Texas Music Pioneers (N-Z) / Texas Music History Tour

The Texas Music History Tour currently includes:
Texas Music Pioneers | Texas Music Libraries and Archives | Historic Texas Music Venues | Other music tourism sites

Pioneers A-M | Pioneers N-Z

The following Texans, now deceased, made significant contributions to the art or business of music. This list of music pioneers is part of the Texas Music History Tour, a guide to experiencing in present-day locations Texas' rich musical past.

For 562 of the pioneers below, the Texas Music Office lists: website links, the instrument and genre of music played, where they were born and where they attended school, their burial site, as well as additional sites of interest.

If you have any photos or information not currently listed below for any of these artists, or if you would like to suggest other Texans to be included, please email us at music@governor.state.tx.us.

Texas' music-related museums, libraries, archives and halls of fame frequently have public exhibits devoted to music history. Our guide to these buildings is located here.

Some of the information found below is from the Handbook of Texas Music published August 2003 by the Texas State Historical Association.

The Texas Music Office would like to thank the following folks for their assistance in providing this information: Texas State Historical Association, Texas State University's Center for Texas Music History, TMO intern Cory Kenworthy, Texas Historical Commission, Texas Music Museum, Texas Almanac, FindAGrave.com, TexasEscapes.com, Arhoolie Records, BobKat Designs' Texas Chamber of Commerce & CVB list, AllMusic.com, Gordon Polatnick's Dead Musician Directory, The Red Hot Jazz Archive, Big Bands Database and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Pioneers N-Z

Pioneers A-M | Pioneers N-Z

Ruben Naranjo 2
Genres: Tejano, Conjunto, Ranchera
Based in: Alice
Instrument: accordion
Birthplace: Alice Birthdate: 2/22/1945 Deathdate: 10/12/1998
Buried at: New Collins Cemetery in Alice
Ruben Naranjo is known as the "Clark Gable of Conjunto." In 1972, he formed his own group, Ruben Naranjo y Los Gamblers and toured with Eligio Escobar. His first recordings were with Zarape Records. In the middle seventies he hit it with "La Estrella," which opened the way for substantial recordings and an outstanding performing career. With over 20 albums and numerous singles to his credit, he is among the few Tejano conjunto artists who have been well accepted in both Mexico and the US.

Anton Navratil
Genres: Classical
Based in: Unavailable
Instrument: Unavailable
Birthplace: Unavailable Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: Unavailable

Bill Neely 2 3
Genres: Country
Based in: McKinney
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: McKinney Birthdate: 9/19/1916 Deathdate: 3/22/1990
Buried at: Capital Memorial Park in Austin
At thirteen he met his greatest musical influence, country singer Jimmie Rodgers, who gave him his first guitar lesson. In Austin, Neely was a regularly scheduled Wednesday-night act at Threadgill's restaurant, where he played for most of the 1950s. In 1968 he befriended another Austin musician, Larry Kirbo. The two played together for nearly twelve years, including special performances in Washington, at programs hosted by the Smithsonian Institution. Neely also played with such notable musicians as Janis Joplin, Mance Lipscomb, and Pete Seeger.
Schools: Neely dropped out of the eighth grade to look for work at the age of fifteen.

Harrison "Peppermint Harris" Nelson, Jr.
Genres: Blues
Based in: Texarkana
Instrument: guitar
Birthplace: Texarkana Birthdate: 7/17/1925 Deathdate: 3/19/1999
Guitarist Peppermint Harris was best known for his 1951 R&B chart-topper, the classic booze ode "I Got Loaded." After first moving to Houston in 1943 and starting to play blues professionally in 1947, at such venues as the Eldorado Ballroom, he invented the stage name "Peppermint" in response to the success of other local performers with catchy nicknames: friends such as Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins, the latter of whom also helped him get his first chance to record (for the Gold Star label) in 1947 or 1948. Bob Shad's Sittin' in With label supplied Harris' early work to the masses - especially his first major hit, "Raining in My Heart," in 1950. After "I Got Loaded" lit up the charts in 1951, Harris indulged in one booze ode after another: "Have Another Drink and Talk to Me," "Right Back On It," "Three Sheets in the Wind." The combination of self-motivated creativity and susceptibility to forces beyond his control in some ways characterized Nelson's career as a bluesman, which involved recordings on over a dozen labels (including Aladdin, Money, Dart, Duke, and Jewel) and authorship of countless songs. Many of these compositions were reportedly sold outright for instant cash and therefore never properly credited to him. However, among titles for which Nelson did retain his rights as original songwriter is his greatest commercial success, "I Got Loaded." This 1951 Aladdin release occupied a spot on the Billboard Top Ten for six months and decades later was re-recorded by British rock star Elvis Costello. In 1997 Nelson released a Peppermint Harris CD called "Penthouse in the Ghetto," comprising various vintage tracks recorded in Houston in 1958, 1960, 1974, and 1975, with noted local musicians such as Clarence Green, Clarence Hollimon, Teddy Reynolds, and others.
Colleges: B.A. in English from Texas Southern University

Horace "Steady" Steadman Nelson 2
Genres: Jazz, Swing
Based in:
Instrument: trumpet
Birthplace: Unavailable Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: Unavailable
Horace "Steady" Steadman Nelson recorded 46 sessions on trumpet and vocals between 1939-1944. Many with Woody Herman, Bing Crosby and the Casa Loma Orchestra. Steady joined Woody Herman's Orchestra in 1939. He played lead trumpet on Woody's first huge hit, "Woodchopper's Ball," on the Decca lable. Steady was the featured vocalist on "Rosetta" (Decca) and 'I'm Comin' Virginia" (Decca). He also accompanied Woody Herman and other vocalists in live NBC Radio Shows and on vocal recordings for Decca Records; "Bessie's Blues," "Blues Downstairs," "Oh, look at me now," "Big Morning" and "Whatcha Know Joe" with vocalist Muriel Lane (NBC Radio).

Jimmy "T-99" Nelson 2
Genres: Blues, Jazz
Based in: Houston
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Philadelphia, PA Birthdate: 4/7/1919 Deathdate: 7/29/2007
Jimmy "T-99" Nelson was a blues shouter and songwriter with a recording career that spanned over 50 years. Like many, Nelson began singing in church. After seeing Big Joe Turner in 1941, he realized he wanted to sing the blues and Turner mentored Nelson in both music and business. In June of 1952, Nelson reached the #1 spot on the R&B charts with "T-99 Blues" on the Modern/RPM record label. The title refers to Texas' Highway #99. Nelson scored another hit while at Modern/RPM with "Meet Me With Your Black Dress On." Before settleing in Houston in 1955, Nelson recorded singles for Kent, Chess, Music City, Paradise and All Boy records among others and toured throughout the United States. He and his wife Nettie made Houston their hometown and although he continued to write songs and sit in with other musicians, Nelson earned a living as a construction worker (he helped build the Astrodome). After Ace Records released an album in the 1980s containing 10 of Nelson's classic singles, he began to tour again, gaining the attention of blues fans around the world with new recordings and reissues.

Mickey Newbury 2
Genres: Country, Folk/Acoustic
Based in: Houston
Instrument: guitar, vocals, keyboards, songwriter
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: 5/19/1940 Deathdate: 9/28/2002
Buried at: died in Vida, Oregon
Mickey Newbury helped revolutionize country music in the 1960s and '70s by bringing new, broader musical influences as well as a frank, emotional depth to the music. Newbury is better known as a songwriter than as a singer. Many of his songs have been recorded by Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Willie Nelson, Joan Baez, Kenny Rogers, Waylon Jennings and the London Symphony Orchestra. Newbury recorded 15 albums over a nearly 30 year period.

Roy Newman
Genres: Cowboy/Western
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: piano, guitar, accordion
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: 11/12/1899 Deathdate: 2/23/1981
Buried at: died in Dallas
Roy Newman worked as a staff musician at WRR Dallas by his mid-20s. He formed the Wanderers with Dick Reinhart and Bert Dodson, on mandolin and bass. Later Alfredo Casares joined on fiddle and Jim Boyd eventually replaced Reinhart. The Newman group sometimes had as many as ten staff musicians from WRR who were also part of Bill "Cowboy Rambler" Boyd's band. Each group, though, had its own distinct style. Between September 1934 and June 1939, Newman's group recorded seventy-two sides. These were primarily released on Vocalion and other ARC labels.

Hoyle Nix
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Big Spring
Instrument: fiddle
Birthplace: Azle Birthdate: 3/22/1918 Deathdate: 1985
Buried at: Mount Olive Cemetery, Big Spring
Hoyle Nix was a prominent western swing bandleader, best known for writing the western swing standard "Big Ball's in Cowtown." One of the most popular band leaders ever in the state of Texas. He played 39 years professionally before his death. He and his West Texas Cowboys filled dance halls, VFWs, rodeo dances, and clubs for many years, keeping Western Swing alive. Nix often shared a double bill with Bob Wills and was a guest on Wills' final album "Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys For The Last Time." In 1954, Hoyle Nix and his brother Ben built The Stampede dancehall in Big Spring which served as a home base for the Nix band for many years.

Armond A. "Eddie" Noack
Genres: Country
Based in: Houston
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: 4/29/1930 Deathdate: 2/5/1978
As a songwriter, several of Eddie Noack's songs were recorded by top artists, including Johnny Cash, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow (who scored a major hit with "These Hands" in 1956) and recently Elvis Costello. During the '60s, Noack had many of his songs - including "Flowers For Mama," "Barbara Joy," "The Poor Chinee," "A Day In The Life Of A Fool" and "No Blues Is Good News" successfully recorded by George Jones. A fine performer somewhat in the style of Hank Williams, Noack is perhaps more appreciated today as a singer than he was in his own time.
Colleges: University of Houston; Baylor University

Grady Lee Nutt
Genres: Country
Based in: Amarillo
Instrument: Baptist minister, television personality
Birthplace: Amarillo Birthdate: 9/2/1934 Deathdate: 11/23/1982
Grady Lee Nutt, Baptist minister and television personality, was licensed as a Baptist minister at the age of thirteen. After college, he married his high school sweetheart, moved with his wife and two children to Louisville, Kentucky, serving as minister of music at the Southside Baptist Church and later as pastor of the Baptist congregation in Graefenburg, Kentucky. Nutt went into the entertainment field in 1969 as a lecturer-entertainer and soon averaged about twenty speaking engagements a month, plus additional engagements for charitable causes. His career continued on the rise in 1979, when he joined the regular cast of the "Hee Haw" television series. His homespun stories as a preacher on the show won him billing as the "Prime Minister of Humor." In all, Nutt recorded six albums and wrote several books.
Schools: Alice Landergin Elementary School; Nixon Junior High
Colleges: Wayland Baptist College; Baylor University; Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Wilbert Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel
Genres: Country
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Malta, OH Birthdate: 3/11/1890 Deathdate: 5/2/1969
W. Lee O'Daniel's musical career began in January 1931, when a West Texas fiddler named James Robert (Bob) Wills entered his Fort Worth office at Burrus Mill and Elevator Company. As general manager of the firm, O'Daniel had just canceled a radio program on which Wills and his fiddle band had been advertising Burrus Mill's Light Crust Flour. O'Daniel canceled it, as he said, "because I didn't like their hillbilly music." So many cards and letters came into station KFJZ that O'Daniel had to put the show back on the air, and the band became known as the Light Crust Doughboys. When O'Daniel realized how much flour the show was selling, he became the announcer for the show and manager of the band. The Doughboy broadcast became one of the most popular and long-lived shows in the history of the Southwest. The original Light Crust Doughboy show consisted of O'Daniel as announcer, Bob Wills on fiddle, Herman Arnspiger on guitar, and Milton Brown as vocalist. Kitty Williamson, whom O'Daniel called Texas Rose, vocalized on several recordings. She was probably the first female singer in western swing. Later, O'Daniel parlayed his gregarious, and sometimes controversial personality into becoming governor of Texas and into becoming an U.S. senator.

Fritz Oberdoerffer
Genres: Classical
Based in: Austin
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Hamburg, Germany Birthdate: 11/4/1895 Deathdate: 12/8/1979
Professor Fritz Oberdoerffer was a classically trained pianist who taught at the Institute of Church Music in Berlin-Spandau. He joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin as guest professor in 1950. He became a permanent member of the faculty in 1964 and professor emeritus in 1974. Professor Oberdoerffer edited a number of classical works by Bach, Mozart, Purcell, Rosenmüller, Schütz, and Vivaldi. He was a member of the American and International Musicological Society and the Music Library Association.

Phil Ochs 2 3 4
Genres: Folk/Acoustic, Singer Songwriter
Based in: El Paso
Instrument: guitar, vocal
Birthplace: El Paso Birthdate: 12/19/1940 Deathdate: 4/8/1976
Phil Ochs - along with Bob Dylan and Joan Baez - was one of the most successful singer-songwriters to arise on the New York City folk music scene in the 1960s. Ochs wrote politically charged songs that became protest anthems of that decade. He strongly opposed the war in Vietnam and supported the civil rights movement - two themes that dominated much of his music. After living in San Antonio and Austin, he moved to Far Rockaway, New York. Inspired by Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and the legendary Joe Hill and the Industrial Workers of the World, Ochs learned the guitar, and along with his best friend, Jim Gorman, formed a duo called the Sundowners. Ochs headed to New York City, where the folk music scene was becoming increasingly popular. His reputation grew, and in 1963, he performed at the Newport Folk Festival. Ochs' songs hit a nerve with a growing politically minded youth, and the Electra Record Company signed him to a contract. His first album, "All the News That's Fit to Sing," enjoyed only moderate success, but his second effort, "I Ain't Marching Anymore," was hailed as a folk classic. Because of his outspokenness, the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a file on him, classifying him as a "security matter." He frequently played at anti-war demonstrations and was instrumental in the formation of the Yippee Party. He also traveled extensively and while staying in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, he was attacked and strangled. This attack, which Ochs believed was politically motivated, left his vocal chords permanently damaged. With his music career now essentially over, he became more actively involved in politics.

Newell Oler 2
Genres: Pop
Based in: Mount Pleasant
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Tyler Birthdate: 8/17/1934 Deathdate: 10/21/2001
Newell Oler's career as a master pianist spanned more than five decades. Oler gift of perfect pitch and playing by ear was discovered at an early age on the family's upright piano. He shared his gift, playing the finest venues in the Dallas area, including the Loews' Anatole Hotel for twelve years. As a recording artist, Newell produced 23 CDs of his own inspired piano interpretations of classic and popular compositions, as well as his own original works. In 1977 he drew up some designs for a pianist to access various sting sections utilizing the latest synchronization techniques. The design was enough to get the Yamaha Company to study it and several years later the piano was created.

Roy Kelton Orbison 2 3 4
Genres: Rock, Rockabilly
Based in: Wink
Instrument: vocals, guitar, songwriting
Birthplace: Vernon Birthdate: 4/23/1936 Deathdate: 12/6/1988
Buried at: Westwood Memorial Park, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California
Most of Roy Orbison's early success was as a songwriter including hits such as "Claudette," "Only the Lonely," "Blue Angel," "Running Scared," "Blue Bayou," "It's Over," and "Oh, Pretty Woman." Always noted for his remarkable, operatic voice, Elvis Presley once referred to him as "The greatest singer in the world."
Schools: Wink High School
Colleges: North Texas State College (1954); Odessa Junior College (1955-1956)
Sites of interest:
In 1948, Roy performed on a weekly radio show on KERB in Kermit.

Mike Ornelas 2 3
Genres: Big Band, Tejano
Based in: Laredo
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Camargo, Mexico Birthdate: 1/1/1912 Deathdate: 9/9/1983
Mike Ornelas and his Orquestra toured the West Coast, Southwest and Midwest during the 1930's and early 1940's. During World War Two, the band played USO shows. He recorded for Ideal, Falcon and Torrero and was inducted into the Tejano Hall of Fame 1984.

Gussie Oscar
Genres: Classical
Based in: Waco
Instrument: pianist, conductor, and general manager of the Waco Auditorium
Birthplace: Calvert Birthdate: 1875 Deathdate: 2/7/1950
Gussie Oscar, pianist, conductor, and general manager of the Waco Auditorium, was born in 1875 in Calvert, Texas. Although she was Jewish, she was educated in an Austin convent school. She first supported herself by playing the piano at weddings, churches, dances, and theaters and toured with plays and orchestras. She moved to Waco in 1905 and played in the orchestra for vaudeville and operettas at the Majestic Theater and the Waco Auditorium. By 1911 she was the conductor of an all-female orchestra at the Majestic, and in 1913 she was May Irwin's accompanist on a tour of the western states and Canada. Later Oscar was one of few women elected to membership in the International Alliance of Theatrical Employees. She became controversial during the 1920s when, for financial reasons, she defied Waco's Sunday closing law and censorship board to schedule increasingly racy acts on Sundays.

Curtis "King Curtis" Ousley 2
Genres: Blues, Pop
Based in: Fort Worth
Instrument: saxophone
Birthplace: Fort Worth Birthdate: 2/7/1934 Deathdate: 8/14/1971
Buried at: Pinelawn Memorial Park & Cemetery, Farmingdale, Suffolk County, New York
Curtis "King Curtis" Ousley was the last of the great R&B tenor sax giants and was one of the best known saxophone players of the 1960s. He played with Chuck Willis, Clyde McPhatter, the Coasters, the Alan Freed Band, Lionel Hampton's band, Bobby Darin, Andy Williams, Sam Cooke, Connie Francis, Nat King Cole, The Coasters, Buddy Holly, and others. Curtis formed his own group - the King Pins - which signed with Enjoy Records and recorded a number one R&B single, "Soul Twist." Curtis had fifteen songs that made the pop charts including "Have Tenor Sax, Will Blow," "King Curtis Plays the Great Memphis Hits," "That Lovin' Feeling," "King Size Soul," "Memphis Soul Stew" and "Ode to Billie Joe." At the apex of his career, he was producing Freddie King, directing Aretha Franklin, and was working on a John Lennon album.
Schools: I. M. Terrell High School (historical marker at 1411 East 18th Street, Fort Worth)
Sites of interest:
Ousley used to jam at the Blue Bird Cafe, 5636 Wellesley Avenue in Fort Worth.

Buck Owens 2 3 4
Genres: Country
Based in: Sherman
Instrument: vocals, guitar
Birthplace: Sherman Birthdate: 8/12/1929 Deathdate: 3/25/2006
Buck Owens, along with Merle Haggard, was the leader of the Bakersfield Sound, an twangy, electricified, rock-influenced interpretation of hardcore honky tonk that emerged in the '60s. Owens was the first bonafide country star to emerge from Bakersfield, scoring a total of 15 consecutive number one hits in the mid-'60s. In the process, he provided an edgy alternative to the string-laden country-pop that was being produced during the '60s. Later in his career, his musical impact was forgotten by some as he became a television personality through the country comedy show Hee Haw. Nevertheless, several generations of musicians - from Gram Parsons in the late '60s to Dwight Yoakam in the '80s - were influenced by his music, which wound up being one of the blueprints for modern country music.

Calvin Owens
Genres: Big Band, Blues
Based in: Houston
Instrument: trumpet, vocals
Birthplace: New Orleans Birthdate: 4/23/1929 Deathdate: 02/21/2008
Calvin Owens, born in New Orleans Fifth Ward, migrated with his mother to Houston where at 13 he began playing trumpet. Joining a vaudeville show after high school, Owens later met B.B. King in 1953 and toured and led his band until 1957, when he returned to Houston. Upon his return, Owens became a songwriter/arranger/session player and A&R rep for the Peacock Recording Company under the Don Robey. In that period, Owens famously recorded with T-Bone Walker, Amos Milburn, Junior Parker, and David "Fathead" Newman. Owens would later return to touring with B.B. King from 1978-1984, earning a Grammy as the bandleader for King on the album "Blues 'n' Jazz." After a decade in Belgium, he returned to Houston in 1993. Again, Owens refused to be pigeonholed; he recorded not just blues but country, Spanish music, and Hip Hop. Owens released the Spanish album "La Mujer que Cante Blues," a collaboration with Evelyn Rubio. And in 2007, Owens also recorded and arranged a country album with legends Willie Nelson, Ray Price, and Johnny Bush.

Doie Hensley "Tex" Owens 2 3
Genres: Country
Based in: Killeen
Instrument: vocals, songwriter
Birthplace: Killeen Birthdate: 6/15/1892 Deathdate: 9/9/1962
Buried at: died in New Baden, and is buried with other family members at the Franklin Cemetery in Franklin, TX
For ten years Tex Owens co-hosted the popular "Brush Creek Follies," on KMBC in Kansas City, featuring his group, the Original Texas Rangers, and his two daughters Dolpha (Jane) and Laura Lee (Joy). Owens penned "Cattle Call," which he recorded for Decca Records. The song later became a hit recording for singer Eddie Arnold. Owens also hosted the "Boone County Jamboree" on WLW in Cincinnati, appeared on several other radio shows and worked as a movie cowboy.

Ruby Agnes Owens 2
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Houston
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Wise County Birthdate: 6/4/1910 Deathdate: 3/29/1963
Buried at: Franklin Cemetery in Franklin, TX
Ruby Agnes Owens was one of the first female performers to challenge male dominance in the country music industry. She was billed as the "Sophie Tucker of the Feminine Folk Singers" singing honky-tonk material in a strong, distinctive voice and writing many of her own songs. Ruby married fiddler Curly Fox and the two performed at the Grand Ole Opry recording honky tonk material such as "You've Been Cheating on Me" and "Ain't You Sorry That You Lied." The couple went to Houston, Texas, in 1948, where they remained for a decade helping to pioneer country music on local television.

Tary Kelly Owens 2 3
Genres: Blues
Based in: Austin
Instrument: producer
Birthplace: grew up in Port Arthur Birthdate: 11/6/1942 Deathdate: 9/21/2003
Tary Owens was a high school classmate and friend of Janis Joplin. He moved to Austin in the early 1960s, and became a part of the Threadgill's folk scene. Owens devoted most of his life to the music of forgotten or unsung Texas bluesmen, to encourage a larger public to celebrate their artistry. Owens sought out 1920s-era barrelhouse piano legend the Grey Ghost and revived his career. He also helped revive the career of East Austin blues players T.D. Bell and Erbie Bowser, and brought attention to East Texas blues musicians such as Frank Robinson and Long John Hunter.
Schools: Jefferson High School in Port Arthur
Colleges: University of Texas in Austin

William A. Owens 2
Genres: Classical
Based in: Pin Hook
Instrument: folklorist, author, educator
Birthplace: Pin Hook Birthdate: 11/2/1905 Deathdate: Unavailable
While his career as teacher, lecturer, and administrator has been full, William A. Owens is more widely known as a gifted author. In addition to numerous articles, field recordings, reviews and short stories, his books serve as monuments to his craft. His works include "Texas Folk Songs" (1950, revised in 1976). Out of at least Sixty books, most pertain to fields which Owens researched such as folksongs, ethnic groups in Texas, history of the oil industry, and others. In 1941, he recorded Chelo Silva in his music-collecting project on the Texas-Mexico border.
Colleges: East Texas State Teachers College in Commerce; Southern Methodist University

Oran Thaddeus "Hot Lips" Page 2 3 4
Genres: Jazz
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: trumpet, vocals
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: 1/27/1908 Deathdate: 11/5/1954
Buried at: Dallas Cemetery
One of the great swing trumpeters in addition to being a talented blues vocalist, Oran Page was one of the top sidemen with Artie Shaw's Orchestra, freelanced in Kansas City, and was one of the stars in Count Basie's orchestra.
Schools: Corsicana High School
Colleges: Texas College in Tyler

Américo Paredes 2 3
Genres: Tejano
Based in: Austin
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: Brownsville Birthdate: 9/3/1915 Deathdate: 5/5/1999
Américo Paredes is generally recognized as one of the seminal Mexican American scholars of the 20th century. He published a series of articles on the musical form of the corrido. Although the corrido was long thought to be of solely Mexican invention, Paredes demonstrated that, in fact, the corrido originated along the Texas-Mexican border. As an anthropology and English professor, Paredes had taught literature, folklore and creative writing to thousands of undergraduate and graduate students.
Schools: He was educated in the Brownsville school system.
Colleges: Brownsville Junior College; University of Texas at Austin
Sites of interest:
He began working at the Brownsville Herald upon high school graduation.
At age 20 Paredes' high school poetry begun to be published in La Prensa in San Antonio.
He co-founded UT Austin's Center for Mexican-American Studies.
The Americo Paredes Middle School is named in his honor.

John W. "Knocky" Parker 2
Genres: Cowboy/Western, Jazz, Ragtime, Dixieland
Based in: Palmer
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Palmer Birthdate: 8/8/1918 Deathdate: 1986
Buried at: died in Los Angeles, CA
Dr. John Parker played piano with the Light Crust Doughboys and other Western Swing bands of the 1930s. He also later earned a doctorate in English and taught a hugely successful college course about American society as reflected in the performing arts. Parker performed and recorded fairly often and worked with Doc Evans, Omer Simeon, Tony Parenti and many others. As a leader he recorded for Texstar, Paradox, GHB, London, Jazzology and Euphonic. Parker also did many sessions for Audiophile one of which included a pioneering project in which he recorded every Scott Joplin rag.
Colleges: Parker taught English at Kentucky Wesleyan College.Later he taught at the University of South Florida.
Sites of interest:
Hogan Jazz Archive Special collections include notable donations from Knocky Parker at Tulane University.

Joseph "Joe" Patek 2 3
Genres: Polka, Czech
Based in: Shiner
Instrument: accordion
Birthplace: Shiner Birthdate: 9/14/1907 Deathdate: 10/24/1987
Buried at: the Catholic cemetery in Shiner, Texas
Joseph "Joe" Patek was the leader of one of the best known Czech polka bands in Texas. One of his best known songs was "The Shiner Song," a newer version of an old Czech ballad, "Farewell To Prague." In 1995, "The Shiner Song" received special recognition from the Texas Polka Music Association as an "All Time Favorite Song." This was only the second time such an award had ever been given by the TPMA. The band recorded more than twenty-four 78-RPMs, more than twenty-four 45-speed records, and several tapes and LPs. One of the Pateks' most successful records was the "Beer Barrel Polka," which sold more than one million copies. Joe Patek is credited for establishing a different style of Texas polka with its harder sound and emphasis on swing. This style with its martial brass band arrangements differentiated the Pateks and Texas polka from the polka bands in other parts of the United States.

Glen Payne 2 3 4
Genres: Christian
Based in: Royse City
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Royse City Birthdate: 10/20/1926 Deathdate: 10/15/1999
Buried at: Williamson Memorial Gardens, Franklin, Williamson County, Tennessee
Glen Payne worked nearly 60 years in gospel music and was nominated for 11 Grammys. He was honored by the Gospel Music Association's Hall of Fame, the Texas Music Hall of Fame, the Southern Gospel Music Association's Hall of Fame and the Radio Music Hall of Fame. Payne sang in the Stamps-Ozark Quartet before leaving to join the Weatherfords. In 1963, Payne formed a trio to perform at evangelist Rex Humbard's Cathedral of Tomorrow in Akron, Ohio. George Younce joined the trio and it changed its name to the Cathedral Quartet. Payne and Younce became constants in the group that would feature 17 other members over the next 35 years on its way to becoming a pre-eminent gospel group.
Schools: Stamps Baxter Singing School in Dallas

Leon Roger Payne 2
Genres: Country
Based in: Alba
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Alba Birthdate: 6/15/1917 Deathdate: 9/11/1969
Buried at: Sunset Memorial Park in San Antonio
Leon Roger Payne's composition "Lifetime to Regret" established his reputation as a composer, and in 1949 he composed "I Love You Because" which became a top hit and a standard in country and western music. His "You've Still Got a Place in My Heart" was first recorded in 1951, but its greatest success came in the 1960s, when Dean Martin and many others recorded it. Payne made many appearances on both the "Louisiana Hayride" in Shreveport and the "Grand Ole Opry" in Nashville, Tennessee. Other well known singers who recorded Payne's songs were Elvis Presley, Glen Campbell, Don Gibson, Jim Reeves, and George Jones.
Schools: Texas School for the Blind (1924-1935)
Sites of interest:
In 1935, Leon started his radio career on KWET in Palestine, TX.
Payne was featured with Lone Star Buddies on the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport and Dallas' Big D Jamboree in the early 1950s. (formerly located at Industrial Boulevard and Cadiz Street in Dallas)

William Evander Penn
Genres: Christian
Based in: Jefferson
Instrument: Baptist evangelist
Birthplace: Rutherford County, TN Birthdate: 8/11/1832 Deathdate: 4/29/1895
William Evander Penn - Baptist evangelist - moved with his family from Tennessee to Jefferson, Texas in January 1866, where he opened a law office. The Penns joined the Baptist Church at Jefferson, and later Penn was ordained a deacon. He wrote hymns and published "Harvest Bells," a hymnal with J. M. Hunt in 1881. A second edition was published in 1886, and H. M. Lincoln and Penn published a third in 1887. Penn has been called the "Texas Evangelist," but he also led revivals in other states and in Scotland and England.

Oscar Perry 2
Genres: Blues
Based in: Houston
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: Brazora County Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: 8/4/2004
Oscar Perry made his debut recording in 1957, following it with releases on a variety of labels until landing on Huey P. Meaux's Crazy Cajun in the early '70s. In 1973 Oscar Perry scored a R&B top five hit as a songwriter when Bobby "Blue" Bland recorded his "This Time I'm Gone for Good". Bland cut several more Perry tunes over the next few years, including "When You Come to the End of Your Road", "Country Fool From the Sticks" and "If I Weren't a Gambler."

Ray August Peterson 2
Genres: Pop, Rockabilly
Based in: Denton
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Denton Birthdate: 4/23/1939 Deathdate: 1/25/2005
Vocalist Ray Peterson scored a string of pop hits with everything from "heart wrenching" songs like "Tell Laura I Love Her" and the easygoing folk of "Corinna, Corinna" to the dramatic Roy Orbison influenced, "I Could Have Loved Her So Well." After a near-fatal bout of poliomyelitis as a child, Petterson began to work in Texas clubs before moving to Los Angeles, where he met longtime manager Stan Shulman. Peterson's remarkable 4-1/2 octave voice intrigued executives at RCA Records and they signed the singer in 1957. Despite the lack of interest in Ray's early records, he remained with RCA, finally scoring his first hit in 1959 with his seventh single, a gentle ballad by veteran Baker Knight,"The Wonder Of You," (#25 Billboard Pop Singles) which reached the Top 30 in both the U.S. and the U.K. Elvis Presley was so impressed with the song, and Ray's heartwarming rendition, he called him and asked if he could record the song too. "Goodnight My Love" and "Tell Laura I Love Her" followed. Later, Paterson left RCA and formed his own Dune Records, securing a young Phil Spector to produce his first Dunes Records album. In late 1964, Ray signed with MGM Records and cut a number of singles. In 1969 he did "Together" for Reprise and then moved to UNI for three more records. He also recorded a single for Decca in 1971, and the album "Peterson Country," which featured straight country material.

George Petmecky
Genres: Classical
Based in: New Braunfels
Instrument: Unavailable
Birthplace: New Braunfels Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: Unavailable

Gottfried Joseph Petmecky 2 3 4
Genres: Classical, German
Based in: New Braunfels
Instrument: composer
Birthplace: Hradisch, Bohemia, Austria Birthdate: 8/1/1809 Deathdate: 5/1871
Gottfried Joseph Petmecky wrote works for male chorus in the 1850s. The first singing society in Texas was organized at New Braunfels in March 1850. It was called the "Germania." Some of its first directors were Petmecky, C.F. Blum, Dr Adolf Douai, and H. Guenther.

Esther Mae "Little Esther" Phillips 2
Genres: Blues, Jazz
Based in: Galveston
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Galveston Birthdate: 12/23/1935 Deathdate: 8/7/1984
Buried at: Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills), Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California
Billed as "Little Esther," sounding way beyond her years, she recorded "Double Crossing Blues" with Johnny Otis, selling 400,000 copies before her 14th birthday. Otis became the youngest R&B artist ever to reach number 1 on the national charts. She recorded for the Federal, Decca, Savoy, Lenox, and Atlantic record labels. After Dinah Washington's untimely death, Phillips became the greatest female blues singer of her time. Aretha Franklin so admired Phillips' that when the "Queen of Soul" was awarded a Grammy for her "Young, Gifted and Black" album, she graciously gave her Grammy to Esther Phillips, saying that she deserved it more.
Schools: Phillips dropped out of school to join Johnny Otis's touring troup.

Washington Phillips 2
Genres: Christian, Gospel
Based in: Teague
Instrument: vocals, dolceola
Birthplace: NA Birthdate: 1/11/1880 Deathdate: 9/20/1954
Buried at: Cotton Gin Cemetery, near Teague
Washington Phillips is known for unique gospel songs that influenced a generation of African-American gospel singers. He managed to become one of the best-selling soloists in the period from 1927 to 1929. Washington had a unique sound that led to his music being described as "gentle" and "ethereal." His songs usually included moral themes.

Edwin "Buster" Pickens
Genres: Blues
Based in: Hempstead
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Hempstead Birthdate: 6/3/1916 Deathdate: 11/24/1964
Edwin Pickens developed a downhome blues piano style. In Houston, he made his first record supporting the vocals of Alger "Texas" Alexander along with guitarist Leon Benton. He also played regularly with Lightnin' Hopkins and appeared as accompanist on some of that artist's records for Prestige/Bluesville. His 1960 solo album demonstrated deep knowledge of the Texas blues style. The possibilities of a successful new career were tragically curtailed when he was murdered a few years later.

Joseph Eugene Pillot
Genres: Christian, Drama
Based in: Houston
Instrument: piano, vocals, songwriter
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: 2/25/1886 Deathdate: 6/4/1966
Eugene Joseph Pillot gave up studying law to become a successful writer of one-act plays, many of which were widely produced on stage, radio, and television. His best known play, "Two Crooks and a Lady" (1918), was first produced at Harvard and has been called a model of construction; it has been republished and produced many times.
Colleges: the University of Texas; Cornell University; New York School of Fine and Applied Arts

Paul Amadeus Pisk
Genres: Classical
Based in: Austin
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Vienna, Austria Birthdate: 5/16/1893 Deathdate: 1/12/1990
Dr. Paul Amadeus Pisk was an internationally renowned composer, he completed thirty-six opuses between 1920 and 1936. The String Quartet, Op. 8, was awarded the Composition Prize of the City of Vienna in 1925. Twenty-four critically acclaimed works were premiered in Europe. He also published operatic, orchestral, ballet, folk dances, ballads, and works for piano and chorus. Dr. Pisk immigrated to the United States in 1936. He joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin in 1951, teaching until his retirement in 1963. Professor Pisk was also was a music critic; he co-authored "A History of Music and Musical Style."
Colleges: He received a PhD from the University of Vienna in 1916; He joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin in 1951, teaching until his retirement in 1963.

Portia Marshall Washington Pittman
Genres: Classical
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Tuskegee, AL Birthdate: 6/6/1883 Deathdate: 2/26/1978
Portia Washington Pittman, musician and teacher, was the only daughter of Booker T. and Fanny (Smith) Washington. Her father was the founder of Tuskegee Institute. In New England she studied piano and received a degree from the Bradford Academy (now Bradford Junior College) in 1905, the first African American to obtain a degree from that institution. Portia began teaching music at Booker T. Washington High School, in Dallas, TX in 1925. A 600-voice choir from Booker T. Washington High School, under Portia's direction, sang a medley of popular and spiritual songs. It was the first time in history that a black high school group had appeared on the National Education Association program. She also oversaw the establishment of the Booker T. Washington Foundation to provide academic scholarships for black students. Although Portia suffered financial and health problems during the last years of her life, she remained interested in the ongoing effort of black Americans to acquire their civil rights.

Christoph Plagge
Genres: Classical
Based in: San Antonio
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Unavailable Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: Unavailable
Christoph Plagge was a music teacher for San Antonio's public schools in the second half of the nineteenth century.
Schools: San Antonio public schools

Jim Pomeroy 2 3
Genres: art and sound structures
Based in: Arlington
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Reading, PA Birthdate: 1945 Deathdate: 1992
Jim Pomeroy was an innovative artist/performer/teacher/scholar. He was considered a leader in defining the realm of conceptual art during the 1970s and 80s, and worked in a wide variety of media, including photography, performance, installations, computer graphics, video art, and stereography. Pomeroy performed and exhibited his work all over the world and was the recipient of many honors, awards, and fellowships. At the time of his death, he was teaching video and new genres at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Arnold Joseph "Groovey Joe" Poovey 2 3
Genres: Country, Rockabilly
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: guitar, vocals, radio deejay, songwriter
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: 5/10/1941 Deathdate: 10/6/1998
Buried at: Grove Hill Memorial Park in Dallas
Poovey got his start in show business at age of 12. By 1953, he was fronting his own country band, the Hillbilly Boys, and playing the Big D Jamboree. After 1960, Poovey reverted to country music and began writing for musicians such as George Jones, Wynn Stewart, and Jimmy Patton. In 1966, now as Johnny Dallas, Poovey reached the Billboard chart with the hit "Heart Full of Love."
Sites of interest:
Poovey was born at St. Paul Hospital in Dallas. (formerly on Bryan Street)

Marjorie Merriweather Post 2 3
Genres: Classical
Based in: Post
Instrument: patron
Birthplace: Springfield, Il Birthdate: 1887 Deathdate: 1973
Historical Marker Text: Daughter of C. W. Post. Lived in Texas 1888-1891. Had part with father in locating colony here 1906; rescued local economy by aid after 1917 drought. Co-donor, site for Post Recreation Center. Donor, South Plains Council Boy Scouts Camp; books and paintings to South Plains College. A leading philanthropist in arts and humanities. Benefactress, C. W. Post College, Long Island University; founder National Symphony Orchestra's "Music for Young America." Recipient of 30 citations for service, 3 honorary degrees, 6 foreign decorations. A woman endowed with true virtues of generosity and compassion.
Sites of interest:
Historical Marker located on the Courthouse square, Main Street, Post

Jesse Powell
Genres: Jazz
Based in:
Instrument: saxophone
Birthplace: NA Birthdate: 2/27/1924 Deathdate: 10/19/1982
Texas tenor saxophonist Jesse Powell worked with Hot Lips Page, Louis Armstrong, and Luis Russell. He joined Count Basie's Band in 1946, replacing the great sax player Illinois Jacquet. He also worked with Champion Jack Dupree and continued to play jazz, touring France with Howard McGee in 1948. His work can be seen on the classic single "Mr. Lee," by the Bobbettes, where he takes the tenor solo. In his later years, he worked in Harlem and made only a few recordings.

William Everett "Billy" Preston 2
Genres: Christian, R&B, Rock
Based in: Houston
Instrument: keyboards, vocals
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: 9/2/1946 Deathdate: 6/6/2006
At age ten Billy Preston was playing keyboards with gospel diva Mahalia Jackson, at twelve he was featured in the film St. Louis Blues playing W.C. Handy. During the early 1960s he toured with Little Richard and Ray Charles, recorded for Vee-Jay and Capitol Records and was a regular on the ABC TV series "Shindig!" In 1969 a friendship with George Harrison lead to Billy Preston's appearance on the The Beatles "Let It Be" album and film. As a session musician, Preston worked on Aretha Franklin's "Young, Gifted and Black," Bob Dylan's "Blood on the Tracks" and Sly and Family Stone's "There's a Riot Goin' On," the Rolling Stones' "Exile On Main Street" and "Sticky Fingers" and solo records for three of Beatles (John, George and Ringo), among others. In the 1970s Preston hit the charts with his own records "Outa-Space,"Will It Go 'Round In Circles," "Nothing From Nothing" and "With You I'm Born Again" and in 1975, was the first musical guest on "Saturday Night Live." He continued to perform and record throughout the '80s, '90s, and 2000s, always conveying a joy in his music that was close to his gospel roots. Preston fell into a coma caused by kidney failure in November of 2005; passing away on June 6, 2006.

Sammy Price 2 3
Genres: Blues, Jazz
Based in: Honey Grove
Instrument: piano, vocals
Birthplace: Honey Grove Birthdate: 10/6/1908 Deathdate: 4/14/1992
Sammy Price was one of the leading American blues and jazz pianists. He played in New York City at the Café Society, the Famous Door, and the Downbeat before Decca Records hired him as the house pianist. At Decca, he recorded with Trixie Smith and Sister Rosetta Thorpe, among others, and by the early 1940s he was leading his own "Texas Blusicians." He also became involved in the Philadelphia Jazz Society; he was instrumental in organizing the first African American administered Jazz Festival in Philadelphia. He also became heavily involved in politics and worked as a campaign supervisor for Democratic presidential candidates Hubert Humphrey and Jimmy Carter.

Wynne Pyle
Genres: Classical
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: NA Deathdate: NA
Wynne Pyle was a classical pianist from Dallas who performed extensively in Europe. She eventually returned the the United States and married Harold Bauer, artistic advisor to the board of trustees at the Manhattan School of Music. She recorded seveal piano rolls both classical and of her own compositions.
Colleges: North Texas College of Music

Henry Qualls
Genres: Blues
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: Elmo Birthdate: 7/8/1934 Deathdate: 12/7/2003
Henry Qualls became a reluctant local Dallas celebrity after being discovered by Dallas Blues Society's Scottie Ferris and Chuck Nevitt. Through most of his adult life, music was an intermittent hobby as he earned his living ploughing fields and mowing the lawns of the Dallas elite. He recorded "Blues From Elmo, Texas" in 1994, issued by the Dallas Blues Society. Three of his songs appeared on "Blues Across America: The Dallas Scene" issued by the Cannonball label in 1997 and two songs were showcased on "Texas Blues Guitar Summit" released by JSP in 1998.

Gene Ramey 2 3 4
Genres: Jazz
Based in: Austin
Instrument: bass
Birthplace: Austin Birthdate: 4/4/1913 Deathdate: 12/8/1984
Gene Ramey learned to play string bass from the famous Kansas City bassist Walter Page. He worked with George Corley's Royal Aces, Oliver Todd's band, Margaret "Countess" Johnson, Jay McShann and McShann's alto sax player, Charlie Parker. Ramey moved to New York in 1944 and began playing with many prominent bandleaders including Luis Russell, Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, John Hardee, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Miles Davis, Dizzie Gillespie, Oran "Hot Lips" Page, Tiny Grimes, Lester Young, and many others into the 1970s.
Schools: Anderson High School in Austin

Buck Ramsey 2 3
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Amarillo
Instrument: vocals, poet, guitar
Birthplace: Lubbock County Birthdate: 1/9/1938 Deathdate: 1/3/1998
Cowboy poet/singer/songwriter Buck Ramsey won the National Endowment for the Arts' prestigious National Heritage Fellowship in 1995. He also received the National Cowboy Hall of Fame's Golden Spur Award. His poetry and performances of traditional cowboy songs have been featured at the Smithsonian Institution, the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum and college campuses throughout the United States. Although Ramsey began writing verse as a child, he worked seriously at the craft only after he was thrown from a horse in the early 1960s. The accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. He worked as a news-paper reporter and free-lance writer.

Robert James "Buddy" Ray
Genres: Cowboy/Western, Jazz
Based in:
Instrument: violin
Birthplace: Waco Birthdate: 11/30/1919 Deathdate: 09/03/2003
Robert James "Buddy" Ray was a legendary jazz violinist and pioneer of western swing music. He played with such names as Bob Wills; Ray Price; Nat King Cole; Sami Smith; Jimmy Wakely; and countless others. Ray made hundreds of recordings and by 1940, he was one of the top young fiddlers in Texas appearing with swing groups like Texas Wanderers and the Village Boys. He was an early proponent of the electric violin and was among the first to record with the instrument. After moving to Waskom, Texas late in his life, he was inducted into the Western Swing Society Hall of Fame in Seattle, Washington.

Dewey Redman 2 3
Genres: Jazz
Based in:
Instrument: saxophone
Birthplace: Fort Worth Birthdate: 5/17/1931 Deathdate: 9/2/2006
One of the last great "Texas Tenors," Dewey Redman grew up in Fort Worth, Texas across the street from a jazz club where he could hear the music of Duke Ellington, Fats Waller or Louis Jordan. He began studying clarinet at 13, learning from a music teacher named Goodman who held lessons in Mount Olive Baptist Church and playing in the old I.M. Terrell High School marching band, a group that also included Ornette Coleman, Charles Moffett and Prince Lasha. Redman received a master's degree in education from North Texas State University and taught public school from 1956-1959. Redman then moved to San Francisco and worked as a freelance musician encountering both Pharoh Sanders and John Coltrane. In 1967 he joined high school bandmate Ornett Coleman's Quartet, staying until 1974. Redman was also a part of Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra and worked with Keith Jarrett and Pat Metheny. He released more than a dozen albums under his own name, recorded with his son Joshua, and later joined Don Cherry, Charlie Haden and Ed Blackwell in the Ornette Coleman reunion band Old and New Dreams. A week before his death, The Dewey Redman quartet including Frank Kimbrough, John Menegon and Tani Tabaal performed at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in New York.
Schools: I. M. Terrell High School (historical marker at 1411 East 18th Street, Fort Worth)
Colleges: Prairie View A&M
North Texas State University
Sites of interest: Dewey Redman debuted at Mount Olive Baptist Church, 2951 Evans Avenue in Fort Worth.

William "Willie" Reed
Genres: Blues
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: guitar
Birthplace: NA Birthdate: unavailable Deathdate: NA
Willie Reed was one of the many African American Dallas area musicians - in addition to Blind Lemon Jefferson - that recorded blues songs during the heyday of the Central Tracks/Deep Ellum district.

James Travis "Jim" Reeves 2 3 4
Genres: Country
Based in: Galloway
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Galloway Birthdate: 8/20/1923 Deathdate: 7/31/1964
Buried at: Jim Reeves Memorial Park, Galloway, Jefferson County, Texas
Gentleman Jim Reeves was perhaps the biggest male star to emerge from the Nashville Sound. "Mexican Joe" brought him national popularity and went to number one in 1953. From 1955 through 1969, Reeves consistently charted in the country and pop charts. Lush country-pop singles like "Four Walls" and "He'll Have To Go" defined both his style and an entire era of country music.
Schools: Carthage High School at #1 Bulldog Drive, Carthage, TX 75633
Colleges: He attended the University of Texas and played for the university baseball team.
Sites of interest:
Historical Grave Marker located at Jim Reeves Memorial Park, US 79, 3 miles east of Carthage
Jim Reeves Monument and Burial Site in Carthage, Texas
Jim Reeves Monument and Burial Site
Texas Country Music Hall of Fame at 300 West Panola Street in Carthage, Texas
Annual event:
Annual Jim Reeves Jamboree

Claire Raphael Reis
Genres: Classical
Based in: Brownsville
Instrument: educator, promoter
Birthplace: Brownsville Birthdate: 8/4/1888 Deathdate: 4/11/1978
Claire Raphael Reis studied music under Bertha Fiering Tapper at the Institute of Musical Art. From 1912 to 1922 she worked to found the People's Music League of the People's Institute in New York, an organization that provided free concerts for immigrants and public schools. In 1923 Mrs. Reis and several contemporary composers established the League of Composers as an alternative to the International Composers' Guild. Reis also authored several articles, two catalogs for the International Society for Contemporary Music, and American Composers of Today. She helped found the Women's City Club and was a member of the advisory board for New York City of the Work Projects Administration. She served on the advisory committee of music for the 1939 New York World's Fair, and she was appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to the New York Committee on the Use of Leisure Time.

Max Reiter
Genres: Classical, Opera
Based in: San Antonio
Instrument: conductor
Birthplace: Trieste, Italy Birthdate: 10/20/1905 Deathdate: 12/13/1950
Max Reiter, director of the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, studied conducting with Bruno Walter and at the insistence of his father also earned a doctorate in law. Reiter's first public appearance was a concert in 1927 with the violinist Joseph Szigeti. In 1929 he became the first assistant conductor at the State Opera of Berlin. He conducted orchestras to glowing reviews in all the major cities of Italy, at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, at Munich, Budapest, and Warsaw, and in Russia. In 1933, with the rise of Nazism, he left Germany and settled in Milan, where he became director of the orchestra. In 1937 in Merano he became acquainted with Richard Strauss, who arranged a symphonic suite of waltzes from the opera "Der Rosenkavalier" at Reiter's suggestion. The friendship between the two men later led Reiter to premiere many of Strauss' works with the San Antonio Symphony and in radio broadcasts. After the Fascists staged an anti-Semitic demonstration outside of the hall in Rome where he was conducting in August 1938, Reiter left for the United States. He found New York overcrowded with conductors, many of whom were European refugees, and was advised by the Steinway family to go to Texas, which he believed to be one of the areas least affected by the Great Depression; more Steinway pianos per capita had sold in Texas than in any other state. Reiter helped found the Symphony Society of San Antonio, acting as the orchestra's founding conductor and music director. Under his baton the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, which began with amateur players as well as professional musicians, grew and prospered. Reiter was invited to conduct with the NBC Orchestra, which was under the direction of Arturo Toscanini, and with the ABC Orchestra, among other distinguished appearances. The San Antonio children's concerts and the annual opera festival, with nationally acclaimed guest stars, were inaugurated under Reiter's leadership.

Cornelio Reyna
Genres: Tejano, Norteño, Conjunto
Based in:
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Natillas, Coahuila, México Birthdate: 9/16/1940 Deathdate: 1997
Buried at: Reynosa, Tamaulipas
Cornelio Reyna Cisneros, singer, songwriter, actor, and "godfather" of Norteño and Conjunto music met a fifteen-year-old accordion player named Ramon Ayala while playing at the Cadillac Bar in Reynosa. In 1961, Reyna and Ayala teamed up to form the group Los Relámpagos del Norte, with Reyna as the lead singer. Two years later, while playing at a cantina in Reynosa, Los Relámpagos were discovered by Paulino Bernal and were signed to his newly founded Bego Records. Within a very short time, Los Relámpagos became the premier conjunto attraction along both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border. Reyna and Ayala were first in bridging the musical gap between the Norteño and Conjunto styles. They featured the accordion and bajo-sexto as backing rhythms for corridos, polkas, and rancheras and recorded over twenty albums for Bego Records. Reyna also appeared in more than thirty movies and recorded over two dozen albums with his own group, Los Reyes del Norte.

Isham Emmanuel Reynolds
Genres: Christian
Based in: Fort Worth
Instrument: composer
Birthplace: Birmingham, AL Birthdate: 9/27/1879 Deathdate: 5/10/1949
Isham Emmanuel Reynolds was a church musician, teacher, composer, and conductor. The Southern School of Fine Arts in Houston awarded him an honorary doctor of music degree in 1942. In May 1915 he was asked to be director of the new music department at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, the first Baptist church music school. He composed two sacred music dramas, four cantatas, miscellaneous anthems, hymns, and Gospel songs, along with five textbooks.

Teddy "Cry Cry" Reynolds
Genres: Blues, Jazz
Based in: Houston
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: Unavailable Deathdate: 10/1998
Teddy Reynolds wrote and recorded his regional hit, "Cry, Cry Baby" which earned him the nickname Teddy "Cry Cry" Reynolds. He worked on projects with B. B. King, Johnny Clyde Copeland, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Grady Gaines, Joe "Guitar" Hughes, Texas Johnny Brown and the Quality Blues Band, Buddy Ace, Same Cook, Junior Parker, and many more.

Winston Henry "Hank" Riddle
Genres: Country, Folk/Acoustic
Based in: Mineola
Instrument: guitar
Birthplace: Wood County Birthdate: Deathdate: 6/12/2003
Winston Henry 'Hank' Riddle was a talented, but highly underrated songwriter who worked for Loretta Lynn and many others. He wrote the popular song "Until I Met You" which was recorded by Judy Rodman. Many of his songs were unreleased.

Nolan "Cowboy Slim" Rinehart 2
Genres: Country, Hillbilly
Based in: Gustine
Instrument: vocals, guitar
Birthplace: Comanche County Birthdate: 3/12/1911 Deathdate: 10/28/1948
Regarded by many as the "King of Border Radio," Rinehart made a career singing hillbilly songs and playing guitar on border radio station programs. Performing on XERA allowed Rinehart to gain national popularity. His notoriety increased so much that Hollywood movie producers invited him to audition for roles in the early westerns. In addition to having an influence on Big Bill Lister and others, Cowboy Slim Rinehart helped shape Ernest Tubb's career.

Woodward Maurice "Tex" Ritter 2 3 4
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Murvaul
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: Murvaul, Panola County Birthdate: 1/12/1905 Deathdate: 1/2/1974
Buried at: Oak Bluff Memorial Park in Port Neches
Appearing in eighty-five movies, including seventy-eight westerns, Ritter was ranked among the top ten money-making stars in Hollywood for six years. Ritter used traditional folk songs in his movies rather than the modern "western" ditties; films such as "Arizona Frontier," "The Utah Trail" and "Roll Wagons Roll" earned Ritter a reputation for ambitious plots and vigorous action. Tex Ritter's successful recordings, which began with "Rye Whiskey" included "High Noon," "Boll Weevil," "Wayward Wind," "Hillbilly Heaven," and "You Are My Sunshine." In 1964, Tex Ritter was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame only the fifth person to be so honored. He also served as president of the Country Music Association and made an unsuccessful bid for the United States Senate seat from Tennessee.
Schools: Carthage Grade School (1911-1919) South Park High School in Beaumont (1921-1923, graduated with honors)
Colleges: University of Texas (1923-1928, studied pre-law, majored in government, political science and economics); University of Texas Law School (1927-1928)
Sites of interest:
Tex Ritter Museum and Statue at 300 West Panola Street in Carthage, Texas
Tex Ritter historical grave marker at Oak Bluff Memorial Park, 101 Block Street in Port Neches
Annual event:
Texas Country Music Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Alice Bryan Roberts
Genres: Classical
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: Talvotton County, GA Birthdate: 1870 Deathdate: 3/5/1952
Alice Bryan Roberts, arts patron and musician, developed an early appreciation of music from her mother, who was a piano teacher and player. She taught music in Dallas at St. Mary's College and Ursuline Academy. As she continued teaching and lecturing on music, Mrs. Roberts also determined to improve the level of music appreciation in Dallas. With a desire to expose the growing frontier city to some of the world's finest artists, she established and became president of the St. Cecilia Choral Society in 1895. Roberts established a tradition of musical and artistic culture in Dallas that remained well beyond her death.
Colleges: Cincinnati College of Music

Alexander Campbell "Eck" Robertson 2 3 4
Genres: Country
Based in: Amarillo
Instrument: fiddle
Birthplace: Delaney, AR Birthdate: 11/20/1887 Deathdate: 2/15/1975
Buried at: The Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Borger, Texas
Alexander "Eck" Robertson of Amarillo and Henry Gilliland of Altus, Oklahoma recorded what most country music historians consider the first commercial recordings of country music on June 30, 1922. The duets included the famous "Arkansas Traveler" and "Turkey in the Straw." He made history again by performing the songs on the radio as promotion. Robertson set the trend for future performers, as fourteen Central Texas fiddlers succeeded him by recording commercially in the years shortly following his first recording. He was used as background music in some early western movies leading to the claim that he was the first country artist to perform in a complete cowboy costume.
Colleges: Robertson left home at age sixteen.
Sites of interest:
Eck's home as of June 7th, 1968 was located at 1414 B East 10th in Amarillo.

James Battle "Texas Jim" Robertson 2
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Batesville
Instrument: Unavailable
Birthplace: Batesville Birthdate: 2/7/1909 Deathdate: 11/11/1966
James Battle "Texas Jim" Robertson was born February 2, 1909 near Batesville, Texas. He recorded more than one hundred sides for RCA Victor and Bluebird during the 1940s but never released a 12" LP. When Robertson was not joined by his band, the Panhandle Punchers, sidemen on his recordings included Roy Wiggins, Andy Sanella, and Vaughn Horton on steel guitar, some with Chet Atkins on electric guitar, and probably Jethro Burns on mandolin. Robertson was reported dead by suicide in 1966 at age 57. One year later, a man named Clifford Kent begins performing in Fort Worth and claims to be Texas Jim Robertson. He tells of a fire in his New York city apartment and his wish to change his identity. Clifford Kent continues to perform in Fort Worth until the early 1970s.

Don Deadric Robey 2
Genres: Blues
Based in: Houston
Instrument: record label and nightclub executive
Birthplace: Houston Birthdate: 11/1/1903 Deathdate: 6/16/1975
Don Robey was a Houston entrepreneur who owned Duke, Peacock, Back Beat, and Songbird record labels, as well as several Houston night clubs and the Buffalo Booking Agency. A life-long passion for music led him into promotional work for ballroom dances in the Houston area. In the late 1930s, Robey spent three years in Los Angeles where he operated a nightclub called the Harlem Grill. Returning to Houston, Robey opened the famous Bronze Peacock Dinner club in 1945. Top jazz bands and orchestras were booked to play the club, which became a huge success. Robey is credited with substantially influencing the development of Texas blues.

James Charles "Jimmie" Rodgers 2 3 4
Genres: Country
Based in: Kerrville
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: Meridian, MS Birthdate: 9/8/1897 Deathdate: 5/26/1933
Buried at: Oak Grove Cemetery, Meridian, Lauderdale County, Mississippi
Jimmie Rodgers is referred to as the "Father of Country Music" and was the first true country music star. Rodgers introduced a new form to commercial hillbilly music, the blue yodel, heard best in the "Blue Yodel" series of twelve songs. One of the series has remained one of the most popular of his songs and has become known as "T for Texas." He recorded 111 songs altogether and sold twenty million records between 1927 and 1933. Rodgers was made an honorary Texas Ranger in Austin in 1931. During the last few years of his life he made most of his appearances in Texas. In 1929 he built a $50,000 mansion, Blue Yodeler's Paradise, in Kerrville, but left there to live in a modest home in San Antonio in 1932.
Sites of interest:
Blue Yodeler's Paradise, 617 West Main in Kerrville
Annual event:
Living History Day

William (Bill) Edwin Rogers
Genres: Big Band, Jazz
Based in: Port Arthur
Instrument: conductor
Birthplace: Port Arthur Birthdate: 5/7/1938 Deathdate: 5/12/2005
Bill Rogers became known as an accomplished conductor, composer, pianist and arranger. He graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1956 and went on to graduate from Lamar University. His lengthy career includes arranging and conducting for such legends as Jerry Lewis, Frank Sinatra, Shirley McLaine, Frank Sinatra Jr., Tony Bennett, Bill Cosby, Johnny Carson, Barbara Streisand, Bob Hope, Steve Lawrence and Edie Gorme.

Gene Roland 2
Genres: Big Band, Jazz
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: 9/15/1921 Deathdate: 8/11/1982
After leading a giant rehearsal band in 1950 that included Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, Roland wrote for Stan Kenton and Woody Herman, for whom he contributed 65 arrangements. He worked with artists including Lionel Hampton, Lucky Millinder, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Jimmy Giuffre, Herbie Steward, Woody Herman, Georgie Auld, Count Basie, Charlie Barnet, Claude Thornhill and Artie Shaw. He played such instruments as trumpet, trombone, mellophonium, soprano sax and piano. Roland had perfect pitch; he could write without the aid of a piano whenever the mood struck him.
Colleges: He attended North Texas State Teacher's College and received a degree in music.

Martin Rosales Jr.
Genres: Tejano, Conjunto
Based in: Gonzales
Instrument: radio announcer
Birthplace: Gonzales Birthdate: 12/27/1929 Deathdate: 11/29/2004
Martin Rosales Jr. was known for bringing Spanish radio into the mainstream when English-speaking programming was most prevelant. Dubbed "La Voice de Oro," Rosales Jr. worked in both radio and television; he was broadcast in the many of the Southwestern states for more than 50 years. He became director of several radio stations in Texas, Mexico, California, and New Mexico, including: KGBS, KSOX, KGBT, KMBS, KIWW, KMXX, KTXN, KXEB, KBOR, and KMMM, AM and FM. His career led him to be one of the few Latino announcers that had the opportunity to introduce several U.S. Presidents including Lyndon B. Johnson, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush. Because of his efforts, he was inducted into the "Conjunto Hall of Fame" in San Benito on Sept. 5, 2004.
Schools: Gonzales High School
Colleges: Instituto Technologico de Estudios Superiores in Nuevo Leon, Mexico

John Rosenfield, Jr.
Genres: All genres
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: critic
Birthplace: Dallas Birthdate: 4/5/1900 Deathdate: 11/26/1966
John Rosenfield Jr. became well known for being a journalist and critic for the arts and entertainment department of the Dallas Morning News. During his 41 years as drama and music critic for the newspaper, Rosenfield became the recognized cultural spokesman for the Southwest. With Rosenfield's influence with wealthy Dallas families, the Margo Jones Theatre was able to secure the financial backing that permitted its opening in June 1947. The Southwest Theatre Conference twice voted Rosenfield its annual award (in 1955 and 1960), and the Screen Directors Guild cited him for distinguished motion-picture criticism in 1956. In 1957 he gave up his administrative duties with the Dallas Morning News but continued to write reviews until June 1966.

Douglas Wayne Sahm 2 3 4 5
Genres: Blues, Country, Rock
Based in: San Antonio
Instrument: guitar, steel guitar, piano, vocals
Birthplace: San Antonio Birthdate: 11/6/1941 Deathdate: 11/18/1999
Buried at: Sunset Memorial Park, Alamo Heights, Bexar County, Texas
In 1965, the Sir Douglas Quintet recorded a smash hit, which Doug Sahm wrote, entitled "She's About a Mover," which made the U.S. Top Twenty chart. Sahm also teamed up with Freddie Fender, Flaco Jimenez, and Augie Meyers to form the Texas Tornados. Sahm's career spanned over four decades and encompassed a variety of musical styles, including German polkas, blues, rock and Tejano.
Schools: Sam Houston High School in San Antonio

Lucie "Olga Samaroff" Hickenlooper 2
Genres: Classical
Based in: San Antonio
Instrument: piano
Birthplace: San Antonio Birthdate: 8/8/1882 Deathdate: 5/17/1948
Buried at: she was cremated
By age ten, Lucie Hickenlooper had performed for musicians who recommended European training. With her Grandmother Grünewald, she moved to Paris in 1894. A year later she won a scholarship to the Paris Conservatoire, the first American woman to do so. She became internationally successful and was admired for "tonal color, warmth, and intellectual control." She performed with the New York Symphony Orchestra and with the Boston Symphony. She was the first American woman pianist to present all thirty-two Beethoven sonatas in recital. In 1925 Samaroff accepted a position at the newly founded Juilliard Graduate School, and for many years was the only American-born member of the piano faculty.

John T. Samples
Genres: Blues
Based in: Sweetwater
Instrument: harmonica, guitar
Birthplace: Kilgore Birthdate: 1/10/1898 Deathdate: 1/13/1998
John Samples was still a child when he was attracted to music at age five. Mostly, he taught himself to play guitar, piano, and French harp. He would take a wide-mouth beer glass and play his harp inside the glass for a different tune. A songster, John Samples played all kinds of music. He worked on his father's farm until he was 21, when he married and moved to Sweetwater, Texas. He secured a job there delivering medicine for a local drugstore. In 1927 he formed a small string band in Sweetwater, with a bass violin, a ukelele player and himself on guitar: they called themselves Poison, Antidote and Prevention. With the oil boom in Kilgore, he moved back there and farmed the family land, marrying for a second time. He was widely reputed for his guitar playing even though he was handicapped later by arthritis in his fingers.

David Schnaufer 2 3
Genres: Folk
Based in: Houston
Instrument: dulcimer
Birthplace: Hearne Birthdate: 9/28/1952 Deathdate: 8/23/2006
David Schnaufer revived the use of the dulcimer in country music and taught the instrument to many students, including Cyndi Lauper. He grew up in La Marque, playing both mouth harp and harmonica. He purchased a dulcimer in Austin, TX for $40 and soon began winning contests with the instument. He moved to Nashville in the 1980s and recorded with the Judds, Johnny Cash, Michael Martin Murphey, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Ann Savoy, Mark Knopfler, Chet Atkins, Albert Lee, Cyndi Lauper, Sandy Bull, Jack "Cowboy" Clement, Santiago Jimenez Jr. and Mark O'Connor. For several years he was a member of the country-rock band The Cactus Brothers. He also composed a classical concerto for the dulcimer called "Blackberry Winter." Along with Charley Pride, Bill Monroe and Norman Blake, Schnaufer was one of four musicians invited to play the 25th wedding anniversary of June and Johnny Cash. Schnaufer served as adjunct associate professor of dulcimer at Vanderbilt University's Blair School of Music from 1995 to 2006.

Julius Schuetze
Genres: Classical, German
Based in: Austin
Instrument: vocals, judge, German-language newspaper publisher
Birthplace: Dessau, Anhalt, Germany Birthdate: 3/29/1835 Deathdate: 4/23/1904
Julius Schuetze, judge and German-language newspaper publisher, immigrated from Germany in 1852. He lived in Meyersville, where he founded the Texas Sängerbund, a German singing society. In 1854 he moved to San Antonio where he taught speech and music. In 1858 he moved to Austin, where he taught at the German School. He tutored the children of governors Sam Houston and Pendleton Murrah.

Jerry Scoggins
Genres: Bluegrass, Country
Based in: Mount Pleasant
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Mount Pleasant Birthdate: circa 1911 Deathdate: 12/7/2004
Jerry Scoggins was a country singer who performed in radio, movies, and television from the 1930s onward. He was noted for singing "The Ballad of Jed Clampett," the theme song to the 1960s sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies." He sang and played guitar on the Dallas radio in the early '30s and in 1936 formed his own group, the Cass County Kids, with John Dodson and Fred Martin. Ten years later, country music and cowboy legend Gene Autry changed their name to the Cass County Boys when he hired them to work on his Melody Ranch radio program. They appeared in 17 of his films and worked with him on radio and TV for 12 years, while also appearing with Bing Crosby on early '50s TV. In 1996 the Boys were inducted Western Music Hall of Fame. They also received a Golden Boot Award from the Motion Picture and Television Fund. In 1962 Scoggins was working as a stockbroker and singing on weekends when he was asked to sing the theme song for a new sitcom called "The Beverly Hillbillies." Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs played guitar and banjo while he sang the lyrics. "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" was a smash hit on the charts. In 1993, a retired Scoggins learned that 20th Century Fox was making a film version of the series. He called their offices only to be told that they'd had no idea he was still alive. The studio preferred Johnny Cash or Willie Nelson sing the theme song, but the director, Penelope Spheeris, insisted Scoggins get the job. And he did. He said that he had probably sung the ballad over 1,000 times since the original recording.

Clifford Scott
Genres: Blues, Jazz
Based in: San Antonio
Instrument: saxophone, vocals
Birthplace: San Antonio Birthdate: 6/21/1928 Deathdate: 4/19/1993
Clifford Scott was discovered by Lionel Hampton at age 14 and worked in Hampton's band from 1948-50. He also worked with the Rhythm and Blues bands of Roy Molton and Roy Brown, Jay McShann, Amos Milburn, Bill Doggett, and Ray Charles. He is most famous for the classic solo in Bill Doggett's "Honky Tonk Part 2."

Kermit Scott
Genres: Jazz
Based in: Houston
Instrument: saxophone
Birthplace: Beaumont Birthdate: 11/31/1915 Deathdate: 2/2/2002
Kermit Scott, pioneer in bebop, worked with such artists as: Charlie Christian, Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins, Earl Hines & His Orchestra and Billie Holiday. Scott never became famous, but he was held in high esteem by the pioneers of modern jazz with whom he jammed at fabled Harlem sessions in the early 1940s, and by generations of jazz musicians in the Bay Area, where he lived for decades. He recorded his first saxophone solo on Billie Holliday's "God Bless The Child" on her 1940 album "Falling in Love With Love."

Friedrich Hermann Seele 2 3
Genres: Chorus, German
Based in:
Instrument: composer
Birthplace: Unavailable Birthdate: 19th century Deathdate: circa late 19th century
Friedrich Hermann Seele composed and arranged the music for Texas Fahrten, a song pageant.

Selena Quintanilla Perez 2 3 4
Genres: Tejano
Based in: Corpus Christi
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Lake Jackson Birthdate: 4/16/1971 Deathdate: 3/31/1995
Buried at: Seaside Memorial Cemetery, Corpus Christi, Nueces County
Selena Perez was known as "la Reina de la Onda Tejana" ("the Queen of Tejano music"). At the 1995 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, her band attracted 61,041 people, more than Clint Black, George Strait, Vince Gil, or Reba McIntire. Selena was the first Tejana to sell more than 300,000 albums. "Dreaming of You" became number one on the national Billboard Top 200 the week of its release. Before her death, the band sold more than 1.5 million records. The band was the first Tejano group to make Billboard's Latin Top 200 list of all-time best-selling records.
Schools: Oran M. Roberts Elementary School in Lake Jackson; West Oso Junior High in Corpus Christi
Colleges: Pacific Western University
Sites of interest:
The Selena Museum

James Earl "Pop" Sellers
Genres: Country, Radio Commercials and Programs
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: Sound Engineer
Birthplace: Frost Birthdate: 10/7/1891 Deathdate: 10/4/1980
Buried at: Restland Memorial Park at 9340 Walnut Street in Dallas, TX
J. E. "Pop" Sellers founded the first independent recording studio in Southwest, located in Downtown Dallas. He started Sellers Co. in 1924, marketing a new electronic device - the radio. On January 1, 1936, he made a broadcast transcription of the Rose Bowl game between SMU and Stanford University. Many musicians got their start at Sellers' studios, including the Stamps Quartet, the Light Crust Doughboys and Trini Lopez. Sellers also engineered country music legend Hank Thompson's first recording session, which produced the hits "Whoa Sailer" and "Swing Wide Your Gate of Love." In 1974, the 50th anniversary of Sellers Co., the Association of Broadcasting Executives of Texas (ABET) honored Sellers with the distinguished "Betty" award, recognizing that he "played an important part in the growth of Dallas as a leading production and agency center.
Colleges: University of Texas at Austin, Bachelor's degree in Physics and postgraduate course work in Physics.; Afterwards, he taught physics and mathematics and coached athletic teams at Baptist Academy and Burleson College.

Leon "Pappy" Selph
Genres: Country
Based in: Houston
Instrument: band leader, fiddle
Birthplace: Houston (First Ward, Texas) Birthdate: 4/7/1914 Deathdate: 1/8/1999
Buried at: Houston
"Pappy" Selph, considered one of the "founding fathers" of honky-tonk music, was a noted Houston fiddler and musician who began playing the fiddle at the age of seven. He started playing with the Houston Youth Symphony when he was fourteen, and he joined W. Lee O'Daniel's Light Crust Doughboys in 1931, when he was only seventeen. Selph joined Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, then moved back to Houston and formed his own band, the Blue Ridge Playboys. The group, which included legendary musicians Floyd Tillman, Moon Mullican, and Ted Daffon, signed with Columbia Records in 1938.
Schools: He took music lessons at Columbia University satellite in the Esperson Building in Houston.

Robert Shaw 2 3
Genres: Blues
Based in: Stafford
Instrument: paino, vocals
Birthplace: Stafford Birthdate: 8/9/1908 Deathdate: 5/16/1985
Buried at: Capital Memorial Gardens in Austin
Robert Shaw was a member of musicians who played hot blues piano in barrelhouses and brothels along the Santa Fe R.R. Line near Houston. Their "Santa Fe" style was characterized by a heavy touch on the keyboard, grinding out stomping, bawdy tunes. In Austin, he took up permanent residence, opened a barbecue business and later owned and operated a grocery store called the Stop and Swat. He was named businessman of the year in Austin in 1962. As one of the few remaining "virtuoso" barrelhouse blues pianists, Shaw continued to perform stateside and in Europe intermittently during the 1970s, turning up unexpectedly in California in 1981 to help Strachwitz celebrate Arhoolie's 20th anniversary.

Juan Antonio Sifuentes Sr.
Genres: Tejano
Based in: Alice
Instrument: vocals, guitar, bass
Birthplace: Alice Birthdate: 10/20/1939 Deathdate: 4/4/1986
During his career, Juan Antonio Sifuentes Sr. wrote over 150 songs that were recorded by him and other groups. Some of his greatest hits include, "Nunca Te Equivocaste," "Que Mueras Como Yo" and "Amor Chiquitito." Juan toured with the group El Conjunto de Paulino Bernal from the late fifties through the seventies packing arenas and coliseums wherever they went. Sifuentes Sr. went on to make music history by becoming the first "Outside Artist" to record with what was known as "The World's Greatest Mariachi," El Mariachi Vargas from Mexico. For his lifetime achievements and contributions to the music industry, Sifuentes Sr. was inducted into The Tejano Roots Hall of Fame Muesuem and was also nominated in 1993 for Musical Composer of the year by TTMA in San Antonio.

Consuelo "Chelo" Silva 2 3 4
Genres: Tejano, Boleros
Based in: Brownsville
Instrument: vocals
Birthplace: Brownsville Birthdate: 8/25/1922 Deathdate: 4/2/1988
Buried at: Chelo died in Corpus Christi.
Consuelo "Chelo" Silva was widely considered "La Reina de los Boleros." By 1939, she was well known in her native city of Brownsville and was invited to sing on a local radio show hosted by the then relatively unknown Américo Paredes. She became the most popular Texas-Mexican female singer along the border during the second half of the decade. The Mexican label, Peerless, distributed her records all over México, helping make Silva an international star. She eventually recorded more than seventy titles for Discos Falcon. A series of major hits included: "Está Sellado," "Sabes de Qué Tengo Ganas," "Amor Aventurero," and "Soy Bohemia."
Sites of interest:
She sang at the Continental Club in Brownsville.

Tumpie Lee "Blackie" Simmons
Genres: Country, Cowboy/Western
Based in: Fort Worth
Instrument: fiddle
Birthplace: Birthdate: Deathdate: 12/21/1966
Fiddle player Tumpie Lee "Blackie" Simmons organized the Western Swing band, Blackie Simmons and the Blue Jackets. The band was short lived, but played an important role in the development of several prominent musical careers, as well as providing entertainment at the historic Fort Worth Frontier Centennial exposition, alongside such notables as Billy Rose, Paul Whiteman, and Sally Rand. The band's membership was fluid, but the primary lineup included: Blackie Simmons; his brother Luther Wayne "Brownie" Simmons on standup bass; future member of Bob Wills' Texas Playboys, Jesse Ashlock on bass fiddle; future member of the Light Crust Doughboys, John W. "Knocky" Parker on piano; Bruce Pierce on guitar; Sam Graves on tenor banjo and Albert Brant, whose instrument is unknown.

Frankie Lee Sims
Genres: Blues
Based in: Dallas
Instrument: guitar, vocals
Birthplace: New Orleans, LA Birthdate: 4/30/1917 Deathdate: 5/10/1970
Buried at: Lincoln Memorial Cemetery, Dallas
Frankie Lee Sims is considered to be a prominent member of the "Texas country blues movement" of the 1940s and 1950s. Frankie Lee developed a twangy, ringing electric guitar style that was irresistible on fast numbers and stung hard on the downbeat stuff. He was a first cousin to Lightnin' Hopkins and, reportedly, also was Texas Alexander's cousin. .After the War, he settled in the Dallas area, where he frequently worked with T-Bone Walker, Smokey Hogg, and others from the late 1940s well into the 1950s. Sims made his first recording in 1948 for Herb Rippa's Dallas-based Blue Bonnet Records. Sims best commercial success came when he cut "Lucy Mae Blues." Frankie Sims displayed his rocking style on numerous cuts including "Walking with Frankie" and "She Likes to Boogie Real Low."
Colleges: Wiley College
Sites of interest:
He taught elementary school in Palestine, Texas.

John Lang Sinclair 2 3 4
Genres: College Band
Based in: Austin
Instrument: lyrics
Birthplace: Bexar County Birthdate: 11/26/1879 Deathdate: 1/4/1947
Buried at: Alamo Masonic Cemtery in San Antonio
From Historical Marker Text: The first University of Texas band was formed in 1900 and Sinclair joined it as well as the Glee Club. The student head of the Glee Club, Lewis Johnson, urged Sinclair to write a school song in 1903. His first attempt was "The Jolly Students of Varsity." His second, to the tine of "I've Been Working on The Railroad," was "The Eyes of Texas Are Upon You." UT President William L. Prather had often heard Robert E. Lee admonish his students, "The Eyes of The South Are Upon You." Prather altered the saying for use at UT, and Sinclair borrowed it for his song. The song was so popular throughout the nation that many confused it with the official state song of Texas.
Colleges: