William Lemuel Boyd (September 29, 1910 – December 7, 1977) was an American Western-style singer and guitarist.

Biography

Boyd was born and raised on a farm near Ladonia in Fannin County, Texas as one of thirteen children. His parents, Lemuel and Molly Jared Boyd, who originally hailed from

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, came to Texas in 1902. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, the family moved to

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 ...

. Bill and his brother Jim (born 1914) tried to survive the hard times by working different odd jobs. Bill joined the Alexanders Daybreakers trio performing at early-morning radio shows.Carlin 2003, p. 36. Together with Jim, he appeared on radio in

Greenville, Texas Greenville is a city in Hunt County, Texas, United States, about northeast of Dallas. It is the county seat and largest city of Hunt County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 25,557, and in 2019, its estimated population was 28,827. ...

Malone 2002, p. 168. and at WRR in DallasTribe 2006, p. 209. Meanwhile, Jim formed the "Rhythm Aces."Boyd 1998, p. 172. In February 1932, Boyd recorded with the "Blue yodeler"

Jimmie Rodgers James Charles Rodgers (September 8, 1897 – May 26, 1933) was an American singer-songwriter and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as "the Father of Country Music", he is best known for his distinctive rhythmi ...

.Rounder CD 1061, booklet. The same year, he formed the pioneering western swing band "The Cowboy Ramblers". His band consisted of himself on guitar, Jim Boyd on bass, Walter Kirkes on tenor banjo and Art Davis on fiddle.Wolff, Duane 2000, p. 75. During the band's history, many of the members also worked simultaneously with the

Light Crust Doughboys The Light Crust Doughboys is an American Western swing band from Texas, United States, organized in 1931 by the Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas. The band achieved its peak popularity in the few years leading up to World War II. I ...

and Roy Newman's Boys. The Cowboys Ramblers made more than 225 recordings between 1934 and 1951. The band had their own popular radio show, "The Bill Boyd Ranch House." They made their recording debut for

Bluebird Records Bluebird Records is a record label best known for its low-cost releases, primarily of kids' music, blues and jazz in the 1930s and 1940s. It was founded in 1932 as a lower-priced RCA Victor subsidiary label of RCA Victor. Bluebird became known ...

on August 7, 1934.Russell, Pinson 2004, p. 121. In 1935, the Cowboy Ramblers had a huge hit with their recording of "

Under the Double Eagle "Under the Double Eagle" (), Op. 159, is an 1893 march composed by J. F. Wagner, an Austrian military music composer. The title is a reference to the double eagle in the coat of arms of Austria-Hungary. It was published in the United States in 19 ...

," which later became a western swing standard and remained in print for twenty-five years. Other classics of the 1930s include "Wah Hoo", "Beaumont Rag", "Fan It", "New Steel Guitar Rag", and "I've Got Those Oklahoma Blues". The Cowboy Ramblers became major stars on radio and were offered work in Hollywood films and Boyd eventually appeared in six

Western film The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

s during the 1940s. One of his other hits was "If You'll Come Back", No. 4, Jan. 1941. After the outbreak of World War II, Boyd joined "The Western Minute Men" promoting the sale of war bonds. During the 1940s, Jim Boyd often led the Cowboy Ramblers when his brother was indisposed. Eventually, Jim formed his own band, the 'Men of the West'. In the 1950s, the brothers terminated their radio show and became DJs. In the early 1970s, Bill Boyd retired from the music business.Carlin 2003, p. 37. His brother Jim Boyd died in 1993. For his contribution to radio, Bill 'Cowboy Rambler' Boyd has a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Californ ...

at 6101 Hollywood Blvd.

Discography

* ''Bill Boyd's Cowboy Ramblers'' (Bluebird AXM2-5503, 1975) LP* ''Bill Boyd and His Cowboy Ramblers (1934–1947)'' (Texas Rose TXR-2701, 1982) * ''The Master of Cowboy Swing'' (Bronco Buster CD-9002, 1995) * ''The Eyes of Texas'' (Cattle CCD-205, 1998) * ''The Golden Age of Bill Boyd'' (Cattle CCD-229, 2000) * ''Swing with Bill Boyd and His Cowboy Ramblers'' (Cattle CCD-234, 2000) * ''Saturday Night Rag 1934–1936 (Volume 1)'' (Acrobat ACRCD-132, 2003) * ''Lone Star Rag 1937–1949 (Volume 2)'' (Acrobat ACRCD-145, 2004)

Notes

References

* Boyd, Jean Ann (1998), ''The Jazz of the Southwest: An Oral History of Western Swing'', University of Texas Press * Carlin, Richard (2003), ''Country Music: A Biographical Dictionary'', Taylor & Francis * Malone, Bill C. (2002), ''Country Music U.S.A'', University of Texas Press * Russell, Tony – Pinson, Bob (2004), ''Country Music Records: A Discography 1921–1942'', Oxford University Press US * Tribe, Ivan M. (2006), ''Country: A Regional Exploration'', Greenwood Publishing Group * Wolff, Kurt – Duane, Orla (2000), ''Country Music:The Rough Guide'', Rough Guides

External links

The Frontier Marshalls series of movies in which Bill Boyd was an actor.

Biography at the Handbook of Texas Online

Bill Boyd recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, Bill 1910 births 1977 deaths American country singer-songwriters American male film actors RCA Victor artists Singer-songwriters from Texas Western swing performers 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singers Country musicians from Texas