Foy Willing

Foy Willing (May 14, 1914 – July 14, 1978) was a singer, songwriter, musician, and bandleader who performed Western music and appeared in Western movies. He formed the Western band Riders of the Purple Sage.[1]

Foy Willing
Birth nameFoy Willingham
Born(1914-05-14)May 14, 1914
Iredell, Texas, United States
DiedJuly 14, 1978(1978-07-14) (aged 64)
Nashville, Tennessee, US
GenresCountry, Western
Occupation(s)Musician, actor
InstrumentsVocals
Years active1940–78

Early years

Foy Willingham was born May 14, 1914 in Iredell, Texas.[2] He began his career while attending high school in Texas by working at a local radio station. In 1933, he traveled to New York City to further his radio career. In 1940 he moved to Oklahoma, and in 1942 to California where he became popular during the Golden Age of Radio.[3]

Riders of the Purple Sage

In 1942, Willing co-founded Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage with Iowa musician Al Sloey.[4] The band included Patti Page on vocals, fiddler Johnny Paul, and accordionist Ken Coopern. The band's first hit, "Texas Blues", was written by Willing. They grew in fame and over their ten-year career, performed as the musical group backing up Monte Hale and Roy Rogers for Republic Studios.

Willing and his band appeared as performers in many Western movies in the 1940s and early 1950s with Charles Starrett, Monte Hale, and Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. The Willing-led Riders of the Purple Sage disbanded in 1952.[5]

Later years

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage occasionally reunited to record and perform, and Willing went on to appear at Western festivals during the 1970s.[6] Willing also traveled with Gene Autry during Autry's North American tour. In 1966, Willing married Sharon Lee.

Willing died on July 24, 1978 in Nashville, Tennessee of a heart attack.[7]

On October 30.1963, Les Paul sued Mary Ford for divorce, in Hackensack, New Jersey, charging that Ford left Paul for Willing.[8]

Discography
  • 2007 Tumbling Tumbleweeds (Varese Sarabande)
  • 2005 And the Riders of the Purple Sage (BACM)
  • 2005 Timber Trail (Cattle)
  • 2005 Trail Herdin' Cowboy
  • 2003 Sagebrush Swing (Collectors' Choice Music)
  • 1999 Cowboy/New Sound of American Folk (DRG)
  • 1998 Collectors Edition (Pickwick)
  • 1962 The New Sound of American Folk
  • 1958 Cowboy
  • 1950 Riders of the Purple Sage[9]

Filmography
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References
  1. "Music.com". Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
  2. http://www.wacotrib.com/news/waco_history/brazos-past-preacher-s-son-cowboy-singer-foy-willing-was/article_a51e6537-8c39-5e03-968b-02f4c90b48a2.html
  3. "Willing, Sharon Lee. No One to Cry To: A Long, Hard Ride into the Sunset with Foy Willing. Wheatmark, 2006". Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
  5. CMT
  6. CMT
  7. "Western Music". Archived from the original on September 19, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  8. "RolandNote.com: The Ultimate Country Music Database". rolandnote.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  9. CMT
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