Resources
There were MANY great fiddlers and violinists in Texas and Oklahoma before the Texas style developed, and to them, we owe a debt of gratitude. They were the predecessors to the pioneers, but the actual pioneers of Texas style fiddling are Eck Robertson, Benny Thomasson, Major Franklin, Norman and Vernon Solomon, and Orville Burns. These are the legends to search for when looking for AUTHENTIC Texas style fiddle music, but we also need to add Terry Morris. He is considered by Texas style fiddlers to be the greatest Texas style fiddler who ever lived. On YouTube you can also find lots more tunes from these legends as well as the 2nd generation and the current generation of fiddlers. These are just some of the complete albums to give you a sampling of the pioneers and legends of Texas style fiddling.
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With the advent of the internet you literally have the world at your fingertips - lucky you! You can find lots of great information online but Texas Fiddle Blogspot is our favorite resource for Texas style fiddling.
Here are a few other things to consider when doing your research:
Texas style fiddle music is an underground thing for a couple of reasons: First, to the average person, it's just not cool if it's not mainstream. Second, you have to work to find it. You have to sift through the trash to find the treasure. But, if you know who and what to look for, that's half the battle. And if you give it a chance, you will fall in love with fiddle music too. While you are scouring YouTube, and listening to the fiddle players on our list you may question whether they were really as good as we say. This is when you should keep in mind that recordings are old, and technology has vastly improved Another thing to keep in mind is the age of the fiddler at the time of the recording. It's important to know when the fiddler was in their prime; the fiddler might have lacked maturity in their playing ability when they were younger. When they were older they may have lacked the physical strength and dexterity to play as well as they did in their prime. It's also good to make friends with fiddlers who are active in the fiddle world because if you're really lucky and you ask nicely, they may just share some old jam tapes with you. If you score a jam tape then you should run out and buy a lotto ticket because you just hit the jackpot! A lot of fiddlers don't like to share. For some jam tapes they are the only copy in existence which makes it as rare as the Mona Lisa, and to fiddlers they are just as valuable. For others it may be because they don't want to tarnish a reputation. There was usually a lot of drinking and swearing going on in these jams so sometimes things were said that maybe shouldn't have been said. Others are of the mindset that if you don't share, then the music will stop because the greatness of the legend will be forgotten. Here at Fiddles on Wheels, we understand and respect both schools of thought.
Head on over to our YouTube Channel and take the tunes for a spin! #dontbeaverage #fiddlesaregood