Tex Williams
Sollie Paul "Tex" Williams was an American Western swing singer and musician. He is best known for his talking blues style; his biggest hit was the novelty song, "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! ", which held the number-one position on the Hot Country Songs chart for 16 weeks in 1947. "Smoke" was the number-five song on Billboard's Top 100 list for 1947, and was number one on the country chart that year.
Life and career
He was born in Ramsey, Illinois, United States. Williams started out in the early 1940s as vocalist for the band of Western swing king Spade Cooley, based in Venice, California.Williams' backing band, the Western Caravan, numbered about a dozen members. They originally played polkas for Capitol Records, and later had success with "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke", written in large part by Merle Travis.
In April 1956, Williams appeared on the Chrysler-sponsored CBS TV broadcast, Shower of Stars.
Williams died of pancreatic cancer on October 11, 1985.
Filmography
Williams and the Western Caravan appeared in these films:- Tex Williams and His Western Caravan
- Tex Williams and Orchestra in Western Whoopee
- The Pecos Pistol
- ''Tex Williams' Western Varieties''
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | US Country | Label |
| 1955 | Country and Western Dance-O-Rama No. 5 | Decca | |
| 1960 | Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! | Capitol | |
| 1962 | Country Music Time | Decca | |
| 1963 | Voice of Authority | Imperial | |
| 1963 | Tex Williams in Las Vegas | Liberty | |
| 1966 | Two Sides of Tex Williams | 26 | Boone |
| 1971 | A Man Called Tex | 38 | Monument |
| 1974 | Those Lazy, Hazy Days | Granite | |
| 1977 | The Legendary Tex Williams: Then... Now | Corral | |
| 1996 | Vintage Collections: Tex Williams & His Western Caravan | Capitol |
Singles
- "The Night Miss Nancy Ann's Hotel for Single Girls Burned Down" peaked at No. 27 on the RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada.