Hillbilly-Music.com—The People. The Music. The History.
Bill Boyd
and His Cowboy Ramblers
Born:  September 29, 1910
Died:  December 7, 1977

About The Artist

Bill Boyd was born on the family's cattle ranch at Ladonia, Texas. He also had three brothers who were also later well-known in the field of music and radio entertainment. He grew up in a typical cowboy sense on a ranch with the chores and all. But when chores got light, the brothers took to learning music of the western kind.

Bill first learned to play the harmonica. As time went by, neighbors near and far were coming by to hear the Boyd brothers play their home-style tunes of the west.

When he was 19, Bill was pretty good at the guitar and piano and got himself an offer from a radio station. Along the way, Bill Boyd and his Cowboy Ramblers were formed around 1930. They began recording on the Victor and Bluebird record labels and were one of the more popular acts then.

While performing, Bill also managed to open and run a school of music in Dallas, Texas which ran for at least ten years and gave instruction to thousands of youths who wanted to learn the elements of the guitar and other popular instruments.

Around 1939, they were being heard over WRR on a one hour daily program in Dallas that was part of the Texas state network. In addition to their performances and recordings, Bill also wrote some tunes.

Timeline and Trivia Notes

Group members included:

  • Bill Boyd, guitar, vocals
  • Kit Cason, banjo
  • John Boyd, guitar
  • Gar Austin, fiddle
  • Julian Akins, bass

Recordings (78rpm/45rpm)

 
Bluebird
Rec. No. Side Song Title
  5608 A Ridin' On A Hump Backed Mule
  5608 B On The Texas Plains
  5667 A Ridin' Old Paint And Leadin' Old Ball
  5667 B The Strawberry Roan
  5740 A Rambler's Rag
  5740 B I'M Gonna Hop Off The Train
  5788 A Way Down Missouri
  5788 B The Lost Wagon
  5819 A When I Find My Dear Daddy Is Waiting
  5819 B Broken Man
  5828 A St Louis Blues
  5828 B Thousand Mile Blues (Vbill Boyd)
  5855 A Mama Don't Like No Music Playin' Here
  5855 B Wind Swept Desert
  5894 A Song Bird Yodel
  5894 B Harvest Time
  5923 A Going Back To My Texas Home
  5923 B Watching The World Go By
  5945 A Under The Double Eagle
  5945 B The Train Song (Just Because)
  8533 A There's A Light Shining Bright
  8533 B If You'll Come Back
  8721 A Swing Steel Swing
  8721 B I'll Be Back In A Year Little Darling
  8728 A Now I Feel The Way You Do
  8728 B Sweethearts Or Strangers
  8747 A Don't Let The Barrel Go Dry
  8747 B They Go Googoo Gaga Goofy Over Gobs
  8769 A Flower Of Texas
  8769 B I Can't Forget No Matter How I Try
  8787 A Jitterbug Jive
  8787 B I Guess You Don't Care Anymore
  8823 A No Dice
  8823 B Hold On To That Thing
  8885 A Rolling Down The Great Divide
  8885 B My Pony On The Range
  8900 A Over The Waves Waltz
  8900 B Home Coming Waltz
  8910 A Tell Me Why My Daddy Don't Come Home
  8910 B Letter I Never Did Mail
  B-7691 A New Steel Guitar Rag
  B-7691 B Jig
 
