Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys put western swing in the spotlight.

I grew up listening to their music.

Bob was born in East Texas, the son of a share-cropper. When Bob was about 8 or 9 years old they moved to a farm between the North Fork of the Red River and the Big Red.

Bob’s dad, John Wills, was an accomplished fiddle player and all the Wills boys were musicians. Times were hard in the twenties. On Saturday night they (the Willses) would move the furniture against the walls, roll up the rugs and have a dance.

Bob grew up playing the fiddle. He tried different things, even became a barber, but music was his thing.

He put together a small band and played dances. As their popularity grew, they were hired by Burris Mills and were known as the Doughboys.

Eventually parted company with Burris. They went to Tulsa and Cain’s Ballroom where they played and broadcast every night over KVOO.

Bob put together a band of wind instruments with their stringed instruments, it was the biggest band in the nation.

When Bob passed away, his wife put on his gravestone, “Deep within my heart lies a melody,” the first words of “San Antonio Rose.”

A fitting tribute.

God bless America

Jon Cochran Sr.