Tommy Duncan

For the Scottish footballer, seeTommy Duncan (footballer).

Tommy Duncan
Background information
Birth name	Thomas Elmer Duncan
Born	(1911-01-11)January 11, 1911 Whitney, Texas
Died	July 25, 1967(1967-07-25)(aged 56)
Genres	Western swing
Occupation(s)	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1930s–1960s
Labels	Capitol
Formerly of	Bob Wills

Thomas Elmer Duncan(January 11, 1911 – July 25, 1967),was an AmericanWestern swingvocalist and songwriter who gained fame in the 1930s as a founding member ofThe Texas Playboys.He recorded and toured with bandleaderBob Willson and off into the early 1960s.

Biography

Early life

Duncan was born inWhitney, Texas,United States,on a large farm into a large and impoverished family of truck farmers.His father, Thomas Edwin Duncan and mother Maylene Pearl Bounds were both amateur musicians and the family often played and sang together. He was one of 14 children. His most profound influences as a young singer wereJimmie Rodgers,Bing Crosby,Emmett Millerand othercountryandbluesmusicians. Thomas moved the family to Raymondville, Texas when Tommy was 13 and not wanting to move, he stayed behind to sharecrop on a cousin's farm, and by 1932 was surviving as abuskerinFort Worthsinging at a root beer stand. That year he won an audition against 64 other singers to join theLight Crust Doughboys,a popular local band which featuredBob Willson fiddle.Duncan was hired after he sang a version of Emmett Miller's "I Ain't Got Nobody" and impressed Wills with his yodeling ability and bluesy phrasing. As was common at the time, the Doughboys appeared on a radio show under the sponsorship of a local business, in their case Light Crust Flour. Duncan quickly became a sensation, both on the show and at dances and other appearances.

Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys

When bandleader Wills decided to form an independent band, he and Duncan became the creative core ofThe Texas Playboys.Duncan was versatile in his singing style and repertoire, was credited with a fine voice and range, and was ideal for the kind of dance music Wills performed and recorded. He sang everything from ballads andfolkto pop,Tin Pan Alley,Broadway, blues and cowboy songs.

As a lyricist, he contributed to "New San Antonio Rose"(1940);the recording, with Duncan on vocals, sold three million copies forColumbia Records.Duncan married, but after only a few years his wife developed cancer and died. Ironically, Duncan's first royalty check for "Time Changes Everything"was used to cover her funeral expenses. Duncan soon set the standard for Western swing vocals. In California, he became friends with Bing Crosby when they stabled their horses together. A virtual" human jukebox, "Duncan memorized the lyrics and melodies to more than 3,000 songs. He was a master stylist with the ability to make each song sound as though he wrote it. Duncan was also a multi-instrumentalist who could play piano, guitar and bass.

After a decade of musical success, Duncan was the first member of Wills's band to volunteer for the armed services after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. His service lasted less than a year when he received a medical discharge and he rejoined Wills in 1944 as the war neared its end.

He appeared with Wills and the other Playboys in several movies, includingBob Wills and His Texas Playboys(1944),Rhythm Roundup(1945),Blazing the Western Trail(1945),Lawless Empire(1945) andFrontier Frolic(1946). His voice matured in the middle to late 1940s. Duncan joined Wills in writing several more numbers, including "New Spanish Two Step"(1945),"Stay A Little Longer"(1945), as well as recording old time standards such as" Cotton-Eyed Joe "(1946) and" Sally Goodin "(1947). One night in a bar visiting with songwriterCindy Walker,Duncan motioned for her to look at a gentleman sitting just a few tables away who was staring at his glass of beer. Duncan commented to her that he's just "watchin' the bubbles in his beer."Instantly they both realized they had a song idea and "Bubbles in My Beer"became one of the staples of Western swing songs. Aside from"Faded Love",sung by Rusty McDonald, every Texas Playboys record that was a hit featured Duncan on vocals, cementing his status as the finest vocalist Wills had.

Rumors about Duncan having been a heavy drinker were false; Duncan would only have a drink or two at social events and his brother Glynn stated that otherwise he never saw Duncan drink even while they lived together inFresno, California.Many band members considered him a troublemaker, but the accusations may have stemmed from professional jealousy. Duncan was admired by contemporaries includingTex Ritter,Tex Williams,Teddy Wilds,Hank Pennyand Ole Rasmussen.

Later career

By 1948, Wills's drinking was becoming too out of control for Duncan.Wills often missed shows, and when the headliner failed to appear, the band's pay reverted to union scale. After a string of performances in 1948 without Wills, Wills overheard Duncan complaining one night before a performance. Wills told guitaristEldon Shamblinto "fire" Duncan, who set out to form his own band.

He organized another Western swing band called 'Tommy Duncan and His Western All Stars'featuring his younger brother Glynn (1921–2013), a Western swing pioneer, on bass (who would later become Wills's lead vocalist in the late 1950s). Another brother, Joe Duncan, was the lead vocalist for Johnnie Lee Wills's band for a period of time. At the height of the band's popularity, Duncan and the band made an appearance in the 1949 Western film,South of Death Valley,starringCharles StarrettandSmiley Burnette.Musical tastes were changing, however, and attendance at the Western All Stars' dances ranged from fair to poor, certainly not enough to sustain a large band, which lasted less than two years.

From 1959 to 1961, Duncan again toured and recorded with Wills, rekindling much of their former success.By this time Duncan's voice had evolved to a mature mellow croon and he used it to the greatest effect. But when Wills began drinking, he again left and made personal appearances with various bands. Wills's band never achieved the same greatness it had with Duncan, and Duncan's solo efforts mostly paled in comparison to his Wills output. Although known for Western swing, Duncan enjoyed singing country hits of the day.

Death

Duncan, who had previous heart problems, died in his motel room in San Diego, California after a performance atImperial Beachon July 24, 1967.The coroner's report said he was "lying...on the floor...Evidence victim had a heart condition, numerous pills for heart were found among personal effects." He is buried nearMerced, California.

Legacy

On his own and with Wills, Duncan's singing and songwriting were an influence on such artists asElvis Presley,Jerry Lee Lewis,Ray Price,Willie Nelson,Waylon Jennings,Roy Orbison,Merle Haggard,Buddy Holly,Red Steagall,George Strait,Clint Black,Randy Travis,andGarth Brooks.

As a member of The Texas Playboys, he was inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fameas an Early Influence in 1999,and was also inducted into the Texas Music Hall of Fame. Texas singer Billy Mata has released the Volumes I and II of a planned trilogy of tunes a tribute to Duncan entitledThis Is Tommy Duncan.

Singles

Year	Single	US Country
1949	"Gamblin' Polka Dot Blues"	8

Discography

• Texas Moon(Bear FamilyBCD-15907, 1996) includes all 10 tracks recorded forCapitol Records,2 tracks recorded for Natural Records, and 8 tracks recorded for Intro Records; plus 4 tracks recorded by 'Glynn Duncan & His Bar B Boys'.
• Beneath a Neon Star in a Honky Tonk(Bear Family BCD-15957, 1996) includes an additional 24 tracks recorded for Intro Records.
• Dog House Blues(JasmineJASMCD-3585, 2008) includes all 12 tracks recorded forCoral Records;also included are 5 tracks byBob Wills& His Texas Playboys and 7 tracks by Billy Jack Wills & His Western Swing Band.

External links

• History of Western swing bands
• The Handbook of Texas Online: Tommy Duncan
• Tommy DuncanatIMDb