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WE

Western swing fiddle

Western swing originated in the 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

Distinctives of the style#

One of the characteristics of the genre is that fiddle is the lead instrument, unlike other genres such as Cajun 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.

Repertoire#

Many old time fiddle tunes were adapted to Western swing. 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 Boyk 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

Crossover and influence#

Westerns swing is influential on country music as demonstrated by, for instance, collaboration of Willie Nelson with Asleep at the Wheel on Austin City Limits in 2009.

Bibliography#

  • Boyd, Jean Ann. Jazz of the Southwest: An Oral History of Western Swing. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1998.
  • Boyd, Jean A. “Western Swing: Working-Class Southwestern Jazz of the 1930s and 1940s”. Perspectives on American Music, 1900-1950 (ch. 7, pp. 193–214), edited by Michael Saffle. Routledge, 2000.
Genre family
American styles of music, Country music genres