JASON ROBERTS BRINGS BOB WILLS TEXAS PLAYBOYS TO BRENHAM
Jason Roberts, officially dubbed today’s “Bob Wills”, will step onto the stage of The Barnhill Center at Historic Simon Theatre in Brenham on Friday, May 28th.
With fiddle in hand, and the famous Bob Wills “Ah-Ha!” the two-time Grammy winner takes the stage as the living embodiment of a legend.
It was in the 1930’s and 40’s that Bob Wills was one of the most popular touring and recording acts in the nation. He and his Texas Playboys dominated the radio airwaves, outselling even the famous Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey bands.
No one could resist Wills’ unique musical mixture of traditional country, early blues and jazzy rhythms, delivered for the first time with electric instruments, steel guitars, fiddles and even horns.
The new phenomenon became known as Western Swing, for which Wills is widely revered as the inventor. Its popularity grew for decades and inspired the rock and roll records of the 1950’s and beyond.
Of course, most of us didn’t get to experience the original Bob Wills band. But other great artists kept the music alive through their own recordings – artists like Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Willie Nelson, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Ray Price, Carrie Underwood, George Strait and many more.
In 1975, the year Bob Wills died, Waylon Jennings released his original song, “Bob Wills Is Still The King.” It climbed to number one on the country and Billboard charts and is still given significant airtime on classic country radio.
When these artists introduced my generation to Bob Wills’ music, I liked it but I also considered any type of country music to be very uncool.
That is, until the late 1970’s when I discovered the amazing Asleep At The Wheel. They took their fans on a deep dive into Bob Wills’ huge body of work, by covering virtually all his songs in their albums and live shows.
I fell in love with this lively, happy music. Back then, Asleep At The Wheel was a staple at Texas music venues, especially The Broken Spoke in Austin. I and my friends traveled the state to catch their shows.
That’s where Jason Roberts comes in. For two decades he was part of Asleep At The Wheel, in the era when they largely focused on Bob Wills’ music.
Jason’s authentic vocals, musicianship and stage persona landed him the starring role in the musical-theatre production, A Ride With Bob. Produced by Ray Benson of Asleep At The Wheel, the show toured the country for eight years. It was the story of Wills’ life – a celebration of song and dance from America’s roots.
It was probably the best stage production I’ve ever seen. I became newly enamored with Bob Wills’ songs and with Jason Roberts’ brilliant portrayal of the man and the music.
At that point, in my mind, Jason Roberts WAS the great Bob Wills. (He still is.)
The Bob Wills Estate was also impressed. After A Ride With Bob tour ended, they recruited Jason to lead The Texas Playboys.
And, like Bob's original band, this group of Playboys includes some of the best swing musicians in the business. Many of these top-notch players have done stints with the band's earlier incarnations.
Can you imagine my delight when I learned that Jason Roberts is leading and touring with The Texas Playboys? I immediately knew that I must bring them to our Brenham audience!
Bob Wills fans will be astonished at the authenticity of this performance. The large band stays faithful to the music that forever changed the industry.
Those who don’t know Bob Wills’ name will be pleasantly surprised with the familiar songs, many of which were big hits for various recording artists over the decades. Some songs were even on Billboard charts more than once.
I bet you can’t resist singing along. Story courtesy of Sharon Brass.