Western swing fiddle
Encyclopedia
Westerns swing originated in 1920s and 1930s; small towns in the US Southwest. Although sometimes subject to the term "Texas swing" it is widely associated with Tulsa,others contend that "Western Swing music finds deep roots in the dust bowl of Oklahoma", and its influences include jazz from the major urban centers of the USA. Its' stylistic origins lie in Old Time, Western, blues,folk,swing,Dixieland and jazz. Writing in Rolling Stone
, Dan Hicks
described it as Texas-bred music grafted to jazz, or as "white country blues with a syncopated beat.".
Bob Wills is considered by many music authorities one of the fathers of Western swing along with his old Fort Worth friend, Milton Brown
. Nevertheless it is Wills who is called the King of Western Swing. A key factor in its development was the competition that the radio and recordings brought to compete with the more insular and time honored traditions of old time fiddle
music. "Hep cat" and sometime Roy Rogers stand-in Spade Cooley
used the title of "King of Western Swing" as per a 1945 Warner Brothers film.
in which the lead instrument varies in different eras.
A major characteristic of the style is syncopation and rhythmic drive - it is dance music. It was typically played in bars and in big city Western hotel buildings with large ballrooms; alcohol was served and fights were not unknown. The musicians had to keep the music going until they had fulfilled their contract and could get paid. Twin fiddles and even triple fiddle was another distinctive of Western Swing fiddle. Jesse Ashlock was the first and longest-standing of Wills’s fiddle players, and the first to do “take off” solos. He had a considerable armoury of techniques including the double shuffle, triplets, parallel fifths and lots of syncopation.
"Faded Love" is a Western swing song written by Bob Wills
, his father John Wills, and his brother, Billy Jack Wills. The melody came from an old fiddle tune Bob learned from his father, John Wills.
San Antonio Rose written by Wills, was his biggest hit, taking him "from hamburgers to steaks!". It sold over a million copies.
Cecil Brower
Cliff Bruner
Johnny Gimble
Billy Hughes (musician)
Merl Lindsay
Rose Maddox
Billy Jack Saucier
Dave Stogner
Bob Wills
Johnnie Lee Wills
Joe Holley
Louis Tierney
Cliff Bruner
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Dan Hicks
Dan Hicks
Dan Hicks is the name of:*Dan Hicks , singer and musician*Dan Hicks , sportscaster*Dan Hicks , British historical archaeologist/anthropologist*Dan Hicks , American actor...
described it as Texas-bred music grafted to jazz, or as "white country blues with a syncopated beat.".
Bob Wills is considered by many music authorities one of the fathers of Western swing along with his old Fort Worth friend, Milton Brown
Milton Brown
Milton Brown was an American band leader and vocalist who co-founded the genre of Western swing. His band was the first to fuse hillbilly hokum, jazz, and pop together into a unique, distinctly American hybrid, thus giving him the nickname, "Father of Western Swing"...
. Nevertheless it is Wills who is called the King of Western Swing. A key factor in its development was the competition that the radio and recordings brought to compete with the more insular and time honored traditions of old time fiddle
Old time fiddle
Old time fiddle is a genre of American folk music. "Old time fiddle tunes" may be played on fiddle, banjo or other instruments but are nevertheless called "fiddle tunes". The genre has European origins and traces from the colonization of North America by immigrants from England, France, Germany,...
music. "Hep cat" and sometime Roy Rogers stand-in Spade Cooley
Spade Cooley
Donnell Clyde Cooley , better known as Spade Cooley, was an American Western swing musician, big band leader, actor, and television personality...
used the title of "King of Western Swing" as per a 1945 Warner Brothers film.
Distinctives of the style
One of the characteristics of the genre is that fiddle is the lead instrument, unlike other genres such as CajunCajun fiddle
Cajun fiddle music is a part of the American fiddle music canon. It is derived from the music of southwest Louisiana and southeast Texas, as well as sharing repertoire from the Quebec and Cape Breton traditions...
in which the lead instrument varies in different eras.
A major characteristic of the style is syncopation and rhythmic drive - it is dance music. It was typically played in bars and in big city Western hotel buildings with large ballrooms; alcohol was served and fights were not unknown. The musicians had to keep the music going until they had fulfilled their contract and could get paid. Twin fiddles and even triple fiddle was another distinctive of Western Swing fiddle. Jesse Ashlock was the first and longest-standing of Wills’s fiddle players, and the first to do “take off” solos. He had a considerable armoury of techniques including the double shuffle, triplets, parallel fifths and lots of syncopation.
Repertoire
Many old time fiddle tunes were adapted to Western swing."Faded Love" is a Western swing song written by Bob Wills
Bob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
, his father John Wills, and his brother, Billy Jack Wills. The melody came from an old fiddle tune Bob learned from his father, John Wills.
San Antonio Rose written by Wills, was his biggest hit, taking him "from hamburgers to steaks!". It sold over a million copies.
Notable Western Swing fiddlers (partial list)
Bus BoykBus Boyk
Norval Newton "Bus" Boyk was a noted fiddler whose career extended from the 1930s to the '90s and who played in many bands during those eras. In the 1930s he was with the Cascade Hillbillies and the Rancho Serenaders. From 1953-1964 he played with the Sons of the Golden West...
Cecil Brower
Cecil Brower
Cecil Lee Brower was a classically trained American jazz violinist who became an architect of Western swing in the 1930s. Perhaps the greatest swing fiddler, he could improvise as well as double shuffle and created his own style which became the benchmark for his contemporaries...
Cliff Bruner
Cliff Bruner
Cliff Bruner was a fiddler and bandleader of the western swing era of the 1930s. Bruner's music combined elements of traditional string band music, improvisation, blues, folk, and popular melodies of the times....
Johnny Gimble
Johnny Gimble
John Paul Gimble , better known as Johnny Gimble, is an American country musician associated with Western swing. He is an award-winning fiddle player and considered one of the most impressive fiddlers in the genre's history....
Billy Hughes (musician)
Billy Hughes (musician)
Everette Ishmael "Billy" Hughes was a Western Swing musician and songwriter. Born in Sallisaw, Oklahoma, he left for California during the Okie exodus of the 1930s. Billy Hughes and His Buccaroos performed during the 1940s and early 50s. He also owned an independent recording company, Fargo Records...
Merl Lindsay
Merl Lindsay
Merle Lindsay Salathiel , better known as Merl Lindsay, was one of the premier American Western swing musicians from the 1930s to the mid-1960s and founder of Merl Lindsay and His Oklahoma Night Riders.-Biography:...
Rose Maddox
Rose Maddox
Roselea Maddox , better known as Rose Maddox, was an American country singer-songwriter and fiddle player.Born in Boaz, Alabama, Maddox was the singer in the Maddox Brothers and Rose....
Billy Jack Saucier
Billy Jack Saucier
Billy Jack Saucier was an acclaimed Grand National Fiddler and a native of Dallas, Texas.-Biography:As a child, Saucier studied classical violin and performed with the Oak Cliff Symphony Orchestra at the age of 15 where his exceptional talent was the starting point of a great career.His passion...
Dave Stogner
Dave Stogner
David Stout "Dave" Stogner was one of the premier Western swing musicians playing on the West Coast. Known as the "West Coast King of Western Swing", Stogner moved to California to pursue a musical career with the encouragement from fellow Texan, Milton Brown.Although famous for his long-time big...
Bob Wills
Bob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
Johnnie Lee Wills
Johnnie Lee Wills
Johnnie Lee Wills was an American Western swing fiddler popular in the 1930s and 1940s.-Biography:Wills was born in Jewett, Texas, and was the younger brother of Bob Wills. He played banjo with Bob as a member of the Texas Playboys starting in 1934, the year the ensemble began playing on KVOO-AM...
Joe Holley
Louis Tierney
Cliff Bruner
Cliff Bruner
Cliff Bruner was a fiddler and bandleader of the western swing era of the 1930s. Bruner's music combined elements of traditional string band music, improvisation, blues, folk, and popular melodies of the times....