest of his life through many collaborations, pseudonyms, and bands [including the Texas Tornadoes] dedicating himself to the music and the musicians that he revered. He was a master cutting across many musical styles from rock, to Tex-Mex, to Blues, R&B and certainly expanded my musical vocabulary as much as any other musician.

While Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Kristofferson, and many others were making it big on the music scene, Billy Joe and Doug were busy being the stonemasons of the Texas music tradition, while adding some new tricks to their trade as well. I'm happy to say, I followed them every step of the way and they never disappointed.



Doug Sahm


I don't remember exactly what led me to Bob Wills. Was it a side trip from my Jazz or Bluegrass explorations ? Six degrees of separation from a country artist ? Quite likely it might have been researching the traditional roots of bands like Asleep at the Wheel or Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks. Either way, this was an important link for me into Texas music tradition and history. Back to a time when Texas was Texas, a place few people outside the state borders knew much about and a culture undiluted by the influences of mass media. It was easy to see during my recent visit the remaining tradition of the local dance halls and it was awe inspiring to be walking in the footsteps of so many musical legends, traditions, and finally touching physically and emotionally the turf of my musical heroes and inspiration. These are the reasons my recent Texas trip was more a pilgrimage than a vacation.




Bob Wills


Postscript:

I could not call this post complete without mentioning that nearly 9 years after my first discovery of Bob Wills, I found myself in an unexpected situation - with a young woman on the night of our first meeting, perusing her small but eclectic record collection which contained - you guessed it - A BOB WILLS boxed set !! The overwhelming odds of meeting a woman who even knew who Bob Wills was, much less owned an album would be far beyond lottery statistics. That album [and mine] are still in the house we've lived in for 25 years !! "Big Ball's In Cowtown" ! AAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWW !