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Ernest Tubb
Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked the rise of the honky-tonk style of music.
In 1948, he was the first singer to record a hit version of Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson's "Blue Christmas", a song more commonly associated with Elvis Presley and his late-1950s version. Another well-known Tubb hit was his 1965 "Waltz Across Texas" (written by his nephew Quanah Talmadge Tubb, known professionally as Billy Talmadge), which became one of his most requested songs and is often used in dance halls throughout Texas during waltz lessons. Tubb recorded duets with the then up-and-coming Loretta Lynn in the early 1960s, including their hit "Sweet Thang". Tubb is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.
The youngest of five children, Tubb was born on a cotton farm near Crisp, in Ellis County, Texas, United States. His father was a sharecropper and Tubb spent his youth working on farms throughout the state. Tubb's earliest immigrant ancestor was Edward Tubb, who arrived in Virginia from Northamptonshire, England in 1701.
He was inspired by Jimmie Rodgers and spent his spare time learning to sing, yodel, and play the guitar. At age 19, he took a job as a singer on San Antonio radio station KONO-AM. The pay was low and Tubb also dug ditches for the Works Progress Administration. He went on to be a clerk at a drug store.
In 1939, he moved to San Angelo, Texas and was hired to do a 15-minute afternoon live show on radio station KGKL-AM. He drove a beer delivery truck to support himself during this time, and during World War II he wrote and recorded a song titled "Swell San Angelo".
In 1936, Tubb contacted Jimmie Rodgers' widow (Rodgers died in 1933) to ask for an autographed photo. A friendship developed and she was instrumental in getting Tubb a recording contract with RCA. His first two records were unsuccessful. A tonsillectomy in 1939 affected his singing style, so he turned to songwriting. In 1940, he switched to Decca Records to try singing again, and his sixth Decca release with the single "Walking the Floor Over You" brought Tubb to stardom. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc in 1965 by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Tubb joined the Grand Ole Opry in February 1943 and put together his band, the Texas Troubadors. Tubb's first band members were from Gadsden, Alabama. They were Vernon "Toby" Reese, Chester Studdard, and Ray "Kemo" Head. He remained a regular on the radio show for four decades, and hosted his own Midnite Jamboree radio show each Saturday night after the Opry. Tubb headlined the first Grand Ole Opry show presented in Carnegie Hall in New York City in September 1947.[citation needed]
Tubb always surrounded himself with several of Nashville's best musicians. Jimmy Short, his first guitarist in the Troubadors, is credited with the Tubb sound of single-string guitar picking. From about 1943 to 1948, Short was featured in clean, clear riffs throughout Tubb's songs. Other well-known musicians to either travel with Tubb as band members or record on his records were steel guitarist Jerry Byrd and Tommy "Butterball" Paige, who replaced Short as Tubb's lead guitarist in 1947. Billy Byrd joined the Troubadors in 1949 and brought jazzy riffs to the instrumental interludes, especially the four-note riff at the end of his guitar solos that would become synonymous with Tubb's songs. A jazz musician, Byrd— no relation to Jerry— remained with Tubb until 1959.
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Ernest Tubb
Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked the rise of the honky-tonk style of music.
In 1948, he was the first singer to record a hit version of Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson's "Blue Christmas", a song more commonly associated with Elvis Presley and his late-1950s version. Another well-known Tubb hit was his 1965 "Waltz Across Texas" (written by his nephew Quanah Talmadge Tubb, known professionally as Billy Talmadge), which became one of his most requested songs and is often used in dance halls throughout Texas during waltz lessons. Tubb recorded duets with the then up-and-coming Loretta Lynn in the early 1960s, including their hit "Sweet Thang". Tubb is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.
The youngest of five children, Tubb was born on a cotton farm near Crisp, in Ellis County, Texas, United States. His father was a sharecropper and Tubb spent his youth working on farms throughout the state. Tubb's earliest immigrant ancestor was Edward Tubb, who arrived in Virginia from Northamptonshire, England in 1701.
He was inspired by Jimmie Rodgers and spent his spare time learning to sing, yodel, and play the guitar. At age 19, he took a job as a singer on San Antonio radio station KONO-AM. The pay was low and Tubb also dug ditches for the Works Progress Administration. He went on to be a clerk at a drug store.
In 1939, he moved to San Angelo, Texas and was hired to do a 15-minute afternoon live show on radio station KGKL-AM. He drove a beer delivery truck to support himself during this time, and during World War II he wrote and recorded a song titled "Swell San Angelo".
In 1936, Tubb contacted Jimmie Rodgers' widow (Rodgers died in 1933) to ask for an autographed photo. A friendship developed and she was instrumental in getting Tubb a recording contract with RCA. His first two records were unsuccessful. A tonsillectomy in 1939 affected his singing style, so he turned to songwriting. In 1940, he switched to Decca Records to try singing again, and his sixth Decca release with the single "Walking the Floor Over You" brought Tubb to stardom. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc in 1965 by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Tubb joined the Grand Ole Opry in February 1943 and put together his band, the Texas Troubadors. Tubb's first band members were from Gadsden, Alabama. They were Vernon "Toby" Reese, Chester Studdard, and Ray "Kemo" Head. He remained a regular on the radio show for four decades, and hosted his own Midnite Jamboree radio show each Saturday night after the Opry. Tubb headlined the first Grand Ole Opry show presented in Carnegie Hall in New York City in September 1947.[citation needed]
Tubb always surrounded himself with several of Nashville's best musicians. Jimmy Short, his first guitarist in the Troubadors, is credited with the Tubb sound of single-string guitar picking. From about 1943 to 1948, Short was featured in clean, clear riffs throughout Tubb's songs. Other well-known musicians to either travel with Tubb as band members or record on his records were steel guitarist Jerry Byrd and Tommy "Butterball" Paige, who replaced Short as Tubb's lead guitarist in 1947. Billy Byrd joined the Troubadors in 1949 and brought jazzy riffs to the instrumental interludes, especially the four-note riff at the end of his guitar solos that would become synonymous with Tubb's songs. A jazz musician, Byrd— no relation to Jerry— remained with Tubb until 1959.
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