Montgomery Ward
Rec. No. Side Song Title
  4778 A The Strawberry Roan
  4778 B Riding Old Paint
  4790 A My Ball And Chain
  4790 B Wah Hoo
  4791 A Mama Don't Like No Music
  4791 B Wind Swept Desert
  4792 A That Ramshackle Shack
  4792 B When They Play That Rural Rhythm
  4793 A Lone Star
  4793 B The Eyes Of Texas
  4794 A Thousand Mile Blues
  4794 B St Louis Blues
  4795 A Oh No, She Don't
  4795 B Mama's Gettin' Hot And Papa's Gettin' Cold
  4905 A The Train Song
  4905 B Under The Double Eagle
  7028 A When The Sun Sets On My Swiss Chalet
  7028 B Saturday Night Rag
  7029 A Hobo's Paradise
  7029 B Going Back To My Texas Home
  7030 A Beale Street Blues
  7030 B Floating Down To Cotton Town
  7189 A Yellow Rose Of Texas
  7189 B Old Watermill By A Waterfall
  7190 A You Shall Be Free, Monah
  7190 B Show Me The Way To Go Home
  7191 A She's Killin' Me
  7191 B She's Doggin' Me
  7192 A You Can't Come In
  7192 B Fan It
  7193 A Put Me In Your Pocket
  7193 B Away Out There
  7630 A New Spanish Two Step
  7630 B Spanish Fandango (W)
  7631 A Jig
  7631 B New Steel Guitar Rag
  7632 A Never Let You Cry Over Me
  7632 B Here Comes Pappy
  7633 A Weeping Blues
  7633 B Boyd's Kelly Waltz
  7634 A Singing And Swinging For Me
  7634 B Tomcat Rag
  7811 A Broadway Mama
  7811 B When My Dreams Come True
  7812 A Boyd's Tin Roof Blues
  7812 B I Get The Blues When It Rains
  7813 A Come Easy, Go Easy
  7813 B Frosty Mornin'
  7814 A So Tired Of Waiting Alone
  7814 B Won't You Please Come Home
  7815 A La Golondrina Waltz
  7815 B I Want To Go Back
  7816 A My Baby Loves Me, I Know
  7816 B I Love My Baby
  8416 A My Wonderful One
  8416 B I Saw Your Face
  8417 A Devilish Mary (Ft)
  8417 B Cross Eyed Gal On The Hill
  8418 A Jungle Town
  8418 B Can't Use Each Other
  8419 A An Ace
  8419 B That's Why I'm Jealous Of You
  8420 A Riding On The Old Ferris Wheel
  8420 B Don't Drop A Slug In The Slot
  8421 A Someone In Heaven Is Thinking Of You (W)
  8421 B I've Got Those Oklahoma Blues
  8422 A I Get The Blues For Mammy
  8422 B Mill Blues
  8423 A Meant For Me
  8423 B Like You
  8424 A Song Of The Waterfall
  8424 B Troubles (W)
  8425 A Mississippi Mud
  8425 B Home In Indiana
  8677 A Drink The Barrel Dry
  8677 B The Sunset Trail To Texas
  8678 A The Zenda Waltz
  8678 B Down At Polka Joe's
  8679 A I Wish You Knew The Way I Feel
  8679 B You Take It
  8680 A You Better Stop That Cattin' Round
  8680 B Pussy Pussy Pussy
  8681 A I'll Take You Back Again
  8681 B I Want A Feller
  8682 A If You'll Come Back
  8682 B There's A Light Shining Bright
  M 4789 A Tumbling Tumbleweeds
  M 4789 B When Its Twilight Time On Sweetheart Lane
 
RCA Victor
Rec. No. Side Song Title
  20-0109 A Pass The Turnip Greens
  20-0109 B Poison Ivy
  20-0164 A Texas Blues
  20-0164 B Yes You Did
  20-1793 A Roadside Rag
  20-1793 B These Tears Are Not For You
  20-1888 A I Don't Know Why But I Do
  20-1888 B Trail To San Antone
  20-1907 A New Spanish Two Step
  20-1907 B New Steel Guitar Rag
  20-2050 A Jim's Polka
  20-2050 B Oklahoma Bound
  20-2068 A Over The Waves Waltz
  20-2068 B Under The Double Eagle
  20-2069 A Homecoming Waltz
  20-2069 B Shame On You
  20-2172 A I Wish We'd Never Met
  20-2172 B Palace In Dallas
  20-2270 A Dream Train
  20-2270 B New Fort Worth Rag
  20-2379 A Now Or Never
  20-2379 B Tellin' Lies
  20-2562 A Don't Turn My Picture To The Wall
  20-2562 A Don't Turn My Picture To The Wall
  20-2562 B Out In The Rain Again
  20-2562 B Out In The Rain Again
  20-2697 A I'm Writing A Letter To Heaven
  20-2697 B Vacant Heart
  20-2800 A The Train Song
  20-2800 B Way Out There
  20-2833 A American Patrol
  20-2833 B Closed For Repairs
  20-2960 A Monterey Polka
  20-2960 B Pull Down The Shades And Lock The Door
  20-2967 A I'm Writing A Letter To Heaven
  20-2967 B Vacant Heart
  20-3067 A Never Break Your Promise To A Woman
  20-3067 B The Skater's Waltz
  20-3190 A Southern Steel Guitar
  20-3190 B You're Laughing Up Your Sleeve
  21-0000 A I Always Lose
  21-0000 B Too Blue To Care
  21-0045 A Lone Star Rag
  21-0045 B Without A Woman's Love
  21-0071 A Varsoviana
  21-0071 B Blue Danube Waltz
  21-0126 A Jingle Bells
  21-0126 B Up On The House Top
  21-0208 A Letters Have No Arms
  21-0208 B The Bandera Waltz
  21-0335 A Red River Rag
  21-0335 B Come And Get It
  21-0351 A Why Don't You Love Me
  21-0351 B Red Lips Kiss My Blues Away
  21-0410 A Mean, Mean, Mean
  21-0410 B Cuckoo Waltz
  21-0482 A Gladiola Waltz
  21-0482 B Why Do You Punish Me
 
TNT
Rec. No. Side Song Title
  1019 A Definition Of Love
  1019 B Work