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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The State of Texas lost one of its most admired |
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musicians with the passing of fiddle virtuoso Johnny Gimble of |
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Dripping Springs on May 9, 2015, at the age of 88; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in Tyler on May 30, 1926, John Paul Gimble began |
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performing with his brothers as a boy, and they appeared regularly |
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on a local radio show; his talent soon took him to Louisiana, where |
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he backed the Shelton Brothers on KWKH in Shreveport and played |
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tenor banjo in the campaign band of Jimmie Davis, the popular |
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country singer and future governor of Louisiana; during World War |
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II, he served in Europe with the United States Army; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Gimble joined the legendary Bob Wills and His |
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Texas Playboys in 1949, and he played on their 1950 hit "Faded |
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Love"; when the king of Western swing relocated to California, |
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Mr. Gimble stayed in Dallas, leading the Bob Wills Ranch House Band |
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and recording with Marty Robbins, Lefty Frizzell, and Ray Price at a |
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prominent local studio; he also performed on The Big D Jamboree |
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variety show; and |
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WHEREAS, Subsequently, Mr. Gimble and his wife, Barbara, |
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moved to Waco to raise their three children, Cyndi, Gay, and Dick; |
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he hosted a weekly television variety show, Johnny Gimble and the |
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Homefolks, and supplemented his income as a barber; in 1968, he |
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relocated to Nashville, and his distinctive sound, improvisational |
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skill, and extraordinary versatility, on mandolin as well as |
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fiddle, made him a top session player; he recorded with everyone |
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from Merle Haggard, Charley Pride, Connie Smith, and Dolly Parton |
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to the Everly Brothers, Paul McCartney, and Rosemary Clooney; he |
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was a member of the Hee Haw Million Dollar Band, and Chet Atkins |
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featured him on the all-star album Superpickers; in 1974, |
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Mr. Gimble released Fiddlin' Around, the first of many solo albums; |
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his popular compositions included "Under the X in Texas," which |
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would become the theme song for a long-running show by that name on |
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Austin radio station KOOP; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Gimble returned to Texas in the late 1970s and |
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settled in Dripping Springs; he joined Willie Nelson's band, and he |
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recorded with George Strait, Guy Clark, Asleep at the Wheel, and a |
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host of others; among the myriad accolades he won were two Grammy |
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Awards, five Country Music Association Instrumentalist of the Year |
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Awards, and nine consecutive Academy of Country Music Awards; he |
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started giving his trophies away to younger musicians to encourage |
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them, and when the National Endowment of the Arts conferred on him a |
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National Heritage Fellowship, entailing $10,000, he joked: "Can I |
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pay it in installments?"; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the years, the affable Mr. Gimble was a |
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frequent guest on the NPR series A Prairie Home Companion, and he |
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appeared on public television's Austin City Limits more times than |
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any other musician; he led a band with his son, Dick, on bass, and |
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his granddaughter, Emily, on piano and vocals, and he and his son |
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conducted fiddle and guitar camps; he suffered a stroke on |
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Christmas Eve in 1999 but continued to perform and teach, and in |
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2010, he released Johnny Gimble: Celebrating with Friends, graced |
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by such guest vocalists as Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, and Vince |
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Gill; and |
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WHEREAS, Johnny Gimble brought joy to innumerable people, and |
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he influenced generations of musicians; although he will be deeply |
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missed, he leaves behind a legacy that will be forever treasured by |
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music fans across the Lone Star State and beyond; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Johnny Gimble and |
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extend sincere condolences to his loved ones; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Johnny |
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Gimble. |