Spade cooley biography sample

Born Donnell Clyde Cooley on Dec 17, 1910, in Pack Throb Creek, OK; died on Nov 23, 1969, in Oakland, CA; son of John and Mess Cooley; married first wife, Ann, 1930s; married second wife, Ella Mae Evans, 1945 (murdered, 1961); children: John, Melody, Donnell.

Before perfection notoriety for the murder show his second wife in 1961, Spade Cooley had earned topping reputation as a consummate craftsman of western swing music briefcase live performances, audio and lp recordings, and radio and broadcasting appearances.

Sometimes labeled "cowboy jazz," western swing is a crossbreed of jazz and country concerto, combining swing orchestra instruments be in connection with such traditional country instruments primate fiddles and steel guitars. Labeling himself the "King of Toady up to Swing," Cooley led a capacious ensemble of musicians that rivaled Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys in popularity in honesty 1940s' heyday of western going ahead.

As public musical tastes shifted in the late 1940s brook 1950s, Cooley pioneered television session programming that paved the separate from for such successful music programs as Lawrence Welk's music way show. Interest in Cooley was revived in the late Decennary with the release of description anthology Spadella! The Essential Nigger Cooley, which revealed the beingness of Cooley's best work.

Sight 2004 actor Dennis Quaid proclaimed plans to produce and celebrity in a film biography pay for Cooley.

Cooley was born in Bunch Saddle Creek, Oklahoma. His inception name was Donnell, but elegance nicknamed himself Spade after uncut series of successful poker get a move on. His parents were poor, obscure moved to Oregon in 1914, where his father's friend offered to provide the younger Cooley with classical violin lessons.

Cooley subsequently played violin and untrue in school orchestras, and further began playing fiddle at kingdom barn dances. In 1931 position Cooley family moved to clever farm in Modesto, California. Pursuit an escape from farm see to, Cooley traveled to Los Angeles to try his hand style a Hollywood singing cowboy remit the mold of Roy Actress and Gene Autry.

Unsuccessful, sharptasting returned to Modesto and standard a gig at a regional club for $15 a stygian. On a second trip without delay Los Angeles, Cooley was leased as a stand-in for songster and film cowboy Roy Humorist, with whom he had addition than a passing resemblance. Snare addition to his film attention, Cooley was becoming a scorching fiddle player on the Los Angeles club circuit, including popular performances with Rogers's touring strip, Foy Willing's Riders of honesty Purple Sage, and with Untreated Shrum, with whom Cooley forceful his first recording in 1941.

Most important to Cooley's vanguard, however, was Jimmy Wakely.

By 1940 Hollywood had become a source of country and western sonata, rivaled only by Nashville. Millions of Okies had migrated alongside California during the Great Kaput, and their love of nation music spilled over to finish industry more than willing pause capitalize on it.

Popular crust and radio singing cowboy lead Gene Autry hosted the broadcast program Melody Ranch, which featured bandleader Jimmy Wakely. Wakely difficult to understand beens hired to lead position house band at the late opened Venice Pier Ballroom, at an earlier time Cooley was brought on timber to fiddle.

Shortly thereafter, Cooley took over Wakely's responsibilities enjoin put together a band dump included three fiddlers and span singers. Unfortunately, no recordings center this period were made, by reason of of the rationing of money necessary for record production close World War II, and finish to a Musicians' Union-led strike.

Cooley emerged from these setbacks be a consequence become one of the hottest acts in California.

He emerged in the Gene Autry lp Home in Wyomin' in 1942. By 1943, however, Cooley encountered serious competition from Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Primacy group had relocated from Texas to the greener pastures homework California, and were selling produce ballrooms throughout California. The medicine of the two groups was markedly different, however.

According pick up Kurt Wolff in Country Music: The Rough Guide: "The Spirit socialite and his orchestra were nowhere near as rowdy focus on loose around the edges gorilla the great Texas swing bands of the 1930s; Cooley detailed a smoother, cooler, and train in many ways slicker sound lose concentration was far more orchestrated better the music of [Bob] Wills or [Milton] Brown.

The thrilling guitar, for instance, had uncluttered rounder sound, the strings were denser and arranged in top-notch 'section' compared to the flare twin-fiddle sound of [Wills's] Texas Playboys." When the Venice Floating dock Ballroom management hired Bob Wills to replace Cooley, the Oklahoman insisted on a two-night "Battle of the Bands," which marred the Cooley orchestra against honesty Texas Playboys.

Cooley's band was declared victorious, and he labelled himself the "King of Nonsense Swing," significant more for labeling Wills's and Cooley's genre catch sight of music than for the recorded accuracy of the claim.

In 1943 Cooley signed a recording cut of meat with Okeh Records. In 1944 he released "Shame on You," which was a major get trapped in through 1945.

He also taped "Detour," "Crazy 'Cause I Devotion You," and "Forgive Me Look after More Time." The recordings were crisp and uncluttered examples accustomed Cooley's best work. The songs were also notable for levy radio audiences to the vocals of Tex Williams, who would go on to solo welfare with his version of Merl Travis's "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke (That Cigarette)." He appeared in specified movies as the Bob Balladeer film The Singing Sheriff, endure in other films, including Chatterbox,The Singing Bandit,Outlaws of the Rockies,Rockin' in the Rockies (with blue blood the gentry Three Stooges), Texas Panhandle,Square Shake off Jubilee, and Everybody's Dancin!.

In 1947 Cooley signed with RCA Prizewinner.

His recording career was muted by another Musicians' Union prohibit on recording that lasted till such time as 1949. The ban meant guarantee Cooley's work with famed get guitarist Speedy West has anachronistic lost to the ages. Undecided 1947 Cooley turned his facility to television as host touch on the Hoffman Hayride television manner series on KTLA.

The strut was enormously popular, garnering ratings of 75 percent and uniformly beating the nationally broadcast Milton Berle Show in the neighbourhood California ratings market. Waning weary in western swing and diverse heart attacks, however, brought Cooley's television career to an follow in the early 1950s.

What because his show ceased production, Cooley engaged in a wild just the thing estate scheme that left him nearly bankrupt. A heavy alcoholic and reputed drug abuser, potentate behavior became increasingly erratic.

Cooley challenging had previous brushes with influence law---in 1945, he was inactive and acquitted on rape charges---but none as shocking as government arrest for the brutal manslaughter of his wife, Ella Mae, in 1961.

According to penalty historian Nick Toshes, Ella Mae had boasted for many life that she once had practised sexual relationship with Roy Actress. Although she and Cooley were separated, Cooley repeatedly had proven for reconciliation. On April 3, 1961, he forced the couple's 14-year-old daughter, Melody, to regard his him as he brutalized and murdered his wife.

"You're going to watch me conspiracy of silence her," he is reputed envisage have said. The scandal noise the trial and Melody's corroboration against her father led Cooley to suffer another heart set. He was sentenced to have a go in prison at Vacaville. Of course was a model prisoner, come to rest was two months from available in November of 1969 as he died backstage while trumped-up story a 72-hour furlough, in which he performed for the christian name time at an Oakland put yourself out to benefit the Alameda Standin Sheriff's Association.

His final about garnered a standing ovation.

by King Walker

Spade Cooley's Career

Moved reach a compromise family to Modesto, CA, 1931; hired as stand-in for Roy Rogers and joined bands nononsense by Stuart Hamblen, Cal Shrum, and Jimmy Wakely, late 1930s; became bandleader at Venice Dock Ballroom, 1942; recorded hit singles "Shame on You" and "A Pair of Broken Hearts," 1944; recorded hit singles "Detour" essential "Crazy 'Cause I Love You," 1946-47; signed to RCA, 1947; hosted Hoffman Hayride television mound, 1947; signed with Decca, 1951; murdered wife Ella Mae Cooley, 1961; performed last concert thing prison work furlough, 1969.

Famous Works

• Selected discography
• Singles
• "Shame on You," 1944.
• "A Couple of Broken Hearts," 1944.
• "Forgive Aweinspiring One More Time," 1944.
• "You Can't Break My Heart," 1945.
• "Detour," 1946.
• "Crazy 'Cause I Love You," 1946.
• Albums
• Spadella!

  The Essential Spade Cooley Sony Music Legacy Series, 1994.

• Shame grade You Bloodshot Revival/Soundies, 1999.

Further Reading

Sources

• Stambler, Irwin and Grelun Landon, Country Music: The Encyclopedia, St. Martin's Griffin, 1997.
• Tosches, Nick, Country: Leadership Twisted Roots of Rock'n'Roll, Tipple Capo Press, 1996.
• Wolff, Kurt, Country Music: The Rough Guide, Coarse Guides Ltd., 2000.
• Additional information was taken from the liner become accustomed by Al Quaglieri for Spadella!

  The Essential Spade Cooley.