The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-05-13
In -
Hollywood
BIZ ERsKINE JOHNSON
NEA Staff Correspondent

you've never heard Of Bob Wills
and his Texas Playboysp The farm
er,s son who went to q BARRIERS coli
iege and wound up playing a $1,000
fiddle as the leader of Americas
Greatest Western Dance BandP"
You haven't?
Well, confldentially, we hadn't
heard Of Bob Wills or his Texas
Playboys either, until we met the
gentleman today.
But we know all about him
now. Yes, sir. How he walked into
a Hollywood violin makers shop ana
bowled over the old gent by plank
ing down $1,000 cash for that violin.
Also, all about his eight uncles and
seven aunts and his grandpappy who
are filddlers, too. Only they don't
fiddle. They aren't acquisitive like
Bob.
Bob wills, a short, barrel-chested
senni-bald gent Is the latest pheno-
rnenon in the musical world. In fact,
he's being doing all right for the
last nine years. In 1885, he paid an
income tax second only to Paul
Whiteman, who was tops In the
flats and sharps department.
People haven't heard much about
Bob because he concentrated his
adding down In Oklahoma, Texas,
Arkansas, and Kansas, where hes
the Harry James OF the barn dance
circuit. But now he's moving into
the big time, packing 10000 people
into such places as the Oakland,
Calf, Civic Auditorium.
"HEP, VERSATILE :"
Bob Wills and his boys may
be from Tay-xus. but they'll hit you
over the head with piano stool
II YOU call them hillbilly band.
wills drawls a little but doesn't
sound like a movie version OF o
western fiddler
'We're hep" he says, Were the
most versatile band IN America
sure, we give 'em western music
Ike 'Mama Don't Allow No Low
down Flddlin' Around Here, and
Liza Jane but we give 'em rhum-
has, too. And when there are Jit-
terbugs in the Joint we get EN- so
happy they can't stay on the floor.
We lay It on like they want IT,"
Wills sneers at those gents VINO
think the secret Of western bands
success is q leader who wears a big
hat and a loud shirt. "They don't
know what the score is he says
"You gotta give EN- showmanship'
You gotta work the crowd from tne
bandstand."
sure, Wills and his boys wear
western clothes and boots. But no
loud shirts and no ten-gallon hats,
see. And who ever heard OF q west
ern band leader flddlin' on a $4,000
violin? Bob bought 1t IN Hollywood
about six months ago. Before that
he fiddled on a $4,000 job. Il gave
that away to friend of mine down
in Thy.Xus." Yes, sir. Wills Is IN the
big dough. Has a home in Holly
wood, a farm In Tay-xus. DAIRY
ranch In Oklahoma and q lot OF
stocks and bonds. Also two horses
which he has shipped wherever ne
goes. And when he goes riding he's
sitting in a silver saddle which cost
him another FIVE grand.
"Hor a fiddler" he says. "TVe
done all right. I'm lucky, guess"
FIDDLED WAY TO FORTUNE
wills started fiddlin' as a teen
aRer down In Amarillo, Tex, where
ne was born on a farm 38 years ago.
It came sorta natural-like, with all
those uncles and aunts fiddlin', too.
First 1t was country dances. just
wills and q gee-tar player. Then
pappy sent him to BARRIERS col
lege in Fort Worth. Il caught a
freight to get there" he remem-
bers.
But as a barber in Fort Worth
he was more in demand as nd
dler at weekend dances. That
was during the depression he said
"Haircuts were IS cents. made
more money in one night playin'
the fiddle than I made all week
cuttin' hair" So Wills left his bar
ber's chair for good and organized
a band. That was IA years ago.
Seems like western band leaders
all run for governor Of Oklahoma
eventually, but Wills amt gonna
run for any political office. They
asked him about it once down IN
Tulsa, but Wills grinned and said;
mo politics for me, buddy. I'm
fiddler" And as a fiddler, Bob Wills
Is dom all right.