Leon Chappel

Leon Chappel remains a sadly unrecognized progenitor of Western swing, later recording a clutch of singles for Capitol that are fascinating for their mutant hillbilly-blues approach. Born Horace Leon Chappelear in Gilmer, TX, on August 1, 1909, he dropped his first name by 1929, when he teamed with friends Joe and Bob Shelton to form the Lone Star Cowboys. After launching their career at Tyler, TX, station KGKB, the three relocated to Shreveport, LA, where they signed to station KWKH. Sans his fellow Lone Star Cowboys, Chappelear made his recorded debut for the Gennett label with 1932's Jimmie Rodgers-inspired "Trifling Mama Blues" before reuniting with the Sheltons in mid-1933 to back singer Jimmie Davis on a session for Bluebird. Davis helped land the Lone Star Cowboys a deal with Victor, resulting in seminal early Western swing sides like "Deep Elm Blues" and "Just Because." Musical differences nevertheless prompted Chappelear to split with the Sheltons soon after, and after forming a new group he christened Leon's Lone Star Cowboys, his music swerved even closer to jazz, spearheaded by the kinetic fiddle playing of Lonnie Hall and a series of clarinetists. Leon's Lone Star Cowboys signed to Decca in mid-1935, recording just a handful of sides for the label before tragedy struck: while returning from a September live date, the vehicle carrying Chappelear crashed, and he was hospitalized with severe head injuries. Although he survived the incident, there is much conjecture that he never fully recovered, as evidenced by the erratic course of his remaining years; nevertheless, within six months Leon's Lone Star Cowboys were again recording for Decca and playing live on KWKH, although the group relocated to Shreveport station KRMD soon after, reportedly due to subpar...