I’d been wondering if there were any great rock 45s on Ty Tex when I found The Sensors “Sen-Sa-Shun” / “Side Tracked” at Rex’s sidewalk sale this spring. As it turns out, the Sensors had four 45s on Ty Tex.
Buddy Henderson would come to be known as Bugs Henderson when he joined Mouse and the Traps. He started the Sensors in his hometown of Tyler, Texas when he was just 16.
On these two Freddy King songs, Buddy articulates every note, making these two of the better r&b instrumentals I’ve heard. “Side Tracked” has a good jazzy organ solo to boot.
Their version of “Rumble” is also cool, even if it doesn’t have the menace of Link Wray’s original. The organ provides an eerie background. Buddy gets a shimmering tone out of his guitar chords with a ferocious slicing sound towards the end of the song
I haven’t heard the flip side, a version of “Caravan”, but Not Fade Away #2 says guitarist on that side was Levi Garrett. I assume these were recorded at Robin Hood Brians’ studio in Tyler, but I could be mistaken.
The A-side of their third single, “Bat Man” is credited to Henderson and Pittman. The flip is a cover of Jack McDuff’s “Light Blues”.
TT-112 – Sen-Sa-Shun / Side Tracked TT-115 – Rumble / Caravan TT-117 – Bat Man / Light Blues TT-120 – Honest I Do (vocal) / Honest I Do (instrumental)
Thanks to Rich for the transfer of “Rumble” and to Greg Reyes for the scan of “Bat Man”. Thank you to Martin Hancock for finding the scan of “Rumble”.
As the Ty Tex label was winding down in late 1967, The Revolvers were responsible for four of the last six releases that I know of (#s 127, 128, 129 and 131). None of these are essential listening in my opinion, though the band came close on a few occasions.
Their first 45 is probably the best, with finely-picked guitar on the pop “Like Me” on the A-side, and “When You Were Mine”, a moody original based on “House of the Rising Sun” on the flip. Both were originals by Stan Gorman and Mike Goodrich.
Their second is quite different, featuring two uptempo soul numbers with horns, another Gorman-Goodrich original “Good Lovin’ Woman” backed with a version of “Land of 1,000 Dances.” This release had a notice in Billboard from June of 1967.
On their third, they back singer Dana Black on an unnecessary version of “As Tears Go By”. I haven’t heard the flip, “Your Love’s For Me”, done by just the Revolvers without Dana Black. The label notes “A product of Eula Anton, arranged by Mike Goodrich”.
Their last is credited to their vocalist Stan Gorman and the Revolvers. I have to agree with the note written on the sleeve of my copy: “I Love Lovin’ You” is a good blue-eyed soul number and I could see it being a northern soul hit with a different vocalist. Stan does a good job of the song but doesn’t have the right voice to put it over. Both songs written by Hammond and Gorman. “Green Unicycle” is a wretched pastiche of psychedelia and vaudeville.
Any help with this discography would be appreciated:
TT-100 – Ron Williams and the Customs – Sue Sue Baby / Empty Feeling (both by Ron Williams) TT-101 – Guy Goodwin – Roll Out the Red Carpet / Nobody Going Nowhere TT-102 – Ron Williams – I’ll Miss You So / I Guarantee You Baby (October 1961) TT-103 – ? TT-104 – The Antons – Larry’s Tune (Larry Stanley) / Green Eyes (1962) (N8OW-2631/2) TT-105 – Zeroes – Flossie Mae / Twisting With Crazee Babee TT-106 – Ron Williams – Wine, Wine, Wine / So Long, My Love (Ron Williams) TT-107 – The Tonettes – Gee Baby (J. Joseph, A. Tyler) / Friendship Ring (late 1962) (NO9W-2713/4) TT-108 – Guy Goodwin – Wheels a Hummin’ / You’re Right I Will TT-7599 – Ron Williams – If I Could Stay Away From You (Ron Williams) / On Top of Old Smokey (also released on Imperial 5729)
The above feature an early label design with outline of state of Texas and roses. See Rockin’ Country Style for more info.
Releases below have a simpler design with Ty Tex at the top:
TT-110 – Donnie Carl – Love and Learn / Do the Wiggle Wobble (D. Kight) TT-111 – Guy Goodwin- Where Sweethearts Never Part / ? (1962) TT-112 – The Sensors featuring Buddy Henderson – Sen-Sa-Shun / The Sensors – Side Tracked TT-113 – Donnie Carl with the Donnells – It Happened to Me Parts 1 & 2 TT-114 – Joe Baby and the Donnells – Little Sally Walker (Doing the Camel Walk) (D. Kight) / I’m Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town TT-115 – The Sensors – Rumble TT-116 – Guy Goodwin – A Taste Of Her Loving / ?? TT-117 – The Sensors – Bat Man – supposed to be scarce. TT-118 – Donnie Carl – You’ve Got It / Getting Over You (both by D. Kight, December 1964) TT-119 – Donnie Carl – Heart Attack / If You Want It That Way TT-120 – The Sensors – Honest I Do (vocal) / Honest I Do (instrumental) TT-121 – Linda Burns – And That Reminds Me / The Reason Why (October 1965) TT-122 – The Derbys – A Different Woman Every Day (Taylor-Gadson-Darnell) / The Crow TT-123 – Ron Williams and the Trebles – So Fine / Let’s Stop Wasting Time (Ron Williams) TT-124 – Ron Williams – Please Come Back / I’m Sending You A Pencil TT-125 – One Eyed Jacks – Hang It Up (Robert Leslie Allen) / Down On My Knees TT-126 – Larry Mack – Last Day of the Dragon (Larry Stanley) / Can’t You See Me Crying TT-127 – The Revolvers – Like Me / When You Were Mine TT-128 – The Revolvers – Good Lovin’ Woman / Land of 1,000 Dances (June 1967) TT-129 – Dana Black and the Revolvers – As Tears Go By b/w The Revolvers – Your Love’s for Me TT-130 – Floyd Jones – My Mother’s Prayer / Hero’s Welcome Home TT-131 – Stan Gorman and the Revolvers – I Love Lovin’ You / Green Unicycle
Many of the later releases show “A product of Eula Anton” on the label. At least some of these records were cut at Robin Hood Brians studio in Tyler.
Donnie Carl is Donnie Carlton Kight, a soul singer. He wrote most of his songs, sometimes with Mike Goodrich.
Ronny Williams’ Gold Standard sleeve could this be the same person recording for Ty Tex as far back as 1961?
Ron Williams
Ron Williams wrote most of the songs he recorded, here are some other 45s he cut:
Pastel 404, “Poor Little Lamb” / “Hey! Little Pearl” – the A-side is excellent garage. I don’t have the record, but have short clips of both sides here. Arvel Stricklin played lead guitar and Hammond organ on both tracks (source). Pastel Records owned by Maj. Bill Smith.
Vee Jay 675 “Angel Girl” / She Ran Away” (1965)
Austin A-321, “Big Boy Pete” / “Runaway” (despite its name, Austin Records was a Ft. Worth based label. I haven’t heard this one)
Le Cam LC 331 – Ron Williams with Major Bill’s Texans – “Lady Diana” / “Somewhere Between”
A release by Ronny Williams “Move Up a Little Closer Baby” on the Gold Standard label may also be his – but once I saw the photo of him on the sleeve I decided it’s not possible, do you agree? The flip is sung by his brother Larry Williams, “When You Grow Tired Of Him”.
Larry Mack
One of the best vocals that I’ve heard on the label is Larry Mack’s “Last Day of the Dragon”. Songwriting credit goes to Larry Stanley. This is a track I’d definitely like to know more about. I don’t own it yet and haven’t heard the flip.
Thanks to Martin Hancock, Steve Munger and DrunkenHobo for their additions to this discography and the scans seen here. Thank you to Janis Hellard for the scan of Ty Tex TT 114, Joe Baby and the Donnells.
Two good instrumentals, recorded in Tyler, Texas, and produced by Eula Anton.
“Hang It Up” is an upbeat rocker while “Down on My Knees” is a very good blues, with churchy organ playing.
Robert Leslie Allen wrote both songs, and also wrote “Can’t You See Me Crying”, the B-side to Larry Mack’s ”Last Day of the Dragon”, also on Ty Tex. The Library of Congress copyright registration from late 1966 shows only Allen’s name, but on the single someone named Anton is co-credited with writing “Can’t You See Me Crying”.
Robert Allen is a likely member but I haven’t found out who the others in the group were.
These One Eyed Jacks are not connected to the Illinois group of the same name who recorded the excellent single, “Die Today” / “Somewhere They Can’t Find Me” on Lakeside, “Love” / “Sun So High” on White Cliffs and two singles on Roulette.
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I’d been wondering if there were any great rock 45s on Ty Tex when I found The Sensors “Sen-Sa-Shun” / “Side Tracked” at Rex’s sidewalk sale this spring. As it turns out, the Sensors had four 45s on Ty Tex.
I haven’t heard the flip side, a version of “Caravan”, but Not Fade Away #2 says guitarist on that side was Levi Garrett. I assume these were recorded at Robin Hood Brians’ studio in Tyler, but I could be mistaken.
Two good instrumentals, recorded in Tyler, Texas, and produced by Eula Anton.