Luke Wills (10 September 1920 - 21 October 2000) was a Western swing bass player, younger brother of Bob Wills.
Luther J."Luke" Wills was the younger brother of Bob Wills and the seventh of the Wills’ family children. He was rated so differently from the rest of the family that it was a family joke that his mother had picked up the wrong baby, after one of the many social dances held in the area.Like Johnnie Lee, Luke learned to play tenor banjo and made his musical debut in 1937 when he was 17, doing his first show with Bob's band in Cain's Academy in Tulsa. Luke even signed his first Social Security card in the office at Cain's. Luke then continued his career, now as a bass player in the second Wills’ band, led by elder brother Johnnie Lee Wills, called the Rhythmaires. In the
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early 1940's, when Bob left for Hollywood to make western movies, he took Luke and several other Texas Playboys with him. Together, they made several theatrical shorts and features while Johnnie Lee took over the Cain's broadcasts and dances.
early 1940's, when Bob left for Hollywood to make western movies, he took Luke and several other Texas Playboys with him. Together, they made several theatrical shorts and features while Johnnie Lee took over the Cain's broadcasts and dances.In 1943, he joined the US Navy during WW II. After service, he led Bob's second band and covered the dance circuit of northern and central California, appearing first as Luke Wills And the Texas Playboys Number 2 but to avoid confusion this soon became Luke Wills’ Rhythm Busters. He recorded for King and RCA-Victor in the late 1940's, adopting a similar style of comments and interjections as Bob though not in a high pitched voice.
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In 1948, the Rhythm Busters were disbanded and he worked with Bob until 1950, when he reformed his own band and took over in Oklahoma City for a standing job at the Trianon Ballroom, when Bob returned to Texas to his new dancehall.
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The Wills Brothers in the early 1950's (l-r) Luke Wills, Johnnie Wills, Bob Wills, and Billy Jack Wills |
He rejoined Bob in 1952 and played and sang with the Playboys, often fronting the band in Bob's absence, until they disbanded in 1964. He then worked outside of the music industry in Las Vegas, as among other things, as a casino security guard.
Some of Luke's better-known vocals during his career include "Little Star Of Heaven""Old Shep" and "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone." In 1971, he played bass on the Bob Wills’ tribute recordings made at Merle Haggard's home in Bakersfield and later made some appearances at Playboy Reunion Shows but did not appear on the 1973 recording session in Dallas. Although contributing in no small way to his eldest brother's legend, he was not elected to the Country Music Hall Of Fame. In the late '70s, he left the music business and retired to Las Vegas where he was a resident for 35 years.In 1988, Bear Family Records of Germany released a collection of his RCA Victor recordings entitled "High Voltage Gal." In the 1990's, despite a stroke that rendered him unable to play bass, he was a regular member of the Bob Wills tribute bands around the country.
Luther J. "Luke" Wills, 80, died on Oct. 21, 2000 in Las Vegas following a massive stroke. Luke was the last surviving Wills brother. He is buried at Palm Valley View Memorial Park in Las Vegas, NV. (Edited by kaitsuj @ last fm)