David A. Martin (1937 – August 2, 1987)
– accessed November 2010 was a founding member and original bass player for the rock group

Sam the Sham Domingo "Sam" Samudio (born February 28, 1937, in Dallas, Texas, United States), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham was known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipme ...

, and recorded all their early hits on

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

. Martin also co-wrote the group's No. 1 hit "

Wooly Bully "Wooly Bully" is a song originally recorded by novelty rock and roll band Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs in 1964. Based on a standard 12-bar blues progression, it was written by the band's frontman, Domingo "Sam" Samudio. It was released as a sing ...

" which sold over three million

records A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

. After leaving the group in late 1965, he returned to

Garland, Texas Garland is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is located northeast of Dallas and is a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is located within Dallas County except for small portions located in Collin and Rockwall Counties. At the ...

, a

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

suburb, where he operated a television and video repair shop, located on Lavon Drive (Highway 78), until his death. A native of Dallas, Texas, Martin started his musical career in 1959 with a band called

Tommy & the Tom Toms Tommy & The Tom Toms (later known as The Bill Smith Combo) was an American musical group from 1959 to 1962 playing rock and roll, rhythm & blues, and rockabilly. History The group first started with two guitars and drums, Eddie Wayne Hill on l ...

, which became

The Bill Smith Combo Tommy & The Tom Toms (later known as The Bill Smith Combo) was an American musical group from 1959 to 1962 playing rock and roll, rhythm & blues, and rockabilly. History The group first started with two guitars and drums, Eddie Wayne Hill on l ...

in 1960, and recorded several singles for

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...

. He also worked with

Gene Summers David Eugene Summers (January 3, 1939 – February 17, 2021) was an American rockabilly singer, songwriter and guitarist. His most famous recordings include the late 50s "School of Rock 'n Roll", "Straight Skirt", " Nervous", "Gotta Lotta That ...

Freddy Fender Freddy Fender (born Baldemar Garza Huerta; June 4, 1937 – October 14, 2006) was an American Tejano, country and rock and roll musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven and the Texas Tornados. He was bes ...

and Scotty McKay. Martin died in August 1987 from a heart attack, at the age of 50.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, David A. 1937 births 1987 deaths People from Garland, Texas American pop musicians Songwriters from Texas American rock musicians 20th-century American bass guitarists Guitarists from Texas American male bass guitarists 20th-century American male musicians Musicians from Dallas American male songwriters