Excellent short article about Bob Wills, with a bunch of songs. Check them out.
Good anecdote:
In Merle Haggard’s autobiography he writes of smacking his hot-blooded first ex-wife and throwing her out of his car after she insulted Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. When he goes back to pick her up, she’s defiantly telling onlookers that Haggard tore her dress trying to keep her in the car when she decided to bolt of her own accord.
Say what you will about mom and country but talking shit about Bob Wills clearly crossed a line for Haggard. She was walking on the fighting side of Hag. Later, an older, wiser, and hopefully less domestic violence-prone Haggard brags that his newest, bestest wife gets every day off on the right foot by putting on his beloved Bob Wills records as soon as he gets up in the morning. To Haggard, domestic hell was a wife with no damn respect for Bob Wills And His Texas Playboys, and domestic heaven was a woman who intuitively understood how important he was to him.
Hag was right. In my case, I married a woman who loves Bob Wills, and it has worked out OK. We had a western swing band at our wedding. As always, you can learn a lot and benefit a lot from the life, words, music and example of Merle Haggard. Loving Bob Wills is a pretty major item you want to check off before you get serious with a gal. With that squared away, a lot of the rest of it falls into place.
Mrs. Lex recently made me step away from the computer, which I did very grudgingly, and go see Asleep at the Wheel, who are Texas Swing and play a lot of Bob Wills Sons. I was wrong to resist. It was a good show.
The music lives on, and Bob Wills is still the king.
Well the honky-tonks in Texas were my natural second home
Where you tip your hats to the ladies and the rose of San Antone
I grew up on music that we called western swing
It don’t matter who’s in Austin, Bob Wills is still the king
Lord I can still remember, the way things were back then
In spite of all the hard times, I’d live it all again
To hear the Texas playboys and Tommy Duncan sing
Makes me proud to be from Texas where Bob Wills is still the king
You can hear the Grand Ol’ Opry in Nashville Tennessee
It’s the home of country music, on that we all agree
But when you cross that ol’ Red River hoss that just don’t mean a thing
‘Cause once you’re down in Texas, Bob Wills is still the king
Well if you ain’t never been there then I guess you ain’t been told
That you just can’t live in Texas unless you got a lot of soul
It’s the home of Willie Nelson, the home of western swing
He’ll be the first to tell you, Bob Wills is still the king — Waylon Jennings
Who knew Lex was a closet Texan
I grew up on Bob Wills who had a song for ever event in a person’s life.
Lost Love-Faded Love:
As I look at the letters that you wrote to me,
It’s you that I am thinking of.
As I read the lines, that to me were so dear,
I remember our faded love.
Good Times-Stay A Little Longer:
Stay all night, stay a little longer,
Dance all night, dance a little longer,
Pull off your coat, throw it in the corner,
Don’t see why you can’t stay a little longer.
Old girl fiends-San Antonio Rose:
Deep within my heart, lies a melody,
A song of old San Antone.
Reverence-The Maiden’s Prayer
Twilight falls, evening shadows find,
There ‘neath the stars, a maiden so fair divine.
All alone, I seem to see her there.
In her eyes is a light, shining ever so bright,
She whispered a silent prayer.