Cliff Bruner
Cliff Bruner (born April 25, 1915 in Texas City , Texas , † August 25, 2000 in Houston , Texas) was an American country musician . Bruner is considered to be one of the most important representatives of western swing .
Life
Childhood and youth
Cliff Bruner grew up in Tomball, Texas. At the age of twelve he decided to buy a fiddle so that he would no longer have to earn his living in the cotton fields . As a teenager he moved in with Dr. Scott's Medicine Show through the country and found employment as a musician.
Career
In 1934 Bruner joined the Western Swing Orchestra led by Milton Brown . Together with Cecil Brower, Bruner played fiddle and created a "twin fiddle sound" in the group, which was decisive for further country music. By 1936, Brown's sudden death, he had recorded over 50 pieces with Milton Brown and his band. After Brown's death, Bruner returned to Houston, where he formed his own band, the Texas Wanderers , sometimes called Cliff Bruner & his Boys .
With the Texas Wanderers Bruner got a show on the station KDFM in Beaumont , near the border with Louisiana . The Cajun music influence quickly made itself felt in the band, who enriched this traditional genre with rural hillbilly music and contemporary jazz . Together with the steel guitarist Bob Dunn , with whom Bruner had already played at Milton Brown, the mandolinist Leo Raley and the pianist Moon Mullican , a mixture emerged that differed from the western swing of other orchestras as it was more in the realm of the Pop moved. However, Bruner himself did not sing, other members of the group did that.
After the band got a recording deal with Decca Records in 1938 , their breakthrough came. Bruner's records were selling by themselves, especially on the Gulf Coast. The jukeboxes in the honky tonks of the oil fields played Bruner and his Texas Wanderers every day. In 1938 he had his biggest hit, Floyd Tillman's It Makes No Difference Now , followed by Truck Driver's Blues a year later. The latter was written by the songwriter Ted Daffan and is considered the first truck song in music history. Bruner had quickly become one of the most successful and popular musicians on the Texas country scene.
In the 1940s, the Texas Wanderers broke up. Even so, he continued to lead a band with his musical partner and friend Moon Mullican. However, his successes were over. Bruner was probably never able to establish his success permanently because his wife Ruth fell seriously ill and he stood by her. In the following years Bruner did not give up music; in addition to recording records, he has appeared with Jimmie Davis and W. Lee O'Daniel. In the 1950s, however, Bruner withdrew from the music business and instead founded an insurance agency.
In the 1970s, when western swing regained popularity, Bruner was rediscovered by many younger musicians. In 1980 he worked on Johnny Gimble's album Texas Swing Pioneers and performed well into old age. Cliff Bruner died of complications from cancer in 2000 at the age of 85 .
Discography
Singles
| year | title | # | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decca Records | |||
| 1938 | I Saw Your Face In Moon / Beaumont Rag | ||
| 1938 | Sunbonnet Sue / My Daddy, My Mother & Me | ||
| 1939 | I'm Tired of You / Truck Driver's Blues | ||
| 1939 | Kelly Swing / San Antonio Rose | ||
| 1939 | Singing the Lowdown Blues / Star Dust | ||
| 1939 | Little White Lies / The Other Way | ||
| 1939 | The Girl You Loved Long Ago / Jessie | ||
| 1940 | Over The Hill / It's All Over Now | ||
| 1940 | Peggy Lou / Tell Me Why Little Girl | ||
| 1940 | I'll Keep on Smiling / I'll Forgive You | ||
| 1940 | Because / I'm Still In Love with You | ||
| 1940 | Sparkling Blue Eyes / Ten Little Girls | ||
| 1940 | Take Me Back Again / I'm Heading for That Ranch In the Sky | ||
| 1940 | You Don't Love Me (But I'll Love You) / Over the Trail | ||
| 1940 | New Falling Rain Blues / Sorry | ||
| 1940 | I Keep Thinking of You / Neath the Purple on Hills | ||
| 1941 | Draft Board Blues / Tequila Rag | ||
| 1941 | Sun Has Gone Down / Let Me Smile My Last Smile at You | ||
| 1941 | Jessie's Sister / My Time Will Come Someday | ||
| 1946 | I'll Keep Thinking of You / It Makes No Difference Now | ||
| 1947 | Snowflakes / That's What I Like 'Bout the South | ||
| 1947 | I'll Try Not to Cry / My Pretty Blonde | ||
| 1947 | Born To Be Blue / Won't You Mend My Aching Heart | ||
| 1947 | Jessie / San Antonio Rose | Republication | |
| 1947 | When You're Smiling / Old Joe Turner Blues | ||
| 1947 | Sparkling Blue Eyes / Ten Pretty Girls | Republication | |
| 1948 | Don't Make Me Blue / You Always Hurt the One You Love | ||
| Mercury Records | |||
| 194? | Lucille from Mobile / You Were All This World to Me | ||
| 1949 | Firewater / Someone to Tell My Troubles To | ||
| Coral Records | |||
| 1949 | I'll Keep On Loving You / Kangaroo Blues | ||
| 1950 | If It's Wrong To Love You / I'll Try Not To Cry | ||
| Preview records | |||
| 1971 | Welcome to the Club / Faded Love | 1008 | with Pee Wee Withewing and the Others Brothers |
Albums
- 1977: Cliff Bruner & the Rice Brothers Gang
- 1981: Then and Now
- 1983: Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers
- 1997: Cliff Bruner and his Texas Wanderers ( Bear Family )
Web links
- Entry in the All Music Guide
- Cliff Bruner on Hillbilly-Music.com (English)
- Short biography (with photo)
- The Draft Board Blues for free download
- Cliff Bruner in the Internet Movie Database (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bruner, Cliff |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American country musician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 25, 1915 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Texas City , Texas |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 25, 2000 |
| Place of death | Houston